Fangio accepts blame for 40-yard touchdown pass Broncos allowed to Packers in first quarter

If you were wondering why Green Bay Packers' wideout Marquez Valdes-Scantling was streaking wide open over the top in the first quarter of the Denver Broncos' Week 3 loss at Lambeau Field, Vic Fangio brought it into focus following the game.

The 40-yard strike from Aaron Rodgers came with 12:22 left in the first quarter. On a 2nd-&-6, Rodgers got the Broncos to jump with a hard-count and knowing it was a 'free play', took a shot deep to Valdes-Scantling.

It just so happened that Rodgers caught Coach Fangio sleeping.

“Anytime he [Rodgers] gets you offsides," Fangio said from the podium after the game, "like we told them all week, he’s going to throw it deep and he did. And we weren’t in a good call there, so you can blame that one on me.”

What a start! @AaronRodgers12 hits @MVS__11 for the 40-yard TD!#DENvsGB | #GoPackGo https://t.co/Eb9kZ7Sp5C
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 22, 2019

The play came with defensive back Kareem Jackson playing the nickel, with zero help over the top. Coach Fangio clearly wasn't expecting a deep shot here, and the Broncos' secondary appeared to be temporarily frozen by the flag getting thrown up in the air, unsure if it was a false start or an offsides penalty.

That fraction-of-a-second of indecision was all it took for Valdes-Scantling to turn on the jets and blow by Jackson. But it's a good reminder, and an unfortunate one, too, that you play until you hear the whistle.

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As Fangio intimated, Rodgers knew exactly where he was going with that ball, knowing he had baited the defensive line into jumping offsides. With no help over the top, Jackson was beaten and from there, it was a simple pitch-and-catch for a touchdown.

It wasn't all bad from the Broncos' defense, even though they were unable to sack the QB or force a turnover for the third-straight game. Denver held Green Bay to a measly 22.2% conversion rate on third down (2-of-9) and limited the Packers to just 77 yards on the ground.

Since their Week 1 loss to Oakland, the Broncos have only allowed five third-down conversions to their last two opponents combined. That's a silver lining.

It's not going to change the 0-3 mark in the standings. And it might be cold comfort to fans on the brink of a nervous breakdown.

But the Broncos are showing progress. The problem is, one phase of the team will make improvements over the last week's performance, only to see another phase regress.

Vic Fangio is the little Dutch boy with his finger in the dike. Every time he thinks he's plugged one hole, another one springs open, leaking ugly, losing football onto the grid-iron.

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.

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