Russell Wilson and the Broncos look to build upon their Week 2 win last week against the Texans. Stick here for live updates and analysis as Denver takes on the 49ers at Empower Field at Mile High.
Live updates
Fourth-quarter updates
Defense prevails (9:55 p.m.): When the Broncos offense went AWOL in prime time, the Denver defense was there to save the day.
The Broncos forced two turnovers in the final 2:13 of the game, and also had a safety that ended up being the difference in an 11-10 win over the 49ers on Sunday Night Football at Empower Field. Read the full game analysis here. — Kyle Newman
Defense steps up. Again. (9:25 p.m.): First it was the Bradley Chubb sack. Then it was P.J. Locke III stripping the ball and Kareem Jackson recovered. Broncos ball. Game. — Joe Nguyen
One last stop (9:24 p.m.): Fittingly, the Broncos defense closed it out with its second takeaway in as many possessions. This one came when P.J. Locke stripped the ball from Jeff Wilson Jr. from behind, and Kareem Jackson recovered at the SF 25-yard line. What. A. Performance from the defense. GAME OVER: Broncos 11, 49ers 10 — Matt Schubert
PICKED! (9:20): Josey Jewell applied the pressure. Kareem Jackson got the tip. Jonas Griffith came away with the football. And Jimmy G? Oh, it hasn’t been pretty. Broncos’ ball with 2 minutes to go. — Matt Schubert
Defense strikes again (9:19 p.m.): The offense has sputtered, but the defense has been solid. Jonas Griffith just intercepted the ball after it was tipped by Kareem Jackson. Broncos ball. — Joe Nguyen
PAYDIRT (9:12): The red zone curse is over. Capping a 12-play, 80-yard drive, Melvin Gordon plunged into the end zone from 1 yard out off the left tackle. Russell Wilson’s pass on the two-point conversion was batted down. But, let’s face it, 11-10 Broncos feels right. 4:10 left. — Matt Schubert
Driving (9:10 p.m.): Better late than never for the offense to wake up. Denver drove 80 yards en route to the 1-yard Melvin Gordon touchdown. There were huge plays from Russell Wilson — a 27-yard pass to Kendall Hinton, a 12-yard scramble up the middle, a 19-yard pass to Courtland Sutton. Denver takes the one-point lead after the two-point conversion fails. — Joe Nguyen
Eight is enough (9:04 p.m.): NBC announced that the Broncos’ eight three-and-outs tonight are the most in Russell Wilson’s career. — Joe Nguyen
Sputtering offense (8:56 p.m.): Right challenge. Wrong call on the punt, man. Wrong, wrong, wrong. — Sean Keeler
Good as Gould (8:50 p.m.): The 49ers delivered might just might be the death blow: a 51-yard Robbie Gould field goal. 49ers 10, Broncos 5, 14:10 left in the 4th quarter. — Matt Schubert
Third-quarter analysis – 49ers 7, Broncos 5
Sean Keeler, sports columnist: A long, long time and many pounds ago, your humble narrator was a 20-something NFL writer in the old AFC North. One of my assignments was a Browns-Bengals game in which the quarterback matchup was Akili Smith (Cincinnati) against Spergon Wynn (Browns). Smith threw for 84 yards. Wynn got 82. The Bengals won, 12-3. I thought I’d never seen an NFL game by real NFL professionals play out that way ever again. Then Sunday night happened. Live long enough, kids, and the strange stuff always finds a way to come back around. (First one to 10 points wins. Not sure either team is gonna get there.)
Mark Kiszla, sports columnist: Niners 7, Broncos 5. This would qualify as a mighty fine pitchers’ duel at Coors Field. At some point, the blame for an offense that can’t score falls on the quarterback.
Matt Schubert, deputy sports editor: 49ers 7, Broncos 5 going into the third quarter. Hopefully the Broncos can get a few runners on base in the 4th.
Third-quarter updates
D.J. Jones injured (8:32 p.m.): Defensive tackle D.J. Jones has a head injury, and the Broncos say his return is questionable. — Matt Schubert
Climbing the rankings (8:28 p.m.): With that catch, Courtland Sutton moves past Anthony Miller in the No. 17 spot for most yards received in Broncos history with 2,852. — Joe Nguyen
Points! (8:23 p.m.): Under pressure from Mike Purcell up the middle, Jimmy Garoppolo stepped out of bounds while throwing a ball that ended up getting intercepted by Bradley Chubb and returned to the end zone. So, even when good things happen to the Broncos, they get dinged. No pick-6, but two points ain’t bad either. 49ers 7, Broncos 5. 9:48 left in the 3rd Q and the Broncos have the ball. — Matt Schubert
And the lead’s down to two (8:22 p.m.): 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo stepped out the back of the end zone to give the Broncos a safety, cutting the deficit to 7-5. It was lucky — Bradley Chubb had snagged his pass and rumbled into the end zone. — Joe Nguyen
They’re saying “Boo-urns” (8:17 p.m.): On the “booing” scale, we’ve gone from a “smattering” to a “chorus” awfully, AWFULLY quick. — Sean Keeler
Broncos catch a break (8:15 p.m.): Jimmy Garoppolo mishandled a snap at midfield, and Josey Jewell pounced. Broncos ball at the 50. — Matt Schubert
Bounce of luck (8:15 p.m.): Jimmy Garoppolo fumbles the snap and Josey Jewell came in the recover it. Broncos ball at the 50. — Joe Nguyen
One drive, same result (8:11 p.m.): Whatever halftime adjustments were made by Nathanial Hackett did not bear fruit on the opening possession of the first half. Three-and-out, with a tripping penalty left uncalled. — Matt Schubert
Not an ideal matchup (8:10 p.m.): Cam Fleming against Nick Bosa off the edge…. Not ideal matchup for the Broncos’ offensive line. On the first drive of the second half, Bosa toasts Fleming for a sack on second down and then gets into the pocket again on third down. — Kyle Newman
Injury update (8:08 p.m.): Broncos OLB Baron Browning questionable to return with knee injury. — Kyle Newman
Halftime analysis — 49ers 7, Broncos 3
Sean Keeler, sports columnist: That’s why you sell the farm to snatch a franchise QB: Game-ending and half-ending drives in this league that get you points can save your bacon in close games. And penalties by Jerry Jeudy (false start) and Garett Bolles (“Holding, No. 72.”) are among the reasons why this franchise is 6-12 since the fall of 2020 in games decided by eight points or fewer. Dumb is as dumb does, and giving away points in a slobber-knocker-type of a game the way this one’s setting up to be is just … dumb. (Also, get well, Baron Browning.)
Mark Kiszla, sports columnist: Through three games of the Nathaniel Hackett era, the Broncos have scored one touchdown in the first half. Mike Shanahan was a mastermind at designing 15-play offensive scripts to start the game. Think maybe Hackett could find old copies of those scripts stuffed in a drawer somewhere at Dove Valley Headquarters?
Kyle Newman, beat writer: Besides Courtland Sutton (four catches for 51 yards) and Javonte Williams (seven rushes for 42 yards), it looks like the rest of the Broncos offense didn’t get the memo that it’s supposed to be dynamic again this year. The Denver defense will need to step up with another big half, and maybe even score to give the Broncos a shot.
Second-quarter updates
Halftime (7:52 p.m.): 49ers 7, Broncos 3. That was not pretty. — Matt Schubert
Squandered possession (7:46 p.m.): A three-and-out inside the 49ers’ 10 — and aided by a Randy Gregory-drawn holding penalty — gave the Broncos the ball at the 50. But all they did was go backwards, thanks to false start (Jerry Jeudy) and holding (Garett Bolles) penalties. An opportunity to flip the game squandered. This is starting to feel a lot like Fangio Ball. — Matt Schubert
An oldie, but a badie (7:46 p.m.): “HOLDING, NO. 72” is an old jukebox hit they hadn’t played ’round these parts in ages. Terrible, terrible timing all-around. — Sean Keeler
One more chance (7:41 p.m.): The Broncos defense forced the 49ers to punt at their own 4-yard line. Rookie Montrell Washington returned it to the 50-yard line with 1:32 to go. — Joe Nguyen
Can’t cross the 30 (7:35 p.m.): For the second straight possession, what looked to be a promising Broncos drive stalled out once they got within the 49ers 40-yard line. Courtland Sutton had a bad drop on 2nd-andlong. You want to say Russell Wilson took a bad sack, too, but he didn’t really have a chance on 3rd-and-16. The result: the fourth punt of the game for the Broncos. 49ers 7, Broncos 3 at the 2-minute warning. — Matt Schubert
Broncos with an amazing punt (7:34 p.m.): Corliss Waitman: Clutch. (This maybe the only time this fall I type those three words in succession.) — Sean Keeler
Russ with the shovel pass (7:32 p.m.): That said, his basketball chest-passes on the move are a thing o’ beauty. — Sean Keeler
In Sutton, we trust (7:30 p.m.): Love Russ’ faith in Sutton, but Wilson looks like he fears contact right now the way I fear more than six flights of stairs in one go. — Sean Keeler
Challenge denied (7:25 p.m.): After Vic Fangio was 4-for-16 in challenges over three years on the Denver sideline, Nathaniel Hackett loses his first challenge as Broncos head coach. — Kyle Newman
Deebo goes down (7:18 p.m.): San Francisco wide receiver Deebo Samuel remained on the ground for an extended period of time after getting gang tackled near midfield. He ended up walking off on his own power during the commercial break. Here’s guessing he will be back in the game. — Matt Schubert
Another mismatch (7:15 p.m.): Josey Jewell in a footrace with Deebo Samuel is … a MAJOR matchup problem. — Sean Keeler
No shutout today (7:13 p.m.): A promising drive that included long passes to Courtland Sutton (34 yards) and Jerry Jeudy (16 yards) stalled out at the 49ers 37. Brandon McManus’ 55-yard field goal means the Broncos will not get shut out. So they got that going for them. Which is nice. 49ers 7, Broncos 3, 11:58 left in 2nd Q. — Matt Schubert
Denver gets on the board (7:10 p.m.): Brandon McManus crushed a 55-yard field goal to cut the deficit down to 7-3. — Joe Nguyen
Mismatch? (7:10 p.m.): Cam Fleming against Nick Bosa is … a matchup problem. — Sean Keeler
First-quarter analysis — 49ers 7, Broncos 0
Sean Keeler, sports columnist: Well, that’s one way to stop red-zone issues — never get there in the first place! The Broncos finish the opening stanza with 45 yards. Russ to Courtland Sutton just accounted for 34 of them in one play. If this is gonna be a smash-mouthy, grindy, kinda game, if you can’t flip the yard markers, at least flip the field. Wilson has rarely been a fast-starter against a Kyle Shanahan team — averaging 10 first-half points in their last six meetings — so there’s still a long way to go. On several fronts.
Mark Kiszla, sports columnist: Well, it took until last play of the first quarter for the Broncos to pick up a first down. On the bright side, they have no delay of game penalties to this point. Although Niners have TD drive, they don’t look particularly dynamic on offense. Twenty points might well be enough to win this game.
Kyle Newman, beat writer: OK, through nine quarters of play this year: 1) This is boring. 2) This is not a playoff team. 3) Can I rescind my 11-6 prediction? 4) Also, regardless of K.C.’s stumble today in Indy (Broncos can thank Frank Clark’s bonehead fourth-quarter penalty for that), Chiefs are still lightyears ahead of this operation we’re seeing at Empower Field.
First-quarter updates
Russ to Sutton (7:03 p.m.): The Broncos’ offense finally made some waves on the last play before the end of the quarter as Russell Wilson connects with Courtland Sutton for a 35-yard gain. — Joe Nguyen
PSII pass break-up (7:01 p.m.): If Pat Surtain II is still hurt, he certainly doesn’t look it. Excellent coverage on Brandon Ayiuk led to a much-needed third-down stop. And now the Broncos are driving after Russ hit Courtland Sutton for a big gain to end the first quarter. Positive things are happening!!! — Matt Schubert
Punt-fest (7:01 p.m.): It’s turned into a Mel Tucker/Kirk Ferentz Classic at Mile High: Punt To Win. — Sean Keeler
The hat trick (6:55 p.m.): Three more plays, and a third punt immediately follows. On the bright side, Melvin Gordon just recorded the Broncos’ longest gain of the night so far: 4 yards. — Matt Schubert
Slow start (6:54 p.m.): On the plus side, history tell us Russ is a slow-starter when it comes to the Niners. In his last six meetings while in Seattle, his opening score vs. Little Shanny came, on average, on the fourth possession of the game. Average first-half points: 10.2. Ugly start, but there’s still … time. I guess. — Sean Keeler
Welcome back (6:52 p.m.): Josey Jewell, in his first game of the year coming off a calf injury, sacks Jimmy G and busts out a dance that’s a tribute to The Outlaw Josey Wales, the 1976 Clint Eastwood movie for which he is named. Jewell used his guns as finger pistols before blowing off the smoke from the guns. — Kyle Newman
Three-and-out … again (6:44 p.m.): We’re now at six offensive plays for the Broncos … and 6 total yards gained. — Matt Schubert
Way too easy (6:39 p.m.): It took all of six plays for the 49ers to march 75 yards, with Jeff Wilson Jr.’s 37-yard run what set it all up. A really well-designed pick play from 2 yards out gave Brandon Aiyuk the touchdown. 49ers 7, Broncos 0, 7:56 left in the first quarter. — Matt Schubert
49ers strike first (6:38 p.m.): Wait. You mean you’re ALLOWED to cross the goal-line with the ball? Didn’t the NFL outlaw that for 2022? Niners show how it’s done there — six plays, 75 yards in 3:11 and a 7-0 Broncos deficit. Yikes. — Sean Keeler
Three-and-out (6:31 p.m.): The first three plays for the Broncos gained a total of 2 yards. It looked like Russell Wilson might be able to scramble for a first down on third-and-7, but he instead opted to throw outside to Jerry Jeudy at the line of scrimmage … who was then promptly lit up by three 49ers. Not great for a guy who injured his shoulder last week. — Matt Schubert
Wolfe pack (6:30 p.m.): Super Bowl 50 champion Derek Wolfe got a standing ovation from the Empower Field crowd when he was acknowledged during a TV timeout in the first quarter. The defensive lineman recently signed a one-day deal with Denver to retire as a Bronco. — Kyle Newman
Strong start on D (6:26 p.m.): The 49ers run game looked pretty tepid in the first drive, and D.J. Jones got his hand on a third-and-long pass at the line. Not a bad little start for the Broncos defense. — Matt Schubert
Win and defer (6:23 p.m.): The Broncos won the toss and (surprise) elected to kick. It seemed to play well. The Broncos stopped the opening kick-off return on the 10-yard line. — Joe Nguyen
Pre-game updates
Jewell on Kittle (6:20 p.m.): Earlier this week, Jewell said of the matchup against Kittle, both of whom are making their season debuts: “I’ll probably shoot him a text (to see if he’s healthy). I know we both want to be out there against each other.” — Kyle Newman
Schoolmates (6:17 p.m.): Josey Jewell and George Kittle were collegiate teammates for three years at Iowa. Practiced against each other for three years at Iowa. Old pals. Know each other well. Too well. Wonder if that played a role in Kittle wanting to go today. This matchup worries the crud outta me. And I’m sure I ain’t the only one. — Sean Keeler
Shiffrin in the house (6:03 p.m.): Colorado’s own Mikaela Shiffrin was on the field prior to the Broncos game. NBC Olympics tweeted out photos of the Alpine skiing champion with Russell Wilson and Ciara. — Joe Nguyen
Jeudy, Surtain active (4:54 p.m.): What was expected was confirmed Sunday: wide receiver Jerry Jeudy and cornerback Pat Surtain II will both be active for tonight’s game against San Francisco. That’s the (very good) news. The bad news: Billy Turner will be inactive for the third straight week, meaning Cam Fleming will likely be starting at right tackle.
Also inactive: WR Jalen Virgil, WR Tyrie Cleveland, OLB Jonathon Cooper, CB Darius Phillips, S Delarrin Turner-Yell and DE Eyioma Uwazurike. — Matt Schubert
Post predictions
Mark Kiszla, columnist: Broncos 24, 49ers 23
Anybody else in Broncos Country believe if all other things were equal and we did nothing except trade Nathaniel Hackett for Kyle Shanahan that Denver would win this game by a touchdown? Either Hackett demonstrates he can make solid football decisions under pressure or the home crowd can start counting down the time until players begin to lose faith in their coach.
Kyle Newman, beat writer: Broncos 21, 49ers 17
A battle between two impressive defenses in the first half gives way to play-making and gamesmanship in the second half. Yes, Jimmy G will have a moment or two. But it’s Russell Wilson, aided by another potent run-game performance, who throws his first multi-TD game with Denver. The deciding scoring pass goes to Courtland Sutton late in the fourth quarter.
Matt Schubert, sports editor: 49ers 20, Broncos 17
After an underwhelming home debut against an equally underwhelming opponent (Houston), the Broncos step up two or three classes to take on one of the NFL’s top defenses. As much as we recommend staying away on Jimmy G when making wagers, we’d sooner light our money on fire than place a bet on a Nathaniel Hackett-led operation right now.
Sean Keeler, columnist: Broncos 19, 49ers 17
If the sight of old friend Little Shanny doesn’t get Russell Wilson going, nothing will. DangeRuss went 8-2 in 10 regular-season meetings against the Niners in the NFC West, and even more impressively, 4-1 away from the 12th Man in Seattle. What the heck. Let’s ride.
Broncos-49ers NFL Week 3: Must reads
Best advice for Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett, former NFL coaches say? Learn from mistakes. Also, hurry up. “You gotta do it quick.”
Some two weeks into the regular season, Nathaniel Hackett’s already made — well, more than a few mistakes.
Hackett admitted early last week that the Broncos’ play-calling operation — with a first-time head coach and first time NFL coordinators on offense, defense and special teams — wasn’t working, and that the blame started with him. For Jim E. Mora, the venerated former coach of the Saints and Colts, that confession was a crucial first step toward fixing the problem, Sean Keeler reports.
Broncos scouting report: How Denver matches up against 49ers and predictions
Jimmy Garoppolo has three bona fide weapons at wideout in Brandon Aiyuk, Jauan Jennings and Deebo Samuel, the latter of whom can break the game open on vertical routes and in the run game.
That means the Broncos’ secondary will need to be on point, especially with captain Justin Simmons (quad) sidelined.
Caden Sterns, subbing for Simmons, will start at safety alongside Kareem Jackson; K’Waun Williams will be at the nickel as usual, and P.J. Locke will play the dime. Pat Surtain II will start alongside Ronald Darby if Surtain can go following a shoulder tweak that knocked him out of last week’s win over Houston. If Surtain can’t play, rookie Damarri Mathis will get the nod, Kyle Newman reports.
Banged-up Broncos offensive line awaits Billy Turner’s return after “A-minus” start to 2022 campaign
Historically, when the Broncos are at their best, their offensive line is one of the top blocking units in the NFL. Through two games this year, Denver’s front doesn’t qualify as elite. But they are getting there, in spite of injuries to right guard Quinn Meinerz (hamstring) and right tackle Billy Turner (knee).
General manager George Paton’s roster construction gave the Broncos breathing room for just those types of injuries on the offensive line. Whereas in recent years the Broncos needed to turn to inexperienced players when starters went down, this season, they had two veterans waiting in the wings at right guard (Graham Glasgow) and right tackle (Cam Fleming).
Glasgow, Denver’s starter at right guard last year before sustaining a season-ending fractured ankle in Week 9, grades the Broncos’ line at an A-minus so far. The Broncos rank 10th in average rushing yards (126), tied-19th in sacks (five, although a couple of those could be classified as coverage/scramble sacks) and are 24th in points per game (16), Kyle Newman reports.
