Denver Broncos vs. St. Louis Rams: Full Report Card Grades for Denver
The Denver Broncos (7-3) suffered as bad a regular-season loss as they've had in the Peyton Manning era on Sunday, dropping their Week 11 game 22-7 to the St. Louis Rams (4-6).
The Rams had the ball for over 35 minutes, getting the win with Shaun Hill at quarterback.
The loss could dramatically change the Broncos' season, especially after Kansas City was able to defeat Seattle for a share of the AFC West lead. In addition, the Broncos will be looking up at New England in the race for home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
It was a dismal day for the Broncos, as the team put up just seven points. They also allowed the Rams, who won the game by kicking five field goals, to run for 131 yards.
The Broncos return home in Week 12 to face the surging Miami Dolphins (6-4). For more on this game, including a complete report card for each positional unit, click forward.
Quarterback
1 of 10
There haven't been many days like this for Peyton Manning in Denver.
Manning completed just 34 of 54 passes. He did throw for 389 yards, but that was because he threw the ball on seemingly every snap.
He also threw two interceptions, both of which were entirely on him.
Manning was rushed on many occasions, but he just made several careless throws trying to bring Denver back into the game.
"Broncos 7 points are the fewest they’ve scored in any game with Peyton Manning.
— Andrew Siciliano (@AndrewSiciliano) November 16, 2014"
He had to deal with injuries to Emmanuel Sanders and Julius Thomas, but he just couldn't get it going on Sunday. Aside from Super Bowl XLVIII, it was arguably Manning's worst day in a Denver uniform.
Grade: C-
Running Back
2 of 10
The Broncos were already without Ronnie Hillman going into this game. Things got even worse when Montee Ball, who was returning after missing the last five games, had to leave after playing just a few snaps.
It appeared Ball re-aggravated the groin injury that sidelined him in Week 5. Ball did not record any stats in the game.
C.J. Anderson only had 29 yards rushing, but he was still one of the most effective players with the ball in his hands for Denver. He added eight receptions for 86 yards and posted his second game in a row with more than 100 yards from scrimmage.
But in the running game, the Broncos were putrid on Sunday. They managed just 28 yards on the ground and only attempted to run the ball nine times. Either the Broncos have supreme confidence in their passing game, or no confidence in their running backs.
Without a running game to change things up, they won't go far.
Grade: D
Wide Receiver and Tight End
3 of 10
St. Louis came out with a game plan similar to what Seattle used to frustrate the Broncos in the Super Bowl.
The Rams were willing to give up the short underneath passes, and Manning was taking them. But he had a harder time finding his receivers down the field, primarily because he didn't have enough time to.
Things got even worse when Julius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders left the game with injuries.
Demaryius Thomas played well, posting 100 yards receiving for the seventh game in a row. Sanders also had over 100 yards receiving before leaving the game after taking a nasty hit from St. Louis safety Rodney McLeod.
"TE Julius Thomas has a sprained ankle that will undergo more testing Monday, per source. Not thought to be high ankle sprain at this time.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 16, 2014"
After Julius Thomas also left the game with an ankle injury, Manning had to throw the ball to guys like Jacob Tamme and Andre Caldwell in key situations.
That didn't go well, and the Broncos better hope neither of those players will miss extended time.
Grade: B-
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Offensive Line
4 of 10
The Broncos have been looking for consistent play among their offensive line all season. They will keep looking.
The Rams got two sacks and four hits on Manning on Sunday, but that doesn't tell the whole story. Manning was under constant pressure, having to hurry throws all day. Manning relies on his timing, and when that is thrown off, he looks very average.
The offensive line was flagged for five penalties, two each on Louis Vasquez and Orlando Franklin. All-Pro left tackle Ryan Clady struggled against Robert Quinn, one of the best sack artists in the league.
On a critical 4th-and-4 in the fourth quarter, Manning lined up in shotgun and the Rams came with a blitz that Denver didn't come close to blocking. Manning was sacked for a loss of 12 yards on the play.
The Broncos have rotated Paul Cornick and Will Montgomery into the lineup this year. It may be time to go back to Franklin at right tackle, Vasquez at guard and Manny Ramirez at center.
They weren't considered the toughest line in the league, but they at least provided Manning the time he needed to throw the ball.
Grade: D-
Defensive Line
5 of 10
DeMarcus Ware and Malik Jackson both played very good games for Denver. The rest of the defensive line struggled.
Ware came up with seven tackles on the day, three of which went for a loss of yardage. He also had a sack, one of the only big plays the defense came up with all day, when he hit Shaun Hill from behind and jarred the ball free. Unfortunately for Denver, the ball bounced right back up into Hill's chest.
Jackson was very active along the defensive line; he had five tackles in the game and was able to get some pressure on the quarterback.
But as a unit, the defensive line played poorly. The Rams looked like they had the best offensive line in the league in this game as the Broncos could not get to Hill; they couldn't even force him out of the pocket. Hill had all day to throw the ball.
They also allowed Tre Mason to run the ball right at them, making their No. 1 run defense look overrated. Mason finished the game with 113 yards on the ground.
Grade: C-
Linebackers
6 of 10
The Broncos are going to miss Nate Irving if the defense continues to perform the way it did on Sunday.
With Steven Johnson filling in for Denver at middle linebacker, the Rams made it a point to run the ball right up the middle. Not only were they able to move the chains, but they were also able to control time of possession.
Before his injury, Irving was as big a reason as any as to why Denver's run defense had performed so well this year. With the way Brandon Marshall is playing, an argument can be made that Irving's loss is bigger than Danny Trevathan's.
Speaking of Marshall, he posted a season-high 15 tackles on Sunday, continuing to lead the team in that department.
Von Miller had another sack to go along with five tackles, but the loss of Irving is concerning.
The Broncos are going to need a player like Lamin Barrow, Corey Nelson or the recently signed Todd Davis to step up and help Johnson.
Grade: C
Secondary
7 of 10
What has Kenny Britt done in St. Louis? He almost seems forgotten since moving there from his days in Tennessee.
That wasn't the case on Sunday, as Hill made him his favorite target. He connected with Britt four times for 128 yards, including a 63-yard touchdown.
On the season, Britt hadn't had more than 69 yards receiving in any game, and he only had more than three catches once. He abused the Denver secondary on Sunday.
Hill threw for 220 yards in the game and he converted several key third downs, something that really hurt the Broncos' chances to get back into it.
"Who's got Kenny Britt?
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) November 16, 2014"
The secondary wasn't awful, but the fact that they couldn't match up with Britt put them in an early hole.
Grade: C
Special Teams
8 of 10
It's a situation that continues to be harped on, but the fact that the Broncos turn down so many long field goals is certainly frustrating.
Earlier in the season, the Broncos made the decision to release Matt Prater, a player who holds the record for the longest field goal in history, in favor of an unproven Brandon McManus.
The move has not paid off.
The Broncos had two situations on Sunday in which they could have kicked a field goal from just over 50 yards but decided to go for it on fourth down instead. This is because they lack confidence in McManus, who hasn't been entirely accurate this season.
At this point, he is almost a liability.
Even if he has missed, shouldn't you at least try to put up something positive? Points of any kind can create a spark and swing momentum in the NFL.
Oh, by the way, the Broncos came up short on both of those fourth downs, turning the ball over.
The same can be said for the team's kickoff return game. Andre Caldwell is all but useless as a return man, and if the ball goes into the end zone, he needs to take a knee.
He's lucky to get it back out to the 10-yard line, let alone the 20.
These are two areas on which the Broncos need to focus. If McManus can't make a 50-yard field goal, you need to go out and find someone who can. It wouldn't be a bad idea to try someone else, anyone else, besides Caldwell as a kickoff return man.
Denver also had two bad penalties on special teams, one a false start by Lerentee McCray and the other a 15-yard personal foul for a horse-collar tackle against Barrow.
Grade: D-
Coaching
9 of 10
For those who say coaches coach and players play, you're absolutely right. But the job of an NFL coaching staff is to have their team prepared to play and on Sunday. That was not the case with the Broncos this week.
Playing in its third straight game on the road, Denver came out flat and got off to a slow start against St. Louis. But just before halftime, Denver made the score 13-7 and looked like it would be fine after the break.
But what about the halftime adjustments? There were none.
Denver started slow again in the second half, and though St. Louis wasn't doing anything but kicking field goals, the Broncos resorted to having Peyton Manning chuck the ball all over the field more than 50 times.
"Former #Broncos players call out coaches Fox, Del Rio and Gase http://t.co/f34p0I72V4
— MileHighReport (@MileHighReport) November 16, 2014"
Though it wasn't nearly as embarrassing, this game looked very much like Super Bowl XLVIII. On that night, the Broncos looked like they didn't know what hit them, and they had that same look on Sunday.
Grade: D
Overall Grade
10 of 10
Quarterback: C-
Running Back: D
Wide Receiver/Tight End: B-
Offensive Line: D-
Defensive Line: C-
Linebacker: C
Secondary: C
Special Teams: D-
Coaching: D
Overall Grade: D
This was a poor performance all the way around by the Broncos. They came out flat on the road, and the Rams, who only had three wins on the season, made them pay for it.
"The Denver Broncos have NEVER won in St. Louis (0-3-1). Peyton Manning is just 1-3 indoors as the Broncos QB. pic.twitter.com/WUh2lHo0rw
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 16, 2014"
The fact that there is no real running game is very troubling for the Broncos right now, but the issues along the offensive line are an even bigger concern.
The coaching staff have their work cut out for them this week to get this team clicking again, because things won't get any easier next week against Miami.
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