Menelik Watson, Broncos offensive tackle
The skinny: Menelik Watson has started and played every offensive snap at tackle so far this season. But he has also yielded 5½ of the Broncos’ six sacks of quarterback Trevor Siemian. After facing the Chargers’ Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram in Week 1 and Dallas’ Demarcus Lawrence in Week 2, Watson now prepares to go up against a Bills pass rush that sacked Carolina quarterback Cam Newton six times last weekend.
The background: The Manchester, England, native is relatively new to American football. He played basketball at Marist College from 2009-10, then transferred to Saddleback (Calif.) Junior College, where he played football for the first time and lined up at tackle opposite Kyle Long. Watson played one season at Florida State before the Raiders selected him in the second round of 2013 draft. The Broncos signed Watson as a free agent in March after he had spent four injury-riddled seasons in Oakland. Denver believed he had the potential, toughness and certainly the size (6-foot-5, 315 pounds) to start on the edge of their remade offensive line.
His take: “We’re not here to be bottom of the barrel,” Watson said of the O-line. “We’re trying to be the best line in the league, period. If there’s a line out there that’s not trying to do the same thing, they shouldn’t be playing football. We’re just trying to bring that nastiness and trying to just do our part to make sure this team is winning football games.”
Their take: “We want to be smart bullies,” said Denver coach Vance Joseph. “We don’t want to be idiots. We don’t want to get penalties that cost us big plays in the game. (Watson is) an emotional guy, but he’s also a tone setter.”