Initial thoughts from Broncos’ 31-28 come-from-behind victory over the Chicago Bears in Week 4 at Soldier Field:
Jeudy. Jeudy? Jeudy!: Remember when Jerry Jeudy had flames shooting off him at the end of last season? Where did that guy go? And why hasn’t offensive wizard Sean Payton been able to unearth him? Jeudy made a textbook all-hands grab on a first-quarter slant that went for 18 yards, part of an impressive 11-play, 84-yard opening drive that ended with Jaleel McLaughlin plunging into the end zone. The number of first-half targets for Jeudy after that? Zip. Nada. Zilch. Zero. Then he opened the second half with a drop, but had two catches for 34 yards during Denver’s torrid rally. Jeudy’s totals through three games: 17 targets, 11 receptions, 158 yards. More is needed.
No Justin Simmons, lots of problems: Two games in a row, the Broncos secondary was without safety Justin Simmons. Two games in a row, they got absolutely roasted by an opposing quarterback putting up a career day. It can’t all be Simmons, can it? No, it can’t. How do we know? Because the Broncos were just as bad in the second half of their loss to Washington in Week 2. Which means that this Broncos pass defense is just plain bad. Too many receivers running wide open down the field. Too many missed tackles in the open field. One player does not account for that — as much as Nik Bonitto (2 ½ sacks) may have tried. And one miraculous comeback win does not wash that away.
The rookies: Looking for one reason why the Broncos avoided an 0-4 start? How about two: Rookies Jaleel McLaughlin and Marvin Mims Jr., both of whom have produced when given opportunities so far this season. And Sunday was no different. Sure, Mims had that dropped kick return in the first half, but he also set up one of the Broncos’ second-half touchdown drives with a 25-yard punt return, then came up with a critical 48-yard reception that preceded Wil Lutz’s game-winning field goal. And McGlaughlin? His emergence this game seemingly made Javonte Williams’ absence moot. Give the undrafted rookie the ball in space, and he’s dangerous (10 touches, 104 yards, one TD). The Broncos have a lot of things to fix. Those two are part of the solution.
Disaster averted: Five false starts, including one out of a timeout. Continued problems getting the offense out of the huddle in a timely fashion — to the point Payton had to burn timeouts. That defense. Also, THAT defense. Things looked awfully bleak for the Broncos midway through the third quarter. Like, fire-the-defensive-coordinator-and-start-thinking-about-trading-assets bleak. But then Jaleel McLaughlin started finding room to run. Russell Wilson (21 of 28, 223 yards, three TDs) started to cook. And the defense — yes, THAT defense — started making plays, culminating with Kareem Jackson’s game-sealing interception of Bears quarterback Justin Fields with 32 seconds to go. A comeback from 21 points down does a lot for a team. At the very least, this one saved the Broncos’ season in Year 1 under Sean Payton.
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Due to a reporting error, Jerry Jeudy’s targets, receptions and receiving yards were incorrect in a previous version of this story. It has been corrected to reflect that Jeudy has 17 targets, 11 receptions and 158 yards through three games.
