The Denver Broncos expected to have an easy Sunday Night Football game against the Washington Commanders. With one of the best defenses in the league and a 9-2 record, they faced the Washington Commanders, who sat with a 3-8 record prior to the game and missed starter quarterback Jayden Daniels.
But it wasn’t a walk in the park. The Broncos had to dig deep during the game, while the Commanders found a way for the offense to work with Marcus Mariota playing under center. What was supposed to be a boring game turned into a surprisingly close contest.
Shannon Sharpe Calls Out Broncos’ Vance Joseph For Defensive Plan Against Commanders
Jayden Daniels is known for his mobility, but the same can be said about Mariota, his backup. Even at 32 years of age, Mariota continues to use his legs as an important part of his game, extending plays and finding open receivers.
But the game plan to stop Mariota drew criticism midway through the game, including from legends of the franchise. Former tight end Shannon Sharpe, who now works as an analyst, expressed his displeasure with Vance Joseph.
He wanted the coordinator to send extra pressure instead of dropping eight in coverage, writing, “Vj rush 3 against a mobile guy. Stop playing around with this tm and put them away.”
Vj rush 3 against a mobile guy. Stop playing around with this tm and put them away
— shannon sharpe (@ShannonSharpe) December 1, 2025
The game plan did not work well. The Commanders battled through four quarters and overtime and scored 26 points, the third-highest number allowed by the Broncos in 2025. If Nik Bonitto does not get a pass deflection in the two-point attempt in overtime, Washington would get an upset:
NIK BONITTO. GAME OVER. pic.twitter.com/wdilygDF1x
— NFL (@NFL) December 1, 2025
Although Mariota’s number did not look great, he made key plays to keep the Commanders alive during overtime. He threw some great balls into the end zone in his final drive, including a touchdown nullified by a penalty, and another one caught by Terry McLaurin.
No one expected the Broncos’ defense to have so many problems against a backup quarterback. Our PFSN Defense Impact Metric ranks the unit as the best in the league, with an A- grade, and an impact score of 90.1
Prior to the game, the expectation was of a dominant performance by the group, but it did not happen. Joseph’s name has been discussed around the league as a possible head coach candidate. On Sunday, in primetime, he did not impress.