By Jordan Long
The Denver Broncos beat the Oakland Raiders, 24-6 on Sunday. With the win, the Broncos ended the regular season 9-7, but didn’t make the playoffs for the first time since 2011. What went wrong for the defending Super Bowl Champions this season?
The Broncos strength was the defense. They were able to stop opponents from scoring, allowing 18.6 points per game. The defense sacked the quarterback with a total of 42, ranking 3rd in the NFL. Even if the Broncos didn’t sack the quarterback, that pressure affected the opponents’ ability to throw the football. The average yards per game they gave up through the air was 185.8 yards, ranking number one in the NFL.
The defense was decent but they couldn’t stop the run. Teams would line up and run the football at will. It worked against the Broncos because their defensive line couldn’t shut down the running game. Rival teams rushed for 130.3 yards per game, 28th in the league. Those rushing yards ended up tiring out the Broncos.
The Bronco offense struggled all season long because the offensive line couldn’t protect quarterback Trevor Siemian. It seemed like every time Siemian dropped back to pass, he was hit. The offensive line was not protecting him. The line allowed 40 sacks.
The Broncos weren’t able to run the football at all this year. The line never created holes for the running backs to run through. The Broncos running game rushed for an average of 92.8 yards per game, 28th overall.
The Broncos are now focused on the offseason. The number one priority for the Broncos is addressing the offensive line. A better offensive line would protect Siemian from getting constantly hit by the defenders. An improved offensive line will help the Broncos’ running game. Hopefully, General Manager John Elway will fix this team to become a playoff team once again next season.
What areas do the Broncos need to improve on in the offseason?
Leave a Reply