Denver Broncos: Week 9 Position Grades
Offensive Line Grade: C
The best thing offensive line love to do is hunt, but nothing the unit can do if they are the hunted in the beginning. There are now numerous games in a row where Trevor Siemian threw three straight times to begin a drive. Again, it is important to get the quarterback comfortable on short throws. However, it is more vital for an offensive line to be more comfortable protecting the running back and quarterback. It is them that make it go.
Conversely, it is still an offensive line with more holes than Swiss cheese. Russell Okung and Matt Paradis are two good staples upfront, but that is entirely it. The line did a decent job last night protecting Siemian; still, Denver got in a huge hole that unleashed the Raiders’ pass rush. You ask any executives around the league, the best scenario is to have a two-score or three-score advantage that causes their pass rushers to wreck havoc in the backfield. The Raiders did not do that in bunches, but they come up big in key situations.
Khalil Mack did not sack the Denver Broncos quarterback, which is a good thing. Yet, the presence still stayed after one and a half sack performance. In order for the Broncos to perform better upfront as a cohesive unit, they need to hunt like mad dogs with a running attack first. Start the game with a run or two to have them set the tone of the game early.