Heading into Week 9, the Denver Broncos were the Super Bowl favorites. They were flying high atop the AFC having won four straight by a margin of at least two touchdowns every game and an average of 18.5 points per game. Remember, the defense and running game were supposed to be improved too. And then the New England Patriots crushed the Broncos and may have forced them to hit the reset button. Here’s why it happened:
3-of-11 On 3rd Downs
When you take a look at Peyton Manning’s numbers, it looks like he had a decent day: 34-of-57, 438 yards, two touchdowns and two picks. It was not his best game but you figure the Broncos would have at least been competitive, right?
Tom Brady and Peyton Manning combined to throw 110 passes today, the most for two QBs in a non-OT game in NFL history. #DENvsNE
— Gil Brandt (@Gil_Brandt) November 3, 2014
The issue for the Broncos, however, was sustaining drives. While Manning padded his stats late in the game, the Broncos weren’t competitive because the offense couldn’t stay on the field long enough. Any time they gathered a bit of momentum, they failed to pick up a third down and returned to the sideline to put their beleaguered defense back on the field.
Defense: Not As Good As Advertised
Speaking of which, all we heard over the last month was how different this Broncos team was because of their defense. Apparently not. On the first week of November, Tom Brady carved up the Broncos “new and improved” secondary like they were a Thanksgiving prime rib. He totaled 333 yards, four touchdowns with just one interception and was sacked only once.
This is a team that added Aqib Talib, T.J. Ward and Bradley Roby to the secondary in the offseason and was supposed to help this team in exactly this situation. Instead, they watched Rob Gronkowski rack up nine catches for 105 yards and a touchdown and had no answers for Julian Edelman, either.
Not So Special Teams
The Broncos had a rough night on special teams. They gave up a punt return for a touchdown by Edelman early in the second quarter that seemed to be the back breaker in this game. At the time, it put the Patriots up 20-7. However, the real clincher would come not long after that.
After the Broncos got the ball back, they drove down the field and got into scoring position to weather the storm. Their defense had just had a rest and the Broncos looked like they’d cut the deficit to 20-10. But, kicker Brandon McManus missed an easy 41-yard field goal and that really took the wind out of the Broncos sails. The Pats responded with another touchdown before halftime to put the game out of reach.
McManus has become a concern for the Broncos. Remember, they cut Pro Bowl kicker Matt Prater, who was suspended for the first four games of the season but had been automatic in years past. McManus has now missed field goals in back-to-back weeks and has made only three of his last six kicks.
No Offensive Balance
One of the reasons why the Broncos were so reliable over the last month was because the lethal passing game had a best supporting actor in the form of the rushing attack. Ronnie Hillman had emerged as one of the best backs in the league, collecting 421 yards, and a pair of touchdowns in that span. However, on Sunday, there was no ground game to speak of. Hillman was limited to 16 yards on 10 carries and the Broncos – as a team – finished with just 17 carries for 43 yards.
The traditional formula to win on the road is a good running game and a good defense. The Broncos had neither on Sunday and that has to be unnerving for those fans invested in the Broncos.
