Broncos Game Grades: Josey Jewell and Jerry Jeudy spark a near comeback

DENVER, Colo. — Moral victory?

The Broncos lost their ninth game in 10 tries on Sunday, this time falling 34-28 to the Kansas City Chiefs. At one point, though, the Chiefs were up 27-0. The comeback was impressive. Denver is now 3-10 and sitting second-to-last in the NFL.

Here’s how the Broncos graded out:

Offense

QB Russell Wilson – B

Sunday felt like a breakthrough game for the Broncos’ star quarterback, but for an NFL quarterback it wasn’t all that special.

Wilson completed 63% of his passes for 247 yards, three touchdowns and a pick. He ran four times for 57 yards. Two of those were gutsy runs during his final drive before leaving the game with a concussion.

The misses were there, like when he threw a third-down ball behind Greg Dulcich in the first quarter. He also made a couple of bad decisions, like when he chucked a ball deep to Greg Dulcich on his first pass instead of hitting Jerry Jeudy, who was open at the sticks. Or when he rolled out on 3rd & 16 and had time to scan for options near the sideline, but decided to run for 11 yards instead.

His touchdown fade to Jerry Jeudy was perfect.

Sunday was a step in the right direction for Russ but it wasn’t an All-Star outing. Maybe he could have turned it into one if he’d led the Broncos on one of their last two possessions.

QB Brett Rypien – D+

All credit to Brett for the touchdown pass. The Broncos needed a score and he came through on a fourth down. Good stuff.

The rest is pretty rough, although it’s tough to blame Rypien for the interception when he was blindsided.

RB Latavius Murray – C-

Latavius Murray takes what the defense gives him. It’s almost the same story every week. This week he made a nice move to beat a defensive tackle one-on-one in the hole and pick up five yards. He also gave up a sack in pass protection.

RB Marlon Mack – A+

The Broncos needed one play to get back in the game and Marlon Mack provided it, a 62-yard touchdown on a screen.

TE Greg Dulcich – B-

Dulcich didn’t capitalize on all of his opportunities. He couldn’t make a contested catch at the sticks on the first drive. The deep ball on the first pass was a prayer but even drawing a penalty would have been a win. We aren’t docking him for that one though.

He finished with 42 yards on three catches. The big play was a 42-yard grab that he tipped to himself. He gave the Broncos a chance to get points late in the game and they capitalized.

WR Jerry Jeudy – A+

Three touchdowns! Three! In one game! For one player!

Jerry Jeudy may have played his best game as a Bronco on Sunday. The only complaint is that he only gained 73 yards, the sixth-most of his career. Jeudy also drew a 40-yard pass interference. He was open more, too.

WR Kendall Hinton – B-

Kendall Hinton got off to a hot start. He converted a 3rd & 9 and a 3rd & 10 on the first dive. He was quiet for the rest of the game, finishing with five catches for 38 yards.

Hinton is beginning to look like an NFL-caliber slot receiver. He way not belong in a true third wide receiver role in a healthy offense, but he might be ready to serve as a true slot receiver who splits the third receiver reps with a speed option.

WR Brandon Johnson – F

The undrafted rookie receiver had plenty of chances on Sunday. He was on the field for 52 of the Broncos’ 73 offensive snaps and was targeted four times. He never caught a ball though. And he missed a block on the first offensive play of the game, which blew up a run.

To be fair, Johnson should not be asked to be a starter at this point in his career.

LT Calvin Anderson – C-

Calvin Anderson was probably hindered by the play of the left guards, but he made a few mistakes himself. He gave up a pressure that forced an incompletion to start the drive down 27-0. He gave up a sack when he didn’t block the man on the left edge later on.

LG Luke Wattenberg – F

The rookie Broncos lineman earned his second extended look of the season and first start on Sunday. It did not go well.

On one first down, Graham Glasgow passed a lineman off the Wattenberg but the rookie ran straight ahead to hit a linebacker, leaving the lineman unblocked to stuff the run. On the next play, Chris Jones grabbed Wattenberg, held him in his place, then tossed him to the side when the running back hit the hole and stuff the run. On third down, Jones beat Wattenberg cleanly inside. The three-and-out was entirely on Luke Wattenberg’s shoulders.

Wattenberg was also beaten by Josh Kaindoh and Mike Danna. He whiffed on a screen. Eventually he was pulled.

LG Quinn Bailey – D+

The Broncos’ second option at left guard was solid in pass protection but struggled as a run blocker. He played the least of the trio.

LG Netane Muti – B

The 23-year-old was the third player the Broncos tried at left guard and he was easily the most successful. By the time he entered the game, the Broncos were hardly running the ball at all. He showed up with one big block in the running game and didn’t allow any pressure in pass protection. He passed off a stunt well. He also worked well in pass protection when he didn’t have an assignment and cleaned up defenders engaged with other linemen.

The Raiders signed Muti off of the Broncos’ practice squad on Tuesday.

C Graham Glasgow – D+

Graham Glasgow gave up a sack on a strange play at the start of the game. He pulled from the inside to simulate a run play and his duty was to hit the edge rusher at the back side of the play action. He didn’t get there in time. I don’t know how he could have.

But Glasgow made a couple of other mistakes. He ran past a defender when blocking on a screen. He gave Brett Rypien a low snap deep in his own territory, which turned a 2nd & 5 into a 3rd & 10 in crunch time. He also gave up the hit that forced Rypien to lob up the game-ending interception.

The revolving door at left guard didn’t do Glasgow any favors, but he had a rough night.

RG Quinn Meinerz – B+

The lone blemish on Meinerz’s stat sheet is a hurry he allowed. Outside of that, he was stellar. His highlight was when he was the lead blocker on Marlon Mack’s 62-yard touchdown.

RT Cam Fleming – C+

The sack Cameron Fleming gave up before the Marlon Mack touchdown knocks his grade down, but the rest of the night was solid.

Defense

DL Dre’Mont Jones – A

Dre’Mont Jones picked up his first sack since Bradley Chubb’s departure when he bullied a lineman backward and tripped up Patrick Mahomes.

The matchup didn’t favor Jones; interior pressure is less important when the quarterback can slip out of the pocket at will. But Jones found a way to be effective with the sack, a couple more pressures that flushed Mahomes and four sun stuffs. I’m tempted to give him an A+.

DL DJ Jones – D+

DJ Jones gave it a go despite being questionable with a shoulder injury on Sunday. He only managed 16 snaps. They were… unimpressive. There’s no cause for concern—Jones was injured—but he had a tough afternoon.

OLB Jonathan Cooper – B

The big play was Jonathan Cooper’s sack, but he was unblocked so I’m not sure how much credit to give him since the rest of the day was quiet.

OLB Baron Browning – B

The stat sheet doesn’t look all that hot for Baron Browning, but he played a solid game. He pressured Mahomes four times, which tied for the most on the team. He hit Mahomes twice as well.

LB Josey Jewell – A+

Two interceptions. The first two interceptions of his career. And he came close to a third at the goal line. What a game.

(We won’t bring up the 100 yards allowed in coverage.)

LB Alex Singleton – C+

A good, clean game for Alex Singleton in run defense. He made a handful of tackles. He also lined up on the edge for a couple of plays.

I’m docking him hard for giving up the Chiefs’ third touchdown. He lost his man after the receiver slipped behind him and allowed Mahomes to complete a pass on his way to the ground.

CB Pat Surtain II – A+

The Broncos’ stud cornerback made the highlight reel with his first interception of the season. Surtain made a tough grab that gave the Broncos a chance to make an actual comeback.

But his day was much more than a single play. Surtain was lockdown on virtually every snap. The only catch he gave up was to Juju Smith-Schuster, who picked up 12 yards on a slot dig. It came on 3rd & 15, so there was no harm.

Side note: Surtain blitzed three times on Sunday. Two of those blitzes results in pressures. He had only blitzed on two passing plays all season up to that point.

CB Damarri Mathis – A

The Broncos’ rookie cornerback is growing. In his first game as a starter, he was called for four pass interference penalties. This week, when he was trailing a receiver deep down the field, he was able to peak back over his shoulder for the ball and hit the brakes to avoid a penalty. Growth.

Mathis gave up five catches on Sunday, but his total numbers will always be inflated because quarterbacks avoid throwing to Pat Surtain on the other side. The longest of those catches went for seven yards and they averaged four-yard gains. That’s a great coverage game.

Plus, Mathis is becoming a bit of a hitter. He popped Isaiah Pacheco near the sticks on two different occasions.

CB K’Waun Williams – C+

K’Waun Williams gave up a pair of catches for 27 yards. He almost gave up a third but punched the ball out at the last second to force a third-and-long. He also forced an incompletion on a third-quarter blitz.

S Justin Simmons – D+

Can we fault Justin Simmons for getting crossed up by Patrick Mahomes on the no-look pass? No. But there were other issues, too. Like when Simmons was beaten on a 3rd & 11 out route that nearly ended the game, instead of giving the ball back to the Broncos with three minutes on the clock.

The flip pass went for 56 yards, but Simmons was responsible for allowing another 50.

S Kareem Jackson – B+

Kareem Jackson hardly made the notes on Sunday. For a safety, that’s a good thing.

Special Teams

K Brandon McManus – B

Four-for-Four on extra points is an easy day.

P Corliss Waitman – C-

Waitman’s 47.6-yard average isn’t terrible but there was plenty more out there for him. He wasn’t constrained by the end zone. Only one of his punts made it inside the 20. Not terrible, but there’s room for more. Especially at altitude.

RET Montrell Washington – A

The rookie started the season hot but has had a tough couple of months. He flipped the narrative around on Sunday. His lone kickoff return was pretty great. He caught the ball at the one but poor blocking left him one-on-one with a potential tackler at the 10. He made him miss then made a nice cut behind his blockers and ran to the 29. His lone punt return went for 21 yards.

Small sample size. Good night.