The Denver Broncos traveled to the Soldier Field against the Chicago Bears in the preseason opener. The Broncos soundly defeated the Bears 22-0 and scored on all sides of the ball– offense, defense, and special teams– while completely holding the Bears to only 130 yards. Gary Kubiak said before leaving the field, “I saw a lot of things carried over from practice…. We scored in all three phases of the game. We are only going to get better each week.”
Denver’s defense continued its dominant play of last year while many of their Super Bowl defensive playmakers looked on. Aqib Talib; Chris Harris, Jr.; Demarcus Ware; and Von Miller supported their team from the sidelines. Miller described this year’s defense as potentially better than last year’s.
The Broncos’ larger question of the starting quarterback has still not been decided, and this game did not make that decision any more clear. Sanchez was under center when the game opened in the Windy City. He started the game with an impressive opening drive ending in a 32-yard pass to Demaryius Thomas for the only offensive touchdown of the game. Denver’s very next drive ended with Sanchez’s interception on his own 39-yard line. Sanchez finished the quarter completing 10 of his 13 passes for a total of 99 yards. He has the mobility to run Kubiak’s offense and showed the mental toughness to stand in the pocket under pressure. Sanchez’s career, however, has been plagued by interceptions and turnovers.
Trevor Siemian started in the second quarter with an opening drive that ended in a field goal bringing the Broncos to a 10-0 lead over Chicago. He completed 7 of his 12 passes for a total of 88 yards.
Special teams also stepped up and blocked a punt which Bennie Fowler recovered for a Denver touchdown.
First round draft pick, Paxton Lynch entered in the third quarter. Lynch has the size and the speed the Broncos want to have in their future quarterback. Lynch completed six of his seven throws for 74 yards.
Denver will head home where they will practice against the 49ers ahead of their next preseason game at Mile High. Both teams have a tough decision to make at quarterback and will use the extra games to put those quarterbacks to the test.
