SEATTLE, Wash.: The Denver Broncos (0-2) dropped their second pre-season game, losing to the Seattle Seahawks (2-0), as the Josh McDaniels era continues on without a victory. 

The Seahawks beat Denver pretty convincingly with a final score of 27-13.

The Seahawks began the game with an eight-play drive that was capped off by an unbelievable reception in the end zone by rookie third-round pick Deon Butler out of Penn State, who hauled in the 34-yard Matt Hasselbeck toss to make the score 7-0.

The Broncos would answer right back with an impressive drive that lasted 12 plays, and ended with Kyle Orton’s first-ever touchdown pass in a Denver Broncos uniform. 

Orton found wide receiver Brandon Stokley on a fade route in the right corner of the end zone and made a great throw.

This would be the beginning of what turned out to be quite a night for Kyle Orton.  Orton and the Bronco offense drove into Seattle territory following a three and out by the Seahawks, and but the Broncos were forced to settle for a 53-yard field goal by Matt Prater.

Both defenses got stingy after the three scores, and the Broncos forced two punts while the Seahawks forced just one.

A Denver drive that started at the 13 yard line went for 86 yards, and a fourth and goal attempt by the Broncos’ offense proved to be their demise. 

Orton was flushed out of the pocket, tried to throw the ball left-handed, and the play resulted in an interception by Seattle cornerback Ken Lucas. 

Hasselbeck and the Seahawks marched 80 yards down the field, led by a series of screen passes to running back Justin Forsett, and the drive was capped off with a short touchdown throw to big-money wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh.

The Seahawks took a 14-10 lead and never looked back.

Denver’s inability to retain possession of the ball gave the Seahawks excellent field position nearly every time they had the ball, and they took advantage, scoring 20 unanswered points to take a 27-10 lead.

Backup punter Britton Colquitt hit a 39-yard field goal to cap off the scoring for the game, and the Broncos played an extremely sloppy second half of football.

 

Injury Notes

• Backup QB Chris Simms went down with what appeared to be a leg injury.  The play was called roughing the passer, and a Seahawk defender may have ended Simms’ 2009 season prematurely.  Judging by Simms’ reaction to the play, he could be out for quite some time.
• Reserve defensive lineman Marcus Thomas went down with an injury, but it was unclear as to the nature.  His status should be updated this week.

Game Notes

 

The Bad

• Head coach Josh McDaniels was a disappointment tonight.  After the Broncos scored on two out of three possessions, McDaniels made a “rookie mistake” when he opted to throw the ball three times with a first and goal to go.  Now, I am no coaching legend here, but if I had Peyton Hillis on my roster, he would be the man getting the ball inside the five yard line, no questions asked.  There was also a very questionable touchdown catch by the Seahawks on third-and-goal in the third quarter, and McDaniels opted not to throw the challenge flag.  Upon viewing the replay, it appeared the Seattle tight end did, in fact, drop the pass.  The offense also looked predictable at times.  I often found myself guessing the plays correctly, and the defense appeared to as well.  First downs were often a short pass, followed by a draw out of the gun, then a play-action on third down.  Many drives were constructed this way, and the Broncos looked stale at times in the second and third units.  It was also odd that the first unit was still playing into the third quarter.  Not a very great job by McDaniels tonight, but I am confident he will rebound next week against the Bears.
• LaMont Jordan continues to show me nothing.  He had four carries for nine yards, but an impressive two catches for 25 yards.  His ball-carrying skills are lacking, to say the least.  He goes down on initial contact, and his game-long run of three yards proves that.  He seems like he is trying too hard to protect the ball rather than gain extra yardage.
• Kenny McKinley had a very rough night.  He muffed two returns, and fumbled away another at a critical juncture in the game.  He finished with two receptions for 19 yards, but for a guy who was supposed to have an impact on the return game, this outing did not bode well for him.
• I will cut Tom Brandstater some slack.  The third-string offensive line was horrendous, and Brandstater was constantly under pressure.  He looked like a statue though, was indecisive, and only threw three passes despite seeing over a quarter of work.  He completed one pass for negative yardage, and the other was nothing to write home about. 
• It is hard to judge the defensive backfield fairly without Brian Dawkins roaming around, but it appeared as though the corners and safeties were playing a little soft tonight.  Perhaps this is to be expected in the pre-season, but the defensive backs were, at times, playing 10 yards off their receivers.  Fans would like to see a more aggressive approach from them, especially with the aggressive pass rush.  Water and oil don’t mix, and neither do soft coverage and heavy blitzing.

 

The Good

• D.J. Williams was all over the place.  He finished the game with six tackles and a sack, and continually made plays all over the field.  He was burned blitzing on a screen play or two, but for the most part he was impressive.
• Kyle Orton had a good game, save for one throw.  However, that throw should have never happened.  A few plays earlier, Jabar Gaffney dropped a pass in the back of the end zone in which he was wide open, and poor play-calling by Josh McDaniels resulted in no touchdown and a turnover in the red zone for the second consecutive week.  Instead of throwing the ball left handed, Orton should have been handing the ball off to Peyton Hillis inside the two yard line.  Orton started the game on fire.  He marched the Broncos down the field in 12 plays on their first drive for a touchdown, and finished the game 18-for-26 for 182 yards, a touchdown, and a pick.  He consistently found the open receivers, and ran the offense quite well.  Turnovers in the red-zone will not fly for long. though.  I said Orton needed to come out firing tonight, and he did just that.  26 passes in just over two quarters is not common in the pre-season for most starting quarterbacks.
• The starting front seven was very impressive for the second consecutive week.  They allowed 20 yards rushing in the first half, and got to Matt Hasselbeck three times.  Kenny Peterson had two sacks, while D.J. Williams had the other. 
• The first offensive unit was quite impressive despite not having the likes of Knowshon Moreno, Brandon Marshall, and Brandon Lloyd.  Jabar Gaffney had five catches for 55 yards, Eddie Royal had four receptions for 44 yards, Brandon Stokley had three, including a touchdown, and Peyton Hillis was up to his usual tricks.
• Darius Walker ran hard all night long, and led the team with 48 yards rushing on 11 carries.  
• The starting offensive line allowed no sacks for the second consecutive game.  They may be the best unit in the league.

 

The Ugly

Do not be at all surprised if the Broncos make a play for now available Vikings quarterback Tarvaris Jackson.  Jackson played well in the Vikes’ recent win over the Kansas City Chiefs, and with the injury to Chris Simms coupled with the poor play of rookie Tom Brandstater, the Broncos could turn to Jackson if the price is right.

The Broncos have yet to win a game under new head coach Josh McDaniels, but the pre-season is what it is:  practice.

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