Sean Payton did not take the points. Jarrett Stidham did not take a sack.
And because of these two decisions, the Broncos are not playing in the one game that defines a season.
Sunday, the Seattle Seahawks face the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LX.
It should have been Denver. The Broncos are better than the Patriots, but it makes no sense to play the victim, to campaign for president of the “what if Bo Nix…” fan club. He broke his ankle. And the Patriots broke the Broncos’ hearts.
It is water under the bridge. The shark has jumped. The Patriots won and moved on.
But what will unfold on Sunday will really make you Sea Sick.
Watching the Seahawks clobber the Patriots should let Broncos Country know what Denver needs and guide the Broncos’ offseason plans. Seattle is not just better than Denver — I would have predicted them to rout the Broncos without Nix — but faster. More aggressive. More balanced. And opportunistic (25 takeaways).
The gap is not daunting, but it exists, and will become obvious when Seattle receives soothing balm on its beak for not giving the ball to Marshawn Lynch at the goal line in Super Bowl XLIX 11 years ago.
The Broncos cannot run from the truth. Their offense is not good enough to win a Super Bowl. Even if Davis Webb calls plays — and with ESPN’s Adam Schefter saying the 31-year-old’s new salary exceeds $3 million, he should.
Denver needs diversity in its portfolio. Payton does not regret going for it on fourth-and-1 in the second quarter of the AFC Championship Game, eschewing a chip shot field goal. But he laments the play call — a sprint out pass by Stidham with only one viable target.
How did he land there? It was clear he did not trust the run game. Easy to understand. The Broncos didn’t have one.
Through 10 games, J.K. Dobbins averaged 5 yards per carry and ranked third in rushing with 772 yards. In the nine games without him, rookie starter R.J. Harvey averaged 3.3 yards per pop and rushed for 383 yards.
Does that sound at all like Seattle’s Kenneth Walker III? (Or, whispers, Patriots rookie TreVeyon Henderson, the player the Broncos should have drafted?).
Walker eclipsed 1,000 yards this season. He was Dobbins, but healthier. And he has gained more traction in the postseason, collecting 178 yards.
Walker is a bull at the point of attack and takes pressure off quarterback Sam Darnold. It’s not like the Seahawks are making anyone forget “The Greatest Show on Turf.” But their top receiver, NFL Offensive Player of the Year Jaxon Smith-Njigba, is several rungs on the ladder above Courtland Sutton. And Walker is an upgrade over any Broncos runner.
The Broncos need more juice.
Why? There is zero chance they go 12-3 in one-score games again next season. Miracle comebacks, like those against the Eagles and Giants, have expiration dates.
A boost can come from a receiver. A trade makes more sense than overpaying on the free agent market.
How about signing an explosive runner? Now, we are talking.
It could be Breece Hall, Travis Etienne Jr. or even Walker. But before making any decision, the Broncos need to figure out their identity in the run game. Are they going to use the wide zone? A power attack?
The offensive line continues to receive high grades on the ground, but it does not translate into the stats. It is time to figure out where the disconnect lies: in the scheme or the runners?
For Nix to reach his ceiling, he needs help around him. The window to win a title is open, but it will quickly close on fingers once Nix is no longer on his rookie contract.
But the addition of playmakers should not be reserved for the offense. Again, watch Seattle. The Broncos need their version of inside linebacker Ernest Jones IV. He impacts the game everywhere on the field.
Forget the 126 tackles. The Broncos have backers who tackle. It is the five interceptions. That is as many as the Broncos’ starting secondary — Pat Surtain II, Riley Moss, Ja’Quan McMillian, Brandon Jones, Talanoa Hufanga — combined for last season.
Of the current three inside linebackers — Alex Singleton, Justin Strnad, Dre Greenlaw — the Broncos must keep one, then head to the ATM and pursue Jacksonville free agent Devin Lloyd. He collected five picks last season as he earned All-Pro honors.
Spotrac projects a three-year, $60.4 million contract.
The draft is bursting with linebackers, but again, the championship window, remember? Urgency matters. The Broncos have not had a sideline-to-sideline backer since Danny Trevathan. Lloyd could finally solve that problem.
The Broncos had more humps than a pack of camels when Payton took over in 2023. They have gotten over all of them, save for one.
The franchise is now in Super Bo or bust mode.
The Broncos should be proud. Broncos Country should puff out its chest. But it cannot say the Broncos are better than the Seahawks.
Not yet.
They must follow Seattle’s lead and find their sea legs with a dynamic running back and linebacker.
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