The Cincinnati Bengals travel to Sports Authority Field at Mile High to face the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football. It's a battle of backup quarterbacks with playoff implications on the line, as the Bengals can lock up a first round bye with a win on Monday night.
Bengals backup quarterback A.J. McCarron won his first game as an NFL starter against the San Francisco 49ers last week and will look to keep the momentum rolling in Denver. The second-year quarterback has thrown for 495 yards with three touchdowns to two interceptions and faces his toughest challenge yet against the Broncos' stout defense.
Cincinnati head coach Marvin Lewis will look to establish a strong ground game Monday, as that will alleviate pressure on his young second-string quarterback. Running backs Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill will look to get plenty of touches, and Lewis will feed the hot hand in Denver. Bernard leads the team with 680 rushing yards but has managed only two touchdowns on the year. Hill leads the Bengals with 188 carries and has scored 10 touchdowns this season but has struggled to break out for big plays.
The Bengals will look to win for the first time in Denver since 1975 and have not beaten a team lead by head coach Gary Kubiak in his career. The Broncos are fighting for playoff positioning and are ranked first in the league in terms of yards allowed per game. Broncos linebacker Von Miller can create havoc for opposing offenses and has recorded 10 sacks and four forced fumbles on the year.
Broncos' backup quarterback Brock Osweiler has struggled to stay consistent in the absence of Peyton Manning and has a record of 3-2 as the starter. Osweiler has thrown for 1,436 yards with eight touchdowns to four interceptions. The Broncos' second round pick in 2012 is trending in the wrong direction, as the team has lost its last two games. Against the Steelers, Osweiler put up some strong numbers with 296 passing yards and three touchdowns, but the team squandered an early lead as it was outscored 21-0 in the second half.
Denver will look to bounce back Monday night, and quarterback play will be a huge factor in who comes out on top. Osweiler will target star wide receiver Demaryius Thomas on Monday, as he leads the team in both receptions and yards. The Broncos' top wideout has now had four straight seasons with more than 1,100 yards receiving and has 1,128 yards this year. Thomas caught two touchdowns against the Steelers last week and has four of his five touchdowns since Osweiler took over as the starter.
Playoff implications are on the line Monday night, and expect both teams to come out fired up, as a first round bye in the postseason is on the line. The game starts at 8:30 p.m. EST, and you can watch the live broadcast here. To listen the Broncos' radio broadcast, click here, and for the Bengals' radio broadcast, go here.
