The Denver Broncos battle the undefeated San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. Riding the highs of back-to-back comebacks, the Broncos are in pursuit of a third straight win. However, the 49ers present a big challenge for Denver given how good they are on both sides of the ball. In order to achieve a key road victory, these three players will need to perform at a high level.
Bo Nix — Quarterback
Bo Nix boasts a good start to his career. With 26 wins, a dozen game winning drives, and ten fourth quarter comebacks, Nix has certainly
outperformed his 2024 NFL Draft peers at the position. He’s arguably the comeback king of the NFL, but fans across Broncos Country are still waiting for more consistency and better starts to games.
I have no doubt a much more consistent rushing attack would benefit the third-year signal caller. However, he simply has to play better. This year, there has been significant regression with Nix’s first and third down passing. Last season, Nix did very well on first downs, but this year’s output is less than optimal. Third-and-short to third-and-medium range passing situations continue to be an issue as well.
Under the guidance of Raheem Morris, the 49ers sport a sound zone-heavy defense that has done a good job of limiting the impact of opposing offenses thus far. They are winning on early downs. They have playmakers that can cover a lot of ground and do well erasing opportunities in down the field and over the middle. I’ll be watching how Nix performs closely on Sunday—he has to have a good start and be a lot more consistent.
Jonah Elliss — Edge Rusher
With Jonathon Cooper sidelined to begin the season on the NFL Commissioner’s Exempt list, the Broncos have been banking on the progression and development of edge rusher Jonah Elliss. The former third-round pick has a significant increase in snaps at nearly 65-percent of the defense’s total—up from 38-percent his first two seasons in Denver.
Unfortunately, through three games Elliss has struggled a fair bit. He doesn’t have a sack and has registered just two hurries and five pressures. We are seeing a significant drop off in hurry and pressure rate. Additionally, containment and setting the edge has been an issue for the former Utah standout. Though I’ll admit that issue hasn’t just been singular to him.
Nobody has been able to sack Brock Purdy thus far. Moreover, the 49ers have one of the best rushing attacks in the league. Will this be the week Elliss steps up and makes some big plays on defense? Denver will need him to play at a high level to keep Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, and Kaelon Black in check.
Alex Singleton — Inside Linebacker
One player I have major concerns about this game is inside linebacker Alex Singleton. I felt Singleton had a rebound performance in Week 2 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. However, I was less than impressed with his outing against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday Night Football.
The eighth-year pro has 32 tackles on the season. Though none of them are for loss and he is already credited with 8 missed tackles. Moreover, #49’s numbers in coverage don’t look particular good either. That may be a problem going up against a 49ers team that runs the ball well and is extremely efficient through the air.
49ers Head Coach Kyle Shanahan is a master at finding matchups against opposing defenses that play to his advantage. I have a feeling Shanahan has drawn up a handful of plays that feature players like Christian McCaffrey or George Kittle attempting to expose Singleton’s deficiencies. Alongside the aforementioned Elliss, he is another defender I’ll be keeping close tabs on Sunday.
