No holiday cheer in loss to Rams, but plenty of F’s

Offense — F

From Denver’s first play — a no-shot, one-on-one heave up the sideline for Courtland Sutton against Jalen Ramsey — through Russell Wilson’s three interceptions to an inept running game, the offense had no semblance of rhythm. Perhaps you thought the Broncos had found a formula running the ball and using their play-action game to create easy completions in the passing game. Once Denver went down 17 points a shade more than 10 minutes into the game, Denver pretty much went into scramble mode offensively. That didn’t work either.

Defense — F

In the matchup between head coach Sean McVay and his former assistant, Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, the mentor shredded the mentee. Los Angeles scored on its first seven possessions, ran the ball at will and picked apart a Broncos secondary that was near the top of the NFL in most categories. Instead of containing Baker Mayfield, the quarterback who only joined the Rams off the waiver wire three weeks ago, the Broncos’ defense had its worst day of the season. By far. Los Angeles had 41 points on the board early in the fourth quarter. This, mind you, from an offense that had not scored 24 points since Week 6. Mayfield finished 24 of 28 for 230 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Special teams — B

Like the smallest stocking present in a train car full of coal, Brandon McManus had a nice day. He made field goals of 54 and 49 yards. Montrell Washington had a productive return on a short kickoff. The punt return unit didn’t see the field because the Rams did not punt.