3 Prophetic Takeaways From Broncos' 19-8 Loss to Chiefs
When the 2023 NFL regular-season schedule was released, fans circled Week 6's matchup between the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday Night Football. Surely, head coach Sean Payton and Russell Wilson would trade blows with reigning World Champion Chiefs, led by Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, and finally snap the streak, right?
Wrong.
Disaster has once again reared its ugly head just over a month into the season as the Broncos limped into Kansas City for their annual primetime punishment. The latest chapter in the Book of Mahomes marched on as he extended his winning streak over the Broncos to 16 consecutive games on Thursday night.
The Chiefs bullied and humiliated the Broncos, 19-8, handing Denver its fifth loss of the season.
What did we learn? Brace yourselves for three takeaways from this living train wreck from hell, as things could be getting shaken up in Denver.
Wilson Duds Out in Denver
When it was announced on March 8, 2022, that the Broncos had agreed to a deal to acquire Wilson from the Seattle Seahawks, the NFL went into a frenzy. We all remember where we were the second that the news dropped, as our daydreams raced to Super Bowl confetti and future parades that felt possible and probable once more.
But let’s be honest and admit that the Wilson trade hasn’t worked out for the Broncos. Wilson has been a part of just five victories (out of 21 games) as the starter since arriving in Denver. Against the Chiefs on TNF, Wilson went 13-of-22 for 95 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions and was sacked four times.
Last year, Russ became a national lampoon, with media pundits mercilessly pouncing on him for being corny and calling him washed up. Wilson may be 15 pounds lighter this season and was obviously humbled, which initially led to significantly improved statistics.
But the losing product remains, and this team is still left without its clear-cut leader and undisputed future franchise quarterback. This is usually where I’d point out a Wilson statistic that shows how his individual performance has improved, but does that matter on a losing football team, especially in the wake of the clunker he turned in at Arrowhead?
Wilson's tone-deaf cliches at the podium and lack of sideline emotion point to him being on autopilot, and Broncos fans have picked up on it. We also debated feverously all offseason whether Payton could 'fix' Wilson, but perhaps what we should have remembered was that Payton didn’t hand-pick him as his QB in Denver. Paton did.
Perhaps Payton’s plan all along was to analyze and assess Wilson, then decide how the Broncos should move forward. The head coach is now well within his rights to play Jarrett Stidham for the remainder of the season. Payton should be considering prospects the likes of Caleb Williams or Drake Maye in the upcoming draft.
Social media is running rampant with scenarios in which a team calls Denver to inquire about trading for Wilson before the October 31 trade deadline. Honestly, though, I don't have the faintest clue of what Payton is going to do with Russ, whether that be trade him, bench him, or something entirely different.
But it's become painfully obvious that the Broncos and Wilson aren’t a good combination, and both are to blame for the team's lack of success.
Fallout Friday: Broncos Eyeing Roster Teardown
For the first time in five weeks, Broncos Country won’t have to suffer the frustration, agony, or humiliation of watching Denver lose on Sunday. The primetime game on TNF meant that fans could rip this painfully bloody band-aid off three days early with hopes and dreams of actually enjoying the weekend without a cloud of doom hanging over everyone's head.
Prior to TNF, multiple reports postured the Broncos as big sellers ahead of the NFL trade deadline, with players like outside linebacker Frank Clark, wide receiver Jerry Jeudy, and others being floated. However, such rumors have existed for as long as we can remember.
In addition to Jeudy and Clark potentially being on the trade block, keep an eye on wideout Courtland Sutton, left tackle Garett Bolles, safety Justin Simmons, and quite possibly All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain II.
Defensive coordinator Vance Joseph is unlikely to last in Denver much longer, and the former Broncos head coach could be relieved of his duties as soon as Friday in what’s being described as the start of the team’s mini-bye week. Joseph's defense may have kept a struggling Chiefs offense at bay by allowing just one touchdown, but a banged-up Travis Kelce caught nine receptions for 124 yards.
As usual, the defense witnessed the opposing offense move the ball at will for most of the contest, but it did stiffen in the red zone finally, allowing just 1-of-5 such Chiefs possessions to hit paydirt.
It’s equally important to question Broncos GM George Paton’s job security as his short- or long-term plans with Payton could be in jeopardy due to the hellacious start to this season, especially with the personnel decisions made under his watch. Wilson’s new contract is aging worse by the day, in addition to the draft haul surrendered to acquire him.
The bottom line is that the 1-5 Broncos have the worst start in franchise history dating back to 1964. The worst part of the whole mess is that there are 12 more weeks of the regular season remaining, which is likely going to be painful, slow, and unforgiving. It’s often said the first step of recovery is admitting that there’s a problem.
If the Broncos start their staffing and player changes on Friday or this weekend, they'd at least be acknowledging the problem, but the team would still be behind the curve. At least the transformation will have finally started.
Jeudy’s Pre-Game Tantrum Puches Ticket Out of Town
The bizarre case of Jerry Jeudy’s disgruntled behavior has increasingly deteriorated throughout the weeks on social media, and he apparently imploded before Thursday night's action.
Steve Smith Sr. is an accomplished NFL analyst with an accomplished track resume that includes All-Pro and Pro-Bowl accolades, as well as Comeback Player of the Year honors and numerous NFL awards. Smith recently described Jeudy as a ‘JAG’ (Just Another Guy) on an episode of his podcast Cut To It.
Smith, who's on staff with the TNF commentary crew, attempted to make things right and issue an apology to Jeudy before the game and was met with a bizarre and aggressive response.
“(Expletive), I don’t mess with you,” Jeudy allegedly told Smith repeatedly in a heated and tense moment pre-game. Smith later went on NFL GameDay and issued a response of his own to Jeudy.
"I'm sorry I said you were a JAG, just a guy who is an average wide receiver they used a first-round pick on that isn't doing anything," Smith said. "I hope today you actually show up in a way that you haven't shown up in the last couple years since they drafted you. So if you ever got a problem with Agent 89, I'm sorry for saying that you are an average wide receiver that they will eventually move on from. When teams call me to ask if they should trade for you, I will say, 'No, don't trade for Jerry Jeudy because he is mentally unable to handle constructive criticism who watch specifically if you can be a wide receiver. He's a tier-three.'"
Jeudy has also doubled down on attacking Broncos royalty like Rod Smith, Mark Schlereth, and Phillip Lindsay and has taken aim at a legendary Carolina Panthers all-timer amid the rumors of Denver gearing up to trade him away.
Against the Chiefs, the former first-rounder logged three receptions for 14 yards. Late in the fourth quarter, Wilson threw Jeudy a catchable ball against man coverage that the disgruntled receiver failed to catch as he barely used a shred of effort to come down with the ball in the end zone.
The Broncos can’t trade Jeudy fast enough. His toxic negativity and lack of overall awareness, professionalism, or maturity are getting worse by the week. The NFL isn’t built on potential, but maybe he’ll move on to greener pastures in the league and prove me wrong.
Before he does that, Jeudy will need to score a touchdown for the first time since last season and earn the respect of his peers, as nothing is given but it's earned in the National Football League.
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