The Lead
Denver's defense will face a difficult task against the Dolphins' dynamic offense, led by quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and wide receiver Tyreek Hill. Miami leads the league in yards per game, and Broncos inside linebacker Josey Jewell said Denver will need to bring its best effort to slow down the Dolphins' speedy big-play threats.
"They've got a fast offense," Jewell said after Wednesday's practice. "They've got a lot of window dressing out there, and they've got those guys on the outside. Their running backs are really good [and] their O-line is solid. They've got a bunch of good players, so we're going to have to bring our 'A' game."
Jewell also assessed how the defense can take another step against the Dolphins and underscored the importance of reducing penalties and generating turnovers.
"We need to slow down on penalties," Jewell said. "That's definitely a huge thing, I think that's probably number one for us. And then we need to create the turnovers; we had at least two chances on those picks, so we need to be able to reel those in next time."
Another area of execution that Jewell said will be critical against Miami's offense will be its ability to stick to its assignments.
While the Dolphins boast plenty of playmakers, Jewell also sees plenty of talent on all levels of Denver's defense and said the unit is capable of defeating any opponent if the Broncos fulfill their roles and play as a team.
"[It's important to be] able to play fundamental football and stay where we're supposed to be, don't try to do too much — everybody do your job and settle down," Jewell said. "If we do our own job, we can beat people. We're good enough on defense. We just need to be able to settle down and do that every single play."
