The inches started to add up before the Broncos took the field for their season opener against Seattle. It started in the offseason, continued into minicamp and OTAs, spilled over into training camp and was fully ingrained by the start of the regular season.



When Week 1 arrived, the problems were noticeable, in spite of a win: three passes intercepted, multiple drops, missed tackles, missed opportunities.



The Broncos, in their second year under head coach Vance Joseph, failed to correct so many of the mistakes that plagued their first season together. After losses, players admitted to “shooting themselves in the foot” or “beating themselves,” shaking their heads in bafflement over the missed assignments, poor communication and subpar play.



They knew they had problems, and seemingly couldn’t correct them. And so for both seasons they finished with a losing record, a dubious feat the franchise hadn’t achieved since Richard...