State of the Broncos: Can an NFL team ever have enough cornerbacks?

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 the Broncos invested in heavily – cornerback.

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Pro Football Focus Grades
Michael Ojemudia – 77.1
Pat Surtain – 66.1
Ronald Darby – 61.1
Bryce Callahan – 60.0
Kyle Fuller – 47.2

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2021 Review

The Broncos invested heavily in the cornerback position in 2021. After being shorthanded at the spot in the last couple of games the year before, Denver was determined to have depth last season. As Vic Fangio put it, “You can neve have enough cornerbacks.”

Thus, the Broncos went out and signed to big-name free agents. They inked Ronald Darby to a three-year deal, while also bringing in Kyle Fuller on a one-year, prove-it deal.

These two were projected to pair with Bryce Callahan to form a strong trio at cornerback. Second-year player Michael Ojemudia would provide depth, as would other young players like Essang Bassey and Nate Hairston.

Then on draft day, George Paton added even more at the cornerback spot. He strengthened the depth chart by using the No. 9 overall pick on Pat Surtain.

The result of this gluttony of cornerbacks was mixed in 2021. Denver had a great defense, but they didn’t make a ton of big plays in the passing game.

Surtain was terrific as a rookie. By Week 2, he had supplanted Fuller in the starting lineup, where he stayed for 15 consecutive weeks until missing the season finale. He had four interceptions on the season, second only to Justin Simmons on the team.

The remaining cornerbacks failed to snare a single pick, however. Zero. Nada. Zilch.

All in all, Callahan, Darby and Fuller were disappointing. They simply didn’t make enough plays, with Fuller standing out for getting beat deep seemingly on a weekly basis.

The Broncos had a lot of cornerbacks in 2021. They just didn’t get much out of them.

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A Look Ahead

The Broncos will have some decisions to make in the offseason. Bryce Callahan will be an unrestricted free agent after three injury-plagued seasons in Denver, as will Kyle Fuller on the heels of his lackluster season in orange and blue. Nate Hairston joins them on the open market.

Clearly, Pat Surtain and Ronald Darby enter the season as the Broncos starters. Michael Ojemudia showed signs of improvement late in the season, so perhaps he gets a chance at being the No. 3 cornerback in 2022.

If not, George Paton will have to go shopping. Again.

J.C. Jackson and Stephon Gilmore top Pro Football Focus’s list of free agent cornerbacks. Either would be a huge upgrade in 2022.

If the Broncos want to go a younger route, they could look to the draft again. It’s hard to imagine Paton using the No. 9 overall pick on a cornerback two years in a row, but LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. and Cincinnati’s Ahmad Gardner sit atop the big boards. Michigan’s Daxton Hill is an option in the second round, as well.

Either way, Denver once again needs to upgrade at cornerback in the offseason. They’ll once again being trying to find out if a team can truly have enough cornerbacks.

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