That was quite a disappointment.
Following two straight double-digit wins as well as winning four of their last five games, anticipation for the Denver Broncos’ matchup with the Baltimore Ravens was at an all-time high.
The Broncos have played some of their best football since Peyton Manning the past few weeks, but many wondered how much of that resulted from the team’s talent, as opposed to being the product of a subpar schedule filled with backup-caliber quarterbacks.
The game against the Ravens seemed like it would serve as the perfect litmus test for how good this Broncos team truly is.
Unfortunately, if the game were to be graded, the team would get a resounding “F”.
While the loss is incredibly disappointing, we learned a lot about this Denver Broncos squad in the 41-10 beatdown
We still do not know how good the Denver Broncos defense is
The Broncos defense against the Ravens offense was expected to be one of the best strength-on-strength matchups in the NFL this season
The best offense in the league faces off against the NFL’s best defense. A clash of the titans.
Even outside of Denver the excitement for this game was palpable from national media. Everybody wanted to see how the league’s top offensive unit would fare against its top defensive unit.
Vance Joseph’s squad, unfortunately, was not up for the task.
The team came into the game with the goal of stopping the rushing attack and making Lamar Jackson beat them through the air and beat them he did. Jackson threw the ball 19 times for 280 yards and three touchdowns, and even that undersells how dominant a day he had.
Jackson finished the day with a perfect passer rating and that is how it felt throughout. The Broncos approached the game with a plan to blitz less and drop back in coverage, and Jackson tore them up.
To make matters worse, Baltimore didn’t have much issue running the ball either, as Derrick Henry carried the ball 23 times for 106 yards and two touchdowns. Baltimore was able to do whatever it wanted to against Denver’s defense, making it the type of performance that makes you question how good this defense truly is.
The Broncos will not face the best offense in football every week, but it is not going to get much easier these next two weeks when they face the Chiefs and Falcons. We will learn a lot more about this defense over that stretch and see how good they can truly be.
The pass catchers are simply not good enough
The most concerning unit on the roster coming into the season was the team’s collection of pass catchers. Courtland Sutton was always the top weapon, but beyond him, the rest was questionable at best and downright bad at worst.
The worst-case scenario for that position has played out.
Bo Nix’s first dropback of the game summed up this group perfectly. Nix rolled out, and hit, what should have been, an easy completion to Lil’Jordan Humphrey for a potential first down, but Humphrey only used one hand to catch the ball, it deflected off his hands and the ball was intercepted.
Drops, inability to get open, and an overall lack of consistency have been consistent themes of this unit throughout. Players like Marvin Mims and Troy Franklin have shown flashes but lack the consistency to be relied on, while veterans like Josh Reynolds and Lil’Jordan Humphrey simply are not good enough options to serve as the team’s No. 2.
Sutton is a perfect secondary receiving option, but again, this team is stuck with him as their unquestioned top target.
There is no savior coming down the pathway this season for that group either, as the trade market has already been picked clean, but adding weapons around Bo Nix will be the top priority for Sean Payton this offseason.
The Broncos are not the best team in football, and that’s okay
In the short term, it is extremely disappointing to see the Broncos put up the performance they did in their biggest game of the year to this point.
Nobody needed to see a win, but losing by 31 points doesn’t leave anybody feeling good for this season.
The game showed just how far Denver is from being a championship contender. In just about every area of the game the Ravens outclassed them, but, honestly, that’s just fine.
The Broncos came into the season in the opening stages of a rebuild, paying a quarterback – who is no longer a part of the team – the largest cap hit any player has ever had in NFL history. Vegas had the over/under win total for Denver at 5.5.
The fact that the team is exceeding expectations does not mean that there are major issues if they lose a game. Most everybody outside of Broncos Country expected the Ravens to be a one-sided loss.
The most important aspect of this season has always been the growth and development of Bo Nix, and the fact we saw another strong outing following his best performance of the season is a good sign for things to come. Wins would be nice, but that is not the most important piece right now and the team is not going to win every game.
