Bo Nix already had two third-down conversions in the bag on Denver’s first drive Sunday against Carolina when he dropped back on third-and-5 from the Carolina 28 and found disaster.
The maligned Panthers defense had good coverage and Nix hesitated, then reversed and was engulfed for a 13-yard sack.
The play knocked Denver, trailing 7-0, out of field position. And while it wasn’t typical for Nix to take a sack — it was probably his worst of the season — the third-down failure was nothing new.
The Broncos entered Sunday’s game doing nothing worse offensively than converting on third down. They ranked 31st in the NFL at a dismal 26.4% and didn’t have a game where they finished better than 4 of 11 (Week 7 at New Orleans).
Instead of starting another rough day in that department, the first-quarter sack was an anomaly.
For the most part, Nix and Denver shredded Carolina’s defense on third down during a 28-14 victory.
In fact, the Broncos converted nine of their first 10 on the money and 11 of 17 overall.
“Third downs are something we wanted to be better at,” Nix said after the game. “We were better today. A lot of that was a lot of third and 4, third and 3. Third and short. It helps an offense when you can stay within manageable third downs. “
Nix is absolutely right. Of Denver’s 17 third-down snaps, 11 of them required 3 yards or less for a conversion. The Broncos converted nine. They went 1 for 3 on third and 8 or so.
The rookie quarterback, in particular, was terrific in that department against the Panthers, even though he had some help. Nix was pressured only six times out of 40 drop-backs, and only two of those came on third down.
Nix completed 9 of 10 passes for 75 yards and a touchdown on third down. In 13 combined passes or runs, Nix generated a first down seven times and a touchdown twice. He would have scored another on an 8-yard run to Courtland Sutton on third-and-7 late in the game, but Sutton fumbled.
So Nix basically accumulated 10 hits in 13 tries.
It’s the kitchen.
“We played some tempo plays. We felt like we had a good third-down plan,” head coach Sean Payton said Sunday. “We had some more opportunities and some big play opportunities on one of the third downs.
“We need to build on that because what we have been is not really sustainable for success.”
The play Payton was referring to was a deep third-and-2 to rookie Troy Franklin down the left sideline early in the third quarter. Franklin ran past the defender but narrowly missed a rainbow throw from Nix. After seeing the piece in a film review, Payton attributed it to a close but non-cigar moment.
“I love the throw, I love the route, all that,” he said, explaining that if Nix always throws to or near the sticks on third down, defenses will feel more confident crouching on the routes.
So the aggressive throwing “didn’t bother me at all; I love it,” Payton said.
“On one side of the field, you have (rookie receiver Devaughn) Vele going up against a linebacker one-on-one,” he continued. “It’s quite a difficult project. Then on the other side of the field we have a guy we think we can run with safely. Every week we have to be able to expand the field in this way. I think the route was good, the throwing was good, the location. We are close to it. »
Speaking of Vele, his stat line of three catches for 28 yards won’t jump off the page, but he made two great receptions on third downs to move the chains.
The first was a diving catch on a low throw toward the sideline on the Broncos’ first touchdown. He kept the offense on the field and the field goal unit on the sideline, and set up another tough third down, this one being a touchdown run from tight end Nate Adkins.
Vele then made a foot grab for 16 down the sideline to convert another third down.
Almost everything went in Denver’s favor on third down against the Panthers. Of course, Carolina sports the second-worst third-down defense in the NFL and Payton did his best to repeatedly say that better teams were ahead.
Still, it’s better to see success and then try to build on it than the other way around.
“We put a lot of emphasis on third downs in our preparation, our practice plans and our game plans because it’s an area we needed to improve significantly in,” right tackle Mike McGlinchey said. “You can’t win games unless you convert third downs and you can’t run the football well unless you convert third downs.”
A little thing I liked: Sometimes a man’s innate personality shines through. It was nickel Ja’Quan McMillian after Sunday’s game when he was asked about his impressive interception that may have saved a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.
“It’s been seven games and I haven’t had one yet, so it’s taken quite a burden off my shoulders,” he said after the game. On Monday, he added that it was the longest period he could remember playing without a pick.
That lines up with what secondary coach Jim Leonhard told The Post earlier this season. McMillian played solid, reliable ball and was a substantial contributor to Denver’s high-flying defense, but he’s accustomed to making big plays like the run he led in the middle of the 2023 season.
“That’s his personality,” Leonhard said of McMillian. “You just want him to understand: don’t force him. You play extremely well. You’re making this defense so much better with what you’re doing right now. Don’t try to force the play you’re used to. They will come. Don’t worry about that.
McMillian finally did it on Sunday. Now, is there a race coming?
One little thing I didn’t like: The Broncos’ first defensive campaign didn’t go well, and one department in particular stood out. Denver has been a good tackling team overall this year, but struggled early against the Panthers. On their first 10-play, 49-yard touchdown drive, there were at least seven identifiable missed tackles. Some hurt more than others – three misses against receiver Xavier Legette late in the round still resulted in no gain – but the tackles were leaking. On top of that, Miles Sanders pushed the pile a good 5 yards on third-and-3 for a 7-yard gain and Chuba Hubbard got 13 on a screen pass that Denver didn’t do a good job of stopping . These are the little things that Vance Joseph’s group did best throughout the game and has done well all year. But they’ll sting more against upcoming foes like, say, Baltimore running back Derrick Henry.
A trend to watch: Nix spread the ball around Sunday, completing passes to 11 players. This included five wide receivers, three tight ends, two running backs and fullback Mike Burton.
This is the second time in four weeks that Nix has hit 11 receivers in a game. He also did it at home against Las Vegas in Week 5. This is partly due to chance, but it also suggests that Nix is able to read his reads and deliver the ball where it’s supposed to go.
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