Broncos lose defensive showcase
Baltimore's D clamps down, holding Orton and company to just 7 points.
Moreno celebrates Denver's only high point Sunday.
In a game that was billed as the story of two defenses, it was a special teams play that turned the game around. After getting simply manhandled in the first half, the Broncos went to the locker room having allowed only 2 field goals in a half that could have seen them down by much more than that. The Broncos rebuilt defense lived up to its billing by bending but not breaking, keeping the gap within one touchdown. But on the kickoff to the open the second half, Lardarius Webb took the ball 95 yards to the house which instantly took the wind of the Broncos’ sails – wind that would not blow their way the rest of the game. It was the second kick returned for a touchdown in as many games for the Denver special teams – a stat that will not go unnoticed in team meetings this week, to be sure. What the Broncos defense worked so hard to maintain, the kick coverage team lost in just a few seconds.
From that point, it was all downhill. Sure, Denver managed to put the ball in the end zone once on a Knowshon Moreno rush, but that drive was successful as much in part due to the Baltimore defensive failure as it was offensive success. A few untimely penalties kept that drive alive, and as long as the Ravens played clean, the Broncos could put together no answer for Ray Lewis and Company.
There are a couple ways to react to this game – and we’ll see plenty of both around here this week. There will be the “I told you so” bunch– you know who you are–The types who loved the 6-0 start but will insist that this week you saw the real Broncos, the first 6 were aberrations and this is what you can expect from here on out.
But a more realistic view takes a few things into account. First, that playing the odds, it’s really difficult for a team to win 7 in a row in the NFL, no matter who you are or who you play. That the Broncos are 6-1 is a major victory. Second, that the Ravens are a very good team, and that any team in this league would be happy to .500 against the top quarter of its schedule. In other words, if you take the top 4 teams that Denver plays this year (New England, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Indianapolis), any of us would be happy to see Denver split those games. So far, that’s what they’ve done. If Denver continues to win the games they should win, and compete in the games against elite teams in the league, we’ll still see a playoff game here in Denver come January.
What the Broncos need to take away from this game are some things to work on, for sure. Any defense will struggle to keep you in a game when the offense can’t put up points. It’s just not realistic to expect them to pitch a shutout in order to win a game, so Orton and company need to figure out how to move the ball against good teams. Slow developing draws and screen passes weren’t effective today, and they won’t be if the defense is as aggressive as Baltimore’s was today.
They also need to figure out how to cover a kickoff. If we want to see a young head coach’s head explode in anger, go ahead and let another returner run the length of the field. Nothing kills a team’s effort faster than special teams failures putting undue pressure on everyone else.
Finally, they need to figure out how to bounce back from defeat. This is one we haven’t gotten a chance to gauge yet – what happens when Denver gets its clock cleaned, and then has to come back and play a high profile primetime game against the defending Super Bowl champions? That’s what we have to look forward to. Nothing is getting any easier, and Denver now has an opportunity to show that it really is the team of grit and character that we’ve seen up until now.
I didn’t shed a tear over this game. Frustrating as it was to lose that badly, the game looked like a loss going in. Next week against Pittsburgh at home will be another huge game, and you’re right when you say it will be a true measure of the character of this team… and of a young coach’s ability to keep his team focused after an embarrassing loss.