Stokley: Shane Ray will have 10-sack season for Broncos if healthy
Jul 23, 2018, 7:42 PM | Updated: 7:42 pm
Shane Ray certainly has had his fair share of ups and downs during his short tenure with the Denver Broncos.
Down: Ray dropped in the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft due to a marijuana citation. Up: The Mizzou linebacker was drafted No. 23-overall onto a Super Bowl champion Broncos team.
Up: The pass rusher followed up his rookie campaign with an 8.0-sack performance in 2016, starting eight games for Denver. Down: Hampered much of the 2017 season by injury, Ray put up just 1.0 sack.
“Obviously, anybody who’s watched me in my first two years knows what I’m capable of, and last year I wasn’t the same me due to injury,” Ray said during OTAs. “For people holding that against me, it is what it is. I don’t care. I’m just going to go out there and do what I can for my team.”
The rollercoaster-like nature of Ray’s time in orange and blue continued this offseason when the Broncos declined his fifth-year option.
Ray also suffered a setback on his injured left wrist that, at the time, had him needing a fourth procedure and would cost him playing time during a critical point in his career.
On Monday, however, reports indicated some good news had befallen Ray. The outside linebacker didn’t actually need surgery and his timetable for return may be much quicker.
And if fully healthy, “Stokley and Zach” host Brandon Stokley believes Ray can have a 10-sack season in what’s likely his final year in Denver.
“On this defense, he’s going to play a lot of football,” Stokley said. “If he stays healthy, I expect a 10-sack season from Shane Ray.”
In May, when the Broncos declined Ray’s option, Stokley called the move “awful” and a “bad decision,” hoping that the linebacker makes Denver “pay” for it.
“I thought it was a no-brainer. I thought it was a layup,” Stokley said of the fifth-year option. “You have some wiggle room there if you do pick it up, just as long as he doesn’t get hurt. You protect yourself against him going out and having a great year and then him being a free agent and you losing him.”
And head coach Vance Joseph did admit the declined option is likely a motivating factor for Ray in 2018.
“He’s a pass rusher, so he controls his own destiny. If he goes and has a great year, he can make a lot more than the option,” Joseph said. “That’s my message to Shane. He’s motivated.”
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.
