The Broncos seemed to be running everywhere in Atlanta. Except forward.
Tailback Phillip Lindsay only touched the ball eight times. Running mate Melvin Gordon saw the rock just seven times. The longest rush of Week 9 was by quarterback Drew Lock on a 16-yard scramble.
“I just thought our whole offense, not just Drew, was out of sorts,” Denver coach Vic Fangio said after his Broncos dipped to 3-5 with a 34-27 loss in Atlanta on Sunday afternoon. “(And) in the first half, in particular.”
Sunday’s game followed much the same script as the Broncos’ breathless Week 8 home comeback against the Chargers — slow start, listless first half, furious rally late. Only this one had a different ending. Lock, the Broncos’ second-year QB, was hit nine times by Atlanta defenders on the day, up from the six hits he took against Los Angeles, and regularly felt the squeeze of a leaky or constricted pocket.
In short, the Broncos’ beat-up offensive line didn’t do its backfield — or Lock — many favors. But that same quarterback, given a chance, refused to throw his linemen under the bus after a frustrating setback.
“Quite honestly, I’m way more than willing to take the blame,” said Lock, who was sacked only once but harried throughout, despite throwing for 313 yards and rushing for 47 more. “I should, I’m the guy who has the ball in his hand every play. We get a drop, so what? I’m going to find a way for us to get the next first down on the next play.
“You know, (a defender) busts a block, well get out of it, Drew. Why didn’t you get out of it? I think I’m good enough to do that. I always have. And I always will.”
The 1-2 punch of injuries and the coronavirus have combined to bite the Broncos’ offensive line hard at the start of November.
Graham Glasgow, Denver’s No. 1 right guard, missed a second straight game while in quarantine after being placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list Oct. 30. Starting right tackle Demar Dotson left Sunday’s game in the first half with a reported hip injury.
The Broncos finished Sunday’s game with a pocket that featured a rookie center (Lloyd Cushenberry), a backup right guard (Austin Schlottmann) and a guy designated as their no. 3 right tackle (Jake Rodgers) at the start of the season.
Lock’s reactions to the Falcons’ pressure produced mixed results all afternoon. The nadir came with 9:38 left in the fourth quarter, when the Broncos got the ball back at their own 15 following an Atlanta punt, down 27-13.
Facing heat from Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jarrett, Lock elected to sling one off his back foot toward wideout Jerry Jeudy rather than eat the ball and take a sack. The pass was intercepted by Ricardo Allen at the Denver 31 and returned to the Broncos’ 12, setting up Atlanta’s final touchdown of the afternoon and effectively sealing Denver’s fate.
Afterward, Lock wasn’t about to take his line to task.
“Jerry was open,” Lock said. “It’s a throw I can make. It’s a throw I should make. And it’s embarrassing that I didn’t.”
