SIX IN A ROW: BRONCOS LOSE TO CINCINNATI»
Bengals send reeling Broncos to sixth consecutive defeat Defense, special teams shine, but pass-heavy offense fails
Von Miller walked into the Broncos’ locker room at their Dove Valley training facility Friday afternoon, took off his helmet and turned to fellow linebackers Shane Ray and Shaq Barrett.
The typically jovial veteran was visibly annoyed and tired and frustrated and feeling every emotion expected during a five-game losing streak.
“Weight room,” Miller ordered. “We got 11 sacks this season. Let’s go.”
The defense followed Miller’s cue Sunday, but it alone couldn’t erase the Broncos’ recent history and right their future. The Broncos fell to the Bengals, 20-17, for their sixth consecutive loss this season and their first defeat at home against Cincinnati since 1975.
“This isn’t the culture here,” quarterback Brock Osweiler said. “… The standard is to win — win championships, win division championships, get to the playoffs every year and contend for Super Bowls. And right now, we’re not playing football like that, so it’s very frustrating.”
This one stung for the Broncos,
as reality began to set in that the door ajar on the season might have finally shut. Another loss to an opponent they should have defeated. Another game decided on turnovers. Another opportunity squandered.
“All the losses hurt, but this was the game you wanted to get to get the energy back,” Miller said afterward. “This was the game you wanted. I feel like I went to Vegas and made a crazy bet and just lost it. I feel sick.”
This time, however, the defense imposed its will with only 190 net yards allowed, including 49 rushing. The Broncos’ special teams, too, redeemed themselves after foundering in their previous outing.
And though the offense recorded 112 yards rushing, it failed to do enough and often resorted to formations in passing plays that have caused problems all season.
Osweiler finished 23-of-42 in passing for 254 yards, one touchdown, one interception, three sacks and a 70.9 passer rating.
The opening minutes offered promise that the Broncos would right the ship: The defense forced a three-and-out on the Bengals’ first drive, then linebacker Shaq Barrett blocked a punt, to both the surprise and delight of a crowd accustomed to special-teams miscues this season.
Osweiler then guided the offense to Cincinnati’s 4-yard line, where hope of a score was immediately quashed. In a three-receiver set — a personnel group that has hindered the Broncos for much of the season — Osweiler was intercepted by cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick, who returned the ball to Denver’s 1yard line and set up an easy touchdown catch by tight end Tyler Kroft.
“It’s cover zero (defense); we have a slant play called,” coach Vance Joseph explained. “Cody (Latimer) beats the corner in- side, he runs into the guy covering the slot player and the corner continues to go. He catches the ball in the end zone and runs back to the 1-yard line. That’s where we are right now.”
Denver responded, albeit begrudgingly, by relying more on its ground game. C.J. Anderson found the end zone on a 3-yard run in the waning seconds of the first quarter to give the Broncos their first rushing touchdown in the first quarter of any game this season and give the team a 7-6 lead.
The score was critical to the Broncos remaining competitive, something general manager John Elway stressed throughout the week, and to the establishment of the run game that has long been vital to the offense. In the Broncos’ three victories this year, their offense has been balanced in the passing and running games. In their losses, their offense has often been skewed and riddled with turnovers and mistakes.
Only once over the past two seasons, since Peyton Manning retired, have the Broncos won while attempting 40 or more passes in a game.
Despite the big rushing gains, the Broncos repeatedly resorted to three-wide-receiver sets, stalling drives and exposing an already-injured Osweiler (shoulder) to big hits and a pair of sacks. After one of those, Osweiler gingerly rose to his feet, clearly in pain.
“I’m really not worried about the injury,” Osweiler said. “Bottom line, I’m able to throw a football, and if I’m able to throw a football, that’s good enough. At this time of year in the league, everybody is hurt. It’s just a matter of how bad.
“I just want to give a ton of credit to our defense. I thought those guys came out here today and really set the tone, played extremely hard. Special teams did some great things for us and really gave us great field position. And bottom line, I need to play better.”
Although Denver took the edge in the first quarter Sunday, its lead was short-lived. Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton found receiver Alex Erickson deep on the left sideline for a 29-yard touchdown pass, over the head of cornerback Bradley Roby, who was targeted often in coverage and was flagged for a critical pass interference late in the fourth quarter.
The play, similar to scores allowed by the defense this year, belied a decent performance from Denver’s D.
Roby nearly had an interception later. Linebacker Todd Davis almost did, too. And the quarterback pressure that had been a hallmark of the group made a comeback Sunday, just as Miller wanted.
Derek Wolfe registered a sack in the second quarter, with help from Miller on the edge, Shane Ray added another in the third, and nose tackle Domata Peko plugged the gaps against the run, providing a spark the Broncos sorely needed.
But the daggers were eerily similar to ones in earlier losses this season for the Broncos.
Late in the second quarter, with the Bengals ahead 13-7, Denver’s defense forced a three-andout to put the ball back in the offense’s hands at Cincinnati’s 49yard line — good position for a score to close out the half. But the drive stalled with a sack of Osweiler, and a 61-yard fieldgoal attempt by Brandon McManus was blocked in the closing seconds.
McManus’ foot and the Broncos’ defense kept them in it over the final two quarters as he booted a 45-yarder late in the third quarter to close the Bengals’ lead to 13-10. But that, too, was shortlived.
Anderson fumbled on a run play in the fourth quarter, and Dalton found receiver A.J. Green in the corner of the end zone on the Bengals’ ensuing drive.
“Tonight, we had great effort. Offensively, we moved the ball again. But we had two turnovers, and they both led to points,” Joseph said. “That’s 13 points. That’s the game again. Effort is good, guys are making plays, but you can’t turn the ball over.”
Though the Broncos tried to claw back with a 17-yard touchdown catch by Demaryius Thomas, the Bengals held their own and took advantage of Denver’s defense. Miller bit on a zone read as Dalton sped past him for a first down, then Roby was penalized for pass interference.
And just like that, hope fizzled, time expired and the 3-7 Broncos trudged off the field in dismay and frustration.