Broncos QB Peyton Manning was two incompletions short of a perfect game against in the 49ers inaugural game at their new stadium.
The Denver Broncos defeated the San Francisco 49ers in preseason action on Sunday.
Here is what the two teams were able to take away for their players, their schemes or even their coaching staff:
Broncos:
The defense is spectacular – The Broncos managed to completely shut out the 49ers offense – the 11th best in the NFL last year – even with almost all of their offensive starters playing for the first half. The additions of CB Aqib Talib and Safety T.J. Ward have made the defense a tough nut to crack, and once the team starts playing Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware, it may be impossible to throw against this team.
Plenty of receivers to go around – With seven different receivers recording a catch of 15 yards or more against the 49ers, it is clear that the Broncos have plenty of receiving depth for QB Peyton Manning in 2014. Demaryius Thomas, Julius Thomas, Cody Latimer, Jacob Tamme, and Wes Welker all make up what should be one of the most depth-filled receiving corps in football. And the scary thing is: The team hasn’t even activated their top free agent WR Emmanuel Sanders for a preseason game yet.
49ers:
QB Blaine Gabbert is still terrible – Many people though trading a 2015 late-round draft pick for former 1st-round draft pick Blaine Gabbert was a steal for the 49ers, but after two straight games with an INT and some of the most dismal performances by a QB for any period of time, it’s starting to look like the 49ers gave up that draft pick for nothing.
Offensive depth is questionable – The 49ers have not scored a point in a preseason game since a Phil Dawson FG in the first 5 minutes of their game against the Ravens: 1 hour and 49 minutes of game time have passed without the 49ers scoring a single point. The 49ers have recorded 7 turnovers in that time and have been outscored by 54 points. In the last two years of the preseason, the 49ers have averaged over 20 points through their first two preseason games, so it’s safe to say the team needs a serious boost on the offense
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