Real Deal

At the start of the fourth quarter of his NFLWeek 3 matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals, Trevor Siemian, the young quarterback of the Denver Broncos, found himself facing something resembling adversity. His team was down, 17-16, on the road, and his perfect 2-0 record as a starter was in jeopardy.

But Siemian, the man given the nearly impossible task of replacing Peyton Manning at the helm of the defending Super Bowl champions, was not intimidated, throwing two fourth-quarter touchdown passes — he had four for the game — as the Broncos beat the Bengals, 29-17.

For the third consecutive week, Siemian increased his output, and in Sunday’s win, he reached career highs in passing yards (312) and passing touchdowns (4). He also avoided throwing an interception, having thrown three in his first two games. He was forced to do the heavy lifting as Denver’s typically sound running game was absent, with a total of just 52 yards on 23 carries.

The game was a letdown for the Bengals, who held tough through three quarters and took a lead four seconds into the fourth quarter on a 34-yard field goal by Mike Nugent. But from that point on, it was all Denver, as the Broncos reeled off 13 unanswered points and their defense tightened the screws, shutting down any attempt from the Bengals to keep up.