Following a heartbreaking 22-17 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday, the Denver Broncos are now 6-6 going into Week 14.
On this week’s Broncos Wire podcast, I joined host Ryan O’Leary to react to that loss (with emphasis on Russell Wilson and Alex Singleton) before diving into whether or not the season is lost. We also look ahead to the Los Angeles Chargers game on Sunday.
You can listen to episode No. 97 below:
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Our notes for this week’s pod can be seen below.
Russell Wilson’s worst game of the season
- I think that was probably Wilson’s worst game of the season. Right from the very first drive he was not connecting on deep passes. He could have had a TD to Marvin Mims if he didn’t underthrow it by a mile.
- After no interceptions during the five-game winning streak, Wilson tossed three interceptions on Sunday. Trailing by five, he drove Denver down to the 8-yard line and I thought he was going to complete yet another game-winning drive, but he was flushed out of the pocket and threw a game-sealing interception (terrible protection by Garett Bolles on that play).
- I think Sean Payton threw Wilson under the bus a little bit for his performance (understandably so). Denver was 0-of-11 on third down. After the game, Wilson said they needed to get into third and manageable. Here’s what Payton had to say about third down: “It’s not good enough. Obviously, it’s frustrating. It’s a combination of a handful of things — protection, guys open and us not making a play. I felt like the yardage and the distances were what we wanted.”
- Payton also seemingly blamed Wilson for not getting the offense set before the team’s third-down play that ended the game. Payton said they ended up playing “street ball” on that play because a pre-snap shift wasn’t communicated (by Wilson).
- Wilson also missed Jerry Jeudy wide open multiple times, including on what could have been a game-winning touchdown. Payton: “If you watch all of [the film], holy cow, there are about two or three of those plays.
Alex Singleton’s bonehead play
- In the first half, a play was blown dead for a Texans false start on 4th-and-2. That would have created 4th-and-7, presumably a distance that would have made Houston kick a field goal instead of going for it.
- Singleton ran to C.J. Stroud after the whistle had blown, though, and pushed him. Stroud then headbutted Singleton and then Singleton shoved him again and was penalized, giving the Texans a first down. (I think it should have been offsetting penalties, but Singleton has to be smart enough to not retaliate in that situation.)
- Houston ended up scoring a touchdown and again, I’m guessing they would have kicked a field goal if it was 4th-and-7. That’s a four-point swing from Singleton’s dumb penalty. If not for that penalty, Denver could have been trailing by 1 point instead of by 5 points on their final drive of the game and a field goal would have been good enough to get a win at the end.
Why I still feel optimistic about the state of the team
- Denver’s offense was bad for most of Sunday’s game and the Broncos lost in heartbreaking fashion in a game that could have greatly helped their playoff standings, but I’m not ready to throw in the towel yet.
- It’s not like this was an easy game — we both picked the Texans to win. Houston is a good team and Denver battled back and had a chance to win it at the end but a dumb blown play sealed the loss. If Wilson hits Jeudy on 2nd-and-goal and the Broncos win 24-22, we’d feel a lot different right now.
- It will be harder to make the playoffs now with a 3-5 conference record, but it’s still possible. Depending on how other teams do, Denver might need to win out, but I think 10 wins (one more loss) could still be enough. Either way, the Broncos need to focus on themselves and take it one game at a time.
Chargers game
- Playing at home, Los Angeles is listed as a 3-point favorite.
- Chargers are coming off an ugly 6-0 win over the Patriots.
- Sweeping L.A. would really help Denver’s playoff chances. Can they get a win on the road this week?
Ryan and I will return each week during the season to react to every game.
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