Defenses could decide Bengals-Broncos tonight

Associated Press

DENVER

They’re not wearing throwback uniforms tonight. The Cincinnati Bengals and Denver Broncos could certainly turn back the clock on all these aerial fireworks that are lighting up scoreboards across the NFL these days.

It’s not just that the game pits backup quarterbacks AJ McCarron, making his second NFL start, and Brock Osweiler, making his sixth, and not Andy Dalton and Peyton Manning. It matches two of the NFL’s stingiest defenses.

The Broncos (10-4) are No. 1 in the league against the run and the pass. They have a chance to become the first team since the 1970 merger to lead the league in total defense, scoring defense, sacks, and pass defense.

They hadn’t allowed a 30-point game or a 300-yard passer until their meltdown at Pittsburgh last week when they blew a two-touchdown halftime lead in a 34-27 loss that puts them in a precarious playoff position with a chance to earn a first-round bye or miss the postseason altogether.

“Last week we fell off a little bit as a defense,” Broncos rookie linebacker Shane Ray said. “But we’re still the best defense in the league.”

The Bengals (11-3) aren’t bad either. They’ve surrendered the fewest points in the NFL.

“That’s one of the most exciting things, to me, is going up against another top-tier defense in this atmosphere and in this league,” Bengals defensive end Wallace Gilberry said. “For me to sit here and say we don’t pay attention to that, that’s a lie. We do. We want to go out and outperform that unit.”

No team has had the Broncos’ rare balance since the Philadelphia Eagles led the league in run defense and pass defense in 1991. The Bengals give up more yards but they’ve allowed just 243 points, 16 fewer than Denver. And they’ve held six of their past nine opponents to 14 points or fewer.

The Bengals entered Week 16 as the only team in the NFL with two players with double-digit sack totals — Carlos Dunlap and Geno Atkins — and safety Reggie Nelson’s league-leading eight interceptions were double his previous career best.