Broncos v. Patriots: It’s The Most Wonderful Loss Of The Year?

All will talk about Tim Tebow’s performance during yesterday’s Broncos v. Patriots game. He played very well completing 50% of his passes for 194 yards, and rushing for two touchdowns. It was the three second quarter turnovers that buried the Broncos, however. One came on a Tebow fumble, one on a Lance Ball fumble, and one came from Quan Crosby on a muffed punt.

When the Broncos are -3 in the turnover department this year, their record is 1-3. When the Patriots have a positive turnover ratio, they are 101-4 dating back to 2001. The history books nearly wrote this game during the second quarter turnover parade.

The turnovers played such a major role in the game because of the Patriots potent offense. They accumulated over 450 yards of total offense and they scored at will.

“We’ve got to replicate what the other team’s defense is doing,” Von Miller said after the game. “We didn’t do that today.”

The Broncos sacked Tom Brady just twice. He looked very comfortable in the pocket as he sought out his receivers.

“They went a lot of empty (backfield),” John Fox said. “They got the ball out pretty quick which from a timing standpoint, makes it tough to get there.”

The most notable shot that Brady took came from Elvis Dumervil. Dr. Doom came at Brady like a freight train and the future Hall of Fame QB probably still feels the effects from the hit.

“I was looking to throw to Rob (Gronkowski) in the slot who was one-on-one with D.J. Williams, and didn’t see Elvis coming,” Brady said. “He got me pretty good. He’s a very good player and Von Miller. We talked about those guys all week and how difficult they are to block like we did. I thought our guys really hung in there.”

The Patriots offensive line did a great job. Miller and Dumervil each had just one tackle. The only big play that came from the dynamic pass rushing duo was Dumervil’s sack.

Brady completed 67.6% of his passes for 320 yards and 2 passing touchdowns. He also ran the ball in once himself.

“The one thing we didn’t do is get our hands on the ball and force him to make enough bad throws,” Andre Goodman said. “He was pinpoint today.”

Thankfully the Broncos have two games to correct themselves before the playoffs.

“We need to concentrate on getting better,” Champ Bailey said. “We showed today we’re not ready to go in the playoffs and make a push.”

This loss may actually be a win from that standpoint.

Make sure to follow Predominantly Orange on Facebook and on Twitter.