Broncos Vs. Rams: 3 Players To Watch In Week 3

The Denver Broncos host the Los Angeles Rams for their Week 3 gridiron matchup in primetime on Sunday Night Football. In order for the Broncos to achieve their second victory of the season, these are three players need to stand out in a big way tomorrow evening.

Zach Allen — Defensive Lineman

It was a night and day difference for the Broncos’ defense when comparing their execution in Week 1 versus Week 2. One player who really stood out to me in their comeback win over the Jaguars was defensive lineman Zach Allen.

Allen may have not been a monster on the traditional stat sheet, but he was consistently applying pressure on Trevor Lawrence all game long. He made their interior offensive line look bad (especially rookie left guard Emmanuel Pregnon) and was a key reason Lawrence had a poor performance through the air.

The eighth-year pro has been a tremendous player for the franchise since coming over alongside Vance Joseph from the Arizona Cardinals in 2023. There’s no doubt he is one of Denver’s best players, and certainly one of the most underrated defensive linemen in the National Football League.

In order to slow down Matthew Stafford and aerial attack of the Rams, Allen’s pass rushing prowess will have to be on display. Over the past few seasons, Los Angeles has done a good job protecting Stafford and giving him plenty of time to hit his array of weapons from the pocket. I’m optimistic Allen will rise to the occasion and cause issues on Sunday night.

Riley Moss — Cornerback

The secondary performed well last Sunday against the Jaguars. Outside of a few busted plays, their coverage was sound and their starting trio at cornerback did an incredible job limiting Trevor Lawrence’s impact through the air. I felt all of them had some great plays throughout the game.

After a few bad plays in Week 1, cornerback Riley Moss came back with a vengeance. His second half interception was a crucial play in the game. It served as a big momentum shift that helped earn the Broncos their first win of the season.

The Rams boast two great receivers in Davante Adams and Puka Nacua. Though it does seem unlikely that Nacua is going to play due to injury. Regardless, I do expect there to be situations where Moss has to go up against Adams—unless the Broncos opt for a defensive gameplan that permanently fixates Patrick Surtain II on him.

Either way, I expect Moss to be targeted often. This offseason, Moss discussed the importance of getting stronger and being more physical at the catch point going up against big receivers. He’ll certainly have an opportunity to do that in primetime. The Broncos will need him to be at his best to keep the Rams’ passing attack from taking off at Mile High.

Luke Wattenberg — Center

The Broncos’ offensive line faces another big test this going up against defensive front seven of the Rams. They have a handful of quality players that have to be kept in check. Denver’s big men up front are going to have to do well to protect Bo Nix. Additionally, they will need block well to jumpstart their running game to have a shot at winning.

Through two games, I think there is certainly improvement to be had from Denver’s offensive line unit. Routinely ranked as one of the NFL’s best heading into the season, they haven’t been firing on all cylinders thus far. One particular offensive lineman that I will be keeping a close eye on is center Luke Wattenberg.

Wattenberg has struggled with some of his snaps this season. He has also been susceptible to giving up interior pressure and dealing with blitzes and stunts. There will be times Aaron Donald is likely isolated on him in one-on-one matchups. Despite coming out of retirement and not playing for several years, Donald had nearly a 28-percent pass rush win rate against the New York Giants.

The fifth-year center is going to need to perform well on Sunday Night Football to keep the future Hall of Famer in check. Denver can’t afford to get beat up the middle if they want to let Nix step up into the pocket and rip it and establish their running attack.