Are you ready for some football?
The Denver Broncos officially kicked off their 2018 preseason Saturday night, hosting the Minnesota Vikings and coming back but eventually losing 42-28. For nearly the entire first half, the Broncos looked broken; they couldn’t gain a single first down in the first quarter while Minny gained nine, and the Vikings led 24-14 at halftime.
In the second half, Paxton Lynch continued to struggle until he was pulled in favor of Chad Kelly, who threw a touchdown to bring the game within six, at 27-21. And then, Kelly led another touchdown drive with 10 minutes to go in the fourth quarter, giving Denver the 28-27 lead. But, Kyle Sloter came in for the Vikings to exact revenge on the Broncos, leading a TD drive with a two-point conversion before running in a touchdown for the 42-28 win.
Preseason outcomes may not matter at the end of the year, but preseason is important when it comes down to deciding which players out-performed one another. The Broncos must use these four games — as well as training camp — to determine which 53 men are the cream of the crop. So, who helped their stock rise and who took a huge fall on Saturday night? Let’s dive in.
3 Broncos players who impressed
1. Isaiah McKenzie enjoyed a punt return touchdown. That was huge for him after last year and his repetitive fumbling which turned into a demotion.
On his punt return for a score on Saturday, McKenzie utilized superb speed down the sideline, as well as great patience before he decided which way he was going to go, allowing his blockers to get set up before taking off. The second-year man went 78 yards to the house, which was the longest touchdown for Denver since 2015 when Omar Bolden scored from 83 yards out on a return.
2. Zaire Anderson hauled in a tip-pick-off of Trevor Siemian in the second quarter. Anderson was three yards behind the tight end, but it turns out he was at the right place at the right time when the ball careened off the receiver’s hands and into his. It came at a perfect point in the game, at the Minnesota 30, with Denver trailing 17-0 and needing something positive.
3. That interception was followed by Royce Freeman running right, then bouncing it outside to avoid being touched as he took the ball 23 yards into the end zone for Denver’s first score of the day. That brought the game to 17-7. Freeman showed solid speed as well as awareness on that run, a great sign considering he’s a rookie. He also ran just like that for years at Oregon, so it’s a possible sign Freeman could be able to do similar things in the NFL.
Also of note: Chad Kelly definitely impressed in his time late in the game. It must be noted that he played against the third-team Minnesota defense, throwing a touchdown to a wide open receiver thanks to a lack of coverage. Later in the game, Kelly led another touchdown drive, standing tall in the pocket and taking a hit before leading Phillip Lindsay into the end zone.
Kelly finished with a line of: 14-21 for 177 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. The pick was bad, as he held onto the ball too long. But, Kelly also had a third TD dropped in the waning seconds of the contest.
3 Broncos who flopped
1. Paxton Lynch is just, plain terrible. His first throw in the game went into traffic to DaeSean Hamilton, picked off. Bad decision, bad throw, too high. Denver was down 7-0 at that point and the interception set up Minnesota with a short field (30 yards) and they turned it into a quick touchdown.
On Lynch’s next drive, he rolled left, threw it way too hard to the receiver, incomplete. It’s as if the former first-round pick doesn’t know how to throw with touch.
On his third drive, Lynch was sacked on 3rd down to end that series. And in the two minute offense, he held onto the ball too long and almost was sacked, barely threw it away, on second down. Lynch ended the day going 6-11 for 24 yards and one INT with a sack. His QB rating was a ghastly 22.2.
2. Will Parks took a terrible angle on the 78-yard touchdown by Roc Thomas. It was a terrible, terrible play by Parks, who is the last line of defense in that situation. The Broncos also blitzed on that play, which meant the Vikings’ screen call was perfectly timed, but Parks has to be the man to stop that play. He was way out of position and must do better. (His saving grace was the first sack of the season he was able to record by being unblocked.)
3. Rookie cornerback Isaac Yiadom struggled in his first NFL action. First, Stefon Diggs scored on him on a slant, which was really difficult to stop. Not much Yiadom could’ve done there, but still, it hurt the team. Then, Yiadom allowed a huge gain on a sideline, back-shoulder throw. Again, tough to stop those, but the rookie needed to get his head around more quickly.
For guys like Anderson, McKenzie and Kelly, the performance on Saturday night should help them make the squad and possibly move up in terms of the depth chart. For Lynch, it should mean a demotion to the third-team.