Shelby Harris seals Denver Broncos win with blocked kick
The Denver Broncos sealed a victory to close out week one of the NFL season with a blocked kick by Shelby Harris in the last seconds…
The Denver Broncos won their season opener, and because they beat the Los Angeles Chargers of the AFC West, they are currently in first place in the division over the Kansas City Chiefs and Oakland Raiders.
The Broncos had the game well in hand in the fourth quarter, or so it seemed. The Chargers committed what appeared to be a blatantly obvious pass interference penalty in the fourth quarter as Trevor Siemian looked to hit Bennie Fowler on a screen pass.
The ball bounced around and was picked off by a Chargers defender, and the Chargers scored a touchdown shortly there after.
On the next Broncos possession, Jamaal Charles had a nice run up the middle of the field but fighting for extra yardage, the ball was knocked out. The Chargers scored on the next play from scrimmage, and in a matter of 70 seconds the Chargers cut the Broncos’ lead to three points.
With a three-point lead, Trevor Siemian came out with his guns blazing and hit Virgil Green on a seam route deep downfield. The Chargers also hit Siemian late on the play, setting the Broncos up with great field position.
After two straight sacks on second and third down inside the red zone, the Broncos were pushed back far enough that the field goal attempt for a newly re-signed Brandon McManus was tougher than it had to be, and sure enough — he missed it.
The Chargers’ next drive stalled, as did the Broncos’ following possession, and the Chargers had the ball back with a chance to take the lead or get into field goal range. The Broncos’ defense bent a little bit, but didn’t break and kept the distance of the field goal in the mid-40s
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Rookie kicker Younghoe Koo of the Chargers drilled the first kick, but Vance Joseph iced him with a timeout before the kick. It turned out to be a great decision as pre-season standout Shelby Harris busted through the line of scrimmage on the next attempt and blocked the potential game-tying kick.
This was a game the Broncos could not really afford to lose, given how they controlled the majority of it.
The offense was in control all game it seemed, despite some bad pass protection from right tackle Menelik Watson, and the defense was doing it’s thing in the second half especially. The Broncos were rolling along and then a couple of turnovers really swung the game the wrong direction.
That’s what turnovers will do.
The Broncos were fortunate to come away with a win, but it shouldn’t have been that way. Aside from a couple of series, they played a dominant game. Hopefully some of the errors we saw in this game will be quickly cleaned up as the Broncos prepare for the Dallas Cowboys in week two.