Clayton: Pressure on Shurmur, Broncos to put up points vs. Cowboys
Nov 5, 2021, 2:41 PM
The Broncos offense will be challenged extra this week against Dallas. They won’t have left tackle Garett Bolles. They may not have tight end Noah Fant because of COVID-19.
Plus, they play a Dallas Cowboys team that is emerging as one of the best teams in the NFC. Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur is under a lot of scrutiny by Broncos fans, but he has to respond to the problems.
Shurmur wants more points from the offense. They are only scoring 19.6 points a game — 23rd in the league. They’ve gotten off to a lot of slow starts, which Shurmur is trying to fix.
He made some interesting statements about how the game has changed for offenses. Offensive possessions aren’t as plentiful as they were in the past.
“It’s a weird year that way in regards of possessions,” Shurmur said. “It’s very low from what you’re used to seeing. I used to say it was a 12-round fight — you get 11 or 12. We’ve had a couple games this year where it was eight or nine. It just puts a premium on making sure — listen, when we get the ball we’re charged with going and scoring regardless of the situation. When we have our opportunities, we have to get our points.’’
The Cowboys should be able to get theirs. They have Dak Prescott back at quarterback. They have three top receivers and two good running backs. They have one of the best offensive lines in the league. And we all know the Broncos problems at linebacker, and now they are thinner in the secondary. The pressure is on for Shurmur to get points.
