NEW ORLEANS — Before the Denver Broncos left for their trip to New Orleans, head coach Sean Payton reminded his team of a simple objective: “We’re in the business of collecting wins.”
The Broncos did that Thursday, collecting their fourth of the season, 33-10. And they did it with a familiar formula — defense, turnover-free play from rookie quarterback Bo Nix and just enough field goal drives to get the job done — against a New Orleans Saints team that had 17 players on the injury report this week.
The Broncos (4-3) also leaned into their run game, topping 200 yards rushing for good measure. It is their best record after seven games since they were 5-2 in 2016. Next up: They will welcome Carolina at home Oct. 27.
Troubling trend: The Broncos will take a 4-3 record, but the slow starts continue. Other than a rare early outburst in Tampa in Week 3, the Broncos offense has not stressed defenses early. In their five games, excluding Tampa, before Thursday night, the Broncos had 20 punts, Nix had thrown two interceptions, they lost two fumbles and they had 15 three-and-outs in 30 first-half possessions. Against an injury-ravaged Saints defense, the Broncos opened with a six-play possession, including two bad Nix misses and a punt before putting together two field-goal drives in their next two possessions.
QB breakdown: The numbers have looked fine, but Nix’s mobility continues to be his biggest asset. He recorded his second consecutive game of at least 61 yards rushing against the Saints. Nix finished 13-of-21 passing for 134 yards in the first half, when things were in the balance, to go with no sacks and no turnovers. But the 10,000-foot view is really what might have been, even beyond his 75 yards rushing. Nix missed opportunities at the night’s biggest plays early in the game because of his inconsistent footwork.
Silver lining: After dealing with the initial shock of cornerback Pat Surtain II’s concussion on the first defensive snap of the game last week, Denver has shown its defense still has some teeth. Surtain will be missed in any game he doesn’t play, but the Broncos surrendered just 105 yards in the second half to the Chargers after they settled in. On Thursday, they held the Saints under 180 yards heading into the fourth quarter where they added a defensive touchdown from linebacker Cody Barton. They also pressured Saints QB Spencer Rattler throughout. — Jeff Legwold
Next game: vs. Panthers (4:25 p.m. ET, Oct. 27)
Help isn’t coming for the Saints.
Members of the 2009 Super Bowl team were in the building to watch former quarterback Drew Brees get inducted into the Saints Hall of Fame at halftime. A large group of injured players, including quarterback Derek Carr, tight end Taysom Hill and offensive linemen Erik McCoy and Cesar Ruiz, watched from the sideline. Three more players (Marshon Lattimore, Paulson Adebo and Nick Saldiveri) were ruled out of the game with injuries.
But the health of the Saints is just one of the problems for a team that has no quick fix in sight. The Saints were blown out for the second week in a row and scored only 10 points against the Broncos and former coach Payton.
The Saints (2-5) have now lost five in a row and have been outscored 60-10 in the past six quarters. They’ll face the Los Angeles Chargers next week after their mini-bye.
Troubling trend: The defensive effort. The Saints defense was once the backbone of this team, but it has been getting worse by the week and entered this contest last in total defense. Former All-Pro defensive back Richard Sherman didn’t mince words at halftime when he discussed the overall effort on Prime Video: “They don’t want to tackle. They don’t want to make plays. These are good players. … I don’t understand this. It seems like they want to get their coach fired.”
Describe the game in two words: Rock bottom. The offense couldn’t score, the defense looked almost as bad as last week and the Superdome was essentially empty by the fourth quarter of another lackluster performance.
QB breakdown: It was another tough game for Rattler, who was missing the Saints’ top two receivers, several offensive linemen and Hill. Rattler had some big rookie errors, including a sack/fumble returned for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, a sack/fumble in the first quarter and another fumble that was bailed out by a defensive penalty. He was able to make some plays with his legs, but ultimately finished 25-of-35 for 172 yards and no touchdowns before Jake Haener finished the game. — Katherine Terrell
Next game: vs. Chargers (4:05 p.m. ET, Oct. 27)
