SPORTS BRONCOS PASS DEFENSE STRONG IN SECOND HALF
The Broncos like to describe their defense as one that plays pressman coverage, challenging every completion.
“And in the first half, we didn’t do that,” coach Vance Joseph said Monday, referring to Sunday’s win over the Oakland Raiders. “We played way too cautious. We were really nonaggressive, and they took advantage of us. That’s on me.”
The Raiders built a 120 halftime lead, at which point quarterback Derek Carr was 18of19 passing for 158 yards.
The Broncos in general and their defense in particular rebounded after halftime for a 2019 win, though they had only one sack and no takeaways.
“In the second half, we got more aggressive, it showed and we played better,” Joseph said.
But finding coverage options after top cornerback Chris Harris is an ongoing issue.
Bradley Roby is a starter, but needs to improve. Veterans Tramaine Brock and Adam Jones traded turns as the nickel back against Oakland. The Broncos rely on Brock and Jones because rookie Isaac Yiadom has been inactive for two weeks and Brendan Langley is on the practice squad.
Joseph said Jones was limited Sunday because of a “tight” hamstring. Jones called his injury “a little strain but I’ll be all right. I was not as aggressive this week
because of my hamstring.” The Broncos trimmed Jones’ playing time from 38 snaps in Week 1 to 21 plays against Oakland.
Jones said Joseph’s halftime message was clear.
“Just play a little more aggressive as a group,” Jones said. “That was the main thing. Press a little more than we did early. We could have played more aggressive (in the first half ).”
In the first half, the Broncos’ cornerbacks gave too much cushion. Carr recognized the free yards and threw quickly.
“We were 7 or 8 yards off and it’s going to be a completed ball and he’s going to fall (forward) for 5 or 6 yards,” Joseph said.
Wary of the Broncos’ pass rush and recognizing soft coverage, Carr (29of32) made history with his throwquick, throwshort, throwaccurate performance:
His 90.6 completion percentage was the fourthhighest in NFL history among quarterbacks with at least 20 attempts in the game. And he became the first quarterback to attempt at least 30 passes and finish with a completion percentage of 90 or better.
And, among those with at least 20 passing attempts in a game, Carr’s 288 yards were the most in league history for a player who completed at least 90 percent of his passes.
The Raiders provided a howto guide to neutralizing a Broncos pass rush that had six sacks in Week 1. Carr got rid of the football quickly. A lot. It mirrored the Raiders’ Week 1 plan against Los Angeles Rams interior pass rushers Aaron Donald and Ndamukong Suh.
The Broncos threatened from the edges with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, but the Raiders’ plan was similar.
Of Carr’s 32 attempts, he threw in less than two seconds 19 times. The breakdown: Less than two seconds (19), 2.002.50 seconds (six), 2.513.00 seconds (six) and more than three seconds (seven).
The Broncos’ only sack (by Miller) came in 3.01 seconds.
“You just have to stay the course and keep rushing,” defensive lineman Shelby Harris said. “All it takes is one or two plays where he actually holds on to the football and it isn’t a quick pass. You knew they were going to get the ball out quickly. You have to make sure you don’t get frustrated because if you do, it can carry onto another play and you can’t let that happen.”
The Broncos face Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco on Sunday. Flacco is not a statue, but won’t create plays with his feet, either. The key will be tight coverage helping the pass rush and vice versa.
“We have to press the receivers because if (Carr) held the ball, we know that we can get pressure,” Joseph said. “With our pass rush, as a corner, you should have confidence that if they’re throwing a (deep pass), our pressure will get there.”