When Ben Powers went down with an injury for the Denver Broncos, plenty of questions arose surrounding how Sean Payton and the offense would adapt. After their initial backup plan also went down with an injury, Denver had a hidden gem waiting in the wings.
Alex Palczewski has looked good over the course of the last two games, filling in at left guard and the Broncos offense, and the run game in particular has gotten going on the left side, and Palcho’s stability is a big reason why, combined with the willing efforts of Denver’s receivers on the perimeter.
“He [T Alex Palczewski] is doing a real good job,” Payton said. “He’s physically smart. The experience he’s had as a player over the years, you know what you’re getting, and there is a great value to that. Some of those plays to the left came, they were kind of maybe check with me runs. Right versus a certain look, left versus a certain look. But I thought overall we blocked them real well, and it sets up a lot of other things when you’re able to do that.”
Let’s take a look at one play in particular against the Dallas Cowboys, on RJ Harvey’s big-time touchdown run in the first quarter. Palczewski and the entire offensive unit put on a masterclass in effective blocking from start to finish to spring Harvey free, including Palczewski working a chip against the nose tackle and working his way up to the second-level to prevent the playside linebacker from being able to disrupt the play.
The Broncos collectively rushed for over 180+ yards in Sunday’s win against the Cowboys, and J.K. Dobbins surpassed over 100 yards on the ground again. It’s very clear that Denver’s offensive identity is rooted in running the football and utilizing the quick passing game. Sunday’s win was the most complete team performance for the Broncos in recent memory.
Denver will be on the practice field on Wednesday as they look to prepare against the Houston Texans on Sunday.
