Pregame tailgate snacks: 20 could be Broncos' magic number

DENVER — There is something every NFL team but the Broncos has done at least once since Week 14 of last season: score 20 points.

There is something every NFL team but the Bears has done at least once in that same time span: allow 20 points.

This is the Broncos’ challenge Sunday afternoon, and it is stern: to end their recent offensive tailspin against a Chicago defense that only seems to be growing stronger based on its ability to defuse one quarterback after another in games dating back to last December.

Since the New York Giants capitalized off three takeaways to pile 30 points on the Bears in a 30-27 upset last Dec. 2, Chicago has surrendered 6, 17, 9, 10, 16 and 10 points — an average of 11.3 points allowed per game.

Two of those games were against the Aaron Rodgers-led Packers; the Bears held them to 17 and 10 points in two games at Soldier Field, including the 2019 regular-season opener. Another was against the Los Angeles Rams, who rolled into Chicago averaging 34.9 points per game before Vic Fangio’s defense held them to just six points.

Denver, meanwhile, is mired in a rut, having failed to hit 20 points during its five-game regular-season losing streak, dating back to a 20-14 defeat at San Francisco last Dec. 9.

It matches a similar five-game streak from the third through seventh games of the dreadful 2017 season, during which the Broncos averaged just 14.2 points per game and suffered their first shutout in nearly 25 years.

Fail to reach 20 points, and the Broncos will have their longest stretch without hitting that mark since the first six games of the 2006 season.

Back then, a stellar defense led by Hall of Famer Champ Bailey allowed Denver to start 5-1 despite never scoring more than 17 points in those six games. Those Broncos averaged just 13.2 points per game in failing to hit 20 points, but their defense yielded just 7.3 points per g ame. Of course, they would reach 20 points in eight of their final 10 games in 2006 — and went 4-6 as their defense faded and then-rookie Jay Cutler struggled after replacing the benched Jake Plummer. So it goes.

CAN MONDAY’S LOSS HELP?

We all know about the cliche that there is no such thing as a “good loss.” The Broncos might have had one last Monday, anyway.

“I don’t know about good, but it’s definitely a punch in the mouth that sets everybody back and makes everybody think about themselves,” said Elijah Wilkinson, who is expected to start at right tackle agains the Bears in place of the injured Ja’Wuan James. “[You think,] all right, I did this wrong, I did this wrong. Let’s come back harder this week in practice, work harder, make sure our assignments are sound and we know what we’re doing and go out and give it our best effort and kick their behinds.”

The notion of a “good loss” did strike some players as logical.

“You hit that on the nose,” safety Will Parks said. “Coach Vic definitely used this game as a learning point, for all three phases of the ball. We learned from the mistakes.”

Some of those miscues were about cohesion — or a lack thereof in Oakland.

“Being the first game, and actually being out there as a unit the whole time, we’ve just got to have a little bit more cohesiveness, trust in guys and understand where guys are going to be,” Parks said.

A LONG TIME COMING

The necessity for a healthy backup offensive tackle on the 53-man roster pushed Jake Rodgers onto the roster from the practice squad Saturday afternoon. The Broncos waived Corey Levin, a Sept. 1 claim off waivers, to make room for Rodgers.

Ja’Wuan James’ knee injury necessitated the move. But for Rodgers, who turned 28 last Tuesday, the moment could be the culmination of a lifelong dream and a path that took him to seven practice squads over the last four years since the Atlanta Falcons drafted him in 2015.

Over the course of that time, he has yet to be in uniform for a regular-season game. He’s been cut 13 times. Some 1,231 days have passed since the Falcons used a seventh-round pick on him.

The Broncos don’t want another injury at offensive tackle, so they would prefer that Rodgers remain on the sideline. But if they activate him and he gets onto the field for even a snap, perseverance will receive a reward.