Denver Broncos Defense on Historic Pace After Record Setting Start
The Denver Broncos have been one of the best defenses in the NFL so far this week. What’s even scarier is that the Broncos defense is not at full strength yet.
The Broncos tied a franchise record with nine sacks against the Jets, showcasing their remarkable balance and depth with eight different players contributing to the sack total.
As The Denver Gazette noted
Outside linebacker Nik Bonitto couldn’t help but laugh when he learned the stat:
“I was shocked when they told us after the game,” Bonitto said. “That’s pretty funny.”
Bonitto leads the entire
Cornerback Pat Surtain II, last season’s DPOY, thinks Bonitto could be next in line.
“It was honestly pretty crazy,” Surtain said. “It was like I was sitting back watching, being a fan of it. We’re covering for maybe one or two seconds, I look up, there’s a sack. It’s a pleasure to watch and a pleasure to be part of.”
Historic Numbers Through Week 6
Through six weeks, Denver leads the NFL with 30 total sacks, 10 more than any other team.
They rank second in total defense (254.2 yards per game) and scoring defense (15.8 points per game). Only the
The turnaround has been remarkable.
After giving up 473 yards in a Week 2 loss to Indianapolis, the Broncos’ defense has completely locked in. In their last three wins over the
Nose tackle D.J. Jones said the group has found its rhythm:
“We’ve been in that groove, just a relentless groove. It’s special to be a part of it.”
Denver’s Depth and Dominance
Despite missing key contributors like linebacker Dre Greenlaw (quad injury) and still easing Malcolm Roach back into action after a calf issue, the Broncos have emerged as perhaps the league’s most feared defensive unit.
Roach made his season debut on Sunday in London but only logged 25 of 57 defensive snaps.
Even without Greenlaw and Roach for most of the first six weeks of the season, the
“They’ve been playing their butts off week in and week out,” wide receiver Courtland Sutton said about the defense.
“It’s been special to watch, and I’m just grateful to be on a team with guys playing at that level. They’re out there with the mindset that nobody can stop them. The sky’s the limit for those guys.”
As dominant as Denver’s defense has been, it could get even scarier once the unit is back to full strength.
The Broncos will host the Giants next before a Week 9 clash with Houston, a game that could turn into a battle between two of the NFL’s top defenses.
Lions Want to Even Out Workload Between Running Backs
Through six games, the Detroit Lions have had an uneven split in carries for running backs Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery.
Both backs are talented enough to be the feature back, but certain circumstances have dictated a slight disparity in action between the two running backs. Notably, Gibbs carried the ball 17 times on the ground in Week 6 while Montgomery had just four carries.
Gibbs has played 230 snaps this season, or 62 percent, while Montgomery has played 143 snaps, which equates to 39 percent of the team's action. On Monday, Lions coach Dan Campbell
For starters, Gibbs is in on a majority of two-minute packages which tends to lead to him getting plenty of consecutive snaps. The Lions still have been cautious as to not over-exert the young back, but he has currently been doing more of the work.
“Well, I think that’s something that I always try to look at. We certainly don’t want him – either one of them getting too much. But I know that it’s a little more tilted towards Jah right now. And a lot of that comes in the two-minute reps that we get," Campbell said. "Now the other day we only had six of them, but a lot of times that’s where that goes because he’s normally in on that and that can skew it. But I don’t feel like we’ve gotten Jah too much in a game yet necessarily. I think he like 36 or 37 snaps the other night. And so, I feel pretty good.
Moving forward, Campbell would like to generate a more even split between the two backs, as both have plenty to offer for the offense. However, each has a skill set that can be better for certain situations, which could dictate which option is utilized.
In ideal circumstances, the snap count and carry allotment would be closer to an even split. As the season rolls on, Campbell would like to see it get to that point as well.
"I would like to balance them out. I would. I would like to give David some more," Campbell said. "Find a place to get him a few more. And we were hoping we were going to be able to do that in the second half some more the other day, and it’s just kind of the way where the game went. We didn’t convert on a couple of those series. We get in fourth-and-10s, and that took away some of the runs and play-passes, and then we were in a different type of game at that point.”
