The Broncos took the ball out of Russell Wilson’s hands for NFL’s worst coaching decision of the year

Let’s play a game! You’re the head coach of the Denver Broncos. Offensively, you have Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy (who caught a 64-yard touchdown pass earlier in the game), Javonte Williams and QB Russell Wilson, along with two timeouts at your disposal. It’s 4th and 5 on the Seattle Seahawks’ 46-yard line and there’s 20 seconds left.

Do you:

A) Go for it with Russell Wilson and the Broncos offense

OR

B) Attempt a 64-yard field goal

If you chose B, you might just be Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett! The Broncos were down one in their Monday Night Football tilt with the Seattle Seahawks when Hackett chose to attempt a 64-yard field goal instead of simply going for it on 4th and 5.

The kick by Brandon McManus was, in fact, no good, and the Broncos lost to the Seahawks 17-16. The most baffling part of this decision was the sheer analytics part of the choice to kick. Going into the night, McManus was 1-7 on field goals of 60+ yards, and according to TruMedia, kickers are 2-29 on kicks of 60 yards and above since 2000. The numbers weren’t in McManus’ favor, yet Hackett chose to send him out there anyway.

The reactions were just about what you expect:

The Manningcast was delightful during this moment, however. It’s a reminder that Shannon Sharpe is gold.

Of course there’s the Russell Wilson part of this as well. Taking the ball out of your $246 million dollar QB whom you traded a boatload of picks for with the game on the line to kick the second longest field goal in NFL HISTORY is certainly a choice that can be made. Hackett’s quote after the game was the most damning, however:

Just ... wow. Does Hackett not trust Wilson enough to get a first down on 4th and 5? The Broncos converted on a 3rd and 5 earlier in the drive! Plus, when Wilson threw the ball into the flat to Javonte Williams, there was 1:03 left on the game clock, more than enough time to take a timeout and get a play that will move the chains. I mean, Hackett is the playcaller for the Broncos, surely he would have something that Wilson would like.

This was one of the worst coaching decisions I’ve ever seen. Being uber conservative on the potential game winning drive (death by screen pass) and the inefficient use of the timeouts all went into the decision to kick the field goal. It was like Hackett knew the entire time that was going to be the plan. If it was, then why? Isn’t this why you go and get Russell Wilson?

Wilson and the offense have some ironing out to do, but if you can’t trust them during this moment, there’s not much that can be done.