2019 Record - 7-9-0
Head Coach - Vic Fangio
New Players in 2020 - Melvin Gordon (RB), A.J. Bouye (DB), Nick Vannett (TE), Jurrell Casey (DL), Graham Glasgow (OL), Christian Covington (DL), Sam Martin (P)
Players opting out for 2020 season (COVID-19) - Ja'Wuan James (OL), Kyle Peko (DL)
OFFENSE - Drew Lock took over as the starting quarterback late last season and passed for 1,020 yards with seven touchdowns and three interceptions. Jeff Driskel will likely be the backup.
Running back Melvin Gordon (612 yards, 3.8 ypc average and eight TD along with 42 receptions and one TD) comes over this season from the L.A. Chargers and will team with Phillip Lindsay, who led the Broncos with 1,011 yards rushing (4.5 ypc) and also scored seven touchdowns. Royce Freeman contributed 496 rushing yards last season (3.8 ypc) and scored three times while making 43 receptions for 256 yards and one score.
The wideouts include Courtland Sutton (72 receptions, 1,112 yards and six TD), Tim Patrick (16 receptions for 218 yards) and rookies Jerry Jeudy (Alabama) and KJ Hamier (Penn State). The tight end is Noah Fant, who had 40 receptions for 562 yards and three scores in his rookie season.
DEFENSE - Linebacker Von Miller (eight QB sacks) leads the defense and teams with Bradley Chubb, who missed twelve games last year with a knee injury. The inside linebackers are Todd Davis and Alexander Johnson. Shelby Harris (six sacks), DeMarcus Walker (four sacks) and Jurrell Casey (five sacks) are the defensive ends. Mike Purcell is the nose tackle.
The secondary has Bryce Callahan and A.J. Bouye at the corners along with Justin Simmons (four interceptions) and Kareem Jackson (two INT) at the safety positions. Rookie Michael Ojemudia (Iowa) will look to help as well as Trey Marshall.
Denver finished in the top ten in the NFL in scoring defense last year, allowing 19.8 points per game. The Broncos allowed 337 yards per game (12th overall) and finished eleventh against the pass (226 ypg allowed) while also giving up 111 rushing yards per game (16th). They totaled 40 QB sacks and picked off ten passes.
OUTLOOK FOR 2020 - Denver finished strong in 2019, winning four of their last five games as Drew Lock took over as the starting quarterback. The Broncos struggled most of last season on offense, averaging 17.6 points a game, which was 28th in the league.
The running game (104 ypg in 2019) should be improved this year with Gordon joining speedy Phillip Lindsay in the backfield. The passing game averaged 195 yards last year (28th) and overall Denver gained 299 yards per game, which was 28th in the NFL.
Lock will have two rookies joining leading receiver Courtland Sutton this year and that will be a work in progress as the season plays out. As long as Lock gets time to pass the ball, he has the targets and also the running backs have shown they can catch the ball consistently.
Head Coach Vic Fangio is known for his strong defenses, and as long as Chubb stays healthy this year, he and Von Miller should continue to wreak havoc on opponents all season long while the pass defense looks to improve on their end. Chris Harris, Jr. left for the L.A. Chargers, but the Broncos added A.J. Bouye from Jacksonville and he has shown he has what it takes to be a shutdown corner at times.
If the team can get off to a decent start while facing a tough schedule, it would help to get them into a good spot as they look to get back to the playoffs for the first time since the 2015 season. It won't be easy, but there is reason for optimism in Denver once again.
TEAM SCHEDULE
Week One - vs. Tennessee
Week Two - at Pittsburgh
Week Three - vs. Tampa Bay
Week Four - at N.Y. Jets
Week Five - at New England
Week Six - vs. Miami
Week Seven - vs. Kansas City
Week Eight - BYE
Week Nine - at Atlanta
Week Ten - at Las Vegas
Week Eleven - vs. L.A. Chargers
Week Twelve - vs. New Orleans
Week Thirteen - at Kansas City
Week Fourteen - at Carolina
Week Fifteen - vs. Buffalo
Week Sixteen - at L.A. Chargers
Week Seventeen - vs. Las Vegas
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