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Is Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett already on the hot seat?


Can he Hackett?

Can he Hackett?
Picture: beautiful pictures

Over two weeks into the NFL season, there hasn’t been a bigger disappointment than the Denver Broncos. Okay, maybe the Cincinnati Bengals, but the Broncos are a close second.

With flashy new tools in midfield and head coach, plus a slew of young weapons in Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy and Javonte Williams, the Broncos hope to compete in a tough AFC West tournament . They had an easy schedule in front of the gate and were looking to regain the confidence to head into the tough part of the schedule between Weeks 3 and 6.

Instead of confidence, all head coach Nathaniel Hackett inspired was doubt. His team looked terrible in their loss earlier this week to Seattle, a team they should have beaten. They are said to look even worse against the Texans, and Nathaniel Hackett is bearing the brunt of the blame. Honestly, do you see some of those calls to play against the Texans?

The most serious was this third-choice and No. 1 run with full-back/wing-back Andrew Beck.

I mean…it’s an outside run which means you want speed to get around any would-be tacklers, so opting for a fullback to carry the ball probably isn’t a good start. But hey, at least he’s got his backup plan, Javonte Williams, running alongside him. You know, the same Javonte Williams that was averaging nearly seven yards per carry up to that point. The same Javonte Williams who hadn’t had a single rush go for less than a yard to that point. In fact, the only rush where he had less than two yards was pulled back due to offensive holding. So, of all the runs that counted, Williams had yet to not pick up two yards, aka twice the distance needed for a first down, but no, Andrew Beck is the call there. Gotcha coach, what a play!

I’m not even talking about his clock management blunders is fully documented.

I’m talking about how Hackett used his best players, was ineffective and didn’t play to their strengths. In Seattle, Wilson was never forced to push the ball down the field. In 2022, through two games, Wilson has aggressive percentage 23.3%, the third highest in the league behind only Dak Prescott and Mitchell Trubisky, means Wilson is falling into tight coverage much more often than in the past. In 2021, Wilson is 20th. In 2020, he’s 41st – last among those who qualify.

Now let’s see how Hackett uses Wilson in specific situations. This also goes back to Williams’ usage. Damn, I would even throw Melvin Gordon in there, also. Does Hackett make good use of either of these? No. In their game against Texas, the Broncos had 13 runs with three-or-less yards to go before first down or touch down. Only five runs. Oh, and one of them is the selection with Andrew Beck. Guess what, the Broncos converted two of the other four runs (two Williams, one Gordon, one Jeudy) in short runs for the first down. How many first kills do you think the Broncos have caught in short-range situations via the pass? Hmm? Guess what? They had eight attempts. How many people have walked at least three yards? Four. That sounds good, doesn’t it? Well, not exactly because three of those first missed shots came from penalties. They are imperfect passes that lead to increased driving because of defensive mistakes. In the boxscored, Wilson shot a much more respectable 1/5 from 6 yards in situations from 3 yards or less, but was saved three other times with penalties.

DAMN BALL ONLY!

I understand that sometimes I want to fool the defense and pick the pitch, but at least make it balanced afterwards, maybe even that would be a bit heavy. You’ve got a very talented full-back who, before the last game of the game, had only been dribbled in the line twice in both games this season. Don’t think too much about the game-call via try to run options with your full-back or force Russ to pass when one of his top receivers is out with a rib injury.

In my opinion, it’s too early to chant “Fire Hackett” at Mile High Stadium. Even Urban Meyer has 13 games. Should he have been fired sooner? Yes, but Hackett doesn’t kick his players, lower his coaching staff or drop the plane home to have a much younger woman sit on his lap at a Cincinnati bar, so I will give him the benefit of the doubt. On the bright side, Hackett took most of the blame in his post-match press conference following the win over Texas. It’s a good sign of humility and awareness that things need to change.

However, unless we start to see improvements in the range soon, especially as schedules get tougher, Hackett’s tenure in Denver could end very short.



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