The Sports Xchange

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — There’s not a team in the NFL for which the half-full/half-empty glass analogy applies more than the Denver Broncos in Week 1.

Was their 19-13 win a triumph for a defense that throttled the Ravens’ passing game, prevented Baltimore from crossing the Denver 25 until 1:03 remained in regulation and gave Joe Flacco little time to settle for anything but checkdowns and screens underneath?

Or was it an alarming performance for an offense that saw quarterback Peyton Manning buckle under the pass rush as it lurched to its first game without an offensive touchdown since Tim Tebow was the team’s quarterback?

It’s probably somewhere in between the two extremes, although the familiarity between the coaching staffs must be considered when discerning the reasons why the teams played the first Week 1 game without an offensive touchdown since 2006. With former Ravens assistants Gary Kubiak, Rick Dennison and Brian Pariani on the Denver sideline, the Broncos knew what the Ravens might throw at them — and the Ravens knew the ins, outs and subtleties of the Kubiak-led offense.

But that was probably lost on the thousands of Broncos fans who booed the offense after consecutive three-and-outs in the third quarter.

“That’s part of it,” Kubiak said. “This is a tough league. You play good people. We knew we were playing a good defensive football team yesterday and we were struggling. We started off really well, we ended really well and we struggled in between.

“That’s part of this business. You had better be able to work through those times. We were able to work through it yesterday and find a way to win. I don’t get caught up in that. I just try to keep everybody focused on moving forward and going on to the next play.”

Or, in the Broncos’ case, the next drive. Their final series was a 17-play, 81-yard march that ultimately ended in the red zone, but nevertheless consumed 10 minutes and 56 seconds of the fourth quarter.

It’s been four years since the Broncos focused on shortening a game like that, but that drive was everything Kubiak wanted: decisive on the ground with an effective passing game that capitalized off the hesitation created by the need to play the run.

“It was probably a few things in concert with each other. First of all, we got off of the goal line. We got a couple of first downs to flip the field and then we just continued from there,” said tight end Owen Daniels. “We were making plays, guys up front were really grinding and the running backs were hitting the holes straight downhill and were running tough. That was big. We didn’t have any penalties that hurt ourselves, which we did earlier in the game a bunch of times.

“We were really focused on that drive particularly. I think that you definitely could tell they were getting worn down out there. We’ll look at that and try to build off of that.”

If the offense can grow off that, and if Manning can recapture his accuracy after completing a pedestrian — for him, at least — 60 percent of his passes, then the Broncos’ cup will be so full that it runneth over. But with the Chiefs looming Thursday, the Broncos have little time to get it right.

REPORT CARD VS. RAVENS

PASSING OFFENSE: D-plus — A new scheme and an offensive line that featured four starters who were not on the 53-man roster last year led to poor timing, inconsistency, four sacks and another hit on QB Peyton Manning by Kyle Arrington that led to Jimmy Smith’s third-quarter interception return for a touchdown. Manning did not finally find a rhythm until the running game got going in the fourth quarter, and that might be the key to success going forward, since it would prevent opposing pass rushers from attacking with impunity.

RUSHING OFFENSE: C-minus — A fourth-quarter commitment to the run saved the Broncos from what would have been a disastrous, unproductive day on the ground. Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson combined for 43 yards on 11 carries during the Broncos’ 17-play, 81-yard march in the fourth quarter. The Broncos will need to get the ground game going earlier if the offense is to have any chance of sustained success.

PASS DEFENSE: A — Two first-quarter sacks set the tone for a Broncos pass rush that wasn’t shy about blitzing. The Broncos didn’t get any sacks in the final three quarters, but pressure led directly to Aqib Talib’s pick-six in the third quarter. Denver hit Joe Flacco nine times and pressured him 19 times in total, which effectively removed the deep threat from the Ravens offense because Flacco did not have enough time to get set to throw. Just four of the Ravens’ 34 pass plays went for first downs.

RUSH DEFENSE: B — Baltimore’s ground game was ineffective until Justin Forsett bounced outside for a 20-yard gain on the Ravens’ final series of the game. That run was the Ravens’ only carry that gained double-digit yardage. The Broncos had some trouble against the run in the preseason, but all of the explosive runs allowed by their first-team defense came via quarterbacks. That will be a concern when they face Alex Smith on Thursday, but it was not against Flacco.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B-plus — Two penalties and a poor decision by Emmanuel Sanders on one punt return were the only blotches on an otherwise outstanding day for the special teams, punctuated by Brandon McManus’ 4-of-4 performance that included field goals from 56 and 57 yards. Britton Colquitt had a net average of 45.4 yards, including a 62-yard boot.

COACHING: B-plus – Preparation wasn’t the issue for the Broncos in the win; their defensive game plan was close to perfect — especially with T.J. Ward and Derek Wolfe serving suspensions — and the offense got off to a promising start and ended with the Broncos’ longest drive in terms of time elapsed in years.