3 Sad-But-True Takeaways From Broncos' Pathetic Loss to Steelers

The Denver Broncos turned in an embarrassing performance in their regular-season home debut.

Sep 15, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix (10) lays on the turf after a sack in the first quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Empower Field at Mile High. / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

The Denver Broncos have opened the season 0-2 for the second consecutive year, falling 13-6 to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday. Bo Nix's debut in front of the home crowd was another dud.

What did we learn from yet another disheartening showing from the Broncos fledgling offense? Here are my three key takeaways from Week 2.

Un-Complementary Football

Simply put, the Broncos are dealing with extremely thin margins in their search to win a football game and get the 2024 season off and running. Fundamentally, the Broncos can't score enough points, but we've seen that before.

Producing just six points tells its own depressing story, and it's an ongoing narrative the Broncos have been unable to change thus far. One of the major issues is the extent to which the Broncos' extremely highly-paid offensive line is underperforming. 

Once again, the Broncos' running game failed to make an impact. If Nix was going to be given a legitimate chance to compete especially against a good Steelers defense, he needs a complementary rushing attack.

Once again, penalties continue to hurt the Broncos' offensive tackles. Nix is being handicapped by what's going on in front of him right now, and if the Broncos continue to run the ball ineffectively, the losses will stack up at an alarming rate.

That's not to say that Nix didn't look every inch the rookie that he is. He did, and on several occasions. His feel for the long ball simply isn't where it needs to be, and opponents are perfectly aware of it. Opposing defensive coordinators are also deploying the basic strategy of rallying to the receiver in Denver's all-too-predictable short passing game, and it's working.

Keeping Nix's confidence level up will be a tough ask if his' receivers continue to look so passive. Only later in Sunday's game did the Broncos add some precious yards after the catch into the mix. Sooner or later, the Broncos' receiving corps has to start playing with its hair on fire from the first possession.

Exactly how Sean Payton attacks the growing list of issues will test his coaching competency to the max, and that might have to include him looking into simplifying some of the multiple personal sets he's opting to use. The desire to play complementary football is getting lost in translation, but Sunday showed that the Broncos need to start executing the basics before adding extra wrinkles of complexity to the offense.

Nix's third-quarter interception was very rookie-like, and Broncos' left tackle Garett Bolles saw his overall play revert to the bad old days. Finding what works with Nix is going to involve a fair amount of trial and error, but Payton hasn't presented a workable plan as of yet.

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A Far Too Predictable Game Plan

Nix would always have his inevitable ups and downs as a rookie, but Payton's conservative approach to start games allows opposing teams to get on the front foot and pin their ears back — to maximum effect. 

Through the Broncos' opening two losses, the short passing game has found no cohesive rhythm whatsoever. Only when chasing the game has the passing game opened up somewhat, but on Sunday, execution issues came in the form of costly dropped passes. Tight end Greg Dulcich dropped a costly pair himself.

Payton can be forgiven for trying not to be reckless with the ongoing development of his rookie quarterback, but by constantly playing catch-up, he's taking Nix out of the very game plan that he and his coaches have worked so hard to strategize.

Stretching the field is never going to happen if the Broncos' No. 1 wide receiver, Courtland Sutton, only garners four targets in a game, as he did on Sunday. During the week, Payton beseeched the Broncos to "help our guy" and rise to the occasion around Nix, but the head coach's pleadings delivered sporadic dividends as the team slipped to 0-2.

Patrick Surtain II Disappoints

We all know about his reputation and his huge contract, but PS2 really struggled vs. the Steelers. The -52 yards on Surtain's trio of penalties hit the Broncos like a gut punch, and to add insult to injury, he failed to take his side of the field away.

It could have been worse when Steelers star wideout George Pickens pulled off an outrageous catch deep downfield on Surtain, but it was mercifully nullified by a penalty on Pittsburgh. Whether Surtain is getting too caught up in his one-on-one assignments is open to debate, but his busy hands are drawing flags from the officials regardless.

It also went from the sublime to the ridiculous when Surtain appeared with the punt coverage unit and was flagged for a holding foul, but that could be held against the coaching staff. In the fourth quarter, Surtain finally started to get a better level on Pickens as the Broncos stiffened defensively, giving Nix and the offense more opportunities to climb back into the game.

Surtain has to start setting a much better tone, especially as a new team captain. For a high-profile player who just received a four-year, $96 million extension with $77.5M guaranteed, the Broncos can't afford to go two weeks without Surtain delivering a commensurate performance.

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