The Denver Broncos (6-8) will once again be watching the playoffs from home this January.
Following last Sunday’s disappointing performance against in San Francisco, the Broncos were officially eliminated from postseason contention with Saturday’s 17-16 loss to the Cleveland Browns (6-7-1). The victory over Denver is Cleveland’s first since October, 1990.
For a second straight week, the Broncos struggled to establish any kind of running game and the impact was evident from the start. Phillip Lindsay only totalled 24 rushing yards on 14 carries (1.7 yards per carry) and with no ground game to speak of, Denver was forced to rely on quarterback Case Keenum and the aerial attack.
Keenum was able to handle the load, and despite only having two rookie wide receivers and group of tight ends that nobody around the league has heard of, the veteran quarterback generally commanded the offense well.
Denver had multiple scoring drives of five minutes or more and led the total time of possession by seven minutes. But on both of Keenum’s interceptions in the outing, the veteran QB made extremely poor decisions.
In a losing effort, Keenum completed 31-of-48 pass attempts for 258 yards and a pair of interceptions. The Broncos are now 0-5 in games where Keenum attempts for than 40 pass attempts.
While it was mostly a night of frustration for the orange and blue, linebacker Von Miller did become Denver’s all-time leader in sacks with 98.
The Broncos will look to rebound at Oakland for a Christmas Eve showdown on Monday Night Football.
