In Focus: The book is out on Siemian

After the tough loss last night to the division-rival San Diego Chargers, Pro Football Focus did not hold back when grading quarterback Trevor Siemian and the Denver Broncos offense.

Is the book out on Siemian?:

Trevor Siemian 40.5

Quarterback Trevor Siemian finished the game going 30 for 50 for 230 yards and 1 touchdown. The overall stat line doesn't look terrible for the Broncos quarterback, but a vast majority of his stats came in the 4th quarter while the team was down three scores. Siemian only had 70 or so passing yards through three-quarters.

This performance led Pro Football Focus to believe that the league has figured out Trevor Siemian.

Teams are figuring out the Denver quarterback: Force him to throw deep. And chances are he still won’t. Even with the Broncos behind late in the game and needing multiple scores, Siemian still refused to throw anything other than underneath routes. On the day he completed only one of his nine attempts targeted 10-plus yards down the field. Those are abysmal numbers and the Chargers exploited it by squatting on underneath routes and giving Siemian nowhere to go.

They point out a concern that some of us had this summer about Trevor Siemian. He plays it safe, doesn't attack deep, and when he does it normally isn't completed. The Cinci game remains the only game where the deep passing game has been successful.

Trevor Siemian had 200+ yards and a TD, but it wasn't pretty. Here was his passing chart for the night. #TNF pic.twitter.com/Jr0RSQOj5a

— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) October 14, 2016

Siemian only completed one of nine pass attempts that traveled 10 yards or more down the field. That's no good and allowed the Chargers to sit on the short routes and limit their success. The Chargers are also down their top two corners, so these struggles are concerning.

This is now back to back weeks with poor quarterback play from the Broncos quarterbacks so it will be interesting to see what they do going forward. Either way, whoever the starter is will need to do better than they have been lately. If not, the Broncos could have a tough second half to the season.

Other notable offensive players who did well Thursday night.

• Center Matt Paradis: 79.9
• Running back C.J. Anderson: 77.5
• Tight end Jon Phillips: 74.4
• Fullback Andy Janovich: 70.5
• Running back Devontae Booker: 70.5

Broncos defense stepped up after a rough start:

The first drive by the San Diego Chargers was a long one that ate up almost half of the first quarter and ended with a touchdown to rookie tight end, Hunter Henry. After a 5 play drive that led to a punt by the Broncos, the Chargers next drive ended with a field goal. The Chargers were up 10-0, but the Broncos defense really stepped up from there on.

They allowed three field goals to the explosive San Diego Chargers in the second half and kept the Broncos in the game.

It was an interesting night for the Denver defense. At times they struggled to get off the field as San Diego went on several long drives. But when it came down to needing to make a stop in the red zone, they were able to buckle down and get the top. After the Chargers’ opening drive, they made it to the red zone on four more occasions, yet Denver held them to field goals each time and allowed just 19 points. Von Miller and Brandon Marshall led the way on defense, particularly against the run where they combined for eight run stops. Bradley Roby had his first two pass breakups of the year. The Broncos were able to pressure Philip Rivers on 38 percent of his dropbacks, but were only able to convert that into one sack on the night.

Von Miller was excellent tonight. He had a sack and was a force in the run game as well. He showed he is more than just a pass rusher.

Von Miller was in for 25 snaps against the run. On 5 of them, he had a run stop. Very rare for a 3-4 OLB to do that well vs. run. #TNF

— Nathan Jahnke (@PFF_NateJahnke) October 14, 2016

Another Broncos player who was excellent last night was cornerback Bradley Roby. H.e was targeted four times and only allowed two receptions and also had two pass break-ups.

Other notable Broncos defensive players who did well Thursday night.