Week 1 of preseason football is in the books, and the Denver Broncos showed improvement from the 2022 preseason to the present. As the Broncos prepare for Week 2 of the 2023 preseason against the San Francisco 49ers, Broncos Wire takes a quick look at five things Denver can improve on.
1
Russell Wilson and the starting offense
The Broncos’ first string offense was only supposed to see between 15-18 plays in the preseason opener. Instead, the starters were on the field for four drives, (20 plays) deep into the second quarter. Few offensive starters around the NFL saw more than three series in Week 1. The Denver offense started off shaky, going three-and-out once, and didn’t have a drive longer than 60 yards. Quarterback Russell Wilson finally threw a 21-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, which was one of the few bright spots for the starters.
Of the Broncos’ starting receivers, Courtland Sutton was targeted five times (three receptions for 35 yards), Jerry Jeudy was thrown at three times (two receptions for 40 yards and a touchdown) and tight end Adam Trautman was targeted three times (two receptions for 18 yards).
The offense needs to have a better start this week, finishing their early drives with touchdowns instead of kicks.
2
The kicking game
Speaking of kicks, the biggest concern from the offseason reared its ugly head against the Cardinals — the kicking game. It took less than three drives into the game for Broncos Country to really miss former kicker Brandon McManus. In the first quarter, Brett Maher and Elliott Fry both missed wide right on field goals of 47 and 50 yards, respectively.
Later in the game, Maher had a 52-yard field goal blocked. Both kickers made an extra point attempt, and Fry made a 55-yarder right before halftime. Fry was cut a few days after the game and Maher will have to make significant strides to impress head coach Sean Payton in the next two preseason games if he wants to make the team. Payton has said the Broncos will monitor kickers on other teams who might eventually hit the waiver wire.
3
Protecting a lead
In the 2022 season, the Broncos rarely held a lead in any game they played. So when Denver went into halftime with a 10-0 lead, it was surprising, and a bit exciting. However, in the second half, the third and fourth string defenses saw the Cardinals slowly chip away at the lead, eventually tying the game at 10-10 with 12:25 left in the fourth quarter. Third-string quarterback Ben DiNucci led the offense on a final 10-play, 87-yard touchdown drive to put the Broncos up 17-10 with 1:30 left in the game. With two timeouts, Arizona methodically drove down the field with a 10-play, 75-yard drive of their own, scoring a touchdown with two seconds left. After the touchdown, the Cardinals offense converted the two-point attempt, sealing the win.
Although it was not the first-team defense out on the field, the Denver reserves need to learn the importance of protecting a seven-point lead with less than two minutes left. The Broncos played a league-high 13 one-score games last season, with a record of 5-8 in those games. Protecting a lead, no matter where you fall on the depth chart, falls into head coach Sean Payton’s situational football mentality.
4
Injuries
While injuries are not uncommon in football, it is important to keep starters healthy on both sides of the ball. Against the Cardinals, the Broncos lost defensive lineman D.J. Jones (concussion), as well as linebackers Nik Bonitto (hip) and Josey Jewell (poked in the eye). Bonitto and Jewell’s injuries should not be too severe, but Jones may not play against the 49ers due to the concussion. For the next few games, it will be imperative for the Denver coaching staff to make sure injuries to the starting offense and defense are kept to a minimum.
5
Offensive line
The Broncos’ offensive line struggled throughout the game against the Cardinals. Denver quarterbacks were sacked twice (Wilson and Stidham), but Wilson often found himself without much time to pass. He was pressured on more than 50 percent of his pass attempts, forcing the ball to come out earlier than expected, sometimes under- or overthrowing receivers. When Wilson had time to pass, he delivered accurate passes to his receivers, allowing them to run after the catch. The one sack on Wilson came on left tackle Garret Bolles, who is making his own recovery from a fractured leg in 2022. With a revolving door of offensive linemen rolling through the roster last season, Wilson will need to be protected going into the 2023 campaign.
Along with the pass blocking comes the run blocking. Denver totaled 122 yards on the ground on 22 rushing attempts. Payton is obviously wanting to establish the run game, which will help set up the play-action pass game. Can the Broncos significantly improve on this area of their play not only before Saturday, but before the regular season? We’ll see.
