Analysis from the Broncos’ 22-16 loss to the Chiefs on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium.
Game Balls
Melvin Gordon: Gordon went over the century mark in the first half while helping the Broncos establish the run and keep the ball out of the hands of Patrick Mahomes. He finished with 131 yards on 15 carries with a long of 67. It was Gordon’s best game in a Denver uniform and the third-most yards in a game in his career.
Tim Patrick: The third-year wideout continues to prove his worth for next season, even after Courtland Sutton returns from a knee injury. Patrick posted his first career multi-touchdown game as he had scoring grabs of 5 and 10 yards, and finished with 4 catches for 44 yards. His second touchdown was an impressive catch on a fade.
Red zone defense: Denver’s defense ranked fourth in red zone defense at 52.5% heading into the game, and it played above that standard. Kansas City had four trips to the red zone and had to settle for a field goal each time, including one stop that came after the Chiefs got to the one-yard line and another after they got to the five-yard line.
Gassers
Covering Kelce: The Chiefs’ All-Pro tight end was virtually unguardable, whether by zone coverage or man-to-man. Among others, Josey Jewell, A.J. Bouye, Alexander Johnson and Alijah Holder all took turns trying to cover Kelce one-on-one, and all were toasted in some form or fashion as Kelce had eight catches for 136 yards.
Vic Fangio: When it came down to crunch time and the Broncos had played well enough to make it a game in the fourth quarter, Denver’s coach played it too conservatively. Down 19-16, the Broncos faced 4th-and-3 at their 49-yard line with 6:13 to play. Fangio elected to punt, and the Broncos didn’t get the ball back until 1:04 to play, needing a TD.
Jerry Jeudy: Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur surely deserves some of the blame for this, but how does Denver’s speedy, dynamic rookie wideout only finish with one catch for five yards? Jeudy (who dealt with an ankle injury this past week) was targeted four times overall.
