Broncos’ Heroes, Zeros vs. Bears: Nik Bonitto delivers for defense

Here are the heroes and zeros from the Broncos’ 31-28 win over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Sunday afternoon.

Heroes

Nik Bonitto: The Broncos’ second-year outside linebacker got the start over Randy Gregory and delivered. Denver trailed 28-21 in the fourth quarter when Bonitto burst into the backfield and jarred the ball loose from Bears quarterback Justin Fields, which outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper scooped up and ran 35 yards for the game-tying touchdown with 6:55 left. Bonitto had four tackles (two for loss) and 2 ½ sacks. The Oklahoma product has tremendous speed off the edge, and it was evident Sunday. His only flaw was getting his ankles snatched by Fields before completing a 2-yard touchdown pass to take a 28-7 with 4:11 left in the third quarter. But let’s be real, defending Fields in open space is like guarding Kyrie Irving one-on-one.

Jaleel McLaughlin: The Broncos might have found a gem in the undrafted rookie running back. McLaughlin was a spark plug on offense, rushing for 72 yards on seven carries while catching three passes for 32 yards and a touchdown. He started the game by turning a screen pass into a 18-yard scoring reception in the first quarter. Later in the third quarter, McLaughlin rushed for 31 yards before making an 11-yard reception that helped set up wide receiver Brandon Johnson’s 4-yard touchdown catch that cut the deficit to 28-14 with 14 seconds left in the third quarter.

Russell Wilson: The Broncos quarterback unleashed his clutch gene. With Denver trailing 28-7 with under five minutes to go in the third quarter, he led the offense to score 24 unanswered points to pull off the thrilling comeback win. Wilson was surgical on Denver’s 10-play, 66-yard scoring drive that ended with a 13-yard pass to wide receiver Courtland Sutton that cut the deficit to 28-21 with 9:36 left in the fourth. Later, Wilson completed a beautiful 48-yard pass to rookie Marvin Mims Jr. that helped set up kicker Wil Lutz’s go-ahead 51-yard field goal with under two minutes to go in regulation.

Zeros

Broncos’ secondary: Yeah, yeah, yeah safety Justin Simmons missed his second straight game due to a hip injury. But his absence isn’t the reason why the secondary has played so badly. Denver made Washington’s Sam Howell look like Joe Theisman. They made Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa look like Dan Marino. And on Sunday, they made Fields look like Patrick Mahomes. Fields completed 15 straight passes and had three touchdowns in the first half, as it seemed that he had an open target on every attempt. Luckily, safety Kareem Jackson was able to bail the group out with a game-sealing interception.

Mike McGlinchey: The Broncos right tackle represented the sloppy and undisciplined play that was on display Sunday. He committed two false start penalties and has four in the last three games. McGlinchey’s first penalty came in the second quarter when he turned a second-and-long into a second-and-even longer. Two plays later, the Broncos had to punt the ball away. McGlinchey was flagged for false start in the third quarter, but Denver was able to bounce back with Johnson’s touchdown catch. Denver committed five false starts on Sunday.

Randy Gregory: While Bonitto shined, Gregory continued to be nonexistent on defense. The outside linebacker had three tackles and rarely generated quarterback pressure throughout the afternoon. Gregory, who watched Bonitto get the starting nod over him, entered Sunday’s contest with a sack, six tackles and one quarterback pressure.

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• 2023
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