Broncos After The Bye: Studs & Duds Heading Into Week 12
By Rick Brown
After a much needed bye week to get healthy, the Denver Broncos (7-3) look to build momentum as the playoffs approach. The Broncos are currently in third place in the AFC West, even after the Kansas City Chiefs (7-3) dropped their game to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-5). The road to the playoffs is going to be an arduous journey for the Broncos.
The defense is fighting a bit of a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personality, ranking first in pass yards against while they are near the bottom in rushing yards against. Overall, the defense is slightly better than middle of the road. The offense continues to struggle, but there are flashes of athleticism from a couple of young players on that side of the ball.
Rising: Trevor Siemian, quarterback
There has already been a lot written about Siemian -- How he was a seventh-round draft pick coming off knee surgery and how he needed an extra year of rest while watching from the sidelines as Brock Osweiler and Peyton Manning led the Broncos to a Super Bowl victory. Stepping into the spotlight has had little effect on his ability to perform. He has gone 7-2 in nine starts, has a 2:1 touchdown to interception ratio and has completed 60 percent of his throws. All of Siemian's 12 touchdowns have come while he has been in the red zone. So far this season, he has not done a great job of throwing downfield, but he is performing adequately while attacking with short throws. He continues to improve and produce in hard-fought games.
Rising: Devontae Booker, running back
A fourth-round pick from this year's draft, Booker has started the last three games after an injury to C.J. Anderson sent Booker into a starting role. Behind a suspect offensive line, Booker has rushed for 152 yards. While this is not a great average per game, Booker saw his role severely diminish during the game with the Oakland Raiders (7-2) as the Broncos had to play catch-up most of the game. Booker continues to see his workload increase and continues to perform past expectations.
Rising: Will Parks, defensive back
Will Parks, a sixth-round draft pick from Arizona, made one heck of a play after fellow rookie Justin Simmons blocked an extra point attempt. Parks scooped up the ball and returned it for what would be the go-ahead two points when the Broncos defeated the New Orleans Saints (4-6) in Week 10. Parks has been a strong contributor to the special teams unit and the secondary. The Broncos' secondary has seen a rash of injuries and both Parks and Simmons have continued to make the Broncos' defense an above average unit, especially against the pass.
Falling: Russell Okung and Donald Stephenson, left and right tackle
The Broncos went out with a plan to strengthen the offensive line in this year's free agency. The signing of Stephenson from the AFC West rival Chiefs and a cast off from the Seattle Seahawks in Okung, the expectations for these two players were high. A young quarterback would have a high chance to succeed with a good running game, so the Broncos thought these two would be the solution to the offensive lines woes. It is now Week 11 and the Broncos rank 24th with 97 yards rushing per game. Stephenson has also missed three games due to injuries and Okung has had a fair share of offensive holding penalties. One of the key ingredients to the Broncos' run last year through the playoffs was a healthy dose of Anderson running with the ball. Broncos' fans and players can only hope a week off can help fix the problems with the less than stellar running game.
Falling: Bennie Fowler, Cody Latimer, Jordan Norwood and Jordan Taylor, wide receiver
These four wide receivers have failed to seize the opportunity to become a solid slot receiver. Together, Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders combine for 109 receptions for 1,346 yards and eight touchdowns. After these two superstars, production drops off significantly. These four players combined for only 37 receptions and 391 yards and three touchdowns. The Broncos' offense needs some more playmakers so defenses have to make adjustments instead of focusing on Thomas and Sanders. Given their Week 11 bye, the Broncos will have had plenty of time to make adjustments and prepare for the Chiefs when they come into Denver for a Sunday night matchup.
