Mile High Sports

Broncos trail Bengals 14-3 at halftime in lopsided affair so far

MHS Staff
starting for the Denver Broncos

Dec 28, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Cincinnati Bengals quarterback AJ McCarron (5) prepares to pass the football in the first quarter at against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

In a game that will likely decide the No. 2 seed for the AFC, the Denver Broncos trail the Cincinnati Bengals 14-3 at halftime, but it feels as if they are dominating in a much more convincing fashion.

With 30 minutes of football in the books, Cincinnati has 209 yards of offense to Denver’s 89 and has controlled time of possession by more than double. Denver had just three possessions in the first half, accounting for only 8:46 of game time. Additionally, the Bengals have been lethal on third down conversions, going 7-of-8 and converting their first seven attempts.

After the Broncos deferred the coin toss, the Bengals took the opening kickoff and controlled more than half of the first quarter clock with a 15-play, 80-yard touchdown drive. The Bengals converted all three third downs, including a five-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Green, one of several perfectly placed passes from A.J. McCarron. Denver had two key missed tackles on Cincinnati’s first third down that could have stalled out the drive at midfield. Instead, the Broncos were playing from behind on their first possession.

Denver couldn’t answer. Brock Osweiler moved the ball past midfield thanks to some penalties, but ultimately the offensive line surrendered a big sack and Osweiler threw a third-down incompletion to avoid another on the very next play.

The Broncos punt unit pinned the Bengals at their own 10-yard line, but again the Denver defense could not make a stop. This time Cincinnati pulled out all the stops, offering wild formations and creative play-calling for which Denver had no answer. Thirteen plays and 90 yards later, the Bengals had a 14-0 lead and the Broncos on the ropes.

Ryan Harris took a penalty on Denver’s very first play of the ensuing drive, followed by one by Demaryius Thomas and the Broncos faced a first and 25 from their five as they tried to keep from being knocked to the mat. A three-and out gave Cincinnati the ball back at the Cincinnati 40 after another Denver punt.

The Broncos finally caught a break on the Bengals next possession, after seven consecutive conversions, Denver finally got a third-down stop, and some luck. Bengals kicker Mike Nugent missed a 45-yard field goal, keeping it a two-score game.

In their 2:00 offense, Osweiler connected with Owen Daniels for an 8-yard gain, then on a deep bomb to Emmanuel Sanders who had slipped passed the Bengals coverage for a gain of 35. Ronnie Hillman got the next two touches on pass plays and got Denver inside the 10-yard line, but Osweiler was sacked on second down, again failing to throw the ball away when necessary. Denver settled for a field goal and the hope that they can bring the game within four points to open the second half when they receive the ball.

Here’s how things played out on social media with commentary from the Mile High Sports team and some of our favorite follows in the Denver media.

There was not enough pressure on A.J. McCarron early, a key to the game…

And the o-line was living up to its reputation, giving the Bengals receivers plenty of time to work out of man coverage…

An extended clinical drive, exactly what Denver didn’t need…

But the Bengals found the end zone and chewed up a huge amount of clock with their first possession…

Denver moved the chains a bit on their next drive, thanks to some cheating…

But two big failures by the o-line surrendered a sack and a “save his neck” incompletion by Osweiler led to a punt…

Round 1 was a decisive victory for the Bengals…

Cincinnati continued to grind time on their second drive, running out the first quarter clock…

Denver simply couldn’t get a stop on third down…

The Bengals pulled out all the stops on their next drive, including on their next touchdown…

There was only one way to describe how Denver started its next offensive possession…

Cincinnati kept things going on their next drive, again converting third downs with ease and causing serious concern…

After seven consecutive conversions, Denver finally got a third-down stop, and some luck.

https://twitter.com/AllbrightNFL/status/681664450823258112

Despite being dominated throughout the half, there was some hope…

On the second play of their 2:00 drill, Osweiler found Sanders for XX yards and a milestone…

But once Denver got into the red zone, the problems there continued and Brock was sacked again…

The result was a field goal and disappointment…

The only silver lining? Denver gets the ball back to start the second half.

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