Chat with Yahoo Sports NFL experts Nate Tice and Charles McDonald during Saints-Broncos tonight on Yahoo Sports. (Amber Matsumoto/Yahoo Sports)
Short weeks can be hard on NFL teams with less time to prepare than usual, and that puts the New Orleans Saints in a tough spot as they open Week 7 with a visit from the Denver Broncos on Thursday Night Football. Starting quarterback Derek Carr is expected to miss multiple weeks with an oblique injury he suffered in a Week 5 loss to the Chiefs, and the Saints will once again turn to rookie Spencer Rattler under center for another trial-by-fire start. Rattler made his first NFL start on Sunday against the Buccaneers and went 22-of-40 for 243 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions in a 51-27 blowout loss.
Rattler wasn't the issue as much as the Saints defense was — the unit gave up nearly 600 yards of offense to Tampa Bay. The Broncos, led by fellow rookie QB Bo Nix, will be looking for a bounce-back performance after a 23-16 loss in Week 6 to the Los Angeles Chargers, in which they didn't score until the fourth quarter. Nix has completed just over 61% of his throws this season and has five touchdown passes and five interceptions on the year heading into Week 7.
You can chat about all of it with other fans and Yahoo Sports NFL experts Nate Tice and Charles McDonald using our new Game Discussions feature in the Yahoo Sports app. You can download the app for Apple here and Google here, and make sure you already have the latest version. Then you can open the Saints-Broncos game page, tap "Join the Discussions," agree to the guidelines, and then join the fun.
How to watch Broncos vs. Saints — Thursday Night Football
Time: 7:15 p.m. ET
Location: Caesars Superdome | New Orleans
Streaming: Amazon Prime Video
Live14 updates
Ian Casselberry
TOUCHDOWN, Broncos
Jevonte Williams scores on an eight-yard touchdown run to finish off an eight-play, 88-yard drive for the Broncos. Denver now has a 13–0 lead with 7:30 remaining in the second quarter.
However, an offsides penalty on D.J. Jones wipes out the touchdown.
Ian Casselberry
Field goal: Broncos 6, Saints 0
The Broncos stall inside the Saints' 10-yard line and have to settle for a field goal.
Wil Lutz kicks a 32-yarder to give Denver a 6–0 lead.
Ian Casselberry
End of 1st quarter: Broncos 3, Saints 0
Denver dominated time of possession in the first quarter (holding the ball for more than 11 minutes), helped by Spencer Rattler's fumble.
Bo Nix completed a 12-yard pass to Troy Franklin for the final play of the quarter. Denver starts 1st-and-10 from the Saints' 17-yard line.
Ian Casselberry
Saints turn it over
Spencer Rattler is sacked for a seven-yard loss by Cody Barton. He appeared to fumble, which was reviewed to see if his arm was coming forward before losing the ball. But replays confirmed the call on the field. The fumble recovery by Kwon Alexander stands.
After that drive-opening 32-yard pass, the Saints can't get a first down on their next three plays and have to punt.
Denver takes over and is moving the ball. They've gained positive yardage on the first six plays of their second possession, highlighted by a 20-yard catch and run from Devaughn Vele.
Ian Casselberry
Spencer Rattler's first pass goes for 32 yards
New Orleans is also starting a rookie quarterback tonight with Spencer Rattler. His first pass of the Saints' opening possession goes 32 yards to Foster Mo
Bo Nix has gotten yardage with his legs, rushing twice for 22 yards on the Broncos' opening possession. But he missed a wide-open Troy Franklin for what might have been a touchdown on the fifth play of the drive.
Cornerback Patrick Surtain II headlines the Broncos inactives for Week 7's "Thursday Night Football" matchup. For the Saints, receiver Chris Olave is among the notable names out tonight along with Taysom Hill.
Introducing Game Discussions, a new tool in the Yahoo Sports app that lets you mingle with our NFL experts as well as other fans. Here's how to use it.
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