The offensive ineptitude was beyond comprehension.
Dare we say it was … offensive?
I’ve covered all levels of football, from six-man high-school football in Wyoming to the NFL, and that was the worst offensive game I’ve seen, let alone had the misfortune of seeing live.
The closest comparison is the playoff loss to the Indianapolis Colts last season. Well, at least in that game the Denver Broncos scored a touchdown.
When the Denver defense doesn’t bail out the offense by scoring touchdowns, the result is a crushing 15-12 loss to the Oakland Raiders.
And this one stings, for multiple reasons. The biggest one is you can’t play like this in December. Not when the goal is the Super Bowl and you should be molding your playoff identity to play your best football.
Four field goals in the first half, where at least two of them should have been touchdowns for the Broncos. Instead of 12-0 at halftime it’s 20-0. That’s a completely different scenario at the half – for both teams.
Khalil Mack just registered another sack. Michael Schofield should give his paycheck to Mack because he was owned on Sunday. The rest of the offensive line wasn’t much better, especially in the second half. After the first sack, it should have been clear Schofield couldn’t touch Mack. The logical move is to either take Schofield out of the game or give the young right tackle help. Or after the second. The third. The fourth. The fifth. The only reason Mack didn’t get a sixth sack is because the game ended.
How do you give up five sacks to the same guy and not make that adjustment? Hello, putting Aqib Talib on T.Y. Hilton.
Demaryius Thomas continues to earn that massive paycheck, only his penchant for drops has spread like a disease to Vernon Davis.
Disease is what the Denver offense look liked it was infected with on Sunday. After the Kansas City Chiefs loss in early November, I said Peyton Manning and the Broncos would fit right in on “The Walking Dead.” After what we saw on Sunday, that comparison is an insult to zombies. They probably would have scored one touchdown and made adjustments in the second half.
Ah, yes, adjustments. I’ve raved about the job Gary Kubiak and his staff have done this season, but he just got outcoached by Jack Del Rio. Let that sink in for a bit. In fact, just think back to the playoff loss to the Colts (hello, putting Talib on Hilton). Del Rio tried his best to give this game away with that awful decision to go to for the two-point conversion. Of course, he got bailed out because, right on cue, Brandon McManus misses a 49-yard field goal.
Special teams were terrible in every facet.
Denver lost the turnover battle.
The defense once again was dominant, but because it didn’t score a touchdown, this was the result.
If a unit surrenders 15 points, you should win every game. Period.
The Broncos held Oakland to negative yardage in the first half, but because the offense is incapable of scoring touchdowns, the game was still wide open.
It doesn’t matter who lines up at quarterback this season, Denver cannot get in the endzone. At least the Broncos offense is consistent, right?
The task doesn’t get any easier next Sunday when Denver travels to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers.
If the Broncos don’t find a way to score touchdowns and finish drives, this ugly result will play out once again.
It doesn’t matter who lines up under center when the offense is this wretched and can’t block, can’t run the ball, can’t catch the ball. This really is a simple game, right?
There’s enough blame to go around for a performance this inept and offensive.
