Is the once formidable Broncos secondary now a team weakness?
Sep 25, 2018, 3:41 PM | Updated: 4:42 pm
Through three games in 2018, the Denver Broncos defense has given up 788 yards through the air, putting them in the bottom third in the NFL in terms of pass defense.
Denver’s secondary has allowed 8.2 yards per attempt and a 69.5 percent, both figures toward the bottom of the league.
After the Broncos 27-14 loss in Baltimore on Sunday, Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco said, “Honestly, if you want to really say it, this game, we could have thrown the ball 55 times, and I think it probably would have been to our advantage.”
Instead, the Ravens went 25-of-40 for 277 yards and a touchdown on the day.
“Why would you rush it? Why would you run it if you’re having as much success as the Ravens were having throwing the football?” asked “Stokley and Zach” host Zach Bye on Tuesday.
“Flacco’s right. They could have thrown the football 55 times.”
So, has the once vaunted Broncos secondary turned into a weakness for the team?
“There’s a lot that you could look at and say, man, this is a weakness for the Broncos now. It’s not a strength anymore,” Bye’s co-host Brandon Stokley said Tuesday.
Among those question marks, Stokley said, is the trust in defensive coordinator Joe Woods and the lack of depth.
“You tried to bring in some older guys. You missed on Brendan Langley. You got Isaac Yiadom, who you like, but he’s still a young football player. So, you’re in transition there,” Stokley said. “And there’s a lot that needs to get better.”
With that being said, Stokley believes going up against a high-octane offense like the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday could be a recipe for disaster for the Broncos.
“They’ve got weapons all over the place. Everywhere,” Stokley said. “… They’ve got them all over the place, and you have a guy right now that is as dynamic as it gets calling the shots with Patrick Mahomes.
“So, there’s nowhere to hide somebody this coming week. Any holes that you have on the backend will be exposed.”
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.