Broncos (6-6) at 49ers (2-10)
L ..... at Minnesota ..... 24-16 W .......... Detroit .......... 30-27 L .... at Kansas City .... 38-27 L ....... at Chargers ....... 29-27 L ........... Arizona ........... 28-18 L ..... at Green Bay ..... 33-30 L ........ L.A. Rams ........ 39-10 L ........ at Arizona ........ 18-15 W ........... Oakland ........... 34-3 L ....... N.Y. Giants ....... 27-23 Nov. 18 .............. Bye ............. L ....... at Tampa Bay ....... 27-9 L ........ at Seattle ........ 43-16 Dec. 9 ....... Denver ....... 4:05 Dec. 16 ...... Seattle ...... 4:05 Dec. 23 ..... Chicago ..... 4:05 Dec. 30 .at L.A. Rams .4:25
Sunday, 4:05 p.m. Stadium, Santa Clara
TV: CBS
Danny Sheridan’s line: by 6
Broncos’ keys to victory: Denver needs a good game from QB Case Keenum. San Francisco will try to take away RBs Phillip Lindsay and Royce Freeman, leaving the onus on Keenum to make plays and take advantage of a young, banged-up 49ers secondary. On defense, Denver must make San Francisco’s quarterback uncomfortable. Neither CJ Beathard nor Nick Mullens is particularly strong under pressure. OLB Von Miller and OLB Bradley Chubb can have a huge impact on this game if they can hit the 49ers quarterback and make the San Francisco offense one-dimen-sional.
49ers’ keys to victory: Limiting the Broncos strong pass rush will start with the run game. RB Matt Breida is vital to the 49ers sustaining any kind of offensive success. If he can get rolling early, it will open up the play action game for Mullens or Beathard. This game also comes down to the pass rush on defense for San Francisco. If the 49ers can hit Keenum early and often, they will have a shot at an upset. DL DeForest Buckner and OLB Dekoda Watson will need to be catalysts for the 49ers defense up front.
Matchup to watch: 49ers run defense vs. Broncos running backs. The Broncos boast a superb one-two punch in rookies Freeman and Lindsay. The 49ers have a top-10 run defense. Winning this battle will be vital for both teams.
Who wins? The Broncos are fighting for their playoff lives while the 49ers are emptying their bench as they look ahead to next year. This game might get ugly.
Broncos, 30-16 ET, Levi’s Broncos