2016 Outlook

Coaching Staff

HC: Gary Kubiak

OC: Rick Dennison

DC: Wade Phillips

ST: Joe DeCamillis

Offense

QB. Mark Sanchez, Trevor Siemian

RB. CJ Anderson, Ronnie Hillman

FB. Andy Janovich

WR. Demaryius Thomas, Bennie Fowler

WR. Emmanuel Sanders, Jordan Norwood

WR. Cody Latimer

TE. Virgil Green, Jeff Heuerman

LT. Russell Okung, Michael Schofield

LG. Max Garcia, Aaron Neary

C. Matt Paradis, James Ferentz

RG. Ty Sambrailo, Michael Schofield

RT. Donald Stephenson, Darrion Weems

Defense

DE. Derek Wolf, Adam Gotsis

NT. Sylvester Williams, Darius Kilgo

DE. Vance Walker, Jared Crick

OLB. Von Miller, Shaquil Barrett

MLB. Brandon Marshall, Corey Nelson

MLB. Todd Davis, Zaire Anderson

OLB. Demarcus Ware, Shane Ray

CB. Chris Harris, Kayvon Webster

SS. TJ Ward, Shiloh Keo

FS. Darian Stewart, Justin Simmons

CB. Aqib Talib, Lorenzo Doss

NB. Bradly Roby

Special Teams

K. Brandon McManus

P. Britton Colquitt

Breakdown

Offense: 

Offensively, the Broncos don’t have to be great, they just need to be good enough, and I think they can be. There are huge question marks about the QB position, which right now Mark Sanchez is the favorite to start. But the fact that he and Trevor Simien are currently listed as “co-starters” on the depth chart scares me. It can only mean 1 of 2 things: either Simeon is a hell of a lot better than any of us thought or Sanchez simply isn’t looking very impressive in camp. I put my money on the latter. Regardless of which QB wins the job, they’ll have plenty of help around them, especially at receiver as the Broncos have 1 of the best receiver duos in the NFL between Thomas and Sanders. Both had really good seasons last year despite the inconsistent QB play, so I don’t expect them to be effected too much by the lack of talent at the QB in 2016. The team was able to keep CJ Anderson and will look to have a committee approach at RB again with Ronnie Hillman and Devonte Booker figuring to get touches. But what to make of this offensive line that lost almost all of their starters from a year ago? They went the free agency route to address the tackle position, bringing in LT Russell Okung, a talented but injury-prone player, and RT Donald Stephenson, who did a decent job a year ago with the Chiefs. At guard, the Broncos will look to a couple of their 2nd-year guys that they drafted in 2015. Ty Sambrailo, who they took in the 2nd round, will start at RG and Max Garcia, a 4th-round selection, will start at LG. And at center is the only returning starter from last season Matt Paradis who is entering his 3rd year. Honestly it’s not a very impressive group by any means and when you combine that with their mediocre options at QB, the Broncos could have a tough time on offense this year.

Defense: 

The Denver Broncos defense, however, is loaded and ready to go. Even with the losses in free agency, there is still a ton of talent on this team. Up front, Derek Wolfe is the best of the bunch starting as a all-around interior player that can penetrate gaps and stifle a run game or get heat up the middle on QBs. On the other end is Vance Walker, who rotated in last year as a backup and started when needed due to injury for this team. He now looks to replace Malik Jackson. Sylvester Williams is back at the nose position, where he operates as a early-down run stopper. On the edge, the Broncos have the deepest and most talented group of OLBs in the NFL. Von Miller might be the best pure pass rusher in the NFL and starting opposite of him is future Hall-of-Famer Demarcus Ware, who showed last year he can still rush the passer. Denver has quality backups behind both in Shane Ray, who the team took in the 1st round in 2015, and Barrett. In the middle, they are led by Brandon Marshall, 1 of the premiere LBs in the NFL and Todd Davis will look to replace Trevathan at the other middle spot. The Broncos had a special secondary a year ago and everyone is back so it figures to be special again. It starts with CB Chris Harris, who continues to be overlooked in the conversation of the game’s best cornerback. Opposite him is the opportunistic Aquib Talib, who is more than comfortable getting his hands on the ball if thrown his way. And the team’s 2014 1st-round pick Bradley Roby continues to develop nicely giving the Broncos 3 legitimate starting-caliber cornerbacks. They also have 1 of the better safety duos in the league between TJ Ward and Darian Stewart. Much was made of all the players the Broncos lost in the offseason, but honestly they took their bigger hits on the offensive side of the ball. This defense might not quite play up to the legendary standards they did last year, but I have no doubt they’ll still be an elite defense in 2016.