Well, its Tuesday evening and I think most of us have gone through all of the emotions from last night’s butt whoopin’. Few things hurt worse in the regular season than having a division rival put belt to ass for 60 minutes, but that’s exactly what the Kansas City Chiefs did to the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football.
The good news is the NFL season does not allow anyone to linger too long on one bad game. It’s on to the next one.
There a plenty of questions about this team on offense and defense,
but the biggest one that will be answered first is ‘how will they respond’ when the Jacksonville Jaguars come to town on Sunday?
Broncos daily recap
Sean Payton’s Broncos struggle in September; he’s also shown an ability to turn things around
Denver’s endured tough September losses under Payton. But his teams have consistently improved as the season progresses.
The Broncos’ poor run defense and tackling are major concerns
The Denver Broncos’ defense was atrocious last night vs. the Chiefs. They allowed Kenneth Walker to rush for 173 yards, including a 60-yard 4th-down touchdown run, and average 7.5 yards per carry. They also allowed a hobbled Patrick Mahomes in a knee brace to rush for 23 yards, including a 15-yard first-quarter touchdown.
Davis Webb’s debut as a playcaller was an epic failure
There was a lot of hype and anticipation about Webb’s debut as a play caller, and well, his debut was an epic failure.
Potent quotables
Sean Payton
On QB Bo Nix’s fumbles and sacks against the Chiefs
“I think part of it was certainly the downs and distances that we put ourselves in. So when you end up in some of those second-and-long or third-and-longs, however you get there, minus plays, penalties, there’s a number of reasons. Then all of a sudden, the job description for him gets much more difficult. So if there was one thing that gave you a pretty good reflection on how the game went, and how poorly we played, and how well Kansas City played, if you just look at the third-down numbers, those guys were converting third-and-2, 3, 4 at a pretty good rate. I don’t think we converted a third down in our last 10 attempts.”
On if he would characterize last night’s game as a ‘wake-up call’
“Certainly a slap in the face. When you come off training camp and your offseason program, it’s one thing to lose in a hard-fought game where you feel like you played well. I don’t feel like we played up to our standard, and certainly that starts with us as coaches, myself. So yes, it’s disappointing. That would be a great way to describe it.”
On if it’s easier or more difficult to flush games like this
“Honestly I think it’s more difficult because you have to have that honest day where you come in as coaches. We first meet and we go through everything and discuss, ‘What are the things we would’ve done differently?’ Then you have to have that… I know it’s a shorter week, but there’s no way we can get past today without looking at the tape and looking at the things that we have to improve on before we even play the next opponent. So I would tend to always rather see your team play well than not play well. So that’s why I would say it’s more difficult.”
On media reports regarding Pro Football Hall of Fame QB Drew Brees
“When this topic came up at the [Pro Football] Hall of Fame, I kept thinking they were discussing the COVID season. Drew [Brees] had reached out, I think, right after the championship or right after the playoff win against Buffalo. I think he called [Bills Offensive Coordinator] Pete [Carmichael], probably texted Pete or [Ravens Senior Offensive Assistant] Joe [Lombardi], those guys. None of it even came to my attention. So, when the story came up in Canton, I kept thinking they were just talking about the COVID season. Even in the COVID season when he and I discussed possibly coming back for a Monday night game, he had trouble throwing it. So, I don’t think really anything really came of it. I think in Drew’s mind, there’s that competitor in him. So, I was kind of out of the loop. I don’t think it’s a big story, but nonetheless, certainly one that once they described it to me, it just never got to my level, I guess. He had reached out to Pete, I think, and then Joe.”
On lessons he learned at the start of his own play calling career that he can share with Offensive Coordinator Davis Webb
“I think there is always that experience element as you continue to do that, there are certain things you learn, things you prefer. I think most importantly is how’s the game unfolding on the other side of the ball. It’s so important to understand what’s happening with our defense and the opponent’s offense. A lot of that can guide you sometime relative to the risk tolerance you’re willing to have on certain plays or series.”
On if Kansas City did anything in particular to generate pressure on QB Bo Nix
“I think a lot of it, we were in one-dimensional phases. Our run-pass ratio was skewed and off. As that unfolds and you get into where you’re throwing the ball, then it becomes more challenging. The way that game unfolded, all of the sudden there were a number of series where you felt one-dimensional. I think that added to the problem.”
On QB Bo Nix being pressured by a three-man rush while trying to get the ball to WR Jaylen Waddle
“You focused on a shot play. They did a good job with mixing up the rush. We got some pressure. We probably got a little bit more man-to-man maybe on third down then maybe in the past. Last year’s studies in both games where K.C. defended our offense, there wasn’t as much pressure anticipated. There was some man-to-man. So [Chiefs CB L’Jarius] Sneed does a good job of timing up his pressures, but then also giving you some looks that… It’s entirely different when you’re playing that game and you’re in Kansas City with the silent snap count and when the pressures unfold then sometimes when you play at home and the timing of a verbal cadence and how much that carries weight. They have to show the pressures a little earlier. You point to a good snap where he [QB Bo Nix] is certainly looking to get the ball downfield. They’re doing a good job of staying on top.”
Under the radar
The Feed
Post your own thoughts on MHR’s Feed.
Holy smokes! There are a lot of good posts from the community today. The Feed is chalk full of them and I even missed a few because its been so busy in there. I just curated a list of them above, but I’m sure I missed some.
Way back in the day – 2007 – these were called “Diaries” and that is where I began raging against those Mike Shanahan defenses at the end of his career. Hopefully we see all of us turn more positive after this first game. I was comforted a bit by this tweet from Scotty on the main account today:
Just got to get through September, people.
