This season hasn’t gone how the Denver Broncos have expected, despite the disappointing turn of events, second-year cornerback Patrick Surtain is focused on continuing to put one foot in front of the other.
Patrick Surtain looking to finish off remaining five games on a high note
The Denver Broncos defense has truly served as the highlight of the 2022 NFL season after the offense’s struggles have many in Broncos Country frustrated with their lack of production. Throughout this year, the defense has carried the water for the team for the majority of their games this season. This past month, the defense has had its moments of struggling to stop the run and giving up several big plays through the year but is focused on a strong finish with five games remaining.
Second-year cornerback Patrick Surtain has been stellar through his first year and a half in the National Football League. He’s experienced some growing pains along the way, but his demeanor and approach haven’t changed despite how the season has played out.
“My focus is on finishing the season out strong, of course, and doing the best we can to put great film out there because the season isn’t over,” Surtain said after Thursday’s practice. “We still have five more games left. The best thing to do is to put film out there and play hard to the fullest.”
On Sunday, Surtain and the Broncos’ defense will face the tough task of taking on Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and the high-octane Kansas City Chiefs offense, something he’s faced previously.
Last year, Surtain was tasked with covering former Chiefs’ speedster Tyreek Hill. Against Mahomes and Hill, Surtain snagged an interception while not allowing a single coverage reception or yard vs. Hill. He missed the season finale against Kansas City due to injury. With Hill now a member of the Miami Dolphins, Kelce becomes the most dangerous man that Surtain could draw the assignment of covering.
“I’m comfortable with wherever the coaches feel like they want me systematically,” Surtain said on Thursday. “I’m not going to make my judgement on that, of course, because obviously their game plan is what is set in stone. I’m not going to get too much into that.”
Aside from Kelce, Kansas City’s offense features Marquez Valdes-Scantling, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Skyy Moore, and Kadarius Toney. Personnel wise, the Chiefs have everything they need to spread things out even if Denver’s defense limits Kelce’s opportunities.
“Yeah, you can see—[Chiefs TE] Travis [Kelce] has a majority of the targets, but as far as receivers go, they are very diverse target wise,” Surtain said regarding Patrick Mahomes spreading the ball around to different personnel. “He knows how to spread the ball around and use his weapons. He knows how to read defenses. It’s something that we are going to have to gameplan against and focus on and understand what he is trying to attack on our side of the ball.”
The Broncos will face the Chiefs on Sunday at Empower Field at Mile High with kickoff slated for 2:05 p.m. MT
