3 Takeaways From Broncos' Disheartening 26-20 Loss to Seahawks

The Bo Nix era began with a whimper. What did we learn?

Sep 8, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) passes against the Seattle Seahawks during the first quarter at Lumen Field. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

For the second time in three seasons, the Seattle Seahawks handed the Denver Broncos their first loss to start the regular season, emerging victorious on Sunday, 26-20. The first loss of the Bo Nix era continues a streak of Seahawks dominance, as the Broncos haven’t earned a victory in Seattle since 2002.

Denver’s defense dominated the first half of action, flustering quarterback Geno Smith and the Seahawks offense with dynamic pass rushes and defensive line penetration that earned the Broncos four points on two safeties. But what looked to be a long day for the raucous crowd of Seahawks faithful quickly turned due to a Broncos anemic offense that scored just one touchdown late in the fourth quarter. 

I picked the Broncos to upset the Seahawks (27-24) in a close game against a hostile fan base on the road. But the most frustrating aspect of this loss isn’t the fact that I was wrong in my prediction or that the Broncos started the year with another loss.

Instead, it's that Broncos Country is forced to lament what should’ve been a very winnable game for Sean Payton’s squad. 

With that said, let’s rip off the band-aid and get to three sad but true takeaways from the Broncos’ first loss. 

Arrested Bo-Mentum

The first chapter in the Nix-Payton novel begins with an embarrassing road loss. Denver’s dynamic duo was quickly humbled by Seahawks first-year head coach Mike Macdonald’s smothering defense, which put the Broncos on notice, illustrating the difference between preseason and regular season NFL action. 

As a rookie team captain, Nix looked largely out of place for most of the game as he finished the contest 26-of-42 for 138 yards and two interceptions, with 35 yards on the ground and a rushing touchdown. He faced a barrage of pressure, taking two sacks, enduring multiple hits, and looking bothered and frustrated.

The Broncos offense continually stalled despite prime field position and was outmatched in virtually every statistical category, including total net yards, first downs, third-down efficiency, and penalties. 

Payton did his rookie QB1 no favors in this game. The veteran play-caller abandoned his ineffective rushing attack early with his three-headed stable of Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin, and Audric Estime. Denver finished the game with 99 yards rushing on 25 attempts, but those stats were padded by Nix’s five rushes and a drive that resulted in his four-yard scoring scramble in the fourth quarter.

The most alarming aspect of Denver’s disappointing offense was that it felt eerily similar to the 2023 season, where Payton would panic and strictly throw the football. By waving the white flag on the most critical principle of Payton’s offense, which is running the football, opposing defenders will continue to tee off on the Broncos' rookie QB, putting Nix in the unsettling position of playing hero ball. 

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Dominant Defense Fizzles Late

Linebacker Alex Singleton picked off Geno Smith on Seattle's opening drive. Usually, when a road team’s defense starts the game with a series of QB pressures that force an interception, it’s a sign of good things to come. That should be doubly true when the Broncos defense outscores its own offense with a pair of safeties in the first half against a Seahawks offense that was reeling under Smith. 

Instead, Vance Joseph’s defense left fans with more questions than answers. The box score will show two sacks logged on Smith, both by outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper, who played extremely well off the edge. The Broncos interior D-line — John Franklin-Myers, Zach Allen, and Malcolm Roach — lived in Seattle's backfield during the first two quarters, posting a productive stat line. 

But as fast as Denver’s pass rushers pummeled Seattle in the first half, they crumbled after halftime, and succumbed to one of Joseph’s biggest flaws: a porous and pathetic run defense. Joseph’s defense allowed Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III to average 5.2 yards per carry at will as their rushing attack gashed Denver’s defense to the tune of 33 attempts for 146 yards and two touchdowns. 

Additionally, Smith found a rhythm by dissecting Denver's secondary with 171 passing yards, including a touchdown to running back Zach Charbonnet that allowed Seattle to dismantle and take over the game coming out of Denver’s 13-9 lead at halftime. 

Team apologists may argue that Joseph’s defense held its own by limiting the Seahawks' formidable wideouts DK Metcalf and Tyler Locket to nine combined catches for 106 yards. However, statistics don’t count in a game of wins and losses where 'VJ' has again proven that he struggles to make in-game adjustments after finding success early.

Broncos Playmakers M.I.A.

When Payton was asked about the Broncos’ first half of offense coming out of halftime, he explained from the sideline that Nix couldn’t do it all by himself and that he needed some help. That help would never come, as the rookie QB was forced to singlehandedly lead a seven-play, 54-yard drive that resulted in his first NFL touchdown on the ground.

Seventh-round rookie wideout Devaughn Vele would finish as Nix’s leading receiver in receptions, with eight catches for 39 yards(!), while Josh Reynolds led the team in 45 yards and a long of 25 yards. Nix's fellow team captain Courtland Sutton was limited to just four catches for 38 yards, while the Broncos' tight ends were largely ineffective through the air, with Greg Dulcich only logging two catches for a measly 12 yards.

When Denver's receivers would catch a pass from Nix, they would immediately be smothered by Seahawks defenders, resulting in negative yards or hardly any yards after contact, although the rookie signal-caller did miss several key throws in this game.

Instead of capitalizing on Williams and Estime's productive rushing early in the first few possessions, the diminutive McLaughlin was asked to be the bell cow and was continually bullied at the line of scrimmage. Payton’s offensive mismanagement of his playmaking resources spelled disaster for Nix for most of the game. 

None of this even mentions that Denver’s offense will likely be ice skating uphill following the injury of starting left tackle Garett Bolles, who exited the game with a lower leg injury that is presumed to be an ankle. 

If the Broncos offense hopes to improve in moving the chains and scoring points this season, Payton will need to remove his playmakers from the milk cartons and get to work quickly. 

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