Sean Payton let Bo Nix, Broncos down in humbling loss to Buffalo Bills

The Denver Post

“And so early in that game, you’re paying attention to it.
Run, run, pass, punt.
Run, run, pass, punt.
Down 21 at the Bills’ 14 with 11:37 left, the Broncos faced a last-gasp fourth-and-2.
After 15 minutes, the Bills had eight first downs to the Broncos’ two; 124 yards to the Broncos’ 75; and 79 rushing yards to the Broncos’ 11.

NEGATIVE

N. ORCHARD PARK. Y. — Sean Payton didn’t simply let his foot drop. He pushed the emergency brake, exited the vehicle, gave Josh Allen the keys, and clambered home.

Following a 31-7 thumping Sunday by Allen and his Buffalo Bills in the AFC wild-card round, the Broncos coach clarified, “As a play-caller on offense and vice versa, you have to pay attention to what’s going on the other side of you.”.

And you’re watching it so early in that game. It seems as though you wish to be combative. However, the way that game played out in the second half started to affect how you call (it). “”.

In the first half, the Broncos threw it five times for 42 yards, or eight yards per play, on first down. During the first half, they threw it four times on second down for an additional 42 yards, or almost 11 yards each time.

Third quarter, first drive?

Run, run, punt, pass.

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Quarter three, second drive?

Punt, pass, run, run.

After an exciting season that ended with a belly-flop into the Niagara River, Broncos tight end Adam Trautman told me, “When they have the ball, we can’t.”. Additionally, we must abandon some of the things we would like to include in the plan when we fall behind. Actually, they simply had the ball, which is one of the primary reasons they defeated us the way they did. “”.

The head coach failed quarterback Bo Nix, not the other way around.

When the third quarter was down 14 with 2:53 remaining, Payton’s play sequence was as follows.

3-yard run on a first-and-10.

1-yard run on second-and-seven.

False start on third-and-six.

Third-and-Eleven: Unfinished.

With 11:37 remaining, trailing 21 at the Bills’ 14, the Broncos had to make a last-ditch fourth-and-two. They dumped it to tailback Jaleel McLaughlin after running a play-action bootleg to the boundary. Essentially, McLaughlin was pushed out of bounds for no gain rather than pushing for the end zone.

After a stellar rookie season that ended with a whimper, Nix said, “We definitely have to score more than seven points in these tough games.” He passed for 144 yards on 13 of 23 plays, including 43 on a rainbow to Troy Franklin on Denver’s first possession.

In Baltimore, we only managed to score ten points. Today, we achieved a score of seven. We have to get to Kansas City to finish. Therefore, there are some situations where performance and scoring more points are crucial. Additionally, our defense performed admirably in every game. All we need to do is figure out how to score, maintain momentum, and keep the momentum going. “”.

Over the course of the first quarter and a half, the Broncos maintained that momentum, but Sunshine Sean abruptly lost his composure.

It’s best to let loose, let go of inhibitions, and let the chips fall where they may when you’re a road dog during the postseason. It was inspired to go deep to start the game. Around four minutes into the second stanza, Payton stuck to his theme on a fourth-and-eight at the Broncos’ 43, taking advantage of a clever fake-punt pass from Riley Dixon to a wide-open Marvin Mims Jr. to catch the Bills off guard. Despite being behind 10–7, Denver managed to hold onto the ball, silence a half-sober Highmark Stadium, and put the favorites back on their heels.

Payton moved to “park” instead of punching it. “.”.

When the Bills’ offense was moving the rock at will, the Broncos decided to run it with Javonte Williams for six yards before throwing it to Mims for a three-yard loss rather than go for the throat. In order to create another fourth down, this time at the Bills’ 39, Nix had to get rid of Von Miller’s chewing gum after smelling it on third-and-seven.

With a punt, Payton applied the brake.

In response to my question regarding the possession, Payton said, “Yeah, the distance on the next sequence though, analytically, was not in favor of (going for it).”.

Their position on the half-yard line was essentially established by that play. Well, there we have it. The field is now flipped, so we must be able to stop them. However, we were unable to keep them down there. “.”.

So that’s why you initially pursued it, but ah, whatever.

Big picture? The sky isn’t going to fall. The world is still turning. For several months, the Broncos have been experimenting with house money. The franchise’s most pressing question, which has persisted since Peyton Manning’s retirement, was addressed, most likely in a definitive manner. Now, it’s Bo’s squad. Bo’s time. Without a strong quarterback-coach foundation, it is impossible to get an NFL train moving forward again. Thankfully, that is finally here. Don’t allow Buffalo to ignore that. Or dismiss it.

However, Sunday served as a status check for the Broncos, who have a new look and era, and the postseason mirror wasn’t kind.

NFL coaches are compensated to identify weaknesses. Playoff staff members wiggle those fingers like there’s no tomorrow and stick their filthy fingers inside them.

The world saw the Broncos’ hidden side: running back. Tight end. inside linebacker. Arm-tackling on occasion. Denver ended the first quarter with a 7-3 lead. More like being down 10 was how it felt. After 15 minutes, the Bills had 79 rushing yards to the Broncos’ 11, 124 yards to the Broncos’ 75, and eight first downs to the Broncos’ two. The Buffalo offensive line was free to do anything they wanted, whenever they wanted, at the line of scrimmage.

Payton’s initial big reaction was to turtle. Well, no. His second significant response was that. The first may have been the choice to substitute 5-foot-8 Tyler Badie for Audric Estime, a potent rookie back, in cold weather prior to the game. Two touches from Badie. eight yards.

Payton explained the choice by saying, “Just running style.”. “What we felt we wanted to do for this game was what we thought we were going to do running-wise. “.”.

You know, Buffalo had other plans.

“You can lose a rhythm whenever you’re not in the game running plays,” Nix thought. But getting back in there and having a few plays that get us back in rhythm is our responsibility. And we must perform better the next time. “”.

Payton needs to improve. On this stage at least. Go down with a bang if you’re going to.

“Yes, big momentum swings are the main focus of the NFL and the playoffs,” Trautman remarked. Thus, it went our way. Then, very rapidly, it changed direction. “”.

It’s not that far to the Broncos. However, the Bills reminded them that it’s still too far to crawl, their knuckles bloodied from jab after jab.

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