BALTIMORE -- Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton had said the team's trip to Baltimore this weekend would allow the team "to see where we are.''
And after Sunday's 41-10 loss to the Ravens in M&T Bank Stadium, it appeared clear the Broncos (5-4) were not, at least on one sun-splashed afternoon in November, anywhere close to the Ravens on either side of the ball.
Payton said he will hold up the mirror this week to all involved, including the coaches, to try to figure out why.
"We've had tough losses ... [but] it gets back to that grit and sometimes embracing the misery a little bit,'' Payton said. "You just can't bulls--- yourself, including the head coach ... you get on that plane and you get back to work [Monday]. ... That's where we're at.''
"A lot of what ifs in this game, but the fact of the matter is we got our butts kicked,'' Broncos quarterback Bo Nix said. "... We've just got to execute better.''
The Broncos' plan to possess the ball as long as possible on offense didn't work out and neither did their plan to limit the Ravens' league-leading rushing attack. And their desire to show they are ready to compete with the league's heavyweights is still unfulfilled.
Lamar Jackson left the game in the fourth quarter with a job well done, 16-of-19 passing for 280 yards and three touchdowns for a perfect 158.3 passer rating, while Derrick Henry had 106 yards rushing with two touchdowns.
There was a stretch when the Ravens had a 17-10 lead late in the first half to when it ballooned to 38-10 with just over a minute left in the third quarter when the Broncos offense had run just four plays.
Their attempts to be aggressive failed for the most part and when they had opportunities for game-changing plays on offense or defense, they didn't make them.
"One of my boys always says 'if if was a fifth we'd all be drunk,'' Denver wide receiver Courtland Sutton said.
"There's going to be games where you're going to go in on Monday and it's not going to taste good for any of us,'' Payton said. "We're not going to like it, but that's life. We've got to bow up and get ready to play next week. No excuses.''
Nix's first pass attempt was tipped first by Broncos wide receiver Lil'Jordan Humphrey -- Humphrey said after the game he should have made the catch -- and then intercepted by Ravens safety Ar'Darius Washington at the Broncos' 37-yard line. The Broncos' defense forced the Ravens to punt on the next possession, but that was the peak of things.
Baltimore scored on its next seven possessions.
"They beat us pretty much in all three phases, we didn't do a good enough job coaching, we lost to a good football team and it's disappointing,'' Payton said. "... You end up in a game where you have to become one dimensional and obviously that happened to us [Sunday].''
Nix finished 19 of 33 passing for 223 yards and was sacked four times to go with that interception. The Broncos have lost four games this season when Nix has thrown an interception.
The Broncos face the Kansas City Chiefs (7-0) on Sunday in Arrowhead Stadium.
"[Payton] hit it just right, this is miserable, you never want to lose games like this,'' Nix said. " ... We do have to face it, you can sit there and point the finger at somebody else or you take ownership of it. The only way to not be in this situation anymore and to find ways to improve is to look internally.''