As the Dallas Cowboys travel to Denver to play the Broncos, the Denver team is expecting an uphill battle. Although the team is playing at home, the Broncos are expected to lose even though Cowboys' wide receiver Terrance Williams isn't expected to play. There are nine keys that may help the Broncos succeed against the Cowboys if they are ready. This is the second game of the season for Dallas, and it occurs after a shooting in Plano, Texas at a Dallas Cowboys game party where eight people were killed, including the shooter, and one was injured.
Will Dallas outrun Denver on the field?
Yahoo Sports reported that Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Terrance Williams is out of action this week. Although Williams is now expected to play, the team had previously listed Williams as questionable to play because of an ankle injury that occurred during practice. Even though Williams hasn't had great numbers so far, he did gain 68 yards after he caught eight passes against the Giants in week one. With the Broncos stout secondary, Williams isn't expected to post such numbers this week.
ESPN reported that Denver will have to up their defense if they plan to defeat the Cowboys' running game.
Although Dallas is expected to have a strong running game, the Broncos will bring their own fresh legs to the game with linebackers like Von Miller, a Texas native who is looking forward to playing his favorite childhood team. This will be Miller's second chance to play against the Cowboys, and as an expert at sacking quarterbacks, the Cowboys will have to be on their guard. The Los Angeles Chargers did everything they could last week to keep Miller away from their quarterback. Because of Miller, the Chargers only gained 114 yards in the first three quarters of the game.
Although Denver has the top passing game in the league, it won't do them any good if they can't stop the Dallas rushing attack.
The Cowboys had two scoring drives against the Giants last week where Dallas didn't have a third down. Since Denver spent a lot of money to repair their defense, this is their chance to test out their defense to find out how good they really are.
Can Denver pull off an upset?
Colorado's 9 News reported that there were nine keys to giving Denver a chance to defeat Dallas on the gridiron. The first will be for Denver to contain Ezekiel Elliott. Elliott has had 15 consecutive games with at least 80 yards rushing. Unleashing Miller while protecting Trevor Siemian will allow Denver to be stronger both on defense and offense. Denver can also unleash Isaiah McKenzie, who is fast and plays well at both wide receiver and running back.
Forcing turnovers while protecting the ball and preventing the type of turnovers that the Broncos faced with the Chargers last week will also make them stronger. The Dallas defense only listed 20 takeovers last season, which ranked them 19th in the league.