Empower Field embarrassingly empty at Broncos kickoff against Arizona

Yes, it’s a battle of backup quarterbacks.

And yes, the 3-10 Broncos and 4-9 Cardinals have both had incredibly disappointing seasons. But this is jarring.

The crowd at Empower Field at Mile High as Denver and Arizona kicked off on Sunday afternoon was embarrassingly bad. Thousands and thousands of empty seats blended in with the fans. In some sections, it was hard to tell if there were more seats or people. Scroll through these four photos snapped by our Senior Broncos writer Andrew Mason.

Under way in Denver. pic.twitter.com/B5ieQn0iol

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) December 18, 2022

Those aren’t shots 30 minutes before the game. Those are right at kickoff. It’s hard to remember Mile High being that empty, if ever, when the ball was put in the air.

And considering tickets were going for as low as $10 right before the contest started, it shouldn’t be shocking, but it can still be sad. This very proud franchise is not used to seeing crowds so sparse and pathetic.

CEO Greg Penner has some serious decisions to make about the future of the team, particularly when it comes to head coach Nathaniel Hackett and GM George Paton. QB Russell Wilson has underperformed, but his contract means he’ll almost assuredly be back in 2023. Fans sent a clear message on Sunday about what they think of the direction of the franchise.

The official “no-show” count will come later in the game, but it will be very high. Even if the number is moved a little bit to not make it look quite so bad, all you need to do is use your eyes.

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