BALTIMORE (AP) — The Denver Broncos soared into second place in the AFC West behind a robust defense, a surprisingly effective rookie quarterback and the ability to win on the road.
None of those qualities were evident Sunday in a humbling 41-10 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
After winning five of six to establish itself as a potential playoff contender, Denver (5-4) couldn't compete with a team that reached the AFC title game last season and features two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson, who carved up a Broncos defense that was ranked among the league's best.
Not only that, but rookie Bo Nix was repeatedly frustrated by a Baltimore defense that came up big when it counted most.
“Look, we got beat today,” coach Sean Payton said. “We didn’t do nearly enough things well enough against a good football team.”
Prior to Sunday, the Broncos didn't allow the opposition 350 yards or more than 26 points. Baltimore easily exceeded those numbers, racking up 396 yards and topping the 30-point mark early in the third quarter.
Jackson threw for 280 yards and three scores. Derrick Henry ran for 106 yards and two touchdowns, and the Ravens turned a close game into a runaway by scoring with the final possession before halftime and the opening series of the third quarter.
"It’s a big swing," Payton acknowledged.
Nix hardly resembled the fearless rookie who had thrown nine TD passes and just one interception during Denver's 5-1 surge following an 0-2 start.
The 12th overall pick in the 2024 draft completed 19 of 33 passes for 223 yards. His first pass of the day was picked off.
Nix readily accepted his share of the blame for the difficult afternoon.
“This is miserable, it’s no fun. You never want to lose games like this,” he said. “We have to face it. You either sit there and point the finger at somebody else or you take ownership of it. The only way to get over it is to look internally. That’s what we’re going to do.”
The offense's most notable missteps occurred on fourth down. The Broncos were successful on one of five fourth-down tries — the lone conversion coming on a trick play that produced their lone touchdown, a pass from Courtland Sutton to Nix that cut Baltimore's lead to 10-7 in the second quarter.
The Ravens outscored Denver 31-3 the rest of the way.
“You know when you play a good team like this on the road you want to get into the fourth quarter (with the score close),” Payton said. “We weren’t able to do that.”
The Broncos were 3-1 on the road coming into the day, and they visit the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs next weekend.
So Denver has to push forward as quickly as possible.
“The most important thing — and I just got finished telling this to the team — is there are going to be games when you go in on Monday and it’s not going to taste good for any of us,” Payton said. “We’re not going to like it, but that’s life. We’re not making any excuses. We got whipped today.”
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