Admin December 31, 2024
The Denver Broncos were not expected to have a quality defense this season. While the defense hasn’t been great in every game, it has been better than expected.
In particular, the Broncos have done a great job of pressuring opposing quarterbacks. After sacking Joe Burrow seven times in Cincinnati, the 2024 Broncos set the new record for the most team sacks in a single season in franchise history.
Through 16 games, the Broncos have recorded 58 sacks, surpassing the team season record of 57 set back in 1984.
Let’s first look at the 1984 season, in which the Broncos finished 13-3 in John Elway’s second season as the starting quarterback. The Broncos had a great defense that season, led by Rulon Jones with 11 sacks, Barney Chavous with 7.5, Karl Mecklenburg with seven and Andre Townsend with five.
Among those players, Mecklenburg is a Broncos Ring-of-Famer with a good case for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Chavous and Jones are two players notably not in the Broncos Ring of Fame, but that could change in the future.
Now, look at the roster this year. Nik Bonitto has 11.5 sacks in 16 games, a half-sack ahead of Jones. Jonathon Cooper has 9.5 sacks through 16 games, followed by Zach Allen with 8.5, John Franklin-Myers with six, and Jonah Elliss and Dondrea Tillman with five each.
First, the 2024 Broncos have arguably a deeper roster of pass rushers on this team when compared to the 1984 squad. Second, that the Broncos surpassed the season sack record in 16 games — the same number of games played the entire 1984 season — is a testament to how good this defense has been at getting after the quarterback.
A tip of the hat needs to go to the front office and coaching staff for identifying players who could contribute and then, finding ways to get the most out of them. Cooper and Bonitto are draft picks of GM George Paton, and Allen is a player whom defensive coordinator Vance Joseph wanted onboard. The three have proven to be formidable in the pass rush.
There is, of course, room for improvement in 2025. But the good thing is the Broncos won’t have to worry too much about finding lots of pass-rushing help, thanks mainly to Bonitto breaking out and Cooper remaining a steady presence.
It will help the Broncos to add an interior defensive lineman in the draft, with Allen and Franklin-Myers entering the final year of their contracts (though Allen is a candidate for an extension). Fortunately, the Broncos don’t have a lot of work to do in 2025 to upgrade the pass rush, given what we’ve seen from the current roster this year.
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