Russell Wilson laments letting “the best defense in the world” down thus far
Nov 16, 2022, 3:11 PM
The Broncos defense is elite.
The offense is brutal.
At 3-6, Denver is squandering a golden opportunity on a weekly basis, wasting the top defense in the NFL. The Broncos are giving up just 16.6 points per game, first in the league. The problem is they’re scoring 14.6 points per game, which is dead last.
While the anemic offense has all kinds of problems, a lot of them start with Russell Wilson. Even with a depleted offensive line and injuries across the board, the QB is always going to take the most heat.
At his press conference on Wednesday, Wilson lamented the offense’s role in the poor record and letting the defense down thus far.
“At the end of the day, this game is about touchdowns. If we can find those, generate those, I really believe with our defense and how they’ve been playing all year — we’ve got the best defense in the world. It’s our obligation as an offense to make sure we step up and come to the plate and do what we need to do to help our football team,” Wilson said.
A crazy stat surfaced late Sunday night and Monday morning. If the Broncos scored just 18 points in each of their nine games thus far, they’d be 8-1 on the season. That’s a really, really low bar. And for a guys that’s made nine Pro Bowls in 10 years, Wilson knows his side of the ball needs to get better in a hurry.
“The defense has already been giving us a great chance to win every game. And so now we’ve got to answer the bell and not overcomplicate it, not press, but also know that we have to have a sense of urgency every play, every practice, every moment. Every opportunity we get is an opportunity to learn and grow, so we’ve got to respond that way,” Wilson said.
The next opportunity for Denver comes on Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High against the hapless Raiders. Unfortunately, last place in the AFC West is on the line. If the Broncos lose, both teams will be 3-7, but Las Vegas will hold the tiebreaker. Wilson offered a solution to fix Denver’s problems.
“We need two more touchdowns a game. I know how to do that. We’ll find that. We’ll figure that out,” Wilson said.
Indeed, two touchdowns a game would work. That’d shoot the Broncos from 14.6 points a contest to 28.6, or second in the NFL in scoring behind the Chiefs. How about baby steps, Russ? Maybe one more touchdown per game? Again, Denver would be 8-1 if that had happened.
Regardless, it’s nice to see Wilson take some accountability. Now he and the offense need to go do it on Sunday, or these words will be nice for fans to hear, but ultimately meaningless.
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