On a day when Trevor Siemian set a record for quarterbacks making their first start on the road, the Denver Broncos defense again stymied an excellent quarterback and extended one of the more jaw-dropping stats in football.
Siemian became the first quarterback in NFL history to pass for more than 300 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions in his first road start, but that record seems slight in comparison to what the Broncos D continues to do to opposing QBs.
For the 29th game in a row, the Denver defense limited their opponent to a passer rating under 100, holding Andy Dalton to a 72.8 rating on 21-of-31 passing. Dalton passed for 206 yards with no touchdowns and an interception while being sacked four times for 17 yards. Dalton entered the game averaging 366 yards per game, the best in the NFL at the time, with a 94.9 rating over the first two weeks.
Cornerback Chris Harris noted postgame that most of Dalton’s passing yards came on the final drive (which did not result in points):
“I think he had less than 200 (yards). He had 100 yards before the last drive. So really, we kept him under 100. But that was our goal. We want to continue to play smash-mouth defense. They ran the ball a little bit on us, but we were able to shut them down on the pass.”
Denver defeated the Bengals last season in Week 16 with Dalton out with an injury, but lost to the Red Rifle the last time they traveled to Cincinnati (2014), also in a Week 16 Monday night affair. In that game Dalton went for two touchdowns despite being limited to 146 yards.
Things were expected to be a little different on this trip to the jungle, as both Dalton and A.J. Green were fully healthy and Denver was playing its first road game of the Trevor Siemian era.
The Bengals went run heavy in the first half, with Dalton attempting just eight passes. He completed five, but relied heavily on running back Jeremy Hill, who scored both of Cincinnati’s touchdowns on the day. Dalton was under pressure during the second half, sacked four times by the Denver defense including three by Shane Ray.
Green did lead the Bengals with 77 yards receiving on eight catches, but he did not find the end zone and had a crucial third-down drop in the fourth quarter that may have been the result of a big hit he took in the first quarter. Earlier in the game, Aqib Talib rocked Green on a pass attempt, causing an incompletion. The pure drop in the fourth looked as though it was the result of Green hearing phantom footsteps.
Dalton might have heard the same on the Begnals’ final play of the game when he overthrew a receiver in the end zone. Three plays earlier he was sacked by Ray and Von Miller on back-to-back plays. The Broncos took over on downs and kneeled on the ball for the game’s final 28 seconds.
Here’s what the team from MHS (and some of our favorite follows in Denver media) had to say about how the Denver defense again dominated a top flight quarterback as the game unfolded…
Denver was aggressive early, perhaps leading to Dalton’s limited number of attempts in the first half…
#Broncos secondary comes off their man to attack the ball more than any team I have ever seen. It's scary but impressive.
— Benny Bash🎧 (@TheBennyBash) September 25, 2016
The numbers backed up Denver’s aggressive play…
One of the NFL's best passing team, the Bengals, threw for just 16 yards in the first quarter.
— Nick Groke (@nickgroke) September 25, 2016
The lack of passing did have one positive result for the Bengals, at least in the first half…
How do you neutralize Von Miller? Don’t throw the football
— Michael Jaycox (@MilkyMike) September 25, 2016
So the Broncos decided to put Miller on the Bengals’ top target, if just for a single play…
Von Miller was legitimately covering A.J. Green on that last play
— Michael Jaycox (@MilkyMike) September 25, 2016
A.J. Green had a rare drop that caused a three-and-out just moments after the Broncos had reclaimed the lead…
WHOA .. an A.J. Green drop. Rare. Broncos bailed out to get the 3-and-out.
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) September 25, 2016
Green’s drop came with the Denver defense closing in on him…
The Talib hit way back in the first quarter caused that A.J. Green drop.
— Casey Light (@lightonhisfeet) September 25, 2016
All those big hits add up. . . AJ Green knew the hammer was coming and lost his concentration. . . That's a @sonofbum sack. . .
— Gil Whiteley, Now and Then (@Gilfest) September 25, 2016
Will Parks officially joined the “No Fly Zone” with his first career INT to help ice the game…
And doing his best to fit in, @PhillyWill11 with his 1st career INT…#Patriots are pretty good, but, so are #Broncos…
— Brandon Krisztal (@BKDenverSports) September 25, 2016