The one glaring stat that stood out in the Broncos' loss to the Bills
The Denver Broncos lost pretty badly in their second preseason game of the year against the Buffalo Bills on Saturday. When I say lost badly, I mean the game was never close. I guess that's what happens when one team plays their starters and the other team doesn't play any starters. The Broncos did have […]
The Denver Broncos lost pretty badly in their second preseason game of the year against the Buffalo Bills on Saturday. When I say lost badly, I mean the game was never close. I guess that's what happens when one team plays their starters and the other team doesn't play any starters.
The Broncos did have some good moments in this game, but the bad definitely stands out more than the good. The defense obviously wasn't great, but the offense wasn't good, either.
And the offense can certainly take a large part of the blame for the loss.
This glaring stat is a big reason for the Broncos' loss
On Saturday, the Broncos displayed great ball movement through the air, as they finished with 242 passing yards. However, the run game was putrid. They finished with 32 rushing yards on 17 attempts, averaging 1.9 yards per rush.
That isn't the reason they lost the game, though. It's a big reason, but there is one that is bigger.
If you look at the first down numbers for both teams, there is a glaring discrepancy. The Buffalo Bills finished with 32 first downs to the Broncos 18. If you take out first downs they were awarded from penalties, the Broncos only had 15.
12 of those first downs were by way of passing, and three of the running game.
But what's key with this is the fact the Broncos had just seven first downs compared to 20 from the Bills in the first half. The Broncos couldn't get anything going in the first 30 minutes, which was a major reason why the Bills were able to construct a 28-6 lead.
The Broncos were 5-of-12 on third down conversion opportunities, which contributed to the low amount. That's something that will definitely need to change. I get it's the preseason, so some of those opportunities will go the right way with the starters, but at the same time, it's about play calling during those opportunities as well.
The Broncos have to get better at converting, or setting themselves up to have a better opportunity to extend the drive. Hopefully, it's better with the first team, but it's certainly not with the backups. I'm excited to see what that may look like come Week 1.
Featured Image Via Shawn Dowd / USA TODAY NETWORK
