In order to write with any sense of objectivity, I must admit my bias in order to gain a full picture. The Denver Broncos have been number 1 hated team since the first time I saw The Broncos cheat in 1998. I don’t care how Mark Schlereth explains it, this was much worse than deflating a football. According to the LA Times, Schlereth answered the question about the how they cheated with, “Did I grease up my jersey, and use sticky substances on my gloves? You’re damn right,” Schlereth said recently. “What you call cheating is a fine line. It’s an interesting line. What we did, in the locker room, is called being creative. Certain cheating is snickered at, or applauded.” Even with Schlereth being a cheater, I’ve hated the Broncos because they were always the most serious competition in the AFC West (sorry, Raiders. I’ll get to you next). The Chargers always find a way to “Charger it up” in the playoffs and the Raiders are run poorly from the top.
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Quarterback: Drew lock
Coming out of Missouri, Drew Lock has shown to have a strong arm and a willingness to make plays. He’s shown the Broncos enough in his game against Houston to give them a sliver of hope at a position that hasn’t been handled since Peyton Manning. Throwing for 309 yards with 3 TDs and 1 Int against Houston (in Houston) was impressive. From a Chief’s fan perspective, I saw him get better as he played more (only 5 games). With the only exception being the Chiefs defense treating him like a little brother that’s too small to play with the big boys. Lucky for him, no one expected him to beat a team hotter than Carolina Reaper that he rub in your eye, accidentally.
Reason For Optimism…
I would be excited as a Broncos fan after Lock lit up the Texans like Jeezy did for him in the Raiders game. He finished with a 98.5 QBR and a 136 Passer Rating against a team that went up 24-0 against the World Champions in the Divisional round. He showed poise in the pocket and above average accuracy against a top 3 team in the AFC. He should get a pass for going to Arrowhead in December with a team that has gelled better together than Salt and pepper on a Brisket Point. Overall, I think it’s too early to say whether or not he’s the answer, but they’ll find out if this season happens.
State of the Offense
Again, from my perspective, there is only 1 pass-catcher on the Broncos that I’m worried and that’s, Courtland Sutton. He’s a game-changer for them that is able to stretch the field with his 6’4″ height and has shown with his 70-yard TD against the Chargers in October. A lot of mock drafts on ESPN and CBS, and NBC have the Broncos taking a defensive player because the top WRs won’t be there at 18. This leaves the Broncos with finding a diamond in the rough in later rounds to compliment Sutton on the other side.
Offensive Line
The offensive line for Denver is an even more concerning issue than their Wr group. I hate to kick a man while he’s down, but their 1st round pick in 2017 (20th overall), Garett Bolles is a bust. I believe they’ll move on from him either this year or next. According to Jeff Legwold of ESPN, John Elway has questioned if his LT even knows what holding is. To me, this is a worse sign for the coaching staff than it is for the player. If you have to question whether or not a player knows the rules, that falls on the coach, right? Either way, they need to move on from him, because Frank Clark and Joey Bosa will be in this division for at least the next 3 years. Num Num Num…
Running Backs
The RB room for the Broncos has the chance to be the best RB squad in the NFL with the Broncos addition of Melvin Gordon. I do think he’s a little overrated, but Phillip Lindsay is less physical version of Jamaal Charles. He’s quick, fast, good hands, and if he’s given a crease, he’s gone. Royce Freeman has impressed me with from the first time I saw him run the ball against the Chiefs. He’s 240 lbs and 6’0″ tall and runs like he’s got a chip on his shoulder. Any of these RBs could start for a lot of other teams in the NFL and I wouldn’t be surprised if the Broncos ran for more yards this season than the Ravens.
State of The Defense
The Broncos have had such a good defense over the years that we automatically suspect them to be good every year. With the once in a generation talent of Von Miller facing a RT and a healthy Bradley Chubb on the other, the Broncos pass rush should be effective. However, I don’t like the move to let Chris Harris walk for almost nothing. A.J. Bouye is a great pick up for the Broncos, but I don’t think he was ever better than Chris Harris. He’s also entering his 9th season and no CB gets better at this point in their careers. He’s a solid CB that will help them lock down teams like the Raiders and Chargers, but they still have no chance against KC.
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Safety
On defense, I think this is the strongest position for the broncos with Justin Simmons and Trey Marshall anchoring the back end. They don’t have a lot of ints, but they’re both physical and cover a lot of ground. Justin Simmons sticks out on every game film you watch of him and Trey Marshall plays with a swagger that can’t be denied. I’d like to see P.J. Locke challenge for some playing time next season because I believe he can be a game-changer.
Linebackers
I’ve never been a fan of a 3-4 defense, unless you have bookend rushers that can force all plays to the inside. Luckily for Denver, they have one of the best to ever do it in Von Miller. His quickness, agility, and balance is spectacular to watch (even for a Chiefs fan), but I do feel like he’s starting to lose a step going into his 11th year. Bradley Chubb has shown promise, but he just missed 12 games due to injury and no one knows how he’ll come back. As far as the inside LBs go, Denver is too young and I haven’t seen anything that would worry me as a Chiefs fan.
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Defensive Line
With the addition of Jurrell Casey, the Broncos have solidified their interior with one of the most dominant DL in the NFL. He will force Guards and the Center to double him every play. That means, Bradley Chubb will be 1-1 with the LT almost every play because nobody wants that smoke from Von Miller every play. I think Mike Purcell and Shelby Harris will be better utilized because the attention will undoubtedly be on Casey. Look for Denver’s D-line to be much improved and dominate teams in the comparable competition, such as the Raiders and Chargers.
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Overall Opinion (Before the Draft)
As much as there is to be said about whether or not Drew Lock is the guy for them, he won 4 out of 5 games. His only loss was to the Super Bowl Champions in the Holy land (Arrowhead Stadium). Their Defense will be better against the run, but will get torched by explosive passing teams. Denver will need to find answers in the Draft at the WR position and O-line if they want to compete with the top dogs in the AFC. Overall, I think Denver will win 9 games this season, but I wouldn’t be shocked if they made a wildcard with the new rules.
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