AFC West: Week 2 takeaways for Raiders, Broncos and Chargers
Denver Broncos 42, Dallas Cowboys 17
The Denver Broncos had a shaky run defense last season. The Raiders famously exploited this by running the same play 10 times in a row when they beat the Broncos in week 9. The Dallas Cowboys came into the game with one of the best rushing attacks in the NFL. The Cowboys offensive line contains Tyron Smith, Zack Martin, and Travis Frederick who have a combined 10 pro-bowl appearances. Ezekiel Elliott rushed for over 1,600 yards and 15 touchdowns last season as a rookie.
Elliott was going to serve a six-game suspension to start the season, but that suspension was blocked by a federal judge. He probably wishes he was suspended for this game. Elliott rushed for only 8 yards on 9 carries. This is by far the worst game of Elliott’s career. His previous low was 51 yards in his first ever NFL game. The Broncos hold the NFL’s best rushing defense of all the teams that have played 2 games through Sunday. The defense has only allowed 104 rushing yards and 2.9 yards per attempt so far this season. With one of the best pass defenses in the league, the Broncos will be very tough to move the ball against if they can continue to stuff the run.
Trevor Siemian turned in another solid performance in week 2. Siemian completed 22 out of 32 passes for 231 yards and 4 touchdowns. Siemian once again played the game manager role. Twenty out of his 32 pass attempts were within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. ). Receivers Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders were able to quickly separate from defenders off of the line of scrimmage all game long. Siemian didn’t even need to test the defense deep. He only had one pass attempt over 20 yards.
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The Cowboys secondary gave Siemian easy throws. This was largely due to the injury issues that they had. Veteran cornerback Orlando Scandrick missed the game with a broken hand. The Cowboys also lost cornerbacks Nolan Carroll and Chidobe Awuzie early on in the game. Rookie Jourdan Lewis was one of the only healthy cornerbacks remaining and his inexperience showed. Siemian should receive credit for taking what the defense gave him. However, exploiting a depleted secondary is something that should be expected of an NFL starting quarterback.
Siemian did show a couple flaws in the game. He ended up throwing one interception due to a miscommunication with his receiver. Siemian also took two sacks, one of which turned into a lost fumble. The other sack was due to Siemian holding the ball too long which forced a long field goal attempt. Despite these mistakes, Siemian continues to show growth as a young quarterback.
Quick Notes
The Broncos lost their number 3 receiver Bennie Fowler to concussion protocol during the game. First round rookie left tackle Garett Bolles also went down with a lower leg injury and was carted off of the field. Jamaal Charles received 10 touches against the Cowboys. He rushed for 46 yards on 9 carries for an average of over 5.0 yard per attempt. He also had a 6 yard reception.