Quarterback, quarterback, quarterback. All we seem to care about is the quarterback. And rightfully so, I guess; this is, as we love to say, “a quarterback-driven league.”
But for all this quarterback talk, we have the propensity to overlook the rest of the Broncos roster. We ask whether losing Peyton Manning dooms the Broncos playoff hopes. Or we wonder if Brock Osweiler can ignite the Gary Kubiak offense. But we rarely question why C.J. Anderson isn’t generating the same production he was last year or why the defense can’t get the same push they were getting at the start of the season.
But those are important questions, too — season-defining questions.
As much as we like to focus on the quarterback, football is a team sport, and any win or loss will be the result of all 53 men on the roster.
So with that said, here are five non-quarterbacks that will determine the success of the Broncos season:
5. T.J. Ward
In my eyes, T.J. Ward is the clear heartbeat of the Denver Broncos defense. He plays with emotion on every snap, and his teammates follow suit. Last season, Jack Del Rio restricted what Ward could do on the field, limiting his ability to freelance, but this season Wade Phillips has let the beast free, and it’s been fun to watch.
Unfortunately, while a beast can be powerful, it can also be painful. And I think you all know what I mean by that.
TJ Ward (Den) gets ejected for throwing a punch during a block. #KCvsDEN pic.twitter.com/Xczei5bhUt
— Kevin (@SamuelTheAdams) November 16, 2015
I’m not worried about Ward’s ability or skill; the Broncos don’t need him to “step up.” No, what the Broncos need is for him to grow up.
The passion and emotion Ward plays with is fantastic; it’s what drives this defense. But he has to channel that in a positive direction. There’s a reason why the Broncos seemingly draws more personal foul penalties than any unit in the league, and it’s because they’re undisciplined; that starts with Ward.
There are going to come tense moments late in the season or in the playoffs where tempers may get heated, and an ill-advised shove, punch, or eye-poke could cost the Broncos the game. They can’t have that.
4. Demaryius Thomas
If this really is Brock Osweiler’s time, then he’s going to need all the help he can get. Because even if he does have all the natural talent in the world, he’s still a first-year starter, and defenses are going to take full advantage.
What Osweiler needs is the Demaryius Thomas that played with Tim Tebow; he needs the guy who can turn a 4-yard slant into a 80-yard touchdown, much like he did this weekend.
First drive for Brock Osweiler:
How about a 48-yard TOUCHDOWN throw to Demaryius Thomas?
Wow. #DENvsCHI https://t.co/EZP8t9kmlY— NFL (@NFL) November 22, 2015
While Thomas has continued to be great through the Manning years, we’ve seen less and less production after the catch this season. After being in the top-three for wide receivers in YAC (yards after the catch) in each of the last three years, Thomas has fallen all the way down to 15th this season.
Even with Osweiler’s big arm, the majority of his passes are going to be fairly short, and that’s where the Broncos really need their receivers to step up and make some big-time plays.
Not to mention, he should probably stop dropping balls, too.
3. Evan Mathis
Evan Mathis was supposed to be the one piece on this offensive line that we could count on. Instead, we get this:
https://twitter.com/EvanMathis69/status/668554401691394051
Now, to be fair, Pro Football Focus does have him graded out as the league’s third-best guard in the NFL, but there’s no denying the fact that Mathis’ performance has been sporadic this season; the fact that he can score so highly in PFF’s metrics and yet give up a play like that is a perfect example. The fact that the team has been rotating offensive guards throughout the game in each of the last few weeks is another.
The Broncos need Mathis to be that player that the advanced statistics love so much every snap. More importantly, they need him to be the anchor of this offensive line. Anybody can watch one Broncos game and know that this is one of the worst groups in football. They looked better yesterday, especially in the run game, but that needs to continue through the season.
It all starts with Evan Mathis.
2. Von Miller
First off, Von Miller has been great all season, even if his stats don’t necessarily reflect the same level of dominance we’re used to. Still … the Broncos could really use those stats, too.
Despite being third in the league in quarterback hurries and fifth in the league in quarterback hits, as well as holding PFF’s third-best pass-rushing grade, Miller is currently tied for 18th in the NFL with six sacks. And no, sacks aren’t everything, but plays like this sure do help.
What a play. @Millerlite40 @TheMalikJackson pic.twitter.com/h3JHMFr7yw
— chj highlights (@25_highlights) November 22, 2015
As we’ve seen all season, the Broncos need as many of these plays as they can get, especially with Brock Osweiler still easing into the starting role. Miller is a special, special player — easily the best player on the Broncos defense — and he needs to prove it week in and week out.
This piece brought to you in part by …
[adrotate banner=”6″]1. Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson
The only way the Broncos are going to make a title run is if Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson quickly develop into one of the best running back tandems in the NFL. Luckily, I think they can do it.
From the day Gary Kubiak first grabbed a playbook and started calling plays, he’s been churning out Pro Bowl backs on a yearly basis. It wasn’t until this season that a Kubiak-led running attack actually disappointed. But what else would you expect when he wasn’t running a Kubiak offense?
And I know the entire organization has been towing out the line that there is no “Gary Kubiak offense” — there’s only a Broncos offense — but that’s bull crap. All you have to do is watch one play from Brock Osweiler’s first start and it’s pretty clear that they scrapped Manning’s pistol offense about as quickly as they could. And guess what? The running game finally reemerged.
Now, to be clear, it’s not as if the Bears’ run defense is something to be jealous of, which means that they still need to get better from here. Bu we’ve seen what both of these guys are capable of, and they need to reach every bit of potential they’ve ever shown. If they can do that, this offense may actually start to complement their defense.