The Raiders-Broncos rivalry has turned fairly one-sided lately, with the Raiders having won the last four meetings between the two teams and five of the last six.
The last Broncos’ win came in Oakland — 23-3, in what was the third win of a six-game winning streak to open the 2009 season.
But to get a win Sunday , the Broncos will have to:
He’s most comfortable doing that and sees the field far better than when he’s under center. However, the Broncos have shown they’ve had a difficult time protecting Tebow, and Tebow has had a difficult time protecting himself in those situations.
He’s been sacked 12 times in two starts, with 10 of those sacks coming when he’s in the shotgun. The Broncos have already made it clear they want to run the ball more this week and want Tebow to get rid of it quicker.
That means they will beef up the formation at times, perhaps using a few more two-tight end looks, even when Tebow is in the shotgun. His accuracy isn’t going to improve until he sets his feet more and delivers the ball.
It’s hard to do that under pressure, and Tebow will have to be better simply ditching the ball at times if nothing’s available. And, he has to play under center, like it or not, so the Broncos can use play-action.
There also is the matter of a fast-moving offense that can’t get first downs — and the Broncos had a pile of three-and-outs against the Lions last Sunday. That means the offense is hanging its defense out to dry, serving it up to opposing offenses far too often.
The Raiders have more team speed than the Broncos at virtually every position, so the Broncos’ best chance is to turn back the tempo of things a bit on offense, run the ball a little more and keep themselves in manageable down-and-distance situations so the Raiders’ rush can’t come after Tebow on one third-and-long after another.
Even without Darren McFadden, who has a sprained foot, the Raiders figure to send a wide array of runs at the Broncos. The Broncos need better play from their defensive tackles and linebackers, and their safeties must tackle better than they have in recent games between these teams.
That also means that Denver cornerbacks not named Champ Bailey will have to hold up in single coverage against two of the fastest players in the league on the outside for the Raiders in Jacoby Ford and Darius Heyward-Bey.
Houshmandzadeh figures to play in the slot plenty, and if the Broncos don’t put Bailey inside in those situations, look for Palmer to keep chucking the ball there until the Broncos make him stop.
Sheppard figures to get plenty of playing time as well, and the 10-year veteran knows a thing or two about baiting a quarterback. Tebow will get plenty of work going against man coverage because that’s what the Raiders like to play.
Jeff Legwold: 303-954-2359 or jlegwold@denverpost.com
