ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Errant passes. Penalties. Missed blocks. What caused the Broncos starting offense to go off the rails on a sun-bleached Thursday?
Of course there are the commonly discussed subjects of lack of focus and execution, but let's consider an explanation further afield — or right in front of us on the field.
The defense is just that good. Fueled by nitromethane and caffeine, the unit is playing with the type of personality not seen since the 2015 and 2016 seasons.
"Yeah, we want the guys to be themselves, to play with energy and passion because that is what this game takes," defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said. "We will always preach that you can't do things to hurt the team, first and foremost, in terms of penalties. But we want those guys to be passionate and go out and do things well."
What is most striking is that not long after revealing its nickname "The Darkside," the group has become a cobra with hood up. The defenders showed an evil disposition against the Cowboys a week ago and duplicated it during the first two periods Thursday.
And it's not just Kareem Jackson talking. Bradley Chubb, Dre'Mont Jones and Justin Simmons — it has been refreshing to see him living out loud and leading with such exuberance — are making plays and letting folks know about it. Safety P.J. Locke delivered two interceptions to the delight of his rowdy teammates.
If we learn from adversity, the Broncos' offense received an honorary PhD.
"That was great for us. The defense was playing at a high level, and we had to wake up," Broncos offensive coordinator Justin Outten admitted.
Coach Nathaniel Hackett defused the situation with sneaky humor, but recognized what was plain to see.
"The defense was getting after it. For those first two periods, I was a defensive coach, and I switched back to offense," Hackett said with smile. "The defense is playing really well. The offense has to step up. That wasn’t good enough. There were some mental errors, some missed blocks, some drops. All that stuff. It wasn’t just one guy. It was a combination of everybody. And the reality is you have to work through that.”
At one point, the entire offense huddled as the defense walked by with taunts. The alarm finally went off, and the offense finished with a strong red zone period and two-minute drive. Taking over at their own 37-yard line with 1:17 remaining, Russell Wilson connected on a 39-yard pass to rookie Brandon Johnson down the left sideline against promising draft pick Damarri Mathis. Wilson followed with darts to Courtland Sutton (11 yards) and Javonte Williams (six) before finishing off the drive with score on a crossing route to Johnson.
"It was good for us to get into that call period and move the ball," Outten said.
The significance of the rebound should not be overlooked because there are no plans to play most of the Broncos starters in the preseason. These periods are their games, with quarterback Josh Johnson set to start Saturday against many of the Bills first-stringers.
"We ended up getting an explosive touchdown," Outten said. "And that was the way to respond."
Footnotes
Right tackle Billy Turner was not at practice, receiving extra treatment on his right knee for a second straight day.
K.J. Hamler returned to practice, doing several drills as his left leg has responded to rest and rehab.
Lloyd Cushenberry watched practice for a third straight day with a knee issue. Backup Luke Wattenberg (ankle) returned to practice.
Hackett reiterated that he has no plans to play starters based on what Buffalo is doing, again stating that the risk of injury is not worth the reward of playing a few snaps.
