ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos are nearing the finish line in their quest to arrive at the right 53-man roster ahead of the Sept. 8 regular-season opener in Seattle. Denver has one more preseason game, Sunday at home against the Arizona Cardinals, before finalizing its roster.
Ahead of this critical stretch, let’s take a look at some players and aspects of Denver’s overall team trending up — and down — after a 27-2 victory against the Green Bay Packers:
Stock up
Bo Nix piloting goal-line offense
The rookie quarterback got rid of the ball in an average of 2.65 seconds in Sunday’s game, according to TruMedia. That’s nearly 0.6 seconds faster than Denver was delivering the ball in Russell Wilson’s starts last season (3.22), and it’s a difference you can feel when watching Denver’s offense operate. It has been most noticeable during Denver’s quick-hit plays deep in the red zone. Both of Nix’s touchdowns in the preseason — a 1-yard dart to Marvin Mims Jr. in Indianapolis; a 2-yard pass to Tim Patrick on Sunday — came on quick throws at the top of his progression.
Bo Nix ➕6️⃣
The 12th overall pick finds Marvin Mims Jr. for the @Broncos first TD of preseason!
📺: #DENvsIND on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/8CTfxfIP7Y— NFL (@NFL) August 11, 2024
The Broncos spent significant time in the offseason evaluating their goal-to-go offense after finishing 30th in the league in short red zone efficiency last season. Being more successful in that area of the field comes down to all the moving parts of the offense moving with more precision.
“It’s harping on the details — splits, looking straight and not selling that you’re going straight across the field — there’s a lot of details going into it to make sure that it works,” Patrick said. “And there’s obviously the game-planning. We’ve game-planned those plays, and they worked.”
GO DEEPER
Bo Nix puts emphatic claim on Broncos’ starting QB job in breezy win vs. Packers
It’s a small sample, but Nix’s quick processing ability and quicker release could be keys to making the puzzle work for the Broncos when they get into the confined space of the deep red zone.
Jonah Elliss
After a game in which Elliss registered a sack, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery, the rookie linebacker was already voicing a plan to improve when he had his next chance to chase quarterbacks.
“There was a drop I had where I got out-leveraged, and that’s somewhere I can grow,” Elliss said. “That happened in the first game, too, where I got out-leveraged, so that’s something I’m really going to focus on this week.”
GO DEEPER
Broncos rookie Jonah Elliss steadily improving his pass-rush plan
It was a window into how Elliss has grown during his first NFL training camp. He spent much of OTAs familiarizing himself with defensive coordinator Vance Joseph’s scheme and building a varied rush plan. That foundation now in place, Elliss has played with a freedom during the preseason that has been easy to identify. He has two sacks and has created pressure on six of his 16 pass rush snaps, according to Tru Media. Two of those pressures have contributed to interceptions opposing quarterbacks have thrown — both into the arms of safety Keidron Smith, who returned Sunday’s pick 56 yards to set Denver up in scoring territory.
Ball is out!
The @Broncos get it back.
📺: #GBvsDEN on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/fuuRS5Zm6c— NFL (@NFL) August 19, 2024
“I like his energy,” coach Sean Payton said of Elliss after Sunday’s game. “I think they called the one roughing (penalty) on him. I kind of saw that and that was a tough call. He has a countermove. He’s someone that it’s not just one rush plan. He plays with passion and, again, I’m encouraged with the rookie class. A number of these guys have a chance to contribute, and we’ll just keep working with him. It’s good to see his progress. He got a lot of snaps tonight.”
Run defense
The Packers on Sunday gained 9 yards on their first six rush attempts. By the time Ellis Merriweather produced the team’s first relative big run — 5 yards with 11 minutes left in the second quarter — Green Bay was already facing a 10-0 deficit.
“We played the run well at Indianapolis and … there were a lot of good things in that joint practice (Friday),” Payton said. “Just kind of stacking these practices and building confidence.”
The Broncos have given up 3.1 yards per rush, which ranks No. 3 in the NFL through two weeks of the preseason. They are also fifth in TruMedia’s defensive rush success metric. Context matters, of course. The Broncos didn’t face Green Bay’s starters Sunday. Still, Denver’s work against the run is encouraging given the offseason work that went into improving the defensive front. Zach Allen and John Franklin-Myers, who both sat out the opener in Indianapolis, played against the Packers and looked impactful.
Payton said Friday he believes the defense is well ahead of where it was at this time last year, and much of that confidence resides up front. The front line of Allen, Franklin-Myers and D.J. Jones is formidable, and Malcolm Roach and Angelo Blackson provide strong veteran depth the Broncos didn’t have last year. There is still much to prove, but the early returns are creating a favorable review of Denver’s personnel work this offseason.
Tyler Badie
The running back has touched the ball 25 times in regular-season and preseason games with the Broncos dating to Week 18 of the 2022 season. He has scored a touchdown on four of those plays. That includes a reception on a screen Sunday night that he turned into a 7-yard touchdown and an 11-yard run into the end zone on a toss play last week in Indianapolis.
Badie appears to be a long shot to make the initial 53-man roster for the Broncos. Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin and rookie Audric Estimé are probably locks. If the Broncos keep a fourth running back, chances are it will be veteran Samaje Perine, whose work in two-minute situations and as a pass protector demonstrates his value. But Badie has earned an extended evaluation in Sunday’s preseason finale against the Cardinals. Even if his path this season begins on Denver’s practice squad, he looks like a player who can help the Broncos at some point.
“He gets after it every single day,” said Zach Wilson, who has been the quarterback during most of Badie’s reps in the preseason. “He’s a great player, loves the game. All positive things to say about him. He’s always ready to go out there and play, and he hits it hard.”
Tyler Badie takes the screen pass from Zach Wilson in for six!
📺: #GBvsDEN on @NFLNetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/F3la9GCDHZ— NFL (@NFL) August 19, 2024
Stock down
JL Skinner
It wasn’t just that Skinner watched teammate Keidron Smith intercept his second pass in as many weeks, making a strong push for a roster spot in the secondary. It was also that Skinner committed a roughing-the-punter penalty early in the second quarter that extended a Green Bay drive. That came after he jumped offsides during a punt coverage drill in Friday’s joint practice against the Packers.
The second-year safety out of Boise State had nice moments Sunday, including a tackle for loss and a pass deflection he registered just after committing the big penalty. At 6 feet 4 and 220 pounds, Skinner offers unique size at a safety position that is transforming this offseason. The Broncos have been pleased with his overall progress, demonstrated by a strong defensive performance in Friday’s practice. Still, Skinner needs to show he can be more disciplined to earn the staff’s trust and the larger role that comes with it.
Skinner, of course, was not the only culprit Sunday. Payton said the Broncos “had enough penalties for three games” after they were called for 13 infractions totaling 120 yards.
Troy Franklin
It has been a tough start for the rookie wide receiver out of Oregon. Franklin has run 24 routes across two preseason games, according to TruMedia, and he’s only been targeted once. He hasn’t caught a pass. The fourth-round pick has flashed at times in practice as a deep threat — “You can feel his speed,” Payton said earlier this month — but the consistent production hasn’t been there yet. The Broncos traded fifth- and sixth-round picks to move up and select Franklin at No. 102 (Denver also got a seventh-round pick back in the deal), pairing him with Nix, his teammate at Oregon.
Rookie Troy Franklin continues to try to re-create the success he had with Bo Nix at Oregon. (Isaiah J. Downing / USA Today)
That investment makes releasing Franklin during roster cutdowns an unlikely move. But he also hasn’t shown he’s ready to be an impactful player for Denver’s offense. It’s still early. Receivers in Payton’s offense have historically ingratiated themselves into the scheme at varied rates. Early in camp, Payton referenced Robert Meachem, a first-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2007, as a player who needed a year to grasp his role in the system. After that, Payton said, “Man, did he come on.” For Michael Thomas, on the other hand, “it was immediate.” The second-round pick of the Saints in 2016 had 1,137 yards and nine touchdowns during his rookie season.
The Broncos seem OK with Franklin developing on the Meachem timeline. Still, it would be nice to see signs of progress from the rookie in the preseason finale against the Cardinals.
Offensive line depth
The Broncos were without starting left guard Ben Powers on Sunday as he nursed sore ribs. Veteran Calvin Throckmorton filled in for Powers and the starting offensive line group didn’t miss a beat. The Broncos scored on both possessions that unit was on the field. They didn’t give up a sack and paved the way for 48 rushing yards on nine carries during that span.
It wasn’t the same story for the second and third units, though. The Broncos gave up three sacks across the final nine possessions, including a takedown of Zach Wilson in the end zone late in the third quarter accounting for Green Bay’s only scoring in the game. The Broncos gained a modest 61 rushing yards on 18 carries during that stretch, and penalties were an issue. Alex Forsyth was called for a hold that wiped out a 27-yard run by Badie, and Wilson was sacked for the safety two plays later. Offensive tackle Alex Palczewski also drew a holding call.
The Broncos are confident in their front five. Luke Wattenberg appears in line to start at center as the replacement for Lloyd Cushenberry, and every other starter from last year’s team has returned. But the Broncos can’t bank on being as healthy as last year when the top five linemen started 17 of 18 games together. Quinn Bailey’s season-ending injury last month was a blow. He played multiple spots on the offensive front and had been Denver’s top reserve lineman. The development of depth behind him is a work in progress.
(Top photo of Bo Nix: David Zalubowski / Associated Press)
