The Denver Broncos defense isn’t making the grade in any way

And the truth is, the Denver Broncos offense didn’t make the grade in Sunday’s loss, either.

OFFENSE

OVERALL GRADE: C

The Broncos’ second-half fade continues to be a concern; they have just one touchdown after halftime this season, and it was on a “Hail Mary” pass. Their second-half points-per-possession figure is low, and their first five second-half series resulted in a loss of 18 yards.

PASSING: C-minus

To start with, the vertical element vanished from the passing game. Part of that was due to the Jets’ work coverage, which was stellar for most of the game and played a role in Wilson holding on to the football too long.

“We got a lot of coverage [Sunday] — a lot of two-high (safety) looks,” Broncos coach Sean Payton explained. “It’s hard to get down the field with what they were doing defensively.”

Protection was an issue, too.

“I thought we could have been a little stronger at tackle,” Payton said. “The pocket got collapsed a few times.”

Given that the Broncos have the highest-paid set of tackles in the NFL in terms of average-per-year contract value, that isn’t what you want to hear. Two New York sacks came at Mike McGlinchey’s expense. Garett Bolles drew a holding penalty.

RUSHING: B

Russell Wilson’s runs weren’t designed, but they were effective, and pushed the Broncos’ ground-game tally north to 139 yards, with the QB providing 49 of them and averaging 7.0 yards per attempt.

But it wasn’t a matter of effectiveness. Frequency mattered, too. And that’s where the Broncos fell short, leading to Payton sharing that he should have stuck with the run more.

“I would have liked for us to have been better running the ball,” Payton said. “Part of that — a good part of that — falls on me and being more patient.”

The Broncos all but abandoned the run after first downs following halftime, and that seemed to push the offensive off-schedule as its third- and fourth-quarter inconsistency continued.

DEFENSE

OVERALL GRADE: D

On the positive side, the Broncos defense did stiffen in the red zone. New York’s only offensive touchdown came on Breece Hall’s 72-yard third-quarter scamper, meaning that Denver held the Jets out of the end zone on every red-zone series. One of those stops saw Pat Surtain II intercept Zach Wilson in the final moments, making the sort of big play that allowed Denver’s defense to revive itself seven days earlier and steal the win at Chicago.

But holding the Jets to one offensive touchdown must also come with context. After all, Nathaniel Hackett called the plays, and 10 of the 13 games for which he’s called plays in the last two seasons — eight in Denver last year and five this season in New York — his offense has had one or zero touchdowns.

The Broncos have allowed 755 rushing yards in the last three games.

The history of the other teams since 1980 to yield at least 750 rushing yards in a three-game span is frightening, as I share with @CecilLammey on Orange and Blue Today: pic.twitter.com/hnbuAPeSxR

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) October 10, 2023

PASSING DEFENSE: C

So, the Broncos not only rank dead last in the league in rushing defense; they’re also allowing more yards per pass play than anyone else. This game didn’t help much, although Pat Surtain II’s interception of Zach Wilson resuscitated the Broncos’ hopes late, and Ja’Quan McMillian made a solid acquittal of himself in his second-straight game working as the nickel cornerback.

Zach Allen had his best pass-rushing game as a Bronco, and the two pressures — and one sack — generated by Elijah Garcia should merit him more playing time going forward.

RUSHING DEFENSE: F

Same stuff, different week. The Jets did exactly what Miami and Chicago did in the previous fortnight. Denver’s defensive line found itself pushed back repeatedly. Gaps remained massive. And 138 of the Jets’ 234 rushing yards came BEFORE CONTACT!

Making matters worse? The Broncos knew what was coming stylistically. Inside linebacker Josey Jewell noted last week the advantage he felt his defense possessed from facing Hackett’s offense in practice throughout 2022.

To paraphrase the late Herb Brooks, the Broncos’ run defense is getting worse each week, and right now it’s playing like the middle of December.

SPECIAL TEAMS

OVERALL GRADE: C

Wil Lutz was perfect, as he has been since Week 2. Riley Dixon didn’t punt until the second half. All but one of his punts saw at least 4.0 seconds of hang time.

A second-straight week with with a muff from returner Marvin Mims Jr. sullied the day. This one proved costly, setting up a Jets field goal. But Tremon Smith played distracting coverage perfectly to force a third-quarter muff that he recovered.

***