Hinton found Noah Fant for a 13-yard gain on the first drive of the second half, but it was the team’s lone completion of the day. The Broncos became just the ninth team since the merger with one or fewer pass completions in a game, and they were the first since 49ers completed one pass in 2005. Denver’s previously low mark for completions was two, which came in 2011.
“Absolutely I expected to play to play better,” Hinton said. “The Saints have a great defense, but I honestly don’t feel like I played nearly to the best of my ability. And of course, a day or two of practice would have definitely helped. I definitely think I could have did more things out there.”
The Broncos also became the first team since 1998 to throw fewer completions (1) than interceptions (2), and Hinton finished 1-of-9 for 13 yards and two interceptions.
“He did everything he could,” Fangio said. “He was excited for the opportunity. We had about a two-, three-, four-hour window to get him ready, which isn’t a lot obviously. He was excited for it. We were excited for him; his teammates were excited for him. That’s a big, big ask and it just didn’t work out.”
Were it not for an unprecedented situation at quarterback, the Broncos may have had a chance to upset the now 9-2 Saints. The Broncos forced punts on four of the Saints’ first five drives, and New Orleans’ lone scoring drive came after Dre’Mont Jones jumped offside on a fourth-and-1 play.
New Orleans’ other first-half touchdown came after a promising start to a Denver drive ended with a low snap from Lloyd Cushenberry III. Kwon Alexander picked up the fumble, and while Garett Bolles prevented him from scoring, Taysom Hill was able to power the ball in from two yards out for his second score of the afternoon. The Saints added a field goal as time expired in the first half to push their lead to 17-0 after Hinton threw a late interception.
Hill didn’t find nearly as much success through the air, as he started the game 6-of-13 for 38 yards, an interception and a 21.0 quarterback rating. He was also sacked three times, as the Saints started just 3-of-10 on third down,
Denver added its lone points of the afternoon in large part to the defense, as well. Rookie cornerback Essang Bassey intercepted Hill after A.J. Bouye broke up a pass, and he returned the ball into New Orleans’ territory. It would be the Broncos’ only possession to cross midfield.
“It was just kind of, play with the cards we were given, you know, make the most out of the situation,” Bassey said of the team’s mindset. “I know on defense you’re not worried about what the offense does. We were going to go out and play hard and that was kind of the same mindset. We just got to pick it up a little bit more, be a little extra focused just because we knew it was an uphill battle coming into today, but that was pretty much the mindset going into the game.”
The Broncos were unable to gain a first down, but Brandon McManus hit from 58 yards — the longest field goal of his career — to end the chances of a shutout win.
Denver’s offense, though, was unable to muster a consistent enough output to challenge New Orleans’ defense. The Broncos tallied just six first downs and were 1-of-10 on third down. The team’s 112 offensive yards was the lowest output in franchise history (since the merger) other than a 1992 loss to the Eagles in which they tallied 82 total yards.
Denver’s 12 passing yards is the team’s lowest output since 1983, when they had one net passing yard in a win over Pittsburgh.
“I have a lot of love and respect for our players,” Fangio said. “They’re competitors, they’re fighters and they did that this afternoon, all the way to the end, under some extreme circumstances that have never been seen before. They went out there and competed. I know the score is what it is, but our guys competed. They played hard, they played physical and I love them and respect them even more.”
