It's no secret Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning as an elite arsenal of weapons at his disposal, and they'll be on display Sunday afternoon during a visit to the New England Patriots.
To counter the Broncos' high-powered attack, the Patriots' defense looks to confiscate those weapons at the line of scrimmage.
"Definitely want this to be a physical game on our part," Patriots linebacker Dont'a Hightower said this week, via CSNNE. "They have a lot of big receivers, a lot of quick guys. So the one thing that we're going to have to do that I feel like we're pretty good at is being aggressive. Whether it's jamming, or they have a lot of crosses so just being aggressive and coming down on that."
While Julius Thomas has been Manning's top red zone target with nine touchdowns, Demaryius Thomas has been hot of late and on a four-game streak of at least 100 yards. This year, he's already put games of 226 and 171 yards, and opposite receiver Emmanuel Sanders has 47 receptions and coming off a three-touchdown game.
New England's defense will also be tasked with former Patriot Wes Welker.
"Peyton is going to get those guys the ball, no matter how or when, whether they're double covered or whatever," Hightower said. "So we're just going to have to do a real good job on the line of scrimmage and just be aggressive with these guys."
The Patriots are giving up the second fewest passing yards per game in the NFL and are the only team in the league yet to have given up a passing play of 40 yards or more.
New England's defense will also be tasked with former Patriot Wes Welker.
"Peyton is going to get those guys the ball, no matter how or when, whether they're double covered or whatever," Hightower said. "So we're just going to have to do a real good job on the line of scrimmage and just be aggressive with these guys."
The Patriots are giving up the second fewest passing yards per game in the NFL and are the only team in the league yet to have given up a passing play of 40 yards or more.
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