The Sutton-Jeudy combo has the makings of a Dumervil-Miller type impact

Of all the stories I’ve heard from former Broncos players, my favorite is one told by Orlando Franklin.

The year was 2011 and Big O was a rookie. That offseason, the NFL players and owners were engaged in a lockout, so the rookies were unable to report to the team facility, go through any offseason activities or even speak to their coaches. The lockout ended just before training camp and Orlando suddenly had to report to the Broncos.

As Orlando tells it, he was struggling enough early on in training camp that he was legitimately worried he would be the first second-round pick to be cut from the team during the first preseason game. The Broncos played their first preseason game in Dallas against the Cowboys. Orlando was nervous going in, but he played well and was relieved.

He soon learned he wasn’t struggling because he was a bad player; he was struggling because he was going against Elvis Dumervil and fellow rookie Von Miller every day in practice. Dumervil and Miller made every offensive tackle in the NFL look bad, so it wasn’t just Orlando.

In 2011, Dumervil was a five-year veteran and was one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. During his first five seasons, however, the Broncos defense would regress into one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Dumervil was a bright spot on an otherwise bad defense. For the Broncos defense to get better, they needed to add a playmaker.

In the 2011 NFL Draft, the Broncos drafted Von Miller with the second-overall pick and expectations were high. Miller would live up to those expectations by recording 11.5 sacks, as he was awarded AP Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Dumervil missed the 2010 season with a torn pectoral and bounced back in 2011 with 9.5 sacks. The combo of Dumervil and Miller combined for 21.0 sacks in 2011 and 29.5 in 2012. In their two seasons together, there wasn’t a better pass rushing duo in the NFL.

They benefited from playing opposite of each other and they made the most of it. While Dumervil was the incumbent elite talent, it didn’t take long for Miller to prove he was just good or possibly, even better. In actuality, it didn’t matter who was better; together nobody could stop them. As good as Dumervil was in his first five seasons, he never made the playoffs until Miller arrived.

Having an elite talent like Dumervil and adding a generational player like Miller was the biggest catalyst to kick starting the Broncos dominance of five consecutive AFC West championships from 2011-15.

The current Broncos should be excited as they are potentially looking at a new dominant young duo with Courtland Sutton and rookie Jerry Jeudy. Sutton, like Dumervil, is the veteran in his position group. While Sutton has continued to get the better, the offense as a whole has struggled. For the first time in his young career, Sutton is being placed in a situation where his skills can lead to the Broncos actually winning games.

Jeudy was graded by many as the best wide receiver in the deepest class at that position in NFL history. Like Miller, the rookie is ready to step in and be elite from day one and complement the veteran player. The luxury of players like Miller and Jeudy is that their talent is so off the charts that they’re able to dominate while still developing.

As ready as Jeudy is to be a starter in the NFL, playing opposite Sutton will help Jeudy grow without as much pressure. As a rookie, Randy Moss was unstoppable, but he played with Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter. Carter’s presence made it difficult for teams to focus their energy on just one player. Sutton and Jeudy are about to make opposing defenses have to make the same difficult decisions as Vikings opponents had to make in 1998.

There has been concern that cornerback Bryce Callahan is getting beat in training camp practices. Well, like Orlando Franklin against Miller and Dumervil in 2011, Callahan is going against what might be the best wide receiving duo in the NFL. The worry shouldn’t be on Callahan, but rather excitement should be placed on the young wide receiving duo.

Normally combining a rookie with a veteran doesn’t always yield immediate results, as the rookie needs to develop. Dumervil and Miller became one of the best duos in the league because Miller was a next level talent and ready to go.

Von Miller as a rookie was better than most players at this position in the NFL. Jerry Jeudy is already going to be one of the best wide receivers and pairing him with Sutton will make the Broncos have one if the best wide receiver combinations in the NFL.