Quarterback Russell Wilson grabbed the wheel of the clown car driven by Nathaniel Hackett and drove to the Broncos Country rescue.
Saving an unsuspecting rookie head coach from himself, Wilson led a fourth-quarter comeback to beat the lowly Houston 16-9 on a Sunday when the boo birds came out and let the home team know that all that inexcusable trash must stop.
“I don’t blame them,” Hackett said. “I mean, hell, I’d boo myself. I got very frustrated.”
Let’s pause to say thank you for the Broncos finding a way to beat one of the NFL’s worst teams against their will.
“All I really care about is the cheering at the end because we won,” said Wilson, whose 22-yard shot against Eric Saubert with 12 minutes and 36 seconds left in the fourth quarter proved everything it took to turn Beating Houston was a measly touchdown.
Denver won and improved their record to 1-1 despite repeated red-zone atrocities; despite 13 Bonehead penalties, including a game delay on a field goal attempt; although the punt return team was sent onto the field without anyone setting up the punt; despite running out of timeouts midway through the fourth quarter, and despite Hackett’s brain freeze so much that I’m beginning to wonder if his gray matter is made up of dippin’ dots.
“This has to stop,” Hackett said, looking like he might need a hug.
But what this team needs more than a bro hug is intervention. Hackett needs someone to explain the big picture to him in real time. He needs a reliable voice to untangle the cobwebs in his brain.
We talk about this all the time with beginners who overthink everything. For all his bragging rights of being a coach’s son, the speed of the NFL game was just too much for Hackett. We knew Mike Shanahan, whose son is coming to town to coach the Niners next weekend, and Hackett is no mastermind.
With two weeks to go, Hackett is now 0-6 at converting trips to the red zone into touchdowns as a play-caller. Rather than hammering the ball into the end zone behind the steamroller running back Javonte Williams, Hackett seems inclined to make good eyes on his offensive playsheet and fall in love with cute.
Let’s hope it’s not a fatal attraction.
But after averaging 16 points per game with a quarterback making about $45 million a year, I’m beginning to wonder if Hackett is little more than former offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur with a more likable personality but no better ideas.
On the sidelines, Hackett comes across as a “Jeopardy!” contestant, eagerly barging in without any idea what the correct answer is, let alone the composure to frame his answer in the form of a question. Does anyone else get flashbacks to Vance Joseph and Vic Fangio besides me?
Hackett seems to be struggling to organize his thoughts, let alone the team on the field. In the long and storied history of this franchise, the Broncos have never committed a total of 25 penalties in consecutive games. Until now.
I asked Hackett if the process of leading offense and serving as game-day CEO was more difficult than he anticipated.
“No,” Hackett replied, vowing to mend the slow communication between him and Wilson.
OK, the Broncos have other problems than the fire alarms going off in Hackett’s head. An already struggling Denver lineup lost receiver Jerry Jeudy and cornerback Pat Surtain II to injury during the game. In back-to-back weeks, quarterbacks named Geno Smith and Davis Mills outplayed Wilson for large portions of the game.
After three quarters, with the Broncos trailing Houston 9-6, Wilson was playing at a level that could embarrass Drew Lock. He had completed 9 of 23 passes for 116 yards with one interception. His QB rating was 37.6. In a word: pathetic.
But then Wilson showed his championship pedigree. The veteran quarterback rallied his teammates to get them off the edge.
“Russ knelt in the crowd and said to us, ‘Hey, look. If we’re going to be a championship team, a team that goes deep into the playoffs and wins championships, we have to manage those situations,” said Denver receiver Courtland Sutton.
In the closing stages, when the Broncos needed a hero to save them from Hackett, Wilson completed 5 of 8 passes for 103 yards and one touchdown for a 145.8 rating that would do Tom Brady justice.
Wilson led the Broncos back from the abyss of disaster with his words and actions.
“One thing I’ll never do,” Wilson said, “I’ll never blink.”
When the Broncos needed it badly, Wilson gave them reason to believe.
But at this point, can anyone in Broncos country trust this coach not to drive this team into the ditch?