NFL.com Says it's Time to Hit Panic Button on Broncos

After another inept and uninspired performance by the Nathaniel Hackett and Russell Wilson-led offense, Broncos Country is left wondering whether this team can even finish the season above .500. The latest NFL.com power rankings reflect that, as the Denver Broncos have plummeted from No. 16 down to 23.

Dan Hanzus gives his most brutally honest take so far about the Broncos and why hovering over the panic button isn't beyond the pale. Let's take a look.

Denver Broncos Rank: 23

“It’s not too early to panic. Russell Wilson and the Broncos' offense delivered another anemic performance under the prime-time lights, a 12-9 overtime loss that fully exposed to the football-viewing public how broken Denver’s attack appears to be five weeks into the season. Embattled first-year coach Nathaniel Hackett deserves his share of the blame for the struggles, but it’s Wilson who was supposed to elevate the Broncos to title contenders. Instead, he’s held them back with inconsistent play and costly mistakes. That Wilson underwent a procedure on his throwing shoulder on Friday only summons more storm clouds over Mile High.”

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Anemic is right. Wilson’s worst performance in a Broncos uniform came against a Shaquille Leonard-less Indianapolis Colts defense. Wilson's two interceptions were head-scratching, especially the one in the end zone to Stephon Gilmore.

Wilson's accuracy was off for most of the night, which makes sense, considering how abysmal the Broncos' offensive line play has been. Losing left tackle Garret Bolles to a broken leg for the rest of the season couldn’t have come at a worse time.

If fans thought Denver’s pass protection was terrible before, just wait till Khalil Mack lines across from Calvin Anderson at left tackle. Wilson’s torn lat in his throwing shoulder won’t have time to heal with pass rushers breathing down his neck 24/7.

Wilson can’t control every factor of the game, like injuries, but there were situations on Thursday where he had a chance to make a play or keep the drive alive and failed his team. The biggest blunder was in overtime when he chose to throw an incomplete pass to Courtland Sutton, who was blanketed by Gilmore when he had the game-winning throw to KJ Hamler wide-open.

As reliable as Sutton has been, Wilson needs to read the slant route before moving his gaze to the other side of the field. If he does that, Denver has another win, and Hamler throwing his helmet doesn’t get 'memed' all over social media.

While the quarterback is supposed to elevate a team’s floor, it's a hard ask when your head coach and offensive play-caller is in over his head. We saw yet another play on 4th-&-1 where Wilson was in the shotgun rather than under center because that worked out marvelously numerous times before for Hackett.

Hackett should have called a run up the middle with Wilson starting from under center for the easy first down, and given himself four more downs to punch in a touchdown inside the 5-yard line, rather than letting it ride on a pass play. No pun intended.

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The storm clouds hovering above Hackett’s head are growing ever darker, and soon, lightning will strike him down if he can’t turn his offense around.

Looking forward to Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, it is hard to be optimistic. With injuries mounting on both sides of the ball, the Bronco's future looks grim, and as good as the Denver defense has been, the absence of Ronald Darby, who tore his ACL, will weigh heavily on them.

Neither the Broncos or the Chargers have lived up to their respective offseason hype, and both head coaches' seats are heating up. Avoiding another prime-time loss could go a long way for the Bronco's morale.

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