Will the real Nik Bonitto please stand up? The great-and-powerful sackmeister who gave Denver’s defense its intimidating edge and made Bonitto a legit candidate for defensive player of the year? He was a ghost in the Broncos’ 34-20 loss to Jacksonville. No-Show Bonitto. In defeat, th e sackmeister looked like he could use a hug. “I played ass today,” said Bonitto, when I asked the bummed-out linebacker to evaluate his performance. “I don’t think I played to my standard. I felt like I could’ve been a lot better. I didn’t come ready to play today, and it kind of reflected on the rest of the defense.” On a Sunday when these young, scrappy and hungry Broncos blew a tire on their orange bandwagon, the team’s joyride to the top of the AFC came to a screeching halt. “Losing sucks,” Denver offensive tackle Mike McGlinchey said, “No matter what time of the year it is.” But the NFL gets way more serious in December, when the real contenders step up and wannabe pretenders stand down. Creating expectations is all fun and games. Living up to those expectations? Well, that’s a whole ‘nuther thing, brother. Almost none of the Broncos spied in a somber locker room have been here before, feeling the full heat of glory-on-the-line, no-margin-for-error, high-stakes football. “It definitely stings to lose like this,” McGlinchey said. His extensive playoff experience, including the pain of losing a Super Bowl, during McGlinchey’s time playing for the San Francisco 49ers, could now be invaluable to somebody like Bonitto, who zipped his jacket over his mouth during a postgame interview in a failed attempt to conceal his frustration. “It’s obviously concerning defensively,” said Bonitto, still ticked that Packers quarterback Jordan Love carved up the Broncos for a half last weekend. “I just feel like we’re not playing our type of ball. We haven’t played our type of ball since the bye week (a month ago).” His body language screamed exasperation as the Broncos’ deficit to the Jaguars grew from daunting to hopeless as the second half progressed. That Bonitto is mired in a slump was as evident as his slumped shoulders as he walked oh-so-slowly off the field toward the Denver bench on the play that sapped all the beautiful noise out of Empower Field at Mile High. With Denver trailing 24-17 late in the third quarter, quarterback Trevor Lawrence and the Jags broke the huddle deep in their own territory, needing three yards on third down to keep a drive alive. It felt like Bonitto time, a crucial juncture when a sack can change momentum in one fell swoop on the QB’s head. Instead, Lawrence threw a short pass in the right flat to Patrick Washington, who gathered the football and made a cut that left the ankles of Denver cornerback Riley Moss in the dust of this old cowtown. Washington then darted 63 yards to set up a touchdown that would put Jacksonville 14 points ahead and ruin any realistic chance of clutch-time magic from Broncos quarterback Bo Nix. “Part of the process is not fooling ourselves,” said Denver coach Sean Payton, who wants his players to remember the bitter taste of defeat. “You can’t spit it out. You’ve got to swallow it.” On the eve of this season, the Broncos gave Bonitto more money than any non-quarterback in franchise history, rewarding him with a diamond-encrusted contract extension worth north of $100 million. From the jump, Bonitto appeared to be every penny, creating havoc with his pass rush from the Rocky Mountains to jolly old England, and all points in between. Bonitto drew comparisons to Von Miller, while his teammates staked a claim to being the most ferocious D in Denver since we saw the Broncos rip off the Superman cape of Carolina quarterback Cam Newton in Super Bowl 50. After six games, Bonitto was the proud owner of eight QB sacks. But during the second half of this season, even as Denver was rolling to 11 consecutive victories, his infectious smile and disruptive play began to fade to the point of concern written all over Bonitto’s face. Yes, Bonitto saved the overtime victory at Washington by swatting away a pass by Commanders QB Marcus Mariota on a last-breath, go-down-swinging, two-point conversion attempt. Other than that big-money play, however, he has largely been No-Show Bonitto, recording only 4.5 sacks in the past nine contests as offensive coordinators have increasingly game planned to stop him. “Respectfully, I know I’m a good player,“ said Bonitto, who cares so much it hurts. “And I’ve got to find ways to be more effective.” The hunter has turned into the hunted. While the Broncos still lead the pack with a 12-3 record in the race for the AFC’s top playoff seed, the Jaguars, Chargers, Bills and Patriots are all nipping at their heels. “If you’re not hunting,” Nix said, “somebody’s after you.” On a day when the Broncos wore orange from head to toe, their Cinderella magic reverted back into a big, fat pumpkin. They need No. 15 at his edge-rushing best to be a legit Super Bowl contender. On this first day of winter, it felt like the worst time for Bonitto to go into hibernation. Come out, come out, wherever you are. ...read more read less