The Broncos’ offensive struggles have already forced a shift at the top, and offensive coordinator Davis Webb made it clear he views Sean Payton taking back playcalling as part of the NFL’s normal churn.
“Luckily that’s not my job, that’s [Payton’s] job,” Webb said, via Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post. “Obviously, I think he answered that.
I think the world of him and how we’ve gone about it. Really the ownership to our players.
It’s not ideal, but in the same breath, it’s exciting because we’re 2-2 in the first four games. Our first four opponents were a combined 13-3 to start the season.
Welcome to the league.”
Webb said the reset is just another part of life in the league.
“Any time it happens in any aspect of your life job-wise it is a little bit, but, in the same breath, that’s the NFL. You get going,” Webb added. “Been a backup QB, been up and down before, that’s kind of how it goes.”
Running back J.K. Dobbins, meanwhile, didn’t hide his frustration with how his own year has opened. He said he wants to raise his level and earn more work as the season moves along.
“Right now, it’s a dark spot,” Dobbins said Thursday, via Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post. “That’s part of being in the NFL, though.
I’m going to find a way to play to the standard that I play at. I’m healthy.
I’m out there playing. Any time - whether it’s fully healthy, not healthy, 75 percent, 60, 80, 90, 100, if I’m out there, I’ve got to play good, you know what I mean?
No matter what’s going on, if I’m going out there, that means I think I can make plays… It don’t matter. . . . I’ve got to make my plays and I’ve got to be me.”
Dobbins also pushed back on any notion that his emotion is the issue. For him, it’s about winning.
“I just love the game,” Dobbins added. “I’m a passionate guy.
Whatever you saw, it was just me wanting to win the game. I just want to win no matter what, you know?
It could be me getting two carries in two minutes of playing time. As long as we win the game, I’m fine.
It has nothing to do with me being a passionate guy and wanting to win the game.”
In the AFC notes elsewhere, Chargers wide receiver Tre Harris was fined $9,870 for unnecessary roughness.
In Other News...
Broncos Starter Hit With Another Fine And Fans Will Have Opinions
Quinn Meinerz keeps finding himself on the league offices radar, and this latest issue has nothing to do with what he does between the lines. After already getting dinged earlier this season for his dice-rolling touchdown celebration, the Broncos guard has drawn another punishment, this time tied to a social media video that crossed a line with NFL policy.
The situation has an extra layer because the post centered on the drug-test collection process, a subject the league treats seriously even when a player may not have meant any harm. Meinerz is appealing the fine, so this one is not necessarily finished yet, and it adds another small off-field distraction for a Broncos team that is trying to keep its focus on the field after its Week 3 win over the Rams. [Read more 🡒]
Broncos Defense Awaits A Big Week 5 Call On Ladd McConkey
The Broncos may get a break on the injury front in Week 5, with Chargers receiver Ladd McConkey showing up on Los Angeles injury report as the division matchup approaches. McConkey has been one of the more productive pieces of the Chargers passing game through four weeks, with 12 catches for 183 yards and a touchdown, so his status matters plenty to Denvers defense as it prepares for a familiar AFC West test.
McConkey is dealing with multiple injuries, and the early read is that he is likely to miss the game, which would force the Chargers to reshuffle targets in a meaningful spot. If he is sidelined, Los Angeles will be asking other pass catchers to pick up the slack, and Denver will be watching to see whether the offense can maintain its rhythm without one of its steadier options. [Read more 🡒]
Broncos Can Exploit A Chargers Weakness That Could Swing This Game
The Broncos head into their matchup with the Chargers looking for a place to press an edge in what figures to be a tight division game, and the middle of the field may offer it. Los Angeles has had to sort through protection issues up front, with guard Oday Aboushi struggling, while Asante Samuel Jr. remains the kind of versatile defender who can complicate easy throws. Even so, Denvers defense will be alert to the Chargers tight-end usage, especially with Jared Gadsden emerging as a meaningful piece in the passing game despite a still-unclear role.
From Denvers side, the more intriguing opportunity may come when the Broncos have the ball and test where the Chargers are least settled defensively. Injuries have thinned that group enough to make linebacker Justin Phillips a potential coverage target, and that sort of matchup can tilt a game if Denver isolates it well. Whether the Broncos lean on RJ Harvey, Evan Engram or another option, this is the kind of wrinkle that could decide which sideline is left looking for answers late. [Read more 🡒]