The Broncos’ seventh consecutive loss was sealed three plays into the second quarter Sunday at Oakland. They knew it. The fans knew it. They had all seen this play out before, again and again and again.

Quarterback Paxton Lynch, on a second down at the goal line, scrambled to the left then threw a bullet to tight end Virgil Green in double coverage in the end zone. The ball bounced off his fingertips, was bobbled in the arms of Oakland’s Reggie Nelson, then landed in the grasp of NaVorro Bowman.

Interception.

Game over — with about 45 minutes left.

“It’s obviously a physical game but also a mental game,” Broncos coach Vance Joseph said. “We haven’t won in a while, so when adversity strikes on game day, we have to figure out a way to overcome it mentally and not worry about it so much to where we stop executing. After the interception Sunday, defensively we gave up two long drives for touchdowns. Before that point, (Oakland) had (two) three-and-outs and a punt. So you can say it doesn’t affect you, but it does. You have to find a way to overcome those things from a mental standpoint.

Winning late, winning close and coming from behind were hallmarks of the Broncos’ 2015 season — a pick-six or fumble recovery here, a game-winning drive there and in the closing seconds the Broncos were back on top for the thrilling victory.

Including the postseason, they won a league-high 11 games by seven points or fewer that year, and they became the first team in NFL history to have three comeback wins of 14 or more points against playoff teams in a single season.

This year, the numbers are grossly skewed and confirm what most have seen play out week after week: One bad play and any momentum the Broncos gain in the early going is shot. And unrecoverable.

When trailing after the first quarter of games this season, Denver has gone 0-5. When trailing after the second? 0-7. And after the third? 0-8. And when opponents score first, the Broncos are 0-6.

“When you’re in a losing streak like we’re in, those things tend to really affect you,” general manager John Elway said in his weekly interview on Orange and Blue 760. “I think what happened is we’re not responding real well to adversity right now, and we have to get better at that.”

Think back to Week 11, when the Broncos held Cincinnati to a three-and-out on its opening possession, then blocked a punt. On Denver’s ensuing drive, Brock Osweiler was picked off at the goal line, setting up a Cincinnati score three plays later.

Think back to Week 10 against New England. The Broncos forced a three-and-out but fumbled a punt return that the Patriots’ promptly returned for a touchdown.

And go back to the Broncos’ three consecutive road losses, when they were shut out for the first time in 25 years (Week 7), amassed 10 turnovers and surrendered 38 first-quarter points. Related Articles Broncos power rankings roundup: How the national media ranks Denver entering Week 3

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“I think we fight. I just think we fight super late in the game and we’re like, ‘Man, if we would have just had that fight a couple plays ago,’” running back C.J. Anderson said. “It’s always one play — ‘If we would have just made this play or made that play.’ If Paxton throws the ball 2 inches farther, (Devontae Booker) is catching it in the end zone. Things like that where it’s like, ‘Ugh.’ On the Raiders’ first interception, Bowman’s on his back. Football gods definitely aren’t on our side at the 1-yard line so far this year.”

When the game turns on a single play or mistake, the Broncos have struggled to adjust and regain their momentum, rendering the fourth-quarter highlights useless because they’ve failed to be competitive in the first three.

The Broncos have spun 17 points out of their six takeaways this season. But their 22 turnovers have yielded a league-high 84 points by opponents.

“The adversity, we’ve got to respond a little better to it. But it’s hard, because human nature — the same old thing like the fans are saying, ‘Oh, boy, here we go again,’” Elway said. “We can’t be victims. Bad things happen, and we have to be able to put our nose to the grindstone again and battle through these tough times.

“You find out a lot more about people in these situations than you do, obviously, in good times.”