Alex Singleton tried to calm the water after the Broncos’ Week 1 loss to the Chiefs, but his words only made the mess look bigger.
Denver was gashed in Kansas City, missing 28 tackles in all, and Singleton was right in the middle of it. He finished with five of those misses himself, part of a night that left the Broncos defense looking nothing like the group that has built its reputation over the last two seasons.
After the game, Singleton brushed it off with a simple message: "We're going to be fine. We're going to work on it this week. We're going to do what we need to do, and we're going to be fine."
That’s the problem. Fine hasn’t been the word for this defense for a while.
The Broncos have now allowed 183, 141 and 220 rushing yards in their last three games, a stretch that reaches back to the 2025-26 playoffs. Tackling issues were already showing up before this opener, including during the preseason, and they’ve been hanging around since last season’s bye week game against Washington.
Against the Chiefs, those problems turned into a disaster. Denver allowed 247 extra yards after missed tackles, and the 28 misses were the most by any defense in a game since at least 2018. Eight different Broncos defenders missed multiple tackles.
This wasn’t some August rehearsal. It was the real thing, against a division rival, on a national stage.
So when one of the team captains sounds that relaxed after a performance like that, it lands badly. Maybe Singleton is the kind of leader who says the reassuring part in public and saves the sharper words for the locker room. But from the outside, especially after a display that ugly, "We'll be fine" feels a long way from convincing.
It also lands awkwardly given the Broncos’ offseason decision to bring Singleton back instead of chasing other linebacker options. He signed a 2-year deal worth $15 million in total money and $11 million in guarantees, and Denver passed on the linebacker names fans were hoping for, including Devin Lloyd and Kaden Elliss, while also waiting out a draft class loaded at the position.
The selling point was Singleton’s command of the defense and his ability to line everyone up. That may still matter. But after a game like this, it’s hard to ignore the gap between what the Broncos said they were getting and what showed up on the field.
One game doesn’t define a season. But for a defense that was already carrying questions about tackling, run defense and big plays, Singleton’s promise that everything will be fine sounded less like leadership and more like wishful thinking.
In Other News...
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Vrabel was caught up in an offseason mess after photos of him and Russini at an adults-only resort surfaced, an episode that led to Russinis resignation and an internal investigation by The Athletic. The debate now sits in the background of a Patriots team that already has football problems after dropping its Week 1 game to Seattle, with Drake Maye throwing three interceptions, but Simmons comments have made clear that the Broncos are not looking at this as just another league-wide media skirmish. [Read more 🡒]
ESPN Just Reignited An NFL Double Standard Debate Fans Know Well
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Former Broncos safety Justin Simmons took aim at ESPN for bringing Coopers legal situation into the game coverage, and the reaction quickly spread into a wider conversation among former players and fans. The episode has revived a familiar debate about where broadcast reporters should draw the line when a players controversy becomes part of the nights storyline, especially when the game itself is supposed to be the focus. [Read more 🡒]
Patrick Surtain's Blunt Take Sums Up Denver's Early Reality Check
Denvers season opened with a jolt, and not the kind the Broncos were hoping for. An early interception briefly hinted at a fast start, but the offense stalled from there and the loss quickly turned into a reminder that preseason optimism only matters once the games count. Under Sean Payton, the Broncos expected a sharper launch than what showed up in Week 1, making the gap between projections and reality feel especially stark.
Patrick Surtain II didnt sugarcoat it afterward, saying the team needed a serving of humble pie. It was the kind of blunt assessment that tends to land harder because it comes from one of the rosters most respected voices, and it leaves Denver with an early test of response. The talent is there, the expectations remain high, and now the Broncos have to prove this was just a stumble rather than the first sign of a longer adjustment. [Read more 🡒]