That wasn’t the prettiest of games, but the Broncos have perfected winning ugly and sloppy games, and did it again today on the road vs. the Panthers. After an up-and-down 4th quarter, the Broncos, with the help of a timely strip-sack by Nik Bonitto, came away with the win and improved to 7-2 on the year.
The offense played well at times, but left points on the field due to some sloppy play. Key defensive plays by Devon Key and Nik Bonitto were game-changers and a big reason why the Broncos won this
game.
Again, this was a sloppy game, but we have multiple big winners from this game with some losers mixed in. So, with all that said, here are my winners and losers from the Denver Broncos’ 26-21 victory over the Carolina Panthers.
WINNER – Nik Bonitto, clutch strip-sack
The defense and pass rush were not great for most of the game, more on that later, but once again, the Broncos’ defense and their pass rush came up big when it mattered most. After a near fumble on a pitch play set the Broncos’ offense back, they punted the ball to the Panthers with plenty of time to lead a game-winning drive.
After a 21-yard pass on the first play, things looked dire for the Broncos, but Bonitto called game with what ended up being the game-ending strip-sack.
Clutch.
This is the second week in a row where the Broncos defense needed some late-game magic to win the game, and the defense came through. They had their struggles throughout (again, more on that later), but came up big in the biggest moment and won this game for the Broncos.
WINNER – Devon Key’s wild INT in the end zone
The Panthers were driving with a one-point lead and were on the verge of making it an 8-point lead after driving down the field against the Broncos’ helpless defense. Instead of running it in on 1st down, Bryce Young threw a pass into the end zone that fell incomplete. They would run another play, or so we thought, that ended with the Broncos stuffing the run.
However, the refs deemed that Broncos head coach Sean Payton threw the challenge flag prior to the snap because it appeared that reserve safety Devon Key made an incredible INT off the deflection.
It looked like he caught it, and they ruled he made the interception.
Wow.
A game-changing and momentum-shifting INT by Key.
This took points off the board for the Panthers and completely changed the outcome of this game. It looked like they were about to go up by 8 points and continue their dominance of the Broncos’ defense.
Not so fast, my friend!
The Broncos would take a 19-14 lead on a Jonah Coleman touchdown and then a 26-14 lead after a Pat Bryant touchdown. The Panthers made it close late, but this play completely changed the outcome for the Broncos.
LOSER – Sloppy play
This was not a well-played game by the Broncos. Sure, they made some big plays throughout, but they left points on the field on offense, and the defense made errors throughout and allowed the Panthers to drive up and down the field multiple times.
Nix’s INT in the red zone while up 10-0 ignited the Panthers’ comeback, and later his iffy pitch to Jonah Coleman led to a fumble, which they recovered, but completely derailed the drive and allowed the Panthers to get the ball back.
On defense, they had missed tackles, no pass rush for most of the game, and allowed multiple third/fourth long plays to go for a first down. Back-breaking conversions that kept the Panthers in this game.
In the end, they won the game, and that is all that matters, but they kept the Panthers in this game and nearly gave them a good shot at winning this game.
LOSER – Broncos defense (outside of the two turnovers)
For a second straight week, the Broncos defense played poorly for most of the game. The pass rush was non-existent; the Panthers were able to run the ball consistently, they had no answer for Darren Waller, and allowed conversions on 3rd and 17 and 4th and 18, which is unacceptable.
Again, they made the clutch plays to win this game, but the Panthers’ offense had their number for most of the game.
Bryce Young had a good game with 276 yards and 3 touchdowns; Hubbard had 4.9 yards per carry; Waller had 90 yards and a touchdown, and they had missed tackles throughout.
Injuries to Brandon Jones and Talanoa Hufange who were inactive and cornerback Riley Moss who left with a concussion likely contributed to the woes in the secondary, but still, not a great showing. Joseph calling soft zone coverage on those 3rd-and-4th and long plays led to two wide-open receivers.
In the end, they won the game, but I had hoped for a better performance from the defense.
WINNER – Welcome back, Pat Bryant
Pat Bryant was activated off the injured reserve this weekend and made a huge impact in this game. His 26-yard touchdown catch ended up being the difference in this game and he showcased how he can be a difference-maker for this team in the second half of the season.
He finished the game with 4 catches for 56 yards and a touchdown, which led the team. With Waddle leaving the game with an injury, they needed him to step up, and he did.
LOSER – Broncos interior OL
The interior of the Broncos’ offensive line, specifically Ben Powers and Luke Wattenberg, struggled at times today. Multiple times, they allowed an unblocked defender in the backfield to blow up a run.
The run game was not great today, but that’s more on the offensive line than the runners in my opinion.
WINNER – 4th quarter Bo Nix
I thought Bo played a good game today. Probably his best as a passer all season. However, the mistakes clouded what looked to be a good game by Nix.
The interception, which he doesn’t throw many, wasn’t great. He was fooled by the defender, whom he thought was going to take RB JK Dobbins, but instead drifted infront of Courtland Sutton and led to the easy pick. They were on their way to making it a 17-0 game, or at least 13-0, but this turnover sparked the Panthers’ comeback.
Then, late in the 4th quarter, Nix had a poor pitch to RB Jonah Coleman, which led to them losing 10+ yards on the play. It wasn’t a turnover, and I am not sure who gets the blame there (I didn’t get a good look at it), but still, you can’t have that in that big of a moment.
Still, Nix led the Broncos to 13 4th quarter points, including the touchdown pass to Pat Bryant to give him yet another 4th quarter comeback. I saw some encouraging stuff, but the sloppy play clouds what was a good game by Nix.
LOSER – Injuries suck
Thank god for the bye week because the Denver Broncos are banged up.
Talanoa Hufanga – Inactive
Brandon Jones – Inactive
Jaylen Waddle – Left the game with a concussion
Riley Moss – Left the game with a concussion
Eyioma Uwazurike – Placed on the short-term IR
Tyler Badie – On the IR
RJ Harvey – On the IR
Now, the BYE will not impact the IR players since it doesn’t count towards the 4 games, but it does give everyone an extra week to heal and rest up. Thankfully, Waddle and Moss will get two weeks to recover from the concussions they suffered, and hopefully, Jones and Hufanga will be back after the Bye week.
Other notable Winners and Losers
- WINNER – Courtland Sutton: Had 5 catches for 45 yards and made some clutch catches for the Broncos.
- WINNER – Troy Franklin: Made some big plays on 3rd down in the second half of the game.
- WINNER – Jonathon Cooper: Had a big sack and multiple pressures.
- WINNER – Jonah Coleman: Played alright and had a big touchdown to give the Broncos the lead, but did he do enough to keep the Broncos from adding another back at the deadline?
- LOSER – JK Dobbins: 4 carries.
- LOSER – Covering Darren Waller: The struggles against big and athletic tight ends continue.
- LOSER – Vance Joseph: The soft zone coverage calls did not work and allowed two big third/fourth down conversions.
