BALTIMORE — Surely, the Broncos couldn’t lose this one, right?

Here was the situation: Ravens star quarterback Lamar Jackson had left the game, injured in the first quarter. Safety Justin Simmons had two interceptions. And the Broncos had a 9-3 lead with 4:34 remaining with the Ravens needing to go 91 yards against the best defense in football.

One would think the Broncos had this one in the bag. But, then again, you don’t know this Broncos team.

Instead, the Ravens went 91 yards with their backup quarterback Tyler Huntley, who scored the game-winning touchdown to make it 10-9 with 31 seconds to go. And, of course, Brandon McManus’ 63-yard field goal attempt fell 10 yards short, handing Denver its fourth consecutive loss.

Who could have seen that coming? Well, probably all of Broncos Country.

“Throughout that whole time, I thought we had a chance to win the football game,” coach Nathaniel Hackett said. “Our defense played great, but gave up that one 91-yard drive and that was kind of the clinching factor.”

But don’t be fooled. While the defense gave up the game-winning drive that included two fourth down conversions and two back-breaking penalties — an unnecessary roughness by linebacker Alex Singleton and a pass interference by corner Pat Surtain II — this loss, like nearly all of Denver’s losses, is not on the defense.

Even if they continually tell you it’s not just the offense’s fault, it’s simply not true. And that was again the case Sunday in Baltimore, with defensive players falling on the offense’s sword.

“Our best football has to be played in two-minute situations,” safety Justin Simmons said. “We just weren’t able to execute there at the end. We had the two penalties. It wasn’t good enough to win the game.”

But it should have been good enough. After the Broncos took a 9-3 lead at the 4:03 mark in the third quarter, thanks to Simmons’ first of two interceptions in the game, the offense had three more possessions where any points would have likely iced the game.

The result? Punt. Punt. Missed field goal.

“It’s upsetting, losing games like that continuously,” wide receiver Jerry Jeudy said. “We always fall short.”

The Broncos punted seven times Sunday and did not reach the red zone once for the second time this season — the other came against the Titans only four weeks ago. Their receiving corps totaled only five receptions for 76 yards, with four receptions and 65 yards of that being Jeudy’s alone. They totaled only 272 yards, which was their third-lowest total of the season. Since the bye, the Broncos have only scored three touchdowns in four games. And they’re on pace to have the lowest scoring season since 1966 in franchise history, averaging 13.8 points per game.

“We’ve got to find ways to score touchdowns,” quarterback Russell Wilson said. “This game is about touchdowns and finding a way to win. At the end of the day, no matter what the score is — we have to win them.”

The reality for the Broncos is they don’t know how to win close games, losing seven one-score games, including three by three or fewer points. They’ve blown five games — Colts, Chargers, Titans, Raiders at home, Ravens — when leading at halftime. And one could make the case each of those losses is on the offense failing to score points in the second half, scoring a league-low 55 second-half points.

“We’ve got to be better,” Hackett said. “It starts with coaching and then we’ve got to execute and we’ve got to do everything better on offense.”

Denver’s season is essentially over, even with five games remaining. It’ll be their sixth consecutive season with a losing record and are already eliminated from winning the AFC West, despite having yet to face the Chiefs. They have less than a .1% chance of making the playoffs, according to FiveThirtyEight.

This is definitely not the season anyone in Broncos Country imagined, especially Wilson, who was traded to Denver in March. This is the worst season of his career statistically, and he’s never lost nine games in a season in his career. And it’ll be up to him — and possibly a new coach — to turn it around.

“It’s a new feeling,” Wilson said, “One I don’t like, one I don’t want to experience ever again and one we have to figure out how to not experience as a group.”

Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson (3) scrambles under pressure from Baltimore Ravens defensive tackle Calais Campbell (93), left, and Baltimore Ravens linebacker Tyus Bowser (54), in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2022, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)