NFL: Denver Broncos vs Oakland Raiders matchup analysis

Denver has still something to play, as the Broncos need to hold on their 2nd place in the AFC behind the Patriots. With a win, they will earn a first round bye, but if they lose against the Raiders, they could drop of the 2nd spot if Cincy defeats the Steelers on sunday night.
Lately, Denver is running the football effectively thanks to a great RB Anderson, who is so good since Ronnie Hillman in injured. This new vision in the Broncos offense is good for the team but has some limits, as QB Peyton Manning is not doing well. Some say that his arm is not the same or that he’s too old and everything like this, but thats not the problem. The main problem is that his weapons are bang up : WR Welker is no more the same player and TE Thomas is playing not at 100%. The TE was the reason why the Broncos and Manning were superb last year and in the early season, as the former basketball player is essential for Manning because he’s a great middle of the field target. He’s very effective on the outside too and very useful out of play action with his combination of speed and strength. And Denver will need him and all the weapons in their offense, as Oakland has play very good football lately on the defensive side, especially against the run. Rookie pass rusher Mack is just a beast and guys like DE Tuck or linebacker Armstrong are good and last week, they hold the Bills to 13 yards in 13 carries. So Manning will have to be effective, and he needs to be better than his past few games, where he has thrown just 10 TD for 8 picks. But I think the Broncos D will take the ballgame early and they will bring a lot of trouble for rookie QB Carr. NT Knighton is just a beast to stop the run, as RB Murray will have a tough task. Miller and Ware will bring pressure to Carr and I think he will have trouble in Denver, where the weather could get difficult. The secondary has been great too for Jack Del Rio, as CB Talib and Harris are great and both Pro-Bowl selections.
Oakland is playing great defense as I said but their offense is too limited to matchup with the Broncos in Denver. They could take the Bills as an great exemple I think, because Buffalo was so great on D against Manning 2 weeks ago. Oakland has the weapons to coutain the running game of Anderson, but I think their secondary is I suppose to limited, even if SS Woodson has been great lately. On offense, they absolutely need Carr to be effective and avoid quick 3 and outs, as his TE Rivera need to be a good weapon up the middle. WR James Jones is a good red zone target for the young QB, but overall, Carr will have a tough task going up against a good Broncos D. RB Latavius Murray absolutely need to hold the ball well and create 3rd and short situations, but the matchup is really difficult for the guy out of UCF.
Im taking the Broncos winning this football game, but this will not be as easy as people think. The Raiders D is great lately, the same for the Broncos one. But Manning need to bounce back from his last performance against the Bengals, as the former Colts needs to show that he could have a clean game before the postseason start. I think the Denver front 7 will thrive in this one and they will earn my MVP vote, as TE Julius Thomas will be the X Factor because he’s a great weapon for Manning, even if he has not been in the game plan lately.

With the collaboration of Alan Guillou