The Denver Broncos' offense needed to step up. Here's why it flopped.

DENVER, Colo. — The Denver Broncos needed their offense to step up.

On his first play of the game, cornerback Pat Surtain II, Denver’s best player, broke up a pass but sustained a concussion. Much of the Broncos’ defensive game plan went up in smoke. They’d lost the player that made everybody’s job easier.

“It is just one of those things that you feel it, and we can’t allow that to happen,” cornerback Riley Moss said. “We can’t allow adversity to sway how we’re playing. We got to be able to get through, and that’s part of it because we are a younger team, being able to be mature and being able to get over that adversity.”

And the Los Angeles Chargers’ offense jumped the Broncos’ defense off the bat.

“Give them some credit,” Broncos defensive lineman Zach Allen said after the game. “Their first 15 (plays) was some stuff that we hadn’t really seen on tape, but in division games, you’ve gotta expect that, and we’ve gotta do a little bit of a better job adjusting to that.”

The Broncos’ defense carried the team through the first five games. It ranked among the best in the NFL in most categories. It allowed fewer than 15 points per game, which put it on pace to be four points per game better than the No Fly Zone defense that won Super Bowl 50.

Meanwhile, only two offenses had produced fewer touchdowns than the Broncos. When the Broncos did score a touchdown, their average starting field position was their own 48-yard line, the best in the NFL. 

In other words, Denver’s defense was carrying the load to an unsustainable extent.

“We’ve gotta help them out,” left tackle Garett Bolles said after the game.

At some point, the offense would need to take the reins… and that moment came on Sunday.

But the offense flopped.

The Chargers scored on all four of their first-half possessions, including a 20-play field goal drive that ran more than 10 minutes off the clock. The Broncos only ran 20 total plays in the half and, for the third time in six games this season, Denver went to the locker room at halftime with zero points on the board. The Chargers led by 20.

“We didn’t run enough plays consecutively to get into a rhythm,” quarterback Bo Nix said when asked about the first half. “It was a few plays, and you were off the field. In a game like that where you know they’re going to control the ball, you have to find ways to stay on the field.”

Nix’s numbers from the game look fine if underwhelming. He was 19-for-33 for 216 yards with a pair of touchdowns and an interception. But Nix, and most of the Broncos’ offense, found their production when the game was out of hand.

In the first three quarters, Nix completed four of his 14 pass attempts for 27 yards and a pick.

“Let’s be honest, it picked up when we started going up-tempo, and you are behind,” head coach Sean Payton said. “You are getting a different coverage look.”

That coverage look was ultra-conservative zone coverage that bordered on a prevent defense. The Broncos carved it up, but that should be the case against a garbage-time defense.

So, what went wrong with the Broncos’ offense?

First of all, they couldn’t run the football. Nix’s scrambling contributions buoy their 6.1 yards per carry and 110 rushing yards total. Denver’s running backs managed 44 yards on four yards per run. That isn’t good enough for a team with a rookie quarterback. A banged-up offensive line that featured a backup center and third-string tackle certainly didn’t help.

Second, Nix was inaccurate. He was off target on a number of passes that could have kept the Broncos’ offense on the field. His first throw of the game was a high ball to Marvin Mims Jr. across the middle that was tipped in the air and intercepted.

Third, nobody provided an explosive play. The Broncos only produced one play that gained 10 or more yards before they trailed by 20 points. It was a 13-yard Javonte Williams run that came a few plays before he fumbled the ball away.

The spark came in the fourth quarter when Courtland Sutton pulled in a one-handed grab in the back of the end zone for a 20-yard touchdown.

“We needed a play. We needed a spark,” Sutton said. “We needed something to go well for us to be able to get the juice back going on our sideline. Bo gave me an opportunity.”

Sometimes, a spark is all it takes to kickstart an offense. But the Broncos lack sparks. Sutton can provide a tough catch downfield, but their running backs rarely provide chunk gains, and their receivers rank among the league’s worst in yards after the catch.

Don’t be surprised if the Broncos look to new faces to provide a spark.

“We have to see these guys,” Payton said of his rookies. “We are a young team. I want to see this runner as well. I want to see [RB Audric] Estime. We are going to see [WR Devaughn] Vele, and we are going to see [WR Troy] Franklin.”

Estime picked up 13 yards on his two runs. He has produced 27 yards with his first four NFL touches.

Vele’s four catches on Sunday carried his total to 12 this season. That’s the second-most of any Bronco in his first two NFL games, trailing only Eddie Royal.

Franklin caught his first career touchdown on Sunday.

“We are not waiting to redshirt these guys,” Payton said.

Maybe the Broncos’ rookie can provide the juice the offense needs.

Maybe the return of right tackle Mike McGlinchey from injured reserve, which could happen as soon as this week, will open up the running game.

Maybe Nix will develop quickly and carry the offense to new heights.

But the Broncos need to be able to win games that their defense doesn’t dominate if they want to make a run at the playoffs.

While the defense certainly didn’t do its part on Sunday, it’s worth remembering that NFL defenses gave up 22.2 points per game entering Week 6. The Broncos allowed 23 points. That isn’t an insurmountable performance… or at least it shouldn’t be.

The Broncos didn’t need to overcome a terrible defensive showing on Sunday. They needed to overcome a slightly-below-average showing, and they didn’t come close.

The clock is ticking to iron out the kinks.