Broncos rush for 225 yards, cruise past depleted Saints in 33-10 TNF rout
NEW ORLEANS — The Denver Broncos rushed for 225 yards and their stalwart defense locked up an injury-riddled New Orleans Saints squad in a 33-10 rout Thursday night in the Big Easy.
Broncos running back Javonte Williams rushed for 88 yards and two touchdowns in the game. Quarterback Bo Nix added 75 yards on the ground as Denver averaged more than 7 yards per carry and saw three players log runs of 20 yards or more.
An effective ground attack was a welcome sight in Broncos Country. Denver's 107 rushing yards per game entering Thursday's game were the 10th-fewest in the NFL.
Broncos linebacker Cody Barton snagged an airborne fumble by Saints rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler and returned it 52 yards for a score to punctuate an impressive defensive performance by the Denver defense, which came in ranked fourth in the NFL. The scoop-and-score was the Broncos' second takeaway of the evening. Barton forced a Rattler fumble in the first quarter.
The Broncos had held the Saints to just over 200 yards and 3 points before a garbage-time New Orleans touchdown drive in the final minutes of the fourth quarter. They held star running back Alvin Kamara to just 24 total yards.
Denver led 16-3 at the half after dominating time of possession in the first half and holding New Orleans to just five first downs in the opening two quarters.
The Broncos never looked back.
Nix missed multiple open receivers in the early going and finished a pedestrian 16-of-24 for 164 yards passing in a win that didn't require much of an aerial attack.
The Saints, already without quarterback Derek Carr and wideouts Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed, saw their injury situation get even worse Thursday night.
Cornerback Paulson Adebo has been carted off the field with an air cast on his right leg in the first half and New Orleans later lost cornerback Marshon Lattimore to injury.
The Broncos move to 4-3 on the season, with 10 days' rest before a Week 8 matchup with the Carolina Panthers. The schedule gets tough after that, with visits to the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs on deck in Weeks 9 and 10.
