The NFL made a conscientious effort to improve the Thursday night slate, and its viewers have been rewarded with a titillating matchup between AFC West rivals, with the Kansas City Chiefs hosting the Denver Broncos.
Both teams captured their respective opening games, with two distinctly different strategies. Travis Kelce may be the second-best tight end in the NFL, and he took advantage of poor spatial recognition by Houston's safeties en route to six catches for 106 yards and two touchdowns in a 27-20 win.
Whether it's warranted or not, Alex Smith was labelled as a "game manager" for the entirety of his career; last Sunday, Smith was clinically efficient, completing two-thirds of passes for 246 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions, and a sparkling 118.6 quarterback rating.
Two seasons ago, the Broncos broke single-season records for points scored and touchdowns, invoking nightmares for defensive coordinators around the league. That 2013 campaign appeared to be all too distant Sunday, with the Broncos' defense taking charge in a 19-13 win over the Baltimore Ravens, where both offenses sputtered.
Chris Harris, Bradley Roby, and Aqib Talib are arguably the NFL's best cornerback trio, the last of whom captured AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors after returning an interception 51 yards for a touchdown. The Broncos' triumvirate are likely to shine against a Chiefs wide receiver core that failed to record a touchdown last year, even with Kansas City adding Pro Bowler Jeremy Maclin via free agency.
Peyton Manning's race against time
Time will remain undefeated, even against an athlete of Peyton Manning's opulent stature. Manning looked like a shell of what he used to be Sunday, going 24-of-40 for 175 yards, with his longest completion traveling 18 yards to Emmanuel Sanders.
It may be unwise to tempt fate and preemptively forecast the denouement of Manning's iconic career, but the five-time MVP is trending downwards. Against a Chiefs' defense that sports a pair of Pro Bowl outside linebackers in Justin Houston and Tamba Hali, a massive run-stopping specialist in Dontari Poe, and resurgent safety Eric Berry, Manning will need to rediscover his full arsenal.
Many prognosticators are incorrectly claiming that Manning needs to win another Super Bowl to cement his legacy as one of the greatest players of all time, as if his triumph in Super Bowl XLI vanished from the annals of history. It's a revisionist way of viewing an all-time great's career, with recency bias pervading its way to the forefront.
Regardless, we'll never see Manning reach the stratospheric heights he did during his record-setting 2013 season. All one can do is hope that he'll continue to silence his naysayers, using his unrivaled intelligence to his advantage once again.
Player to Watch
Marcus Peters, CB, Chiefs
Kansas City selected Peters with its first-round pick in the 2015 draft, and the Washington product composed a middling performance in his debut. Peters recorded an interception on his first snap, showing off his excellent ball skills. The 22-year-old was also torched for two touchdowns, and he'll need to play with less risk, squaring off against the Broncos' Pro Bowl duo of Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders. Illuminated with raw talent, it'll be compelling to see how Peters fares against two of the league's best receivers.
Did you know?
- Kansas City holds a 56-53 head-to-head advantage against Denver, historically.
- Eric Berry played 48 snaps in the Chiefs' season opener, less than two months after being declared cancer-free. Berry recorded two tackles in the 27-20 win against the Texans.
- The Broncos have had a different leading rusher in three consecutive seasons.
- DeMarcus Ware, Von Miller, and Justin Houston graded out as Pro Football Focus' three best outside linebackers from Week 1.
