DENVER – The Denver Broncos offense didn’t score a single point in the first half against the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Again.

For the third time in six games, Sean Payton and Bo Nix went into halftime with a goose egg on the scoreboard.

In addition to no points, the Broncos only had 60 total yards of offense, three first downs, 38 rushing yards, 22 passing yards and made just one play in Chargers territory.

“It was obviously a disappointing loss,” Payton said of the team’s 23-16 loss, which snapped its three-game winning streak. “We did all the things you can’t do in a game like this. We knew what kind of game it was going to be. We turned it over twice in the first half. That earned points. Then you look at the moment of ownership when you do that. They played the ball better than us. We attacked late in the game. This all starts with me. We have to be better offensively. We have to protect the ball better. That’s what I saw. We’ll continue from there. We have a short week. When we’re done tonight, we’ll be done talking about this game.”

On a perfect football day, the poor attacking performance, especially in the first half, could not be attributed to the weather.

The offense picked up after halftime, dropping 16 points and 256 yards in the second half. But it was too little too late.

“Let’s be honest, it picked up when we picked up the pace and you’re behind. You get different coverage,” the head coach said as he explained what changed with the Broncos offense from the first half to the second half. “We played at a certain pace. We had a false start at the beginning of the first half. We played with tempo early in the second quarter and messed with the football. Those were all up-tempo plays, but I think we were able to make some plays down the field towards the fourth quarter. The match was in a different position at that time. We fought to get back in.”

Once again, the Broncos struggled to mount a rushing attack early and nearly gave it up by more than twenty points.

Outside of a team-high 61 rushing yards from the quarterback, Denver had 49 total rushing yards.

For the fourth time this season, Javonte Williams averaged less than four yards per carry. For the fifth time this season, Jaleel McLaughlin averaged less than four yards per carry.

That’s why the head coach hinted after the game at a possible adjustment in the Broncos’ running backroom.

“We are a young team. I want to see this runner too. I want to see (Audric) Estime,” Payton said when asked about the young talent on offense. “We’re going to see (Devaughn) Vele and we’re going to see (Troy) Franklin. We’re not waiting to redshirt these guys. We will continue to see each week their commitment to the plan and how they fit. This gives you confidence and experience.”

A day before Sunday’s loss to the Chargers, Estime was activated from injured reserve after missing the previous four games due to an ankle injury he suffered in the season opener.

But in the very small sample size he had in the two games he played, he was flashed. In Week 1, the rookie running back had two carries for 14 yards. On Sunday, he had two carries for 13 yards.

Etime’s 6.8 yards per carry is almost double Williams’ 3.6 yards per carry and more than double McLaughlin’s 3.3 yards per carry.

The rookie sample size is drastically small, but Payton pointed to seeing if Estime can add more spark to Denver’s ground game.

Entering Sunday Night Football, the Broncos’ 107 rushing yards per game ranked 10th worst in the NFL. If you take out Nix’s 30 rushing yards per game, the Broncos’ 77 rushing yards would rank last in the NFL.

A bigger dose of Estime could do the trick to help the ground game, which in turn would also help the starting quarterback.

After Denver’s third loss of the season, Payton said he wants to see the rookie running back. The good news for the head coach is that he is the one who makes the decisions.

Within a short week, following Payton’s comments, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see an increased role for Estime in New Orleans when the Broncos take on the Saints on Thursday Night Football.