DEFENSE STRUGGLES IN BRONCOS’ FIRST LOSS
Broncos don’t score after first quarter in season’s initial loss Defensive backs looking like No Try Zone after rough game
BALTIMORE» In 2015 and 2016, the Broncos’ pass defense was f irst in the NFL in fewest yards allowed. They put opponents in a vise grip with their combination of rush, coverage and ball skills.
Seems like a long time ago, doesn’t it?
Opposing quarterbacks making big plays and posting high completion percentages against the Broncos continued to be the norm during Baltimore’s 2714 win over Denver on Sunday.
And besides the 13 penalties, that should develop into the major story line from the Broncos’ first loss: They can’t cover on a consistent basis. Their depth, believed to be suspect during training camp and confirmed by the late Au gust addition of 34year old cornerback Adam Jones, isn’t up to the organization’s usual standard.
“Our entire back end has to play better vs. the pass,” coach Vance Joseph said after the Broncos were denied their fourth 30 start in six years. “They couldn’t run it, so they threw it.”
And threw it and threw it and threw it.
Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco was 25of40 passing for 277
yards. He completed 62.5 percent of his attempts. He did not throw an interception. Last week Raiders quarterback Derek Carr completed 91.4 percent of his passes, an NFL record for a player with at least 30 attempts.
“That’s two weeks in a row,” Joseph said. “We have to shore it up on the back end and play much better.”
Play much better or else the Broncos are in trouble.
“It’s a collective group effort, but it does start with us,” safety Justin Simmons said.
The pass rush is only effective if the quarterback has to survey the field. Last week, the Broncos could defend the lack of a pass rush (one sack) because Carr threw so quickly. But it’s not like he was forcing throws. His targets were getting open.
The same kind of thing happened Sunday. The Ravens had several longdeveloping plays when the protection held up, but Flacco also took advantage of numerous breakdowns in the secondary. He picked on rookie cornerback Isaac Yiadom, inactive in Weeks 12, but active Sunday because of Jones’ thigh injury and Tramaine Brock’s firstquarter groin injury.
Through three games the Broncos have allowed quarterbacks to complete 69.5 percent of their passes and post a 102.2 rating. Compare that to just two years ago — 55.4 percent completion rate and a 69.7 rating.
The Ravens had five “explosive” completions (at least 16 yards), bringing the Broncos’ total to 16 allowed.
So the questions were asked around the M&T Bank Stadium visitor’s locker room: What’s the issue? And can it be solved?
Players will always say something is fixable. They are also loath to publicly pinpoint the problem since that means lambasting their teammates.
So I’ll say it. The issue is personnel. This isn’t the Broncos secondary of cornerback Aqib Talib and safety T.J. Ward in their primes. And linebacker Brandon Marshall was limited against the Ravens because of a troublesome knee injury.
Is the game plan an issue? Is it too complex? Is that the reason why players were still directing traffic until right before the snap?
“It’s already very simple,” cornerback Chris Harris said. “It can’t get more simple.”
Harris offered that the Broncos’ defense has become to too simple. “They know exactly what we’re in,” he said. “We have to try and trick them.”
Help isn’t on the way — anybody who can cover in a passhappy league is under contract. And teams don’t trade good secondary players, either. If Jones and Brock are out against Kansas City, Yiadom will again get the No. 3 cornerbacks snaps.
“I just have to get better,” Yiadom said. “I’m not tripping about it. I’m learning every time I get a chance to be on the field. I go into every single game confident. That’s not going to change.”
Maybe the Broncos need to change their pressure man concepts and implement six and sevenman blitzes to force the issue and ensure that Yiadom and cornerback Bradley Roby don’t have to cover for long. A sevenman pressure on third down against Flacco forced him to throw incomplete.
Three games is enough of a sample size for a trend and the Broncos’ pass defense trend is disturbing.
The loss was disturbing and sets up a critical twoweek stretch for the Broncos in general and Joseph in particular. Now we get to see how the Broncos get to handle real adversity (a regular season loss) and real problems (penalties).
When undefeated Kansas City arrives next Monday to Mile High, it will bring an undefeated record and starinthemaking quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who has 13 touchdowns, no interceptions and a sensational 137.4 rating.
Even after a single loss, thinking “Uhoh” isn’t a sign of panic as much as it is acknowledging reality. Average and flawed teams like the Broncos can’t allow quarterbacks to perform with pinpoint accuracy.
“Just not playing well right now (against) the pass,” Marshall said. “I don’t think we’re playing with great technique. We have a lot to fix.”