Meeting the challenge: Broncos defense finds another gear after long run by Chargers tailback Melvin Gordon. »
Melvin Gordon saw the crease as two of his offensive linemen teamed up to pin down Broncos defensive end Derek Wolfe.
One quick step and Gordon, the third-year running back for the Los Angeles Chargers, was deep into the secondary for a 21-yard gain.
The Broncos reconfigured their defensive line in the offseason to plug some of the holes like the one Gordon sprinted through early in Monday night’s season opener. But injuries ravaged the group during training camp. Projected starting defensive end Jared Crick missed Monday’s game because of a back injury. Zach Kerr, a freeagent acquisition from Indianapolis, also was inactive.
So thin were the Broncos along the defensive line that they had to call up undrafted Tyrique Jarrett up from the practice squad .
Yet, Gordon’s run wasn’t a harbinger of nightmares to come for the Broncos’ run defense. It was simply an invitation to access a higher gear. The unit did just that while largely putting the clamps on Gordon and the Chargers’ run game, which managed only 37 yards on 14 carries in the first half after the big run to open the game.
Denver defensive end Shelby Harris, who blocked the Chargers’ game-tying field-goal attempt at the end of regulation, said limiting the run game is the weekly expectation.
The Broncos refusal to bend on the ground was defined by one crunching tackle early in the fourth quarter. The Chargers, trailing 24-7 and facing fourthand-1 near midfield in the fourth quarter, turned again to Gordon.
Todd Davis turned him away. The inside linebacker bolted into the backfield and buried Gordon before he could gather any forward momentum, forcing a turnover on downs.
There wasn’t much running to be done by the Chargers in the second half, not with Los Angeles facing a 17-point deficit at the start of the fourth quarter. Bigger tests on the ground await, including Sunday against Ezekiel Elliott and the Dallas Cowboys. But the Broncos emerged from their opener Monday night with room for optimism regarding their run defense after finishing 28th against the run in 2016.
The defensive line held its own against the Chargers, and it had help. Safeties Darian Stewart and Justin Simmons wreaked havoc when they approached the line of scrimmage. On one key play in the third quarter, linebacker Shaquil Barrett blew through the line to push Gordon further outside on a run play than was designed, and Stewart zoomed in to take him down at the knees.
Denver’s pass defense continued to be stingy. Before a drive that began with 10:37 left in the fourth quarter, quarterback Philip Rivers managed only 82 yards passing. He finished with 192 yards.