The Denver Broncos Week 1 game was a disaster. After long months of convincing fans that everything would change, absolutely nothing did. Denver lost to the Las Vegas Raiders 17-16, in a game that feels like it was pulled straight out of 2022. But it wasn’t all classic theater, the Broncos were able to find exciting new ways to lose football games. But that may not be the kind of change fans are looking for. And soon, if things don’t get fixed, it may be a new team they’re looking for, not just a new scapegoat.
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Finding Exciting New Ways to Lose: Denver Broncos Week 1
Offense
The Broncos looked like a team that was ready to win now. Unfortunately, they are actually a team that’s ready to lose the same way as last year, but with interesting new wrinkles to keep things spicy. The offense scored 16 points at home versus the Raiders, when they looked capable of so much more. Fans were excited by quarterback Russell Wilson’s two touchdown passes but were quickly disabused from any thoughts that this offense had changed significantly.
RUSSELL WILSON 🔥🤯#MundoNFL #BroncosCountry pic.twitter.com/zN9ZUdn5jb
— Mundo NFL (@MundoNFL) September 10, 2023
Two players stepped out of bounds on big plays. Two field goal tries took the place of two potential touchdowns. And two sacks of Wilson set the team moving backward. The Broncos were unable to score enough to stay competitive, and that was ultimately why they failed to win this game.
Defense
The Denver Broncos Week 1 defense did its part in slowing down a talented Raiders team, holding them to only 17 points and making an interception in the endzone. However, the defense also failed to sack Jimmy Garoppolo even one time, leading to clean pockets and a high percentage of accuracy. They did bottle up running back Josh Jacobs, only allowing him to gain 48 yards rushing with no touchdowns.
But when it mattered most, and at the end of the game, Denver’s defense failed to get off the field. Not only that, but key penalties at terrible moments, including a personal foul near the end of the game, derailed this team. The Broncos are supposed to have a dominant defense – they need to show or it soon won’t matter.
Special Teams
Unsurprisingly, after all the noise that was made about it in the offseason, Denver’s special teams game was horrendous and deserves a lot of blame for the loss. Head coach Sean Payton opened the game with an onside kick, which failed, and led to a Las Vegas touchdown. Also, his hand-picked kicker Wil Lutz not only missed a 55-yard field goal but also a standard extra point. Those four missed points came up huge for a team that lost by one. The Broncos had many kicker options this offseason, and they chose Lutz. But it sure looks like they chose poorly, and are regretting it immediately.
Denver Broncos Week 1 is Over: What Comes Next?
Now that the Denver Broncos Week 1 game is over, what’s next for a team that simply can’t win? Fans were excited for change: a new owner, a new coach, a new scoreboard even. But those big changes didn’t amount to real differences, and, instead, Denver keeps losing.
Shockingly, they even find new and exciting ways to lose. Stepping out of bounds accidentally, helmet-to-helmet contact penalties, missed kicks; the list is disturbingly long. After a 2022 season filled with disaster, Denver came out Week 1 and played the exact same way, even a little worse and sloppier. Coaches and players at pedestals for interviews will say that this is just the beginning, and that time will fix all problems. But fans are starting not to believe, and soon they will follow that with starting not to show up.
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Main Photo: Ron Chenoy – USA Today Sports
