The Denver Broncos’ impressive eight-game preseason winning streak under Head Coach Sean Payton officially evaporated tonight, getting absolutely throttled in a 33-13 defeat by the Green Bay Packers. It was a tough watch, man, especially after all that talk about their preseason dominance.
Bo Nix Brought the Heat in His Debut
Seriously, if you needed one reason to not completely rage-quit this game, it was seeing Bo Nix back on the field. Broncos Country had been waiting, and even in limited action, the guy looked GOOD. Right out of the gate, on their first offensive possession, he marched them downfield on a six play, 65-yard drive that just felt different. We’re talking a beautiful 35-yard strike to Jaylen Waddle to get into scoring position, then a few plays later, a flat-out gorgeous 21-yard touchdown throw by Nix to RJ Harvey. That play tied it up 7-7, and for a minute, you really felt that high-caliber signal caller vibe.
Nix was dishing the ball to a bunch of different targets, looking super poised in the pocket, and just smooth on the move. He only got two possessions before Jarrett Stidham took over early in the second quarter, but those two drives included that touchdown and then another that ended in a 53-yard field goal by Wil Lutz. Nix finished 6-of-9 for 79 yards and that one touchdown. Honestly, his presence was basically the only real positive in this whole frustrating mess.
Sloppy, Sloppy Football is NOT the Standard
Alright, let’s talk about everything else, because wow, this was some seriously sloppy preseason football. Too many penalties, too many flat-out mistakes. This is the time to work out the kinks, right? Not for the Broncos tonight. They were their own worst enemies out there. Everything after those first two drives by Nix felt problematic.
We saw them extend Packers drives with killer third down penalties, cough up turnovers, and drop passes on offense. Remember how penalties were a major headache last season for them? Well, it’s a huge concern seeing that trend just roll right into two preseason games, racking up ten flags tonight. And defensively? Man, those coverage shells looked vanilla, and the cornerbacks were playing off way too much for my liking. Yeah, it’s preseason, but a little more aggressive play wouldn’t hurt. Head Coach Sean Payton has gotta use this loss as a massive learning opportunity, focusing hard on the details, because this isn’t “the standard” they’ve been talking about.
This wasn’t the kind of performance Broncos fans wanted to see, especially with those penalty flags flying like crazy again. Coach Payton’s got his work cut out for him to get this squad locked in. Let’s see if they can clean up this mess before the real games start, because right now, that 33-13 score feels like a loud wake-up call for everyone not named Bo Nix.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Mile High Report.
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