Broncos need to get Sanders involved earlier say Franklin, Lammey

At the end of Sunday’s 20-19 victory over the Oakland Raiders, Denver Broncos wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders led his team in receiving yards (96) on four receptions.

Sanders, however, was shut out of the first half, only gaining 11 yards on a last-second lateral while being targeted zero times.

A week after Sanders had 10 catches for 135 yards and a touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks, “Pritchard and Cecil” host Cecil Lammey said the Broncos missed an opportunity to get the Pro Bowl receiver involved against the Raiders in the first half.

“He has established the strongest chemistry with Case Keenum, and the team needed to get him involved earlier in this contest,” Lammey said after the game.

Fellow 104.3 The Fan host Orlando Franklin echoed Lammey’s comments after the game, saying within the first handful of passes the Broncos need to get Sanders involved.

“Even if he doesn’t catch the ball, you’ve got to try to put the ball in his hands,” Franklin said, “because Emmanuel’s been doing such great things through the first two weeks of this season that you cannot afford to not throw the ball to him.”

When asked after the game why Sanders had no first-half targets, Broncos head coach Vance Joseph said it came down offensive strategy.

“They were playing a bunch of shell coverage — cover two and cover four. The thought was to run the football, but we couldn’t do it,” Joseph said. “They were playing really stout up front, and again, that defense played good football for them today.

“In the second half we got some runs, so it forced them to play more single-high. And when they played shell and played cover two, we went more vertical down the field. Our plan kind of changed. We became more aggressive versus the zones.”

When asked a similar question after the game, Broncos quarterback Case Keenum blamed himself.

“I don’t think I connected with many people in the first half. Emmanuel is obviously a great player and someone I want to get the ball to a lot,” Keenum said. “It’s hard to get the ball to anybody when you don’t have many plays. Going three-and-out those first couple times was tough. Just couldn’t get anything going.”

In the first half Sunday, the Raiders won the time of possession battle 20 minutes and 32 seconds to the Broncos’ 9:28 while Keenum went just 5-for-11 for 38 yards and an interception.

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.