16. Denver Broncos
Broncos play Monday night vs. Bengals
The Denver Broncos have had two straight weeks of absolutely heartbreaking defeat. Sean Payton’s crew lost on a walk-off field goal against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 2 after actually winning the game when the Colts missed a 60-yard kick. A leverage penalty gave the Colts a second chance, and they took advantage. Holding a 7-point fourth-quarter lead against the Chargers on the road in Week 3, the Broncos’ defense collapsed and allowed Justin Herbert to storm down the field twice for a win.
This Broncos team is close. They have to find a way to close out some of these tight, one-score games, but losing to two teams that have been among the best in the league so far this season is no reason to pack it in for the year. Denver needs its offense to figure things out quickly and get back on track Monday night against the Bengals.
15. San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers were bound to get burned playing with too much fire, and that ended up happening in Week 4 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. In Brock Purdy’s return to the lineup, it was clear that there was a bit of rust to be shaken off as Purdy threw a pair of interceptions, but the Niners also don’t have enough guys making plays in the passing game.
And I can’t be the only one who was thinking about “Tanjus” from the HBO Max original The Righteous Gemstones every time the announcers talked about Jake Tonges.
All that aside, the weekly special teams craziness impacted the 49ers in a big way in this game as the Jaguars returned a Thomas Morstead punt for an 87-yard touchdown. How many times have we seen special teams play make such an impact around the league already this season?
That play was the difference in this game, and ultimately might have been the difference between 3-1 and 4-0 for the 49ers.