Broncos embarrassed by Rams on Christmas Day, with Nathaniel Hackett's job firmly in question

Dec. 25—INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Down 28 points in the third quarter, Dalton Risner headed to the sideline heated.

The Broncos' starting left guard, along with the rest of the Broncos' starting offensive line, had just allowed back-to-back sacks on Russell Wilson. And as Risner approached the sideline, he and backup quarterback Brett Rypien had a fervent exchange, which ended in Risner pushing Rypien away while several teammates and coaches stepped between the two.

"It was a frustrating time. We're all competitors. We both want to win the game," Risner said. "That's the game of football. We want guys to care. People should be pissed off."

Anger and frustration on the Broncos' (4-11) sideline Sunday in Los Angeles was ever-present, as they were curb stomped 51-14 by the Rams (5-10). From Risner and Rypien's heated exchange to outside linebacker Randy Gregory's multiple outbursts — including chucking his helmet across the field and punching a Rams player after the game — the Broncos were in disarray on Christmas Day.

For a team that has lauded itself on sticking together despite falling well short of expectations this season, it was a jarring display that reflected a lack of discipline and poor leadership.

"That was embarrassing. I'm embarrassed," coach Nathaniel Hackett said. "That's not what we're about. That's not what we've done all year."

The Broncos were doomed from the start Sunday, falling behind 17-0 in the first quarter after two costly interceptions by Wilson. It snowballed from there, going down 31-6 at halftime and 44-13 in the fourth quarter before Wilson was pulled by Hackett.

Wilson had arguably his worst game as a Bronco, finishing 15 of 27 for 214 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. It was the first time in Wilson's career that he threw three interceptions and was sacked six times in the same game.

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"The bottom line is I let us down and that can't happen. It's disappointing," Wilson said. "We're all frustrated because we feel like we're better and capable of being better. ... Nobody wants to put out what we put out today. That was terrible. That was not us. That was not very good."

But Wilson wasn't the only disappointment Sunday. The Broncos' defense — which has statistically been atop the league for most of the season — finally broke. The Rams totaled 388 yards on offense, rushing for 158 while quarterback Baker Mayfield threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns.

Los Angeles got whatever it wanted whenever it wanted with a backup quarterback and an offense missing a handful of its top playmakers.

"We got our ass kicked," safety Justin Simmons said. "All across the board — run, pass, all 11 of us didn't do our job. That was obviously the difference in the game."

A week ago, the Broncos had one of their best performances of the season, beating the Cardinals 24-15 at home. Some even believed Hackett might be able to keep his job if he could string together a few wins to end the season, facing a bad Rams team and trying to steal wins against division rivals in the Chiefs and Chargers.

But now, after their worst loss of the season, one has to wonder if Hackett's job is safe moving forward. Starting Monday, teams that have fired their head coach this season can start interviewing candidates on other teams to get a head start before season's end. It's unclear if the Broncos will do that, but Hackett is in constant communication with General Managers George Paton and the Walton-Penner ownership group, which will ultimately make the decision.

"We always talk about what happened and the 'whys' — where did things go wrong and where did things go right?" Hackett said. "We're always evaluating everything. I'm evaluating myself. I'm evaluating the team. I'm evaluating the coaches, everyone. We have to be better all around because we can't have another game like that."

Hackett has taken bullets left and right this season and has seemingly held a sinking ship together. But Sunday might have been the breaking point in a season full of new rock bottoms.

While the Broncos were firmly outplayed on the field, which Hackett took responsibility for, it was his team's actions on the sideline that might have sealed his fate.