Top 5 reasons the Broncos failed in season opener vs. Seahawks
Same mistakes of old continue to plague the Denver Broncos
This was a weird performance from the Denver Broncos’ offense overall.
On the one hand, there were some brilliantly designed drives by Nathaniel Hackett in terms of his play-calling. There was outstanding execution at times from Russell Wilson and the playmakers offensively. The Broncos’ running game was humming most of the game.
There was really a lot to like offensively in this performance, including on some of the drives that didn’t end in touchdowns. An inch prevented an Eric Tomlinson touchdown. The ground popped the ball out of Eric Saubert’s hands on a glorious throw from Russell Wilson that would have otherwise been a touchdown. The false start from Courtland Sutton prevented an Andrew Beck score.
Unfortunately, what was it that plagued the Denver Broncos in this game against the Seahawks most of all? It was the same offensive miscues that we’ve come to loathe in the last six years.
- Inefficiency in the red zone
- Fumbles
- Extremely untimely penalties
- Poor clock management late in the game (at least in my opinion)
Ironically, you could say that this loss to the Seattle Seahawks was a death by inches, and many on Twitter did say that. But it couldn’t be more apt despite the irony, because it was the game of inches that cost the Broncos in this game.
Inches from an Eric Tomlinson score. Inches from two rushing touchdowns. Inches from a field goal by Brandon McManus to win it. Inches here, inches there.
Let’s hope the Denver Broncos are actually ready to ride when they return home next week against the Houston Texans. The Seattle Seahawks played tough, but there is no reason the Broncos shouldn’t have won that game by two touchdowns or more. They could have easily put 30 points on the board, were it not for those mistakes that we’ve become all too familiar with in recent years.