Positional Analysis: Denver Broncos Defensive Line
For three or four years now the Denver Broncos have had questions on the defensive line, and those around the team would tell you those questions are still there. I’m not sure I agree completely, yes there are questions but it has the potential to be a strength in 2012. Bad news first, Jason Hunter who was having a great camp tore his triceps on Tuesday and is probably out for the season. Hunter is probably not a name that the average fan knows, but he was scheduled to be a big part of the rotation on the defensive line.
As we’ve been doing, we start with the best player and that’s defensive end Elvis Dumervil. Dumervil is one of the best pass rushers in the NFL and is completely healthy for the first time in a long time. Dumervil and linebacker Von Miller give the Broncos one of the best pass rushing duos in the league. Dumervil has also improved versus the run since coming into the league and is a complete football player.
The other defensive end position is not as set but that doesn’t mean the Broncos are in trouble there. With the injury to Hunter, look for rookie Derek Wolfe to be the front runner for the job. Wolfe was listed as a defensive tackle coming out of college but he has all ready proven that he can play both inside and outside.
I believe the Broncos will play Wolfe outside on running downs and inside on passing downs. The Broncos want that pass rush up the middle which is why Wolfe probably moves inside on those downs. The guy that benefits the most from Hunter’s injury is, Robert Ayers. I believe he was fighting for a roster spot but will now slide in behind Wolfe, and will play on passing downs.
The defensive tackle position does not have that one “star” but there are some good players who will all be a part of a rotation. It starts with Ty Warren and for now I am going to assume that his “family issue” is just that and he will return to practice in a day or two.
Warren, we’ve said, is not the player he was with the New England Patriots but he can still clog up the middle and stop the run. Warren didn’t play long against the Chicago Bears but he played well, often taking up two blockers. If Warren is healthy and he appears to be, then he solves a lot of the Broncos issues at defensive tackle.
The others that figure into the rotation include; Kevin Vickerson, Justin Bannan, Ben Garland, Mitch Unrein and Wolfe as we’ve all ready talked about. Bannan will probably start along side Warren but all of those players will play, and play a lot. The primary goal for the middle of the defensive line is to stop the run and force teams to pass, and then let Dumervil and Miller loose. There’s a lot of pressure on this group because defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio wants to stop the run without blitzing in order to help the linebackers and secondary in pass coverage.
Any good defense starts up front and the Denver Broncos have struggled there for a long time, but they have a chance to be a very good unit in 2012.
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