The Denver Broncos lost in Sunday’s home divisional showdown against the Los Angeles Chargers. Early on, the team couldn’t overcome the loss of Patrick Surtain II to a concussion and couldn’t get off the field defensively on third down. Offensively, Denver’s massive first-half sputter put them in a hole in the second half that they couldn’t overcome.
Denver Broncos struggle through three quarters of play in loss to Chargers
The Denver Broncos home loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday was encapsulated by offensive inefficiency on early downs and Denver’s inability to get off the field defensively on third down.
Early down inefficiency continues to plague the Broncos offense
The Broncos’ offense continued to suffer from inefficiency on first and second down, and turnovers didn’t help them as the Chargers’ defense shut them down.
Bo Nix’s first throw of the game was placed a bit high, intended for Marvin Mims, and was tipped and intercepted. From that point forward, things went downhill for Denver and the offense. Two plays after that, cornerback Patrick Surtain II ended up leaving the game with a concussion and did not return after hitting his head hard on the turf.
On a promising drive in the second quarter, Javonte Williams’ fumble gave the Chargers the ball back at midfield while it was 13-0. Nothing could go right for Denver’s offense. In the first half, the Broncos couldn’t move the ball well on first and second down, averaging three yards per play on 20 offensive plays.
Going into halftime, the Broncos offense had 60 net yards of production compared to the Chargers 246. Nix was three of ten passing for 22 yards. It’s important to note that it wasn’t just Nix who struggled through three quarters — Denver’s inability to run the ball hurt them, various protection issues popped up, and nobody was open consistently enough.
Their struggles persisted through the third quarter, and their first real spark of the game came in the fourth quarter, with Nix finding Troy Franklin to cap off a 95-yard scoring drive, which cut the Chargers’ deficit to 23-7.
That spark created a little bit of a bushfire, with Denver airing it out and converting on two fourth-down attempts. Courtland Sutton hauled in a massive one-handed touchdown catch that cut the deficit to 23-13. Denver unloaded through the air with an uptempo approach, and that seemed to be something that worked in their favor. Nix seemed to be more in rhythm in the fourth quarter, and it was evident as he finished the game going 19-of-33 passing for 216 yards and two passing touchdowns, with 61 rushing yards on the ground on six attempts.
Their comeback bid fell short, but it’s worth wondering why
One thing is clear, though — the offense can’t continue to start off slowly the way they consistently have to begin the season. They’ve demonstrated their struggles with playing from behind and will need to figure out how to get into a rhythm quicker, and part of that is being able to establish the run without finding themselves in a deficit.
Denver Broncos defense loses third down, time of possession battle
The Denver Broncos defense struggled mightily today without Patrick Surtain II. While the loss of Surtain was huge, Denver struggled on third down as Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert carved them up and dominated the time of possession.
On third down, the Broncos defense was sliced up by Herbert and the Chargers, converting on 8-of-10 attempts on third down. With several big plays through the air and a manageable run game, Los Angeles’ time of possession in Denver was monumentally one-sided, with the Broncos losing that battle 21:13 to 8:47.
No matter how many pressure looks the Broncos threw at Herbert and the Chargers’ offense, Los Angeles found ways to capitalize, and the ball didn’t once bounce Denver’s way in the first half. We’ve said before that there will be games where Denver’s offense needs to produce in the likely event that the defense has a rough day. Through five weeks, the defense has been fantastic, but Sunday’s game was their first real game where they struggled through three quarters.
Overall, the Chargers finished the game dominating the overall time of possession 37:23 to Denver’s 22:37. On third down, the Broncos defense allowed 11-of-18 conversions on the day, which is the highest output they’ve allowed this season. Eight of those 11 conversions came in the first half alone, but it was too much to overcome with their 20-0 halftime deficit.
Now, the Broncos have to shake off this loss and try to rebound quickly as they travel to take on the New Orleans Saints on Thursday Night Football.
Denver drops to 3-3 on the season.
