Schlereth: Broncos staff ‘stupid’ if they ditch offensive formula
Oct 25, 2017, 12:00 AM | Updated: 8:18 am
Two Sundays ago, in a loss to a previously winless New York Giants squad while coming off a bye week, the Denver Broncos — specifically Trevor Siemian — attempted 50 passes.
After that game, Mark Schlereth said the Broncos would “lose every game” if the quarterback throws for 50-plus attempts.
This week, after arguably one of the lowest points for Denver’s offense in the past quarter century, the “Schlereth & Evans” co-host said a pattern has started to develop.
“We keep getting funneled into the same thing. Our three losses, they’re the exact same losses. And after the game, we get the exact same reasons,” Schlereth said on Tuesday.
“It’s the same formula for losing that we’ve had three different times now, sitting at 3-3.”
On Monday, Broncos head coach Vance Joseph pointed to the lack of a running game in his team’s three losses this season as a culprit for the recent offensive woes.
“In our three victories, that’s where it started. We were in firm control of how we attacked the defense,” Joseph said. “When you’re behind the sticks so much — in our three losses it’s been that way. First down is a stuff, second down is a quick pass, incomplete, and now we’re third-and-10.
“Who wants to operate like that? Again, it’s a unit issue. We have to coach better and we have to play better, all of us.”
However, Schlereth said if the formula for success is so apparent, they the Broncos coaching staff needs to “stick to the darn formula.”
“We know what the formula is, and if we can’t figure out that it doesn’t work when we throw it 35-plus times a game, then our coaches are stupid,” Schlereth said. “Then we just have the wrong people coaching.”
Through 20 starts in his three-year career, Siemian has garnered a record of 10-10.
And among those 10 losses, eight have come when the young gunslinger throws for 35 or more attempts. Consequently, four of his five worst games in terms of quarterback rating accompanied 35-plus passing attempts.
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
