The Denver Broncos have been blessed with some great defensive units over the years. The Orange Crush obviously comes to mind. And who could forget the No-Fly Zone seasons coupled with the pass rushing duo of DeMarcus Ware and Von Miller that brought the franchise its last Super Bowl victory?
While this year’s team has a long way to go toward being a formidable Super Bowl contender, most of the early returns to date have been quite favorable for Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph and his players on the defensive
side of the ball. What can be said about their incredible performance yesterday versus the New York Jets? It was dominant, ferocious. Dare I say it was one of the most impressive defensive outings in National Football League in recent memory? I think so and the results speak for themselves.
Yesterday against the Jets, the Broncos defense allowed less than 85 yards of total offense. Now here is an eye-popper for you—Justin Fields had a net negative of 10 passing yards by games end. It’s almost impossible to imagine that happening in the pros, but it did yesterday. In fact, it was the first time in several years a defense in the NFL didn’t give up at least one explosive play on the ground or the air.
On top of that, the ‘25 Broncos are the first team since the ‘21 Bills to notch at least nine sacks in a game and hold their opponent to less than 100 total yards on offense. It’s a pleasure to watch this unit compete on weekly basis. That’s a sentiment shared by Head Coach Sean Payton, who is glad to have his group of stars on his team and not someone he has to gameplan against.
“We’ve got a number of them that you’re glad that you have them on your team and are not playing against them,” stated Payton after Denver’s victory when asked about the star power on his defense.
The Broncos led the league with 21 sacks going into yesterday’s game. After amassing a whopping 9 sacks on Fields, the team now has 30 on the season. The 1984 Chicago Bears hold the record for the most sacks in a season with 72. Now averaging 5 sacks per game, the Broncos would be on pace for 85 during their ‘25 campaign.
It will be hard to sustain that sort of success, but if there has been a bright spot to single out for the team this year, their ability to get after opposing quarterbacks is one of them. Defensive lineman, edge rushers, safeties, and linebackers all contributed to the Broncos’ sack parade against on Sunday. All three levels of the defense were dialed in, and Joseph had a tremendous game plan that kept the Jets’ offense from taking flight.
Denver’s defense certainly set a high standard for themselves this season. They’ve been adamant about being a dominant force. But even yesterday’s results were a bit baffling and for some, even a bit beyond belief.
“It was honestly pretty crazy. It was just like I was sitting back watching, being a fan of it, you know what I mean, because we’re covering. It’s barely one or two seconds, I look up, there’s a sack,” stated reigning Defensive Player of the Year and All-Pro cornerback Patrick Surtain II.
“It’s a pleasure to watch and a pleasure to be part of. Honestly, when we got in the game, we understood offensively what they were trying to do. All we were trying to do is rush and cover and have that align at the same time,” Surtain added.
For the rest of the team? Their efforts paled in comparison. The offense and special team’s units struggled throughout the course of the game. That has been a trend since Week 1. Moving forward, those issues will have to be addressed in order for Denver to forge themselves into true contender status. They simply can’t sustain this sort of one-dimensional success throughout the rest of the season.
But for now? All that matters is that the Broncos won. Not every victory is going to be pretty. That’s life in the NFL. Ugly wins are just a part of the deal. Sitting at 4-2 after six games, it is the best record the Broncos have sported since to the start of their 2016 season. That’s something to be excited about.
“Starting 4-2 is a big deal. Something we haven’t done since I’ve been here. It’s pretty special to be at this point right now. We got to keep getting better, keep growing every week,” stated All-Pro pass rusher Nik Bonitto.
After being on road four of the past five weeks, the Broncos get to host four of their next five games at home. If they work hard to correct their issues, they have the potential to make a serious run leading up to the Thanksgiving holiday. Next up on the docket? Jaxson Dart and the New York Giants. I can’t wait to see what Joseph and the defense has in store for the rookie quarterback.
