T.J. Ward Named AFC Defensive Player Of The Week

By Mark Schiff

Now that we're officially a quarter of the way through a season that's been defined by big plays on defense, it's fair to start wondering if this Denver defensive unit could top the franchise's all-time greats. Among all 32 teams, Denver ranks first or near the top in virtually every crucial defensive statistic, and it's not just the big name Pro Bowlers who are making an impact. Consider that since becoming a full-time starter at the beginning of the 2014 season, inside linebacker Brandon Marshall has 115 solo tackles, the second most in the NFL in that span.

Every position group on the defense is playing well right now (the team's 18 sacks are split between 11 players), but that doesn't mean there's no room for individual honors.

T.J. Ward is the AFC Defensive Player of the Week

After recording two sacks and forcing the game-sealing fumble against the Vikings, we named safety T.J. Ward the defensive MVP of the game. According to the NFL, he actually had the best Sunday of any player in his conference, as Ward was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Minnesota. Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Ward called it the "best week ever."

Ward is the second Bronco to receive the honor in the season's first four weeks, as cornerback Aqib Talib took home the award for his Week 1 performance against the Ravens, while outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware was named September's AFC Defensive Player of the Month.

"We trying round this up every week, have a Bronco week-to-week and a Player of the Month at the end," Ward told reporters. "If we do that, we'll have a pretty good season."

Derek Wolfe back from suspension

The Broncos stacked defensive rotation is only about to get deeper as defensive end Derek Wolfe returned to the team facility on Monday after serving his 4-game suspension for violating the NFL's performance-enhancing drug policy.

"It was a long month," Wolfe told reporters on Monday. "The first two weeks went by real quick and the last two weeks they were just dragging on. I'm just ready to help the team win."

The fourth-year lineman said that he's not concerned about getting on the field despite the outstanding play of fellow defensive ends Malik Jackson, Vance Walker and Antonio Smith.

"Well, it's the NFL. There's competition every day. It's been like that since I got here," Wolfe told the media. "There's always competition. That's how you get better is with competition, so like I said I enjoy it. I'm ready to go. I'm over this."

Broncos to face former defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio

The Denver defense is very familiar with the system of new Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio, who spent the past three seasons as the Broncos defensive coordinator. But according to T.J. Ward, the new-look Raiders are a completely different team.

"It's a division team, so there's a lot of familiarity there, especially with Jack [Del Rio] being there" Ward said. "But I don't believe he's running anything he ran here, as far as defensively. And offensively, I know he's not running what we ran with [former head coach John Fox]. So it's really two different teams completely."

For his part, Del Rio isn't out to grind any axes against his old team (even if he will never forget to keep chopping wood).

"I don't get too cranked up about things like that, but you do want to play well against guys you know," Del Rio told reporters when about facing his former team.

Mark Schiff is a freelance writer and music journalist for AXS.com. In 2013, his coverage of the Seattle Seahawks ended in heartbreak when they defeated the Denver Broncos in the Super Bowl. Now covering his beloved hometown team, his knowledge and passion for pro football has resulted in multiple fantasy football championships. Find him on Twitter at @mihilites.