Now that we know Peyton Manning will play significant time against Houston in Saturday’s preseason matchup, it’s time to start worrying about what kind of damage the inexperienced offensive line could allow by J.J. Watt. It’s a fair concern, one that Gil Whiteley addressed on Mile High Sports AM 1340 on Friday.
Whiteley, like many football-starved fans at this point in the young season, watched on Thursday as the Detroit Lions put a licking on Washington’s Robert Griffin III, who left the game with a concussion after three sacks and multiple fumbles. Could a similar fate be in store for Manning against the best defensive player in the league?
Not likely, as Manning has a much faster trigger than Griffin and will most certainly not try to extend a play with his legs – especially in the preseason. But concerns about how the offensive line will hold up against the aggressive Watt and the Texans are very real. Against Seattle, the first string o-line allowed just one sack on Brock Osweiler in one half of play, but the first- and second-string lines combined to allow seven QB hits and two total sacks over the course of the entire game.
While Whiteley doesn’t see Manning taking the kind of beating Griffin endured – it would be foolish to think Gary Kubiak would keep Manning in the game after even two hits of any significance – he’s still concerned that the Broncos do not have a complete game plan in place because this is only preseason. And Whiteley is very thankful Jadaveon Clowney is not playing or Manning and the line could be in big trouble.
Fortunately for Broncos fans, it appears Watt will not log significant time on Saturday night.
Aaron Wilson, who covers the Texans for the Houston Chronicle, joined Whiteley in the next segment and said he believes Watt will see only limited action in preseason Week 2. That’s good news for anyone afraid of sustained pressure, but bad news for anyone thinking it just takes one bad play to derail an entire season.
Whiteley and a caller also examined some of the free agents offensive linemen still available to the Broncos and how the team behaves, philosophically, with its free agents.
Listen to the full discussion and interview in the podcasts below…
Listen to Gil Whiteley every weekday on Mile High Sports AM 1340 or Listen Live any time for the best local coverage of what’s new and what’s next in Colorado sports.
