Former Broncos coach Mike Shanahan was inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame on Sunday. That was the only highlight of the weekend as the Broncos got dominated by the Raiders 34-24. The final score no way shape or form indicated how badly the Broncos were outplayed. Why are the Broncos struggling? Is it coaching? Is it the O line? Teddy? Here are my thoughts:
Too Many Sacks
Bridgewater got sacked 5 times on the day against what was a pretty good raiders pass rush as they have 16 on the season. Bolles and Risner struggled tremendously against that front four. They were also ineffective in creating holes for Williams and Gordon as they both had to break many tackles just to get 4-5 yards it seemed like. After the game many people were quick to criticize Bolles and all the other linemen for their poor play which is fair. However, not all of the sacks were their fault as Teddy in multiple occasions held the ball way too long and it’s not just this game. Teddy through 6 games has been sacked 16 times which is a 2.67 sack rate per game. For context Drew Lock last year with the same line was sacked 19 times in 13 games which a rate of 1.46 sacks per game. I concede Lock was sacked 3 times in a half vs Baltimore this year and some of that was on him and also was a result of the ravens aggressive game plan and the Broncos being down their starting guards. So did Garret Bolles and Risner take a huge step back this year or does the signal caller behind them force them to hold up their end of the bargain longer than they should?
2. Lack of Continuity Still a Problem
I know we all love to hate Pat Shurmer and have criticized him heavily this season and for good reason. However, this past week my perception on Shurmer being the main problem has changed. Down the stretch in 2020, Shurmer and Lock seemed to have found some chemistry as they finished off the regular season averaging 26.8 points per game from weeks 11-17 not including the Saints game where we had no QB. Lock down the stretch had 9 TD and 5 ints the last 6 games of 2020 and looked very similar to how he finished in 2019 throwing 7 TDs and 3 int. Lock still made some dumb mistakes during those games throwing some horrible interceptions but it’s not unusual for a young QB to not have great decision making. The main point is once Lock started to grasp the playbook and Shurmer had time to taylore the plays to Locks strengths, they looked like a competent offense. I believe 2020 was not a failure like many people thought to be as it was just a work in progress for a young offense with a new OC with no off-season due to the pandemic who finally got going the latter part of the season. Fast forward to 2021, Shurmer has to reinvent his playbook for a completely new QB with much different skill sets than Lock in Teddy. Similar to when Fangio pulled the rug right under Lock when he fired Scangarello and brought in Shurmer. In a press conference after Teddy was named starter, Shurmer made a concerted effort to bring up Lock and how much he improved even for a question that had nothing to do with Drew at all. Is it fair to think Shurmer wanted Lock and Fangio wanted Bridgewater?
3. Defense Rebounds
I’m going to keep this brief because I still am not worried long term about the guys on defense but I am a bit worried about whether they have given up on the coaching staff. The CBS broadcast pointed out Justin Simmons was having arguments with some coaches on the sideline. I am not worried about them continuing their poor play because they have veterans all across the board from Linebacker to corner and even the defensive line. Being embarrassed by a hated divisional rival can maybe make them refocus and motivated on a short week getting ready for a prime time against a good Cleveland team depending on the injury report. I have no analysis for my reasoning it’s basically pure belief on why I think the defense will bounce back after 3 subpar performances.
4. Broncos Don’t Take Real Risks
Brandon Perna, Broncos fan, stated the Broncos the last few years have played it safe and avoided taking any big risks. He pointed to the firing of a young OC in Scangarello for a more experienced guy in Shurmer. Scangarello worked well with Lock down the stretch in 2019 but also displayed mistakes that were not forgivable to Fangio. Fangio fired him and brought in Shurmer as he felt more comfortable with the veteran OC. The Broncos and coach Fangio continue that philosophy when they bench Lock for Teddy where they are too scared to play the younger guy because of the mistakes he displayed the previous year and wanted to go with the veteran that would bring a sense of comfort. They have chosen the higher floor over the higher ceiling. They have a “not lose” mentality rather than a get the win mentality which does not work in today’s league. Perna voiced his frustration on his podcast called ThatsGoodBroncos with his co-host Will Keys. He is a YouTuber who posts content on 2 channel. One is called ThatsGoodSports and the other one as mentioned earlier is called ThatsGoodBroncos.
5. Javonte!!
One good thing about this game and even the last 3 has been Javonte Williams who has consistently been a human highlight reel to carrying defenders on his back to hurdling over defenders. He definitely deserves to get more touches and Shurmer must find a way to get him the ball atleast 12-15 times a game. He’s a special talent and we are lucky to have him.
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