5 Biggest Takeaways from Denver Broncos' Week 14 Loss to the Raiders
The Denver Broncos had a game they would much rather forget against the Oakland Raiders in Week 14. They fell to their division rival at home by a score of 15-12 at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
The Broncos got a lead early in the game with kicker Brandon McManus coming through with multiple field goals. When the two sides went to halftime, the Broncos held onto a seemingly commanding 12-0 lead.
That lead quickly vanished as the Raiders scored 15 unanswered points to win the game.
Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak knows the team has to be better in the red zone to finish drives.
“Yeah, I mean we were really poor in the red zone. I think we had [224] yards at halftime. I think they had negative yardage, and you're up 12-to-nothing. We had a chance to really do some damage in the first half, didn't do it and then obviously helped them in the second half with two turnovers, I think four or five drops and we lost the line of scrimmage offensively, in my opinion.”
Kubiak concluded, “We played great defense and just didn't ever finish the football game offensively or put ourselves in a position to finish them.”
Here are the five biggest takeaways from the Broncos’ Week 14 loss to the Raiders.
Brock Osweiler Under Duress Often
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Broncos starting quarterback Brock Osweiler did not have a lot of time to operate against the Raiders. Raiders defensive end Khalil Mack had five sacks and seven quarterback hits on Osweiler in Week 14. The Broncos couldn’t stop him, and he was able to disrupt the team’s passing game.
Kubiak knows things could have been different if the team had been able to run the ball to help take some of the pressure off of Osweiler.
“If we could run the ball and do those type of things, we can help our tackles. When we were sitting there throwing it every down, we obviously didn't help them. That's a tough duty for them, but sometimes you've got to get that done in those situations, too.”
The Broncos have designs of making a deep postseason run in 2015. They’ll have to be much better in pass protection if they’re going to be a serious threat in the playoffs. Osweiler didn’t have a bad game throwing the ball, but he didn’t have enough time to throw in key down-and-distance situations.
Perhaps some more changes to the offensive line could be in the future of the Broncos. Something has to give, as they can’t continue trotting out the same starting offensive linemen and expect different results.
Running Game Goes Nowhere Fast
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A hallmark of the Kubiak offense is a consistent and effective ground game. Against the Raiders on Sunday, the Broncos couldn’t get anything going with their rushing attack.
Starting running back Ronnie Hillman was limited during the week of practice with a foot injury. He didn’t look slowed by the foot injury in the game against the Raiders, but Hillman couldn’t get much production on the ground. He only had 20 yards rushing on 12 carries against the Raiders (1.7 yards per carry).
C.J. Anderson was out of practice all week with an ankle injury. The team listed him as questionable, and Anderson did dress for the game. However, Anderson did not see the field for a single snap on Sunday.
Kubiak explained why Anderson dressed but did not play against the Raiders. “He was there for emergency. That's basically it. We have to make a decision between bringing [RB] Kapri [Bibbs] up or suiting him. We suited him for an emergency standpoint. He didn't have to play today. That's a good thing, so he should get better this week.”
In place of Anderson, Juwan Thompson played as the power change-of-pace back behind Hillman. Thompson ran the ball six times for only eight yards against the Raiders.
Without an effective rushing attack, the Broncos became one-dimensional on offense, which played into the Raiders' hands.
Too Many Drops
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There were simply too many drops by the Broncos receivers on Sunday, and these proved to be quite costly, as the team struggled to score points and move the ball through the air. Osweiler threw for over 300 yards for the first time in his career, but his total of 308 yards could have been much higher if his receivers hadn’t let him down.
Osweiler did not become discouraged by the drops.
“I'm not discouraged by the drops at all. At the end of the day, we're a team. You can never point the finger at anybody. I'm sure that everybody on this team—offense, defense and special teams would look at themselves and the tape.”
Osweiler continued, “They'll watch it tomorrow and probably say, 'You know what, I made that play and that could have been the difference.' There's no reason to point any fingers. Everybody fought hard. Unfortunately, Oakland played very well today. [Raiders head] coach [Jack] Del Rio had a great game plan. We just came up short.”
Tight end Vernon Davis had a key drop on a fourth-down play in the fourth quarter. That catch would have moved the chains, and it might have even gone for a long touchdown.
Davis was depressed after the game when talking about the play. “The ball was thrown, I got super excited because I knew I was going to be wide open, took my eyes off the ball and wasn’t able to pull it in. I should know better than that. I’ve got to get better.”
Wide receiver Demaryius Thomas also admitted the team’s own mistakes hurt it throughout the game. “Me and [TE] Vernon [Davis] had a drop on third down where we should have converted. It's just stuff we've got to go back to the drawing table, stay after to catch more—whatever we've got to do.”
Osweiler has been starting for long enough that any sort of "chemistry" issues with the receivers seem like a poor excuse. The receivers need to get on the same page as their quarterback, or else the Broncos offensive struggles could continue. The offense has now not scored a touchdown since the first drive against the San Diego Chargers in Week 13.
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Role Players for Raiders Make Plays
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The Broncos weren’t beat by the star players on the Raiders roster. Instead, the role players made the biggest impact against Denver.
Starting receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree didn’t do much against the Broncos. In fact, Cooper did nothing against the Broncos, even though he was targeted eight times by Raiders quarterback Derek Carr. Crabtree had a bit more success but not much, with only four catches for 19 yards on Sunday.
Players like tight ends Mychal Rivera and Clive Walford made more plays against the Broncos. Rivera ended the game with three catches for 49 yards and one touchdown. Walford, a rookie from the University of Miami, finished the game with three catches for 47 yards.
Carr threw two touchdowns on the day. One went to Rivera, while the other went to wide receiver Seth Roberts. The undrafted rookie from West Alabama was able to get open against cornerback Bradley Roby to haul in an 11-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. Roby did have good coverage, but Roberts was able to reach out and snare the scoring pass.
Going forward, the Broncos are going to be facing opponents with high-powered offenses. Up next, a road game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. While top targets may struggle against the Broncos' elite defense, there are secondary players who can get open against sub-package defenders or linebackers. The team will need to adjust if it wants to get back on the winning track in Week 15.
Brandon McManus Fails to Hit Game-Tying Field Goal
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A 49-yard field goal is well within the range of Broncos kicker Brandon McManus. With 10:27 left in the fourth quarter, McManus missed a 49-yard field goal that would have tied the game.
Special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis knows not every kick is going to go through the uprights.
“Every once in a while, you’re going to miss those long kicks. We’ve got to make sure that we do everything we can to help him make those kicks.”
McManus was close to knocking that kick through against the Raiders. It had plenty of distance, but the kick ended up hitting the left upright and falling to the ground.
The Broncos have a good, young kicker in McManus, and expecting him to be perfect on long-distance kicks is ridiculous. The way this team plays on offense is rather conservative. It plays to the strength of the team, which is the defense. That means it's unlikely to run away in a game, instead playing things close and staying balanced offensively.
The Broncos weren’t able to run the ball against the Raiders, so the offense became more one-dimensional than it's comfortable with. Nobody should be blaming McManus for the miss.
All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via the Broncos media department unless otherwise noted. Advanced stats via ESPN's employees-only database.
Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac. Transaction history provided by Pro Sports Transactions.
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