The Denver Broncos play in one of the toughest divisions in football, but their defense may be good enough to lead them to the playoffs this season.
Prior to the 2011 NFL season, the Denver Broncos decided to bring John Fox in to be their new head coach. During his four years with the team, Fox led the Broncos to four division titles, while doing so with Peyton Manning as his quarterback. However, Fox and company could not win big games in the playoffs, so the Broncos decided to bring in a familiar face to try to get them over the hump.
That familiar face was Gary Kubiak, who spent most of his career as John Elway’s backup in Denver. Kubiak got to work right away, and in his first season as head coach, led the Broncos to a Super Bowl win. The Broncos were able to get the ring despite the fact that Manning was way past his prime, and it was thanks to a defense that was one of the best in NFL history.
Last season, Kubiak and his team had to figure out who would replace Manning as the team’s starting quarterback. Originally, the plan was for Brock Osweiler to take over for his mentor, but he took a big chunk of money to go to the Houston Texans. In hind sight, it looks like the Broncos dodged a huge bullet on that one.
With Osweiler gone, the Broncos decided to take Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch in the first round. In order to win the starting job, Lynch would have to battle it out with veteran Mark Sanchez, and a seventh-round pick from the year before, Trevor Siemian from Northwestern. Well, Siemian shocked the world by beating out Sanchez and Lynch, and actually played well last season in his first campaign as an NFL starter.
Like during the Super Bowl year, the team was led by the defense, however, as the offense struggled to get anything going on the ground. After the 9-7 season, that saw the Broncos miss the playoffs, the team received word that Kubiak would be retiring for health reasons. On January 11, 2017, the team hired his replacement, bringing in Vance Joseph, who had never been a head coach at any level before.
With a new head coach in town, the quarterback position was once again up for grabs this Summer. With both guys getting a fair shake, Siemian once again beat out Lynch, who has to be considered kind of a bust by now. However, just as the case was last year, this team has no identity when running the ball, which could once again prove costly.
Luckily for Joseph, who was a former defensive coordinator for the Miami Dolphins back in 2016, the Broncos defense is loaded once again. Von Miller is arguably the best defensive player in football, and defensive ends Shane Ray and Derek Wolfe are beasts at getting the edge. Add to the mix a secondary that is second to none, and you have the making for another special season on the defensive side of the ball.
Cornerbacks Aqib Talib and Chris Harris are a dynamic tandem, and the combination of T.J. Ward and Darian Stewart at safety make this secondary a special one. The Broncos play a bunch of solid signal-callers this season, so their strength in the secondary may be just what they need to surprise teams in 2017.
When it comes to the offense, the Broncos do still have one of the best wide receiver tandems in the AFC West. Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas are excellent players, and have the ability to change the game at any time. Siemian proved in 2016 that he can get them the ball, and with a full season as a starter under his belt, he should be even better in 2017.
The thing that worries me about this team is the running game, where they actually brought in Jamaal Charles this offseason to provide a spark. C.J. Anderson was not playing terribly when he was injured in Week 7 of last season, though the meniscus injury ended his season. He is going to get the first shot at retaining the starting job, but the team saw some flashes from rookie Devontae Booker last season, and signed Stevan Ridley this offseason.
Denver has an early bye this season, but they do play the Los Angeles Chargers and Buffalo Bills during their first four games. They hit their bye week in Week 5, which means they have a long schedule ahead of them once they get back going. The AFC West plays the NFC and AFC East this season, and that means they will have to face playoff teams like the New England Patriots, Dallas Cowboys, and New York Giants.
The AFC West is going to be really tough this season, as both the Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs both won 12 games in 2016. Both teams figure to be in the mix for supremacy in the AFC as a whole this season, though Denver may have the best defense of any team on their schedule. They are going to be able to get stops, but will they have enough depth on the offense to be able to put up points on a consistent basis.
X-Factor
If the Denver Broncos are going to make a serious run in a very tough AFC West, they are going to have to run the ball. Their offense was way too vanilla last season, and with a rough offensive line, defenses were able to key on the Broncos young quarterback. C.J. Anderson needs to put together a healthy season, and be as productive as he was in 2014 and 2015.
While he did not run for a ton of yards in those seasons, he did tote the rock for nearly a five-yard per carry average. That is very good production, but even when healthy in 2016, he was very inconsistent. In fact, his best game came in Week 7, when he rushed for over 100 yards against a very good Houston Texans defense.
Anderson has the talent to be a good back in the NFL, and is still only 26-years old. He scored at least one rushing touchdown in four of the seven games he played in last season, and if the Broncos can have him for 16 games, he could be a 1,000-yard rusher.
Best Case
Heading into the 2017 NFL season, the Denver Broncos are rated as the third-best team in their own division. That is pretty incredible considering they might be a top-10 team in the entire NFL. The best case scenario for the Broncos this season would be a ten-win season, which could yield them a Wildcard.
First-year head coach Vance Joseph surrounded himself with good people, so he should be OK even though he has never been a head coach before. If they can run the ball effectively, and Siemian takes a step forward in his development, this team could surprise a lot of people.
The defense is going to be fun to watch, and there is no way this team wins less than eight games. Figure best case, they somehow get to double-digit wins and have their defense help lead them to another Super Bowl appearance.
Worst Case
The worst case scenario in Denver is the running game never takes off, and their second-year starter gets roughed up behind a very mediocre offensive line. First round pick Garett Bolles actually won the left tackle job, and he will play opposite former Oakland Raiders tackle Melinek Watson. That is not good news for Broncos fans, who had to deal with the terrible play of Russell Okung last season.
If the Broncos cannot run the ball, and Siemian is harassed all season, the defense is not going to be able to carry the team to a playoff spot. There are too many good teams in the AFC to get to the playoffs with only eight or nine wins, so this team could very well finish outside of the postseason.
Worst case, the Broncos have a season like they did last year, and the players end up watching the playoffs from their couches.
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Final Word
This Denver Broncos team is pretty stacked with talent, and they should be able to knock some teams around this season. I really worry about the lack of a run game, because you have to be able to mix it in, even if the passing game is your strength. The New York Giants tried to pull that off last season, and ended up losing in the Wildcard Round.
Vance Joseph will get tested early as the team plays the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys during the first four weeks of the season. However, they do play three of the first four at home, so getting out to a good start will be key. This defense is going to keep them in games, but I just do not know if they have enough flexibility on offense to really contend this season.