Denver Broncos: Grading our 3 Keys to Victory over the Chargers

2 of 4

Denver Broncos (Photo by John Cordes/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

We wanted the Broncos to run the ball.

The decimation the offensive line has faced coupled with the Chargers pass rush elites in Melvin Ingram and the newly returned Joey Bosa made the run game seem like the obvious solution.

More from Mile High Maniac

True-to-form, the Broncos unleashed 33 passes versus just 18 runs on the day. The surprise came in the form of offensive line play. The patched together line allowed zero sacks on the day and though they only managed 18 rush attempts, Lindsay had 79 yards on just 11 carries. That’s good for a 7.2 yards-per-carry average and furthers the mystique surrounding the undrafted Broncos star.

Lindsay added 27 rushing yards and enough attitude to feel like there’s almost nothing the young man can’t (or won’t) accomplish. After Roby went down, we thought maybe the Broncos should give Phillip a shot at defensive back. Ride him like Bobby Boucher!

So, while the Broncos outrushed the Chargers 108-95, it wasn’t quite the Big 8, single-wing performance we thought might be in store. Credit for that goes first to the previously mentioned offensive line performance but also to Denver quarterback Case Keenum. For the second consecutive week, Keenum did not have a turnover and that was another of our expectations:

Home/Denver Broncos