It felt ugly. It was ugly. But the Broncos are now riding a six-game winning streak with an 18-15 win over the Texans on a walk-off field goal from kicker Wil Lutz. Here’s The Denver Post’s report card from another fourth-quarter comeback.
OFFENSE — D+
Think the Broncos got in an offensive rhythm the last couple of weeks after a 33-point fourth quarter against the Giants and then a 44-24 drubbing of Dallas? Think again. There is little game-to-game cohesion with head coach Sean Payton’s boom-or-bust attack. And for three quarters against the Texans, it was again bust. The run-pass distribution was alarming: The Broncos started out by picking up 26 yards on the ground in the first quarter and then didn’t give J.K. Dobbins a second-quarter carry. Bo Nix endured a rough day, misfiring on several open throws and finishing just 17 of 36 for 170 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.
Through eight weeks, though, one reality has become incomprehensibly true: It’s impossible to judge Nix and these Broncos without seeing them in the fourth quarter. Nix seemed to get going late in the third, and led a gritty game-tying touchdown drive early in the fourth. Denver sputtered again for much of the final frame, but a Nix 25-yard carry set the Broncos up for another fourth-quarter comeback win.
DEFENSE — A
The loss of Pat Surtain II was certainly real, as a quadrant of Riley Moss, Ja’Quan McMillian, Jahdae Barron and Kris Abrams-Draine occasionally struggled with soft coverage against the Texans’ passing attack. Once Houston QB C.J. Stroud went down in the first half with a concussion, though, Denver’s secondary stiffened up. And the defensive line put together one of its best end-to-end performances of the season, with Zach Allen, John Franklin-Myers and edge rushers flying around to contain the Texans’ ground attack to the tune of 2.8 yards per carry.
Safety Talanoa Hufanga had a monster day in coverage with two near-interceptions. And Denver swallowed up the Texans for nine — nine — straight three-and-outs to end the game, as Houston didn’t get in the end zone once.
SPECIAL TEAMS — D+
On Friday, Payton cut off a question about the job done by special-teams coordinator Darren Rizzi, saying Rizzi’s done an “outstanding” job.
“Next question,” Payton said. “Next good question.”
Here’s a good question: What do the Broncos do if they continue to get outplayed thoroughly on special teams? It happened in Week 6 against the Jets, and Rizzi’s units completely broke down in every facet against the Texans. After Payton emphasized the importance of field-goal blocking against Texans specialist Denico Autry, Autry blocked kicker Wil Lutz’s first-quarter field goal attempt. Kick returner Tyler Badie kept a foot inbounds on a first-half return to back up the Broncos from the 35 to the 20-yard line. Practice-squad elevation Michael Bandy muffed a punt to set up an end-of-half Houston field goal.
All-Pro returner Marvin Mims Jr.’s absence certainly didn’t help. But he was out because of a miscommunication on a fourth-quarter kickoff against the Cowboys the previous week, when Mims suffered a concussion on a play he wasn’t supposed to be in on. This only avoids an F because of another game-winning field goal from Lutz, the reigning AFC Special Teams Player of the Month.
COACHING — C
It was a weird day for Payton, who drew up two drive-killing second-and-10 plays in the second and third quarters — a screen to Tyler Badie and jet sweep to Troy Franklin — that lost 6 yards. And after attacking the Cowboys like they stole his lunch money the previous week, Payton had definite trouble establishing any kind of offensive rhythm with a struggling Nix on Sunday. And Rizzi…well, just read the above section.
This grade gets tugged up by the bootstraps by defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, though, who did a largely masterful job covering for Surtain’s absence against the Texans. Yes, Houston backup Davis Mills looked like a deer in the headlights in the second half. But Joseph rotated McMillian, Abrams-Draine and Barron to great second-half results, rotated his defensive linemen to great second-half results, and found a game-altering role for safety Hufanga in coverage.