Broncos steal a win in New York, but answers weren’t provided
Sep 30, 2024, 4:00 AM
The Broncos escaped with a win on Sunday. On a rainy day in New Jersey, Denver won ugly. To put it mildly.
Bo Nix completed 12-of-25 passes for just 60 yards. Courtland Sutton had three catches for 60 yards. Nix had nine other completions that netted a grand total of zero yards.
The Broncos had just 12 first downs. They netted only 186 yards of total offense.
It was bad, bad, bad. And they still won.
That’s the good news. The bad news is there were way more negatives than positives on the day.
Denver won in spite of their head coach. The $90-million man was a bumbling mess in New Jersey. The won in spite of their quarterback. The No. 12 overall pick was overwhelmed by the conditions at MetLife Stadium.
Aaron Rodgers fumbled late in the fourth quarter, a play that should’ve resulted in a touchdown for the Broncos. At worst, it should’ve been Denver’s ball near midfield. Instead, they couldn’t challenge the call because Payton had already burned his two red flags earlier in the game on ill-advised objections.
The head coach wasn’t done there.
In a 10-9 game, where offense was at a standstill, Payton opted for a 50-yard field goal attempt with 1:27 to play. He should’ve pinned the Jets, who had no timeouts left, deep. Instead, Wil Lutz sailed his kick wide and New York needed just 30 yards to be in field-goal range.
They got it. But Greg Zuerlein’s game-winning attempt sailed wide right.
Whew.
The Broncos didn’t win. They survived.
Now, the question is simple: What does this victory mean?
It puts Denver at 2-2. They’re squarely in the mix. But are the playoff-caliber team?
Hardly.
The Broncos have a defense that is worthy of the postseason. Their offense, however, is not. At least not yet.
That’s on Payton. He’s the one calling the shots on that side of the ball, with his handpicked QB at the helm.
Yes, it was miserable in the Meadowlands on Sunday. But Nix’s inability to deal with the conditions was concerning. He was largely ineffective, other than his first-career touchdown pass.
As a result, Denver had to rely on their running game. And they finally found one.
Javonte Williams had 77 yards on 16 carries, an average of 4.8. Jaleel McLaughlin had 46 yards on nine carries, 5.1 per clip.
That kept the Broncos in the game. And it provides hope for the rest of the season.
If Denver can run the ball, they can overcome their rookie quarterback. And if they stick with their ground attack, they can withstand their head coach’s blunders.
Bad challenges. Poor decisions. And the choice to spend the week in West Virginia, where the Broncos had to practice indoors on a tennis court due to bad weather on Friday.
Trip. Stumble. And fall.
Yet, the Broncos kept their feet. Somehow, they were able to still get a W against the Jets.
It took a great defensive effort. It took a ground game. And it took ineptitude on the other side.
Denver can count on the first thing the rest of the season. They can hope the found something in terms of the second one that carries over. But the third one might not be on their side.
Aaron Rodgers won’t be limping around on the field every week. Nathaniel Hackett won’t be dialing up lousy plays every Sunday. And Robert Saleh won’t be choosing to go for it on fourth-and-10 in the final two minutes with three timeouts in his pocket in future games.
Those three people combined to give the game to the Broncos. They out-bumbled Payton. They out-faltered Nix. They out-miscued Denver.
It’s exciting to be 2-2. It’s nice to steal a game on the road. It’s great to be .500 at the quarter pole (roughly) of the season.
But what does it really mean? That’s anyone’s guess.
Sunday didn’t provide any answers. In part, that’s because of the conditions. A driving rainstorm made everything hard to gauge; it made the game a crapshoot. But it’s also due to the way Denver won.
The Broncos didn’t win. The Jets lost.
Denver had no business leaving MetLife Stadium with a victory. New York gave them a W, however.
Moving forward, if this victory is going to mean anything, the Broncos have to be better. Nix has to be competent. Payton has to make better decisions. The defense and the running game have to continue to show up.
Will those things happen? That’s the question. And it wasn’t answered on Sunday.
