Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Dumervil is gone so we MUST sign Dwight Freeney! Freeney has lost his mind and thinks he’s worth more than Dumervil… ok, we MUST sign John Abraham. As Bronco fans lament the loss of Elvis Dumervil, and there have been some very grave lamentations to be sure, perhaps it is time to look at what remains. Arguably one of the top five defenses in professional football!

Lost in the media reports, the prognostications and the DOOM and gloom is the fact that the Broncos defense is still one of the best and is perhaps better. With the additions of Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Terrence Knighton the Broncos immediately improved their pass coverage and their run stopping ability. Chris Harris had a breakout season and now can return to his natural safety position, a role in which he thrives (as if he didn’t thrive at corner last year). Wesley Woodyard emerged as a legitimate force as well last year. Have fans fogetten him? Of course, there is also Derek Wolfe who turned out to be a complete animal on the end. No one is expecting a regression this coming season.

While it is true that Dumervil may be missed in the sack department, reports of Von Miller suddenly becoming ineffective without him make little sense. Dumervil drew double teams on less than 20% of the downs he played. Miller will still be feasting and the man who can help him is Robert Ayers. Ayers seems like the man on the roster that will have to step up and he can. Bronco fans should know who Ayers is by now. He was a first round pick in 2009. His 2010 season was a bit of a disappointment but he showed progress in 2011 with 39 tackles and 3 sacks in 13 games. While that is a far cry from Dumervil’s production Ayer’s has another year under his belt and another year under Jack Del Rio. The word on Ayers coming out of Tennessee is that he had the potential to become an elite player. Now he needs to become one.

This defense is fine… better then fine, so let’s move on. There is still a draft and possible free agent signings yet to come as well. However, looking at this Denver defense on paper makes for a good read. There’s no use living in the passed or holding grudges now. It’s time to forget about Who?mervil…

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December 23, 2012; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos defensive end Elvis Dumervil (92) walks off the field after the game against the Cleveland Browns at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos won 34-12. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

The Elvis Dumervil saga finally came to an end on Sunday when he agreed to a contract with the Baltimore Ravens.

It seemed he wanted to move on from Denver ever since they cut him last week, and according to Mike Klis of the Denver Post the Ravens finally increased their contract offer so it made sense financially to leave.

The rumors are that Dumervil’s pride took a big hit when he was cut and he felt like the Broncos organization owed him. That is tough to comprehend since Denver drafted him, gave him a monster contract which paid him $28 million over the last two seasons, and compensated him handsomely when he missed the entire 2010 campaign.

Regardless of Dumervil’s opinion the organization did right by him since he came into the league. They wanted to rework his contract this offseason because they believed it was “out-of-whack” compared to his market value, a belief that was proven correct in the end. Dumervil is set to make $8.5 million this season which is a big reduction from the $12 million Denver would have paid him on his old contract.

The Broncos will certainly be signing either Dwight Freeney or John Abraham to fill the void at defensive end, and odds are decent they’ll use a pick on a defensive end in the draft next month. They’ll also be counting on more production from veteran Robert Ayers.

Whoever they bring in he’ll be much cheaper than Dumervil, and if you’ve read my articles you know I believe his production can be replaced by cheaper options. The goal for the Broncos won’t be to replace Dumervil’s sack numbers with a single player, but to get those sacks by committee over the length of the season.

Obviously it’s not ideal to lose a sack specialist who is only 29 years old but this Broncos team was going to be a top Super Bowl contender with or without Dumervil. The offense is going to be a monster with Peyton Manning throwing to the best wide receiving trio in the league, and the defense has a great core of talent led by Von Miller who is the only completely irreplaceable player on that side of the ball. If the coming additions at defensive end produce anything close to Dumervil’s 11 sacks from last year this team won’t miss a beat.

The 2013 Broncos have one goal in mind: Raise the Lombardi Trophy. And that goal hasn’t changed one bit.

Denver fans should be appreciative for what Dumervil accomplished here, but this messy divorce has forever blemished his reputation amongst the fan base. Make no mistake; he wanted out of Denver or he would have chosen to return weeks ago. He now plays for the enemy and should be treated as such going forward.

It sounds like Dumervil is happy and excited with his decision to leave. But he may end up feeling differently if the Broncos go on to hoist the Lombardi Trophy without him.

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Jason Hunter walks off the field following organized team activities. (Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE)

Yesterday it was starting right guard Chris Kuper, today it’s starting defensive end Jason Hunter.

Hunter will miss at least two months and possibly the entire season with a torn triceps muscle. He reportedly injured the arm while hitting a blocking sled during practice.

This is very bad news for Hunter who beat out Robert Ayers for the starting job just two weeks ago. Hunter came into the league in 2006 undrafted out of Appalachian State. He started 14 games for the Broncos in the last two seasons. During his two-year tenure with Denver, he had 81 tackles, 4 sacks, and 1 forced fumble.

Defensive tackle Ty Warren missed the entire 2011 season after suffering the same injury and opting for surgery.

Ayers and the team’s first pick in the 2012 draft, Derek Wolfe, are now expected to compete for the starting job in the base defense.

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