Sunday's 19-17 loss at the hands of the Houston Texans in Denver felt like the end of the road for the 2018 Broncos and most likely their head coach. The Broncos blew a game that they should have won and fell to 3-6, which means they are not making the playoffs this year unless they embark on an amazing run. There were different parts of the game that contributed to the loss, but here are my thoughts and observations on the loss....
1) Demaryius Thomas returned to Denver a week after being traded to the Texans and he had 3 catches for 61 yards right off the bat. It was kind of symbolic that he was able to do that right away, and it was fitting that he got involved early in the game against the Broncos.
2) This game was lost in two sequences. The first one came near the end of the first half. The Broncos had the ball and faced a 4th and 9 from the Houston 44 with 18 seconds left and instead of punting, Vance Joseph had Brandon McManus attempt a 62 yard field goal. Naturally, McManus missed it, and the Texans completed two passes down to the Denver 28 which set up a 44 yard field goal right before the half ended. VJ decided to ice the kicker, who missed the first attempt, but then made the second one, and the Texans led 16-10 going into halftime. VJ should have never went for the long field goal there-especially with 18 seconds left. If there was 3 seconds left, then fine, give it a shot, but not with enough time to give the Texans the ball bake and chance to score. That was a terrible job by Joseph and it would play a factor later on.
3) Vance Joseph then officially cost the Broncos the game with his decision making at the end. The Broncos converted two 4th down plays, one on a great throw by Case Keenun to Emmanuel Sanders on a 4th and 8, and now they had the ball at the Houston 37 with 43 seconds left. After a 5 yard pass to Jeff Heuerman, the Broncos still had a timeout or the option to spike the ball. Instead they huddled up, and decided to run the ball up the middle with Philip Lindsay and he actually lost a yard. They then called a timeout with a few seconds left and settled for a 51 yard field goal by McManus. Naturally, McManus missed the kicked wide right, and the Broncos lost 19-17. Why not try to get closer? Why not take a deep shot on the sideline? Why just settle for a 51 yarder? Once again, it was just a horrific display of coaching and game management by VJ.
4) It is obvious that Vance Joseph is in over his head as a NFL head coach, and he is not intellectual enough to handle this position. His decisions blew this game on Sunday and it cost the Broncos this season. He doesn't deserve to be back next year, and he should be fired at the end of the season. This was the final nail in the coffin for VJ.
5) For the second straight year, the Broncos are 3-6 and their season is over by early November. This team is not going anywhere this year, and there is no need to fire VJ now, just do it at the end of the year. It is not like a coaching change is going to spark the team and get them on a run. That never works in the NFL. The Broncos need to continue to play some young guys the rest of the year, and start to look at drafting a QB early in the draft next year and groom that guy behind Case Keenum for one year. The VJ era will thankfully be over after Week 17, and now is the time to start thinking about 2019.
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