State of the Broncos: Significant upgrades needed on the defensive line

The Broncos finished the 2021 season with a 7-10 record. It was the team’s fifth-straight losing season. It also marked the sixth-consecutive year in which the franchise failed to make the playoffs.

As a result, Vic Fangio was shown the door. The head coach was 19-30 during his three seasons in Denver. A coaching change is on the way.

What will the new head coach inherit? What will his new staff have to work with in Denver?

The “State of the Broncos” series is a position-by-position look at what went well in 2021, what didn’t and what needs to change for ’22 and beyond. In this installment, it’s time to take a look at a position that has been underwhelming in recent seasons – the defensive line.

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Pro Football Focus Grades
Mike Purcell – 64.3
Shelby Harris – 61.3
Dre’Mont Jones – 57.8
DeShawn Williams – 56.2
Shamar Stephen – 49.5

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2021 Review

All teams tend to overvalue their own talent. They like the guys on their roster, have watched them develop and think they’re going to be good. As a result, they think they’re better than almost everyone else in the league does.

Such is the case with the Broncos defensive line. Denver has some nice players at defensive end and nose tackle, but there isn’t anyone that’s a standout. There isn’t anyone who changes games. There isn’t anyone who is irreplaceable.

That was evident this season. It was hard to tell the different when Mike Purcell was out for four games. No one even noticed. Same when Shelby Harris was out. Or Dre’Mont Jones.

It’s not to say those guys aren’t decent players. They are. They just aren’t special.

On the season, Harris led the Broncos in sacks with 6.0. He also had two passes defensed and a forced fumble. Those aren’t bad numbers. But they didn’t have a major impact.

Jones continued to show flashes, evident by his 5.5 sacks on the season. He also had two passes defensed and a forced fumble. Again, decent numbers. But not a week-in, week-out game wrecker.

The rest of the Broncos defensive line was mostly taking up space. They were there to occupy blockers, to free up linebackers to make tackles.

It’s a thankless job. And it’s underwhelming.

The Broncos don’t have anyone on their defensive line, at least right now, that can change a game. Perhaps Jones can develop into that player. But as we saw in 2021, he – along with his fellow d-lineman – is just a guy.

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A Look Ahead

Heading into next season, George Paton needs to go shopping for defensive lineman. He needs to find some difference makers in the trenches.

With roughly $50 million in cap space, the Broncos general manager could certainly look to free agency to fill the void. There are certainly some intriguing names available.

Jadaveon Clowney looks like the big-ticket item. He had nine sacks and 19 quarterback hits this year with the Browns. So he can wreck havoc. His injury history would be a concern, however.

Emmanuel Ogbah shined this year in Miami. He also had nine sacks, while posting 24 QB hits. That’s the find of interior pressure the Broncos need.

Charles Harris had eight sacks and 16 quarterback hits in Detroit. He was a bright spot on Aaron Glenn’s defense.

Those types of players are going to command $10 million or so per season. It would be money well spent to upgrade along the d-line.

The Broncos could also look to the draft to solve their issues. A pair of Georgia defensive lineman top most big boards, with Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt projecting to be early second-round picks. That’s right in the wheelhouse for Denver.

Either way, the Broncos need to add pieces. They have to find better players along their defensive line. They can’t keep fooling themselves into thinking Shelby Harris, Mike Purcell and Dre’Mont Jones are the answer.

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