Up: Phillin’ it. Let’s face it, a never-ending series of Phillip Lindsay “wildcat” snaps is pretty much what Broncos fans have been pining for during the past 11 weeks. That’s what we got, for three snaps at least, on the first drive of the game. The result: 18 yards rushing. Maybe they were on to something?
Down: First-game jitters. Nevermind the fact that Kendall Hinton had yet to start an NFL game before Sunday, let alone at quarterback. But for the practice squad wide receiver’s first pro snap to be a third-and-four near midfield? A throwaway incompletion felt like an acceptable outcome.
Up: Coming up strong. Broncos cornerback Bryce Callahan absolutely drilled Saints receiver Michael Thomas on a short slant — dropping him a yard short of the sticks on third down. Which would’ve been great, but….
Down: Fourth-down flub. Then Dre’Mont Jones did the one thing you can’t do on fourth-and-short on the offense’s side of the field — jump offside on a hard count. A huge no-no. And the spark for a drive that resulted in the Saints’ first seven points. In this game, that might as well have been 100.
Up: DeMarcus Walker. In the final six games of his rookie contract, the Broncos defensive end ended New Orleans’ first drive with a third-down sack in 3.22 seconds. It was one of two sacks for the Denver defense on New Orleans’ first two drives.
Down: QB keepers. As much as the Broncos struggled with their own designed QB runs — it really hurts when there is zero element of surprise — the Saints had the perfect signal-caller for theirs. Taysom Hill is right out of the leatherheads mold, as his two goal-line TD runs in the first half illustrated.
Up: Hustle play. The Broncos were a yard away from their second first down of the game when center Lloyd Cushenberry snapped the ball into the turf — leading to a fumble that Kwon Alexander would’ve returned for a touchdown had Garett Bolles not brought him down with a shoestring tackle. Already earning that extension.
Down: Movie rights. Broncos fans were either going to witness the inspiration for a Disney movie script, or a horror show/nightmare that’s the most embarrassing moment of this bizarre COVID season for the NFL. Sadly, they got the latter.
Up: Dinosaur howl? Do dinosaurs howl? Scream? Roar? Whatever you call it, Alexander Johnson did it after a run stuff late in the second quarter and everyone — inside the empty stadium or watching at home on TV — could hear it.
Down: No fans. The Broncos won’t have fans for the final three home games. Enough said.
Up: Rookie CBs In two plays on the Saints’ second possession of the second half, rookie defensive backs Michael Ojemudia and Essang Bassey made fantastic plays. The former broke up a jump ball for tight end Jared Cook on first down, and the latter snapped up a right-time, right-place pass deflection by A.J. Bouye for an interception that set up the Broncos’ only points. (Thus preserving Denver’s home non-shutout streak.)
Down: Bad run blitz Between defensive lineman DeMarcus Walker and safety Justin Simmons, someone filled the wrong gap on Latavius Murray’s 36-yard touchdown. Only way to explain him running untouched for a score that essentially put the game away at 24-3 in the third quarter.
Up: Spin-o-rama The biggest offensive highlight of the day for the Broncos? A seven-yard third-down run from Royce Freeman that saw him leave a New Orleans defender in his wake with a masterful spin move at the line of scrimmage. Yup, that was it.
Down: Vic’s challenge In the grand scheme of things, it meant nothing. But we’re not sure what Broncos coach Vic Fangio saw that prompted him to challenge Michael Thomas’ 20-yard reception against Michael Ojemudia in the fourth quarter. As receptions go, that one was pretty cut and dry.
Up: Jerry Jeudy. Give the first-round pick credit for playing through some injuries this year. Listed as questionable with an ankle/Achilles issue, the wide receiver started the game. Of course, given the neccessarily bizarre game plan, he didn’t see much action.
Down: NFL office. The people running the show on Park Avenue in Manhattan compromised the integrity of a regular-season game by benching all three healthy Broncos quarterbacks. After Denver bent over backwards to accommodate New England earlier this season — moving its bye week — the franchise deserved better. So, too, did Kendall Hinton.
"up" - Google News
November 30, 2020 at 07:04AM
https://ift.tt/2KNmTYx
Broncos up-down drill: Highs and lows for Denver against the Saints - The Denver Post
"up" - Google News
https://ift.tt/350tWlq
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Broncos up-down drill: Highs and lows for Denver against the Saints - The Denver Post"
Post a Comment