Fangio Searching for Answers to the Broncos' Failing Running Game Down the Stretch

A look at the field conditions at Arrowhead Stadium this past Sunday could have told Vic Fangio that some good old fashioned grind-it-out football was in order. Especially as the Denver Broncos head coach was starting his rookie quarterback at one of the league’s loudest and most intimidating venues.

Committing to the running game seemed more than just common sense in the circumstances — it was a bare minimum in order to protect Drew Lock and keep the Chiefs superstar QB Patrick Mahomes perched safely next to his sideline heater.

Sadly for the Broncos and Fangio, any attempts to play complementary football went South early on, with a running game that bailed on their young QB by posting only 52 yards on a measly 15 total carries.

Such a graphic imbalance on offense combined with the defense's inability to get off the field can only lead to teams selling out on pressuring the opposing QB, who is in turn forced to pass. It was no surprise that it proved to be a long day for Lock and one that his head coach definitely wanted to avoid.

“The 40 [attempts] is the part you don’t like," Fangio said on Monday. "We brought that on ourselves with we didn’t stop them, we got behind and it became more we threw the ball a lot proportionately to the run.”

Issues along the Broncos offensive line have mostly derailed their season and the Chiefs found it easy to exploit the unit that was further weakened by the absence of right guard Ronald Leary with a concussion and right tackle Ja’Wuan James, who was ruled out with an ongoing knee problem.

Things were only compounded by poor communication and inept execution upfront on Sunday which ultimately doomed the running and passing games as the Broncos fell behind early and ended up battling the scoreboard.

“The score had something to do with it, but we didn’t run it well when we did run it,” Fangio said on Monday. “Again, we didn’t block them well enough and the Chiefs played it well.”

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Over recent weeks, the KC defense has rounded itself into a formidable unit under the leadership of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, but that can’t disguise how poor the Broncos' showing actually was in the lopsided defeat. Coach Fangio needs a quick solution if he is going to put his young QB in a better position to succeed while he is running the offense during the remaining two games of the season.

“Like anytime it’s not working, you take a look at the blocking, you take a look at the running and the play-calling – are you calling them at a good time? All those things play a part in it. We just haven’t run it well enough here the last few games for sure,” Fangio said.

Read what you will into the Fangio's broad overview of the Broncos stuttering and failing running game, but it goes deep into its core construction, execution and decision making. Fangio’s statements don’t exactly throw his OC Rich Scangarello or offensive line guru Mike Munchak under the bus but it is a loud call for them to get things fixed, and quickly.

With two home games left against the Detroit Lions and Oakland Raiders, the pressure is on the Broncos to right the ship and finish strong. The Broncos are lacking in the vital components for a quick fix, however, because of a lack of depth and talent upfront, which has only been compounded by the absence of injured fullback Andy Janovich.

All of that can’t be solved until next season at the earliest, so it’s not a stretch to expect the running game to struggle some more as the season limps to the finishing line.

Follow Keith on Twitter @KeithC_NFL and @MileHighHuddle.

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