Were the Real Broncos Revealed in Blowout Loss to Lions?

Even though the Denver Broncos had won six of their last seven games, many fans expected a loss against the Detroit Lions on December 16. After all, the game was in the Motor City, where attendees starved of national attention for ages were guaranteed to be hyped beyond belief, and the resurgent, division-leading Lions had something to prove after a desultory defeat to the woeful Chicago Bears the previous weekend.

Still, the Lions' 42-17 dominance of Denver was an absolutely brutal reality check.

Detroit didn't just beat the Broncos. The squad, led on the field by quarterback Jared Goff and on the sidelines by Dan Campbell, a former mentee of Denver head coach Sean Payton who specializes in biting kneecaps, embarrassed Russell Wilson and company in every way possible. Look no further than Campbell's late-game decision to go for a touchdown rather than kick a field goal even though his charges had built up an unassailable eighteen-point lead — a move that Payton, who loves to grind his heel into an opponent's groin whenever possible, more than deserved.

Granted, Payton's play-calling wasn't nearly as wrongheaded as it had been during Denver's clunker versus the Houston Texans, when he abandoned the run-heavy, grind-it-out blueprint that had been working for Russ and company in favor of a bombs-away approach for which the offense simply isn't built. This game plan was filled with handoffs to Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin and Samaje Perine, as well as quick passes designed to get the ball out of Wilson's mitt before he could be turned into roadkill — and an early forty-yard completion to the appropriately maligned Jerry Jeudy suggested that the mix would work. Too bad Wilson promptly fumbled (something he does far too often), squelching a custom-made scoring opportunity.

The Lions didn't capitalize on that gift, but by the time the second quarter rolled around, they were ready to humble. For pretty much the rest of the contest, Goff was allowed more than enough time to dissect the supposedly vaunted Denver secondary; the spectacular Aman-Ra St. Brown wound up with 112 receiving yards and a touchdown, and Sam LaPorta, a huge tight end (the Broncos' kryptonite), notched three TDs of his own. And on the ground, Detroit backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery regularly went untouched while sprinting over the scrimmage line. Gibbs wound up with 100 yards on just eleven attempts, and Montgomery added another 85 — two more than the entire Denver contingent combined.

With the running attack stymied, Wilson had to throw, and he did so effectively in the second half. Problem was, the game was already over by then, owing to the Denver D's inability to so much as slow down the Detroit juggernaut even after spotting them 21 points.

In short, the Broncos looked almost as outclassed as they did when giving up a mind-blowing seventy spot to the Miami Dolphins — the subtext of Payton's otherwise inexplicable explosion at Wilson after Denver's doom had already been sealed.

Denver's season isn't over. The final three contests are against eminently vulnerable foes: the New England Patriots, who are so terrible they'll probably get Super Bowl record-setter Bill Belichick fired, followed by the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders, both of which will be helmed by backup QBs and have already seen their head coaches sacked. The Broncos could still miss the playoffs even if they triple their pleasure, but accumulating ten wins after starting the year 1-5 would count as a genuine triumph.

Still, the most passionate Broncos loyalists using the Service Formerly Known as Twitter weren't ready to contextualize anything — not yet, anyhow. See what we mean below:

Number 20:

Vance Joseph's defense got not only their ass handed to them but their whole pathetic worthless defensive scheme thrown back in their face.
Now is the time to fire this loser!!!
And send worthless Wilson with him...
Denver is a joke, HC is still overrated.

— No nonsence (@nsbb2011) December 17, 2023

Number 19:

Reality check for the Broncos tonight. They must get better in the defensive front 7. Jewel and Singleton are slow and the DL is weak

— GGL (@JasonGLiddy) December 17, 2023

Number 18:

What the fuck happened @Broncos

— Michael (@Crisorio4) December 17, 2023

Number 17:

I was led to believe by some that this broncos defense was hard to score on

— Mike (@82mge) December 17, 2023

Number 16:

The Broncos didn't show up tonight. Vance Joseph's D is getting exposed. Sean Payton has always been a little overrated in my opinion. Russell Wilson has lost two steps. Lions whipping them in all three phases.

— Michael Bassett (@TheNo1OGGolfer) December 17, 2023

Number 15:

DUMB AF !!!! WEAK DUMB BUM ASS FUCKIN BRONCOS !

— i suck toes from time to time 6-7 (@RogGoHome) December 17, 2023

Number 14:

Jesus Christ.
Broncos defense decided to fuck up on a huge game. SMH wtf

— мσ.иαѕту. (@MistaMo_Nasty) December 17, 2023

Number 13:

@Broncos sorry fucks couldn’t stop a 1st graders nose bleed if they tried

— Fjc1989 (@Fjc_1989) December 17, 2023

Number 12:

Respect to Russ @DangeRussWilson for professionalism. No matter what the outcome of the season, this season wasn't entirely your fault... Defense last night was awful, wrong timing to be bad... Detroit played like a superbowl team! Fans are contributors to the loss.

— Broncos 4ever (@Broncos4ever7) December 17, 2023

Number 11:

Yeah the Broncos Defense thought they were playing on Sunday apparently. Not that the offense did much better.

— Mike Powers (@MikePow91396279) December 17, 2023

Number 10:

I know Broncos Defense didn’t have their best game but they were on the field 80% of the game on the road!!!! All eyes on your quarter of a billion qb here

— Emerson Wood (@emersonswood) December 17, 2023

Number 9:

Broncos Defense Tonight:

448 Yards Allowed
0 Takeaway
42 Points Allowed

EVERYONE CAN FLY ZONE pic.twitter.com/upjHZ3bFjk

— NFL Hater Watch (@NFLhaterwatch) December 17, 2023

Number 8:

putting the blame on Russ..

— Broncos 4ever (@Broncos4ever7) December 17, 2023

Number 7:

So much hate on Russ, he needs a good OL and support on defense and ST, we will win the 3 last games and we will see what comes after

— jomaramar (@jomaramar2) December 17, 2023

Number 6:

Broncos Country,

Did the defense hide?

— dschu (@dschu810) December 17, 2023

Number 5:

welcome to broncos country where we blame the QB for stuff that isn’t even close to remotely his fault

— it’s over (@DominosTakes) December 17, 2023

Number 4:

Fake fan, goodnight, hope the broncos stick with russ for his entire contract, just to show you it’s not his fault. You have a good night being a fake fan tho

— Carter Ellerton (@cme12373) December 17, 2023

Number 3:

Tbh I blame everything. We looked like a very uncoached, bad offense, terrible defense and the officiating definitely didnt help. Just did not come to play and it showed in every aspect

— Dylangood22 (@dylangood222) December 17, 2023

Number 2:

I’m genuinely sick of hearing what this fanbase has to say after losses. It’s always box-score gurus finding somebody to blame, mainly Russ. We started 1-5, now we’re 7-7, and they’re calling for the heads of people who have helped turn this team around. Do better Broncos Country

— sports (@stateofthecards) December 17, 2023

Number 1:

I looked at the schedule and I expected an undefeated season tbh. Having a bonfire with my gear as we speak. Fuck this team. I have no reason to live. https://t.co/V2Kczlx4YU

— go broncos tbh (@GoBroncosTBH) December 17, 2023