The Denver Broncos have regained their footing after a disastrous Week 1 effort against the Kansas City Chiefs and now have a perfect chance to return the favor and take the division lead.
The Broncos and Chiefs will meet in one of Week 8's top games. Denver has beaten Kansas City the last three times they have played at Empower Field. Riding a three-game winning streak, the Broncos hope tp deal the Chiefs a second consecutive loss.
The game will feature several big matchups that could determine who walks away with the victory. Here are three matchups to keep a watchful eye on during the action on Sunday.
Broncos vs. Chiefs Week 8 key matchups
Broncos' defensive front vs. Kenneth Walker III
This is the biggest matchup in this game. Can the Broncos slow down Kenneth Walker? If not, they won't win this game.
Walker rushed for 173 yards
and had a rushing touchdown and another receiving score in the season opener. It was a lot of missed tackles and poor effort by the Broncos that helped him reach that number. In this game, the Broncos need to slow him down at the point of attack. That means not allowing Walker to reach the second level of the defense and holding him to a lot of one and two-yard gains.
Zach Allen will figure in prominently if the team is successful in this aspect of the game. Allen had both of Denver's sacks in Week 1. He needs to push Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith around off the snap and help lead a focused attack to stop Walker, similar to the way Seattle did last Sunday.
Pat Surtain II vs. Rashee Rice
The Broncos will get their top defensive player, Pat Surtain, back for this game and he should be able to quickly settle in and slow down the opposition's No. 1 receiver on a regular basis again. For Kansas City, that is Rashee Rice, who is also returning from injury for this game.
Rice only caught two passes in Week 1, but one of them went for a touchdown. Surtain needs to keep him in check and force Patrick Mahomes to look for other options in the passing game, an area where the Chiefs have struggled this season, particularly with Tyquan Thornton out of the lineup.
Evan Engram vs. Chiefs' safeties
Evan Engram is not thought of often when it comes to Broncos offensive weapons, but with RJ Harvey set to miss this game and Jaylen Waddle listed as questionable with a chest injury, someone needs to step up in the passing game to help Bo Nix.
Engram had his best game of the season against the Chiefs, catching four passes for 43 yards and the Broncos' first touchdown of the season. The Chiefs have allowed an average of 7.3 receptions and 70.8 yards to the tight end position this season. Only four teams have given up more.
Engram can take advantage of the safeties in this Chiefs secondary to produce another solid game.
This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: 3 matchups to watch when Broncos face Chiefs in Week 8
