Slugging it out with the Cincinnati Bengals last December, the Broncos and fill-in quarterback Drew Lock had chipped their way down to the 9-yard line, looking to score the go-ahead touchdown with 11 minutes remaining.

A win and the Broncos would be 8-6 and their playoff hopes very much alive.

But on a second-down play Lock tried to evade Bengals defensive lineman Khalid Kareem. Instead, he fumbled and Cincinnati recovered the game-changing takeaway. The Broncos lost 15-10, the start of a four-game losing streak to end the season which triggered sweeping changes.

The play — and empty red zone possession — was emblematic of the Broncos’ failings inside the 20-yard line during their six-year playoff drought. Four times they finished 26th or worse in touchdown percentage — a direct correlation to finishing 22nd or worse in points per game in each year.

Enter coach Nathaniel Hackett and quarterback Russell Wilson.

Hackett helmed the NFL’s second-ranked red zone offense in 2017 with Jacksonville and was also the coordinator for Green Bay when it finished eighth and first in 2019 and ’20, respectively.

Wilson had 194 red zone touchdowns and only 12 interceptions in 10 years with Seattle.

Adding Hackett’s play design and play-calling and Wilson’s moxie to a mix of talented returning skill players, the Broncos feel they have found a red zone elixir. Finally.

“We can pretty much line up anybody out there and be effective,” running back Melvin Gordon said.

Success elsewhere

First things first: Hackett calls it the gold zone.

“That (term) had been toyed about and we had talked about it as a family and he was very much around the kitchen table in Kansas City,” said his father, former NFL coordinator Paul Hackett. “But Nathaniel is the one who took it to a new level. He’s gone nuts. It’s been very successful.”

Exhibit A was during a training camp practice. Working around the 10-yard line, Hackett’s play had routes crisscrossing and interchanging and when the Broncos’ first-team defense didn’t have their communication in order, Wilson threw a touchdown.

As a first-time play-caller with Buffalo in 2013-14, Hackett’s offenses finished 29th in red zone touchdown rate. Three years later with the Jaguars, Hackett used the bruising running of rookie Leonard Fournette (five rushing touchdowns) and 6-foot-6 frame of tight end Marcedes Lewis (five catches, four touchdowns) to score at a clip of 64%. Quarterback Blake Bortles had 18 touchdowns and no interceptions in the red zone.

Two years later, Hackett began working for Packers play-caller Matt LaFleur, and it was an awakening. Earlier this month, Hackett was asked about Wilson’s red-zone effectiveness. Following the news conference, he assigned homework to a reporter.

“Look up Green Bay Packers red zone in 2019 and 2020,” he said.

Digging into the statistics showed why the Packers won 13 games in all three of Hackett’s seasons as the coordinator (he didn’t call the plays) who led the red zone install meetings during the week.

In ’19, the Packers were a red-zone running team and Aaron Jones led the league with 14 touchdown rushes from inside the 20.

In ’20, defenses felt the need to adjust and quarterback Aaron Rodgers was ready. The Packers converted 80% of their inside-the-20 possessions, the highest mark since the NFL began keeping the statistic in 1999. Rodgers had 35 touchdowns (six more than Wilson, the next-closest passer) and no interceptions.

Breaking down Rodgers’ 35 touchdown passes shows the bandwidth Hackett gets to exercise with Wilson. Rodgers was in the shotgun 22 times and under center 13 times. He carried out play-action on 14. And the Packers used mostly 11 personnel (three receivers-one tight end-one running back) on 27 snaps. It helped having receiver Davante Adams (14 red-zone touchdowns), but tight end Robert Tonyan had seven touchdown catches.

Now Hackett gets to work with Wilson.

“He doesn’t fear those tight quarters,” Hackett said. “We have to embrace those tight windows. He’s got such a quick release and a strong arm, he can definitely get it in there.”

Model of consistency

Wilson’s top key in the red zone is both matter-of-fact and critical to his success.

“Not forcing the ball,” he told The Denver Post. “Sometimes you have to, but you pick and choose. Give the guys a chance.”

Wilson debuted with a 107.5 red-zone passer rating in 2012 for Seattle. The only time his rating was lower than 90 was last year (83.5). He has completed 341 of 637 attempts (53.5%) inside the 20-yard line. His top seasons were ’12 (18 touchdowns/zero interceptions), ’17 (22/one) and ’20 (29/three).

Wilson wants to play smart but knows aggressiveness is also required.

“I never play scared,” he said. “I try to play ball the right way and do everything I can. That’s what I believe in.”

The Seahawks’ receiving duo of Tyler Lockett and D.K. Metcalf allowed Wilson to not zero in on one target. Like the matchup for Lockett, he went there. Think he has the advantage with Metcalf, he went there. In 2020, Lockett had eight red-zone touchdown catches (tied for fifth in the league) and Metcalf scored five times.

Wilson’s career high for red-zone completions is 52 in 2020 and he threw to 11 players, led by Lockett’s 12 catches. The Broncos’ skill players suggest a similar level of variety, even without receiver Tim Patrick (out for the season with a torn ACL). Last year, four players had at least five red-zone catches, led by six apiece by Sutton and running back Javonte Williams.

“The thing is, you can have the system, but not the guys to make it work — and we have the guys,” Gordon said. “We have a jump-ball guy in Courtland. We have a separation guy in (Jerry) Jeudy. We have a gadget guy, speed guy in Montrell (Washington). And we have running backs and tight ends who can do it all.”

No teammate has known Wilson longer than Gordon, who were together at Wisconsin. He knows No. 3’s game and why he’s first-rate in the red zone.

“You have to throw guys open and take risks. You’re going to have some good ones and some bad ones, but with (Wilson), nine times out of 10, it’s probably going to be a good one.”

The Broncos are counting on it.

Red zone woes

During the Broncos’ six-year playoff drought, they have failed to finish in the top half of the NFL’s red zone touchdown percentage standings. A comparison to Russell Wilson’s final six years in Seattle:

Wilson in red zone

A year-by-year look at Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson’s passing statistics in the red zone for Seattle:

*The Seahawks made the playoffs in every season except for 2017 and ’21.

Hackett red zone history

A look at Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett’s six full seasons as an offensive coordinator and how those teams fared in the red zone. Hackett was the play-caller for Buffalo (2013-14) and Jacksonville (’17):

*Made playoffs