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The Denver Broncos defeated the New York Jets 13-11 on a day in which the defense sacked Jets quarterback Justin Fields nine times and allowed just 82 net yards of offense.
New York had a chance to attempt a 62-yard field goal with 1:14 left in the game. However, Gang Green decided to attempt a fourth-down conversion, which was stopped to give the Broncos their fourth win of the season.
The Jets got off to an excellent start as they forced their first defensive turnover of the season. Gang Green recovered a fumble by rookie receiver Troy Franklin that was picked up by safety Andre Cisco to give New York the ball in enemy territory. However, as usual, the Jets shot themselves in the foot by committing a false start and getting sacked on consecutive plays, so they settled for a field goal to take a 3-0 lead. Coming into this one, New York had the worst turnover differential in the league (-8).
Denver responded kindly. They put together a seven-play, 28-yard drive that ended with a 57-yard field goal by Wil Lutz to tie the score at 3-3. That was Lutz’s longest field goal of the season.
New York returned the opening kickoff 72 yards to the Denver 24-yard line. However, the Broncos defense forced a three-pointer and limited the Jets to another field goal, bringing the score to 6-3.
Denver had no problem responding. While facing a fourth-and-five at the Jets’ 47, quarterback Bo Nix completed a pass to tight end Evan Engram for a first down at the New York 36. That fourth down conversion proved to be incredibly important because it set up a 16-yard touchdown reception by tight end Nate Adkins to put the Broncos back on top 10-6 to start the second quarter. Adkins, who had two receptions the season before this game, recorded two receptions on Denver’s first three offensive drives.
Although they had two field goals to show for their efforts, the Jets’ offense looked terrible. New York opened the game with four consecutive three-pointers and recorded one net yard of offense. On Gang Green’s first four drives, quarterback Justin Fields was 2-of-4 passing with one yard and three sacks.
The offensive fireworks calmed down in the second quarter. After four straight drives that ended in points, these teams combined for four consecutive punts.
Gang Green finally converted his first third-down attempt of the game with 2:32 left in the second quarter. Despite being stopped on their next third down, the Jets faked a punt and managed another series of downs with a minute left in the half. With time running out, the Jets could have attempted a Hail Mary before halftime. However, they failed to make a play before time ran out in the second quarter, even though the offense lined up with approximately ten seconds left on the clock, sending this game to halftime. New York’s 32 yards of total offense in the first half were the fewest of any team this season.
The Jets’ first possession of the third quarter went well. They picked up three first downs before the drive stalled at the Denver 20-yard line. From there, New York managed to kick a 38-yard field goal to reduce the lead to 10-9 in favor of the Broncos. On that drive, the Jets surpassed their first-half offensive yardage total.
After a quick three-pointer, the Jets got the ball back at their own 42-yard line with a chance to retake the lead. Justin Fields executed a perfect quarterback pass on a third-and-short to bring the ball to Denver’s side of the field. Unfortunately for Jets fans, the drive was extinguished on Gang Green’s ensuing third-down attempt, which resulted in a punt being downed at the Broncos’ three-yard line.
New York took the lead on the next play. Denver offensive lineman Quinn Meinerz was assessed an offensive holding penalty in the Broncos’ end zone. For good measure, that gave the Jets a two-point safety to put them ahead 11-10. To add insult to injury, the Broncos had to kick the ball to Gang Green, but they couldn’t do anything with that extra possession, so Denver got the ball back at their own 18-yard line.
On the next drive, New York almost made a big mistake when wide receiver Garrett Wilson was stripped of the ball and Denver scooped up the loose ball. However, replay review helped the officials determine that the play was simply an incomplete play rather than a sack and turnover, leading to the call being overturned. However, the drive was derailed after Denver recorded its sixth sack of the day to close the third quarter.
Although New York was completely outplayed in the first half, they looked much better in the third quarter. They managed to limit the Broncos to just nine total yards of offense, while Bo Nix failed to complete a pass during that 15-minute span.
After a Jets punt, Denver got the ball back with 10:16 left in the game. Bo Nix broke the barrier by hitting Evan Engram for a 12-yard gain, his first completion of the second half. A few plays later, wide receiver Marvin Mims took a short pass to the New York 34-yard line on a 3rd-and-8. The drive could have died out at the Jets’ nine, but Denver scored a short field goal to retake the lead at 13-11 with less than six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
New York could not give a meaningful answer. Justin Fields took his seventh sack of the day on a 3rd-and-10 to force a Gang Green punt with 3:30 left in the fourth quarter. With that tackle, Nik Bonitto took sole possession of first place as the league leader in sacks with eight on the season.
The Jets got the ball back with one more chance to win this game after a quick three-pointer by Denver. They began the possession at their own 44-yard line with 2:23 left in the game. Running back Breece Hall made a bad play to carry the ball to midfield at the two-minute warning. Gang Green reached the Broncos’ 44-yard line, where they decided to go for a first down on a fourth-and-eight instead of attempting a 62-yard field goal. Unfortunately for New York, Justin Fields was tackled in the backfield to give Denver the victory.
With that victory, the Broncos took sole possession of first place in the AFC West, ahead of the Los Angeles Chargers, who will play later today.
*Author’s Note: All information and statistics are tracked in real time and provided by the game’s broadcaster, NFL.com and ESPN.com*
