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Siemian throws four TD passes as Broncos throttle Cowboys Denver defense puts clamps on Dallas’ Prescott, Elliott
Denver Broncos cornerback Aqib Talib enjoys some quality time with faithful supporters Sunday late in a 42-17 rout of the Dallas Cowboys at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Talib returned an interception of Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott 103 yards for a touchdown, then took a “Lambeau Leap” into the stands.
The rain poured and the thunder struck just as Broncos quarterback Trevor Siemian was getting hot. He had just found Demaryius Thomas for a deep strike. He had just found Emmanuel Sanders for a 25-yard completion, after which Sanders reeled in a touchdown catch in the back of the end zone, clouded by a trio of Dallas Cowboys defenders.
Siemian needed less than six minutes of sunlight to help the Broncos jump to a 7-0 lead Sunday. The Broncos’ defense needed even less time to send a message to Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and running back Ezekiel Elliott.
Although the sky’s favors were short-lived, the Broncos’ momentum was not, as they returned from an hour-long lightning delay in the first quarter to punish the Cowboys’ depleted defense and take a 42-17 victory at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
Siemian tossed four touchdown passes (three in the first half ) and finished 22-of-32 in passing for 231 yards, one interception and a passer rating of 116.0. The Broncos’ out- gained the Cowboys 380-268 yards and outrushed them 17840 in a statement game perhaps few saw coming.
Siemian was “very, very, very efficient with the football,” Broncos coach Vance Joseph said. “He put us in good plays all night. Outside of the one interception, which was more of a unit issue than a Trevor issue, he played well. If he plays that solid for us, we’ll be hard to beat down the stretch.”
Remember: Denver was supposed to be the offensive underdog in this matchup, led by a seventh-round draft pick out of Northwestern whose arm strength and mobility are so often questioned.
And remember: He’s no Prescott, they said, and C.J. Anderson is no Elliott.
The script flipped in Denver as Siemian sprayed passes to eight different receivers and found Sanders twice for touchdown passes. Anderson busted loose for 118 yards rushing and a pair of scores himself, the first a 16-yard catch-andrun in the second quarter and the second a 23-yard run that blew the game open in the third.
Elliott, who led the league in rushing last season, had a mere 8 net yards on nine carries Sunday. His previous single-game career low? Fifty-one.
Prescott, the lauded second-year quarterback and controller of Dallas’ typically prolific offense, led his team both in the air (238 yards passing) and on the ground (24 yards rushing), threw a pair interceptions and notched a 68.6 rating.
“I just think everybody is buying into the scheme. I think (offensive coordinator) Mike McCoy got into a play-call rhythm,” Anderson said. He added: “(Siemian)
played tremendous once again. When we protect him, good things happy. He’s understanding the game plan and he’s believing it, and we’re just following the plan. We’re following our script, going down the script, play by play.”
But Dallas’ stumbles were as significant as Denver’s overall attack. And while there were areas that certainly need a cleanup, the Broncos checked the important boxes Joseph spelled out when he took over.
They scored early, and they scored often. They were consistent in the run game, and mostly so in the passing game (outside of a miscommunication in the third quarter that resulted in an interception). They converted 9of-15 third downs, they shored up the run defense, they pressured the quarterback and they didn’t punt until the fourth quarter.
“We knew with their starters out (in the secondary), they would have trouble covering our receivers,” Joseph said. “But the run game, that was the jumpstarter. To run the football and to force those guys to play single-high (coverage) to get (Thomas) and (Sanders) one-on-one … We knew it was going to be our advantage. Our receivers versus their DBs were going to be an edge for us, and obviously running the football helped that edge.”
But a lingering and glaring weakness remained on the right side of the offensive line. Tackle Menelik Watson was burned twice, first inside by DeMarcus Lawrence, resulting in a stripsack and leading to a Dez Bryant touchdown catch, then again in the second quarter on a spin move by Lawrence.
Concerns over the front five grew significantly midway through the third quarter to include both edges. Rookie left tackle Garett Bolles went down on a run play and had to be carted off the field. Bolles seemed to know immediately the injury was significant, as he slapped the field while trainers tended to him, and received pats on the head from teammates as he was driven off. (X-rays were inconclusive, but Bolles, who left the stadium on crutches and in a boot, will undergo further testing Monday.)
Donald Stephenson replaced him on the left side — and later Allen Barbre did, too — and the offense carried on. Siemian found tight end Virgil Green for a 2-yard touchdown two plays after Bolles went down, and cornerback Chris Harris picked off Prescott to set up Anderson’s second touchdown of the day on the next drive.
Siemian took his hits early, but the Broncos’ defense made many more against a discombobulated Cowboys offense. Von Miller snapped his streak of sackless outings with two takedowns of Prescott late in the fourth quarter. The Broncos’ secondary added five pass deflections, including one by Bradley Roby in the end zone in the waning minutes of the fourth.
And then Aqib Talib punctuated the day with a 103-yard picksix that propelled him past Hall of Famers Deion Sanders, Ken Houston and Aeneas Williams and into fourth place on the NFL’s all-time list with 10.
America’s Team was stymied in Broncos Country. Not even the weather could stop this one.
“I think we played well — the Denver Broncos played well,” Siemian said. “That was one of things when we came in, is we want to play complementary football. And to beat two good teams in this league, you got to play well together, everybody across the board — offense, defense, special teams.
“It’s Week 2, but we’re excited about where we’re at, and hopefully we can continue to grow and develop.”