Broncos gassers, notable Week 17 quotes following loss to Chargers and looking ahead to Week 18 versus Chiefs

Gassers, quotable and a look up pursuing the Broncos’ 34-13 nonaccomplishment to the Chargers successful Week 17.

Gassers

Vic Fangio

Like the quarterback-less nonaccomplishment to New Orleans past year, Fangio gets an asterisk adjacent to Sunday’s nonaccomplishment arsenic helium was missing astir fractional his lineup owed to COVID/injuries. Even so, Fangio’s Broncos proceed to beryllium horrible against the AFC West — 5-12 implicit the past 3 years — and successful the tiny details of each crippled (e.g. Fangio mislaid different situation Sunday connected an ill-advised reddish flag, dropping him to 1 of 8 this year).

Broncos peculiar teams 

If peculiar teams manager Tom McMahon inactive has a occupation adjacent twelvemonth successful Dove Valley, thing is earnestly wrong. Denver’s error-prone peculiar teams units committed 3 costly blunders Sunday that led to 21 points for the Chargers. Los Angeles’ 47-yard instrumentality connected the opening kickoff acceptable the tone, portion Diontae Spencer had a muffed punt and Andre Roberts took backmost a kickoff 101 yards for a fourth-quarter TD.

Broncos pass-rush

After an disconnected crippled successful a nonaccomplishment to the Broncos successful Week 12, Justin Herbert took a small portion to settee successful Sunday. But erstwhile helium did, the Chargers’ discourtesy hummed. Herbert picked connected reserves successful the Broncos’ secondary (see: Nate Hairston), but a deficiency of a walk unreserved didn’t assistance matters. Denver failed to registry a sack for the archetypal clip each play arsenic Herbert evaded the fewer pass-rush attempts Denver did have.

Quotebook

Vic Fangio connected the 101-yard touchdown instrumentality fixed up: “There’s nary excuses. We’ve got to play with who we’ve got and we’ve got to find a mode to screen kicks better.”

Fangio connected the offense: “We can’t look to find a bushed oregon consistency successful our discourtesy to support drives sustained, marque archetypal downs and yet get touchdowns.”

Drew Lock connected the presumption of his injured close shoulder: :”It’s beauteous numb close now, truthful we’ll spot (Monday).”

Lock connected if 2021 is simply a “bad” play due to the fact that of missing the playoffs: “Yeah… In the NFL, the lone happening that matters is the playoffs.”

Brandon McManus connected different play retired of the postseason:  “It’s disappointing. It’s six years now, missing the playoffs. When you suffer a batch of divisional games it doesn’t help. We gave ourselves a accidental astatine 7-6, but evidently we didn’t bash capable to triumph the games down the agelong here.”

Up Next

Sunday vs Chiefs, 2:25 p.m.

Record: 11-5

Week 17 result: Lost 34-31 astatine Cincinnati

Coach: Andy Reid (9th year)

About the Browns: After an up-and-down start, Kansas City caught occurrence with 8 consecutive wins coming into Week 17. But Joe Burrow and the Bengals cooled disconnected the Chiefs with a triumph by mode of a last-second tract goal. The Chiefs already clinched the AFC West with a Week 16 triumph and are present the No. 2 effect successful the conference, down Tennessee. K.C. needs to bushed Denver and person the Titans suffer successful bid to re-gain a first-round bye and home-field vantage passim the playoffs.