The Kansas City Chiefs (6-2) beat the Denver Broncos (3-4) in a mistake festival. In the Arrowhead there were already five turnovers at halftime. Led by Alex Smith, the Chiefs were able to regain victory after two crashes in series. The Broncos, on the other hand, seem to have a quarterback problem.
Defeats in the last two weeks have been reflected in the Chiefs’ defensive problems. The division rival might have come at the right time. At half time, the opponent could be held at 108 yards and the ball caught three times.
Of course, this was done with the generous help of the Broncos-Offense. It started with the bad protection for Trevor Siemian (19/36,198 YDS, TD, 3 INT), went on about bad decisions of the quarterback and ended with a fumble of the former chief running back Jamaal Charles. This was carried into the final zone by strong Marcus Peters for the first score.
Denvers Defense acted very strongly regardless of the score. Through strong coverage as well as the dangerous pass rush, the chief’s offense could be kept in check and often quickly left the field. The Broncos came into promising scoring situations in the second half of the season with many good rushes. So it was also a drive with many runs, which brought back into the game from Devontae Booker, Denver.
The comeback attempt failed, however, because of the major problems in the Passing Department. Both teams ran enormously in the second half. The Chiefs because of their leadership position. The Broncos, because wide passes were simply no means of transport. Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker put the game on ice with tremendously valuable kicks in the last quarter.
Kansas City Chiefs (6-2) – Denver Broncos (3-4)29:19 (14:0,3:3,3:10,9:6) BOXSCORE
Alex Smith (Kansas City Chiefs):
“Two very strong teams, division rivals. There was a lot at stake. They have one of the best defenses in the league. We knew it was going to be a tough night. I think we played good football as a team. We may have left a little bit behind, but I’ll take the victory.”
Vance Joseph (Head Coach, Denver Broncos):
“The mistakes are not acceptable. If we want to win, we need to get a handle on this. I’m going to look at today’s tapes and make decisions. Our defense played very well. The O-Line has blocked well. We ran the ball for 177 yards. But in the end, it all comes down to the five turnovers.”
After the first half, the Broncos were lucky enough to be within striking distance. Unnecessary turnovers of the Chiefs deep in the opponent’s half prevented a clearer result at break time. The second half, however, showed a different face for the Broncos Open. The Chiefs couldn’t stop the running game. Denver marched down the field. At 13:23 from the Broncos’ point of view, Denver had the chance to secure a one-posession game with a third score in the third drive of the second half. Two Anderson run attempts and two Siemian-Incompletions ended the series but at the axis. The Chiefs came to another field goal.
Denvers Pass-Protection should look a bit better in the match against Kansas City after Menelik Watson’s return. However, the matchup was a very difficult one. Watson had a lot of problems with Justin Houston and let the linebacker pass through several times. Houston finished his working day with six tackles, two sacks, two tackles for space loss and three quarterback hits. The Broncos later manoeuvred their offense over the course through the centre and the left side.
What a day for Peters. The Chiefs-Cornerback started his working day with a remarkable Forced Fumble against his former team mate Jamaal Charles. Peters tore the ball out of the running back with enormous willpower, collected it and ran over 45 yards to the end zone. Shortly afterwards, Siemian presented him with a gift for Peter’s second personal turnover. Peters defended the left side of the page and made his presence noticeable. Demaryius Thomas was almost on the opposite side from the second half.
Disaster presentation of the Broncos quarterback. Siemian suffered from weak protection, which did not improve despite the return of Menelik Watson. From inaccurate passes to bad decisions, Siemian offered everything he could to get him out of the game at halftime. Vance Joseph trusted him with two exceptions despite the five-of-14-for-56-yards performance. In the second half, Siemian improved thanks to a working running game and short pass options. The third interception, however, was another catastrophic decision by Siemian. The Broncos will play next against the 7-1 Eagles and the 6-2 Patriots. Siemian’s time is running out slowly and the challenges are not getting any easier.