Lately, Denver’s defense looks a lot like a dog who was left home alone and found the stash of dog biscuits on the counter. They’ve been shredding, embarrassing, and frustrating offenses until their own offense gets their act together.
In the last four weeks, the Broncos are giving up just 15.0 points per game as opposed to 32.6 in their five losses. (The Packers and Lions games skew things quite a bit). Back to the team’s four consecutive win, they have given up just 6 total points in the fourth quarter. 6 points! That’s an incredible feat that comes for a defense that is gelling at the right time.
“That group has gelled because they’re primarily all new,” John Fox said of his front seven. “We changed defenses from the 3-4 to the 4-3 so there was a lot of newness early. Now, I think we’re just playing without thinking. The guys are just playing ball.”
The undisputed MVP of the Broncos defense has been rookie Von Miller. He is 3rd in the league in sacks with 11 take downs, and he has 32 tackles and 4.5 sacks in the last four games.
“He’s very gifted,” Fox said. “That’s hopefully what happens when you take a guy second in the NFL draft. He’s an outstanding young man. He’s definitely getting better each week, and he’s somebody to deal with.”
His partner in crime, Elvis Dumervil, has stepped his game up as well since missing all of last season and being hampered by injuries early this season. He has 12 tackles and 5.5 sacks in his last four outings.
Before Sunday’s win, the Broncos were allowing opponents to convert 25.4% of their third downs in the last five weeks. That’s an NFL-best and that’s what has made the Broncos so successful in recent weeks.
Orange Crush is making headlines again and Denver’s defense is knocking off heads. Dennis Allen is the brain behind the beast of an increasingly aggressive defense that can only be stopped if they stop themselves.
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