Offense needs to help Brock
Huddle ’em up, Brock Osweiler. And take a seat, Trevor Siemian.
The switch at quarterback was a bright idea, even if it dawned on coach Vance Joseph two weeks after everybody else in Broncos Country. But, truth be told, this move might be slapping a Band-aid on an offense that’s already dead.
After making a no-brainer decision to bench Siemian in favor of Osweiler, Joseph uttered what might be the most telling words of a frustrating NFL season in Denver.
“The offense was designed for our skill players, in my opinion,” Joseph said. “It wasn’t designed for a quarterback’s certain skill set.”
And there’s the rub. With 127 points in seven games, the Broncos rank 24th of 32 NFL teams in scoring. There’s plenty of blame to go around. From running back C.J. Anderson to wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, the skillposition players on this team have stunk.
As much as Siemian’s well-duh mistakes have chafed everybody from cornerback Chris Harris to angry spectators in the South Stands, quarterback is only the beginning of the problems from a unit that even John Elway in his prime would find challenging to lead on touchdown drives.
There’s at least a 50-50 chance Siemian has started his final game as quarterback in Denver. If benching him doesn’t start the Broncos on a run, there will be other prominent offensive players run out of town.
The list begins with Anderson. His competitive spirit is beyond question. His status as the centerpiece of Denver’s rushing attack is very much in doubt.
In an offense Joseph insists should be run-first, Anderson’s average of 4.4 yards per rush is inferior to backups Devontae Booker (5.2) or Jamaal Charles (4.7). After Denver lost 29-19 at Kansas City, I asked the hyper self-critical Anderson to assess his performance.
“I played terrible. I didn’t score and missed some opportunities. That’s on me. I just have to get better,” said Anderson, whose longest run against the Chiefs was 12 yards.
Even worse: Anderson has been handed the rock 107 times this season and has only three runs of longer than 20 yards.
“The scouting report says I’m not a home run threat. Let’s prove them wrong,” Anderson said. “I’m a home run threat, (expletive deleted). Let’s make it happen.”
The Broncos are running out of patience, waiting for Anderson to stop plodding along in a cloud of dust. If he is again slow to get on a roll Sunday against Philadelphia, do not be surprised if Joseph turns to Booker, eager for a bigger role after slowly rounding into shape from a wrist injury that made him a nonfactor early in the season.
What’s more: Terms of Anderson’s contract would make it extremely easy for the team to say goodbye to him in 2018. The pressure is not only on Anderson to retain his starting job. His future in Denver is iffy, as well.
While right tackle Menelik Watson has become the scapegoat for apologists that coddle Siemian, kindly note that although he joined the Broncos on what was announced as a three-year contract, the financial details make it little more than a one-year tryout. The offense’s real bigbucks bust has been Thomas, whose productivity has steadily declined since he signed a five-year, $70 million pact in 2015, which I warned ahead of time would be a deal the Broncos would eventually regret.
Not to suggest Peyton Manning made Thomas money he doesn’t deserve, but D.T. has caught only five touchdown passes in the 23 regular-season games since Manning retired, and has not reached the end zone since November 2016. That’s a streak of an unlucky 13 games without a touchdown.
“I’m determined to end it,” Thomas said. Thomas, however, will turn 30 years old on Christmas. It’s not too early to wonder: Is D.T.’S best football behind him?
It might be a stretch to suggest this year’s version of Denver’s defense is equal to the nasty bunch that made Carolina quarterback Cam Newton a whining loser in Super Bowl 50. But Von Miller, Aqib Talib and the gang should be enough to win on any given Sunday.
This offense was never expected to produce Star Wars numbers, which made me supremely confident of a prediction made in early September: If Denver scored 375 points in 2017, a postseason berth would be guaranteed.
All I asked was an average of close to 24 points per game. Through seven games, the Broncos have given us 18 points per game.
What’s wrong is bigger than the quarterback. Yes, Siemian deserved to lose his job. Without a significant improvement in offensive production, however, there will be bigger changes down the road.