In terms of the 2016 season as a whole, the Broncos got out of the gates as fast as any team in the league. But after winning four consecutive games to start the season, Denver has lost two in a row, in large part due to their slow starts in games.

Through six games, Denver ranks 31st in the league in first-quarter points with just 2.2 per game. Only Arizona, who has failed to score in the first quarter of any game, ranks lower, according to teamrankings.com.

“It’s been pretty consistent and I think whatever we can do to try to get that corrected will help us down the road,” interim head coach Joe DeCamillis said last week about the Broncos’ slow start to the game in San Diego. Denver did not score until the 5:40 mark of the second quarter in that game, and only converted a field goal after recovering a muffed punt at San Diego’s 11-yard line. The offense produced just 60 yards of offense in the half.

“Obviously, when Kube (Kubiak) comes back I’m sure he’s going to have a plan for that and we’ve got to follow suit with that plan. It’s not just a player issue as far as getting the slow starts because obviously coaching for one we’re not getting them going fast enough,” DeCamillis said.

The offense isn’t the only unit to blame for falling behind, however. Denver’s defense ranks 29th in the NFL, allowing 6.8 points per game in the first quarter.

“I think we’ve got to obviously do a better job at getting started, and then the positive I thought, was I thought they fought their tails off to be honest with you,“ DeCamillis commented. “When you look at the end of the game, having a chance to win that game [is] incredible really, because you’ve got basically two onside kicks on it. I thought our guys just stayed in it, hung in there, and we’ve got a load of grit and determination in that room and I think that they are going to bounce back.”

The Broncos have indeed been one of the best teams, statistically, in the fourth quarter. Denver’s 12.5 points scored per game in the fourth quarter is tops in the NFL. The defense has allowed an average of just 3.0 points in the fourth quarter, second-best in the league. (Against San Diego, the only points Denver allowed in the fourth quarter came on a safety by the offense.)

Nevertheless, Denver has now lost two games in a row, a situation many thought would never happen just a few weeks ago. Though still two weeks out from the midway point in the season, the Broncos are looking at this predicament as fuel to improve.

“This is tough league and we were playing a tough team,” quarterback Trevor Siemian said after the game last Thursday. “We knew that going in. I think the one thing about this team is the resilience and that was a staple of us last year as well. All of those guys in the locker room, the whole game the sense was that we were going to figure it out and get this thing going and make a run at it. Again, it was just too little, too late.”

The Broncos have a chance to prove that resilience Monday, Oct. 24 when they take on the Texans in Denver.