Editor’s note: Eighth of a series providing a position-by-position review of the Broncos in 2017 and looking ahead. Today: outside linebacker.
The New York Jets missed the memo.
Leaving Von Miller one-on-one with an offensive tackle often leads to a one-on-one collision between the Broncos’ star outside linebacker and the quarterback that tackle is trying to protect. Yet, there Miller was late in the third quarter of the Broncos’ game against the Jets in Week 14, staring straight ahead at 324-pound, second-year tackle Brandon Shell.
When the snap came, Miller immediately realized help wouldn’t follow. So he darted from the right side of the formation toward Shell’s right shoulder before dipping and spinning like a cyclone. Shell was powerless to crouch that low. The play ended with Shell helping scoop his quarterback, Josh McCown, off the turf and Miller flailing and twisting his limbs in a dance that celebrated his 10th sack of the season.
It was a moment of freedom within a play rarely afforded to Miller this past season. Life for one of the league’s premier pass rushers in 2017 was an endless gauntlet of chips, double-teams and protection schemes designed to limit his game-wrecking impact.
“Now it’s just like the norm, every single play all game,” Miller said. “In college, they would start to chip, but after a while, they would, like, stop. Now it’s like every play.”
And while Miller fought through it to earn his sixth Pro Bowl appearance, his sixth double-digit sack season in seven years and a distinction as the second-most effective edge rusher in the NFL behind the Saints’ Cameron Jordan, according to Pro Football Focus, the Broncos were largely unable to take advantage of all the attention paid him.
The Broncos ranked 22nd in the NFL with 33 sacks. The average number among playoff teams this season was 42. And Denver’s sack total was nine fewer than its yield in 2016 and 19 fewer than its Super Bowl-winning defense had in 2015.
The Broncos in 2017 were also among the league’s bottom eight teams in terms of quarterback hurries and knockdowns. Though Denver still finished the season ranked third in total defense at 290 yards allowed per game, the lack of pressure was a factor in the Broncos surrendering 29 touchdown passes, their most since 2014.
Some reasons for the decline in pressure were easier to identify than others. Once DeMarcus Ware retired following the 2016 season, there was a clear path for Shane Ray, a first-round pick in 2015, to step into a starring role at outside linebacker. Ray was coming off an eight-sack effort as a part-time starter in 2016, and his offseason was dedicated toward preparing for the grind of being an every-down rusher opposite Miller.
Those plans were compromised during the first week of training camp when Ray suffered a wrist injury that required surgery. He didn’t make it back until Oct. 30, and he landed back on the injured-reserve list with two games left in the regular season. The wrist continued to hamper Ray when he was on the field — he had a total of three surgeries — and he played at a much lighter weight than he planned to prior to the season because he was unable to lift weights during the season.
“I just got to get healthy and take care of myself and get back to being the Shane that I can be,” Ray said toward the end of the season. “It’s hard to do that after three wrist surgeries. … I got to get healthy, man.”
Ray’s injury left the Broncos thin at outside linebacker. Shaquil Barrett, a former undrafted player out of Colorado State, showed strides in his third season despite missing all of training camp with his own injury issues. His four sacks ranked fourth on the team, but he was unable to record one in any of Denver’s final five games.
DeMarcus Walker, Denver’s second-round pick in 2017, had an up-and-down season as he made the switch from defensive end to outside linebacker early in training camp. Before switching back to defensive end amid a slew of injuries toward the end of the season, Walker failed to provide much impact at outside linebacker — even during Ray’s absence in the first half of the season. He was the fourth player at the position behind Miller, Barrett and Kasim Edebali (who was cut in November), and his slow grasp of special teams left him inactive in six games. After showing some strong flashes at defensive end, including a sack and three tackles in the season finale against the Chiefs, it appears Walker’s future will be on the defensive line.
So where does that leave the Broncos as they aim to improve their pass rush from the outside linebacker spot? Much will hinge on the recovery of Ray, who has shown flashes of elite talent as an edge rusher. If he can be healthy, he figures to take some of the pressure off Miller on the opposite edge.
Barrett, meanwhile, is a restricted free agent. The ball is in the Broncos’ court when it comes to retaining their homegrown linebacker, who has expressed a desire to remain in Denver. That trio alone, if fully healthy, could theoretically restore a pass rush that took a step back in 2017. But don’t be surprised if the Broncos turn toward the draft to search for another rusher who can take some of the attention off their franchise player.
