With nine minutes to go in the second quarter, the Washington Commanders were forced to punt back to the red-hot Broncos. This was Washington’s second straight three and out, and they were trailing 21-3. Denver had all the momentum and had scored a touchdown on all three of their drives. It seemed that the Broncos were going to cruise to their first win of the Sean Payton era.

Denver’s fourth drive started just as promising as their first three. Denver’s rookie receiver  Marvin Mims Jr. returned Washington’s punt 45 yards to Washington’s  40-yard line. Up to this point, the second-round receiver already had two receptions for 113 yards, with one of the receptions being a 60-yard TD on Denver’s second drive. Unfortunately, this would be the last time we hear from Mims or any of his offensive teammates. Three plays into Denver’s fourth drive, Russell Wilson was sacked by Washington’s Jamin Davis, fumbling the ball into the hands of Washington. For the Broncos, it was all downhill from there.

Broncos Week 2 Slay

Marvin Mims Jr

Denver’s second-round receiver from the University of Oklahoma showed off his explosive play-making ability. Following Denver’s loss to the Raiders last week, it was clear the offense needed to take more chances down the field. Mim’s was just the answer this week, hauling in two long receptions. According to Next Gen Stats, Mims reached 20+ mph on 3 of his touches in the first half. He was only the third player to do so in a half since 2018. Hopefully going forward, Sean Payton can find ways to get Mims the ball more consistently. In the second half, Mims was limited to one carry for two yards.

Randy Gregory

Randy Gregory had a nice bounce-back performance following a Week 1 clunker against the Raiders. On Washington’s first drive of the game, the Commanders took the ball down to Denver’s 25-yard line, setting up third down and five. The Broncos elected to only bring four, but that was all they needed for Gregory to get to QB  Sam Howell, sacking him for a five-yard loss. This was a crucial sack, as it pushed the Commander’s field goal attempt to 49 yards, resulting in a wide right miss by kicker Joey Slye. Gregory finished his day with five total tackles, one sack, two tackles for loss, and one pass deflection. ESPN

Broncos DE Randy Gregory (5) - Andrew Mason/ Denver sports.com

Broncos DE Randy Gregory (5) – Andrew Mason/ Denver Sports.com

Broncos’ Week 2 bombs

Denver’s defense

The Broncos defense turned in a disappointing performance against the Sam Howell-led Commanders. Howell, who was playing in his third career game and first game on the road, had a strong performance. He was 27/39 for 299 yards and two passing TDs. Early in the game, it seemed the Broncos were going to overwhelm him with the pressure their defensive line was creating. Unfortunately, the Commander’s offensive coordinator, Eric Bieniemy, had the answers for his young QB. Bieniemy burned the Broncos with several screen passes and leaned more on the run game.

As a team, the Commanders ran the ball at an average of 5.3 yards per attempt, per ESPN. The Broncos defense was also hurt by several untimely and undisciplined penalties.

Inconsistent Offense

As I mentioned earlier, the Broncos scored touchdowns on all three of their first drives. As good as that stretch was, the following drives were just as bad. On their next four drives, the Broncos went fumble, punt, punt, and interception. Meanwhile, in that stretch,  the Commanders scored two touchdowns and a field goal.

It was baffling to see how quickly a team could go from scoring at will to being stuck in the mud.  For the second straight week, the offense couldn’t get it done in the second half. Through their first two games, the Broncos have scored 34 first-half points compared to 15 second-half points, with 6 of those coming on Sunday’s last-second Hail Mary.

Russell Wilson’s first and second-half splits are equally bad. According to CBS Sports, in the first half this year, Wilson is 23/27 for 279 yards, 4 TDs, and a 149.3 rating. However, in the second half, he is 22/39 for 206 yards, one TD, one interception, and a 69 rating. These numbers also include the 50-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass to Brandon Johnson.

Overall, it’s clear that Sean Payton is putting together strong offensive game plans for Wilson. However, as the defenses are adjusting, he and Russell have been too slow to adjust back.

Looking Ahead

The Denver Broncos have let two winnable games slip through their fingers by a combined 3 points. Unfortunately, it does not get any easier; next week, the Broncos travel to Miami for a game against the best offense in football. The Broncos have a lot to clean up if they want to avoid a 0-3 start, but playing four good quarters of football would go a long way.