Even without Manning, Broncos-Patriots features a matchup of all-time greats

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — When the New England Patriots and Denver Broncos square off on Sunday, it will not be Peyton Manning against Tom Brady—the epic battle between two of the best quarterbacks ever.

However, in the first meeting between the two teams in the post-Manning era, the NFL might have the next best thing, another matchup between two of the best ever: Tom Brady and the Denver Broncos pass defense, “the No Fly Zone.” Unlike Brady and Manning, these two actually go head-to-head.

“All-time great secondary, all-time great quarterback. It’s the battle that it is,” cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said. “Every time you play Brady you got to play at your best, you got to be at an all time high because he’s going to bring it out of you and if you don’t play good he’ll embarrass you.”

The No Fly Zone, comprised of three Pro Bowl players in the secondary—Harris Jr., cornerback Aqib Talib and safety T.J. Ward— as well as safety Darian Stewart and cornerback Bradley Roby, earned its nickname for having the best pass defense in the NFL since the start of 2015. This season, the Broncos’ 183 passing yards allowed per game leads the league by almost 20 yards.

Additionally, Denver leads the league in opponent’s completion percentage (54.1), passing touchdowns allowed (10), opposing quarterback rating (67.4) and net yards per pass attempt (4.9). Harris believes the No Fly Zone is one of the best defensive backfields ever.

“We have had multiple Pro Bowlers in our secondary every year,” he said. “I think when you put us down in history we have to be in the conversation for sure.”

At 39 years old, despite missing the first four games of the year due to suspension, Brady is still the cream of the crop of today’s NFL quarterbacks. With his league-leading 113.6 quarterback rating along with 319 passing yards per game and 22 touchdowns to only two interceptions, Brady is in every discussion for the MVP race, if not leading it.

“I think he’s exceptional right now,” Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak said. “He’s been on a mission since he’s come back. Obviously, he missed a month. That’s hard on players. You can just see how driven he is… He’s exceptional. I have great respect for what he’s doing and how he’s doing it right now.“

Not only are they two of the top units in the league, but they are also both coming off of one of the best performances of the year. On Sunday, even in a 13-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans, the No Fly Zone had their best game of the season, only allowing Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota to throw for 88 yards.

Then, on Monday night against a top rated Baltimore Ravens defense, Brady had his second 400-yard three-touchdown game of the season to put his record to 8-1 and the Patriots atop the AFC with an 11-2 record. On Sunday, this match up could very well decide the winner of the game.

“He brings the best out of everybody. When you play against him, you want to play at a high level. You have no choice,” Harris said. “It’s going to be a great match up. It’s always fun to play against him.”

The No Fly Zone won’t be without help against one of the greatest quarterbacks of all-time, however. The Broncos’ pass rush—lead by Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware—will be key in pressuring Brady early and often, not allowing him time to pick apart the defense.

In last year’s AFC Championship game, Brady had barely any time in the pocket and was sacked four times, something that will need to be replicated again on Sunday for the Broncos to have success, according to Harris.

“We have a good combination of coverage and rush that gives him trouble,” he said. “I think it makes him think a little bit longer. That’s what we’re going to try to do again. We’re trying to make sure that we get some hits on him and make sure we pressure him. We’re going to try get him off his spots and also have great coverage behind that.”

On Sunday, when the New England Patriots come to the Mile High City, something’s got to give between these two great units. If the Broncos can stop, or at least slow down Brady and get the victory, it would not only give them their third straight victory over No. 12, but it would significantly help their playoff chances.