Broncos vs. Bears: Score and Twitter Reaction from 2016 Preseason

The Denver Broncos rolled out a new-look offense in their preseason opener Thursday night, and the defending Super Bowl champions looked comfortable as they cruised to a 22-0 win over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field thanks to a strong first-half effort.

While all eyes were on the Broncos' quarterback competition after Peyton Manning retired and backup Brock Osweiler bolted for the Houston Texans, Mark Sanchez helped himself with a strong opening statement. 

Sanchez, formerly of the New York Jets and Philadelphia Eagles, completed 10 of 13 passes for 99 yards, one touchdown and an interception during his first game action in a Broncos uniform. 

Although Sanchez wasn't asked to stretch the field much, he did so effectively. Namely, Sanchez found wide receiver Demaryius Thomas streaking down the right sideline for a wide-open touchdown grab to help put Denver up 7-0 early in the first quarter, as the NFL's official Twitter account documented: 

While Sanchez's touchdown toss was underthrown, his ability to hang tough in the pocket against the blitz and fire downfield was encouraging.

The Denver Post's Cameron Wolfe observed that Sanchez looked at ease while making reads in the Broncos' conventional pro-style offense after playing in former Eagles head coach Chip Kelly's uptempo, shotgun-heavy scheme:

Sanchez's first-quarter interception off play-action was the only blight on his resume, but the pick took a deflection and ultimately found the arms of Bears linebacker Jerrell Freeman, as the NFL showed on Twitter:

Trevor Siemian, who is battling Sanchez for the starting job, was not as sharp.

The Northwestern University product finished a respectable 7-of-12, but he was good for just 88 yards and no touchdowns with the Broncos' second team at his fingertips.

Though Siemian and Co. weren't able to put points on the board, the Broncos special teams unit came up big, returning a blocked punt for a touchdown toward the end of the first half to mount a 20-0 lead through 30 minutes, as the NFL documented:

On the flip side, Chicago's big names failed to put a point on the board as the Broncos defense dictated the game flow throughout the first half.

Starting quarterback Jay Cutler completed three of four passes for 18 yards, and top wideout Alshon Jeffery hauled in just one catch for 12 yards. On the rushing front, Jeremy Langford was bottled up, compiling four carries for seven yards and one reception for three yards. 

In more productive news, Broncos rookie quarterback Paxton Lynch appeared poised against the Bears reserves.

Head coach Gary Kubiak handed Lynch the keys to the offense at the start of the second half, and the former University of Memphis gunslinger completed six of seven passes for 74 yards in an efficient two quarters.

Given the polish that Denver flashed across the board Thursday night, Kubiak should be feeling good about his team's makeup as the regular season approaches.

However, he still needs to tab a starting quarterback as preseason play progresses. 

With that said, if Sanchez flashes composure in the pocket and an advanced acumen against the San Francisco 49ers on Aug. 20, Kubiak may have no choice but to turn to the veteran.

Chicago, meanwhile, will attempt to rebound following a shoddy display when it travels East for a showdown against the New England Patriots on Aug. 18.

Postgame Reaction

“It was good to get back out there," Sanchez said, per the Denver Post's Nicki Jhabvala. "It’s such a good team — guys who can make plays and make catches for you. I was just excited with that first drive, and we overcame a penalty and that’s huge."

But even though Sanchez thrived during his first game with the Broncos, Kubiak heaped praise on Siemian during his post-game availability with reporters. 

“Trevor is in command of what we do,” Kubiak said, accoridng to Jhabvala. "He’s probably in the best command, in all honesty, just because Mark continues to learn our offense. He’s done a great job, but remember, Trevor’s been on a year and a half now."

When asked what he needs to do to clinch the starting job, Sanchez provided a simple outlook. 

"Just keep improving," he said, according to the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "Keep improving and having fun out there. Don't overthink it. We're having a great time, we've got a great squad and it's a great opportunity. I'm just going to keep maximizing every opportunity I get, like I did tonight."

And while the Broncos reveled in their preseason win, the Bears were left to ponder what went wrong. 

"I don't think you want to hit the panic button yet, it's the first preseason game, but there's a lot we've got to get better at," Cutler said, per the team's official Twitter account.

"I was disappointed personally," Bears head coach John Fox said, according to the Associated Press. "I think our team was disappointed. We were expecting more. I don't know that we executed as well as any of us expected. It is preseason, you don't game plan. It's pretty basic."