Denver Broncos: Jamar Taylor another potential reclamation project

The Denver Broncos are hoping they can get the best out of Jamar Taylor, who signed with the team after Chris Harris Jr.’s injury.

If there were a list of players on the Denver Broncos who could be appropriately labeled ‘irreplaceable’, cornerback Chris Harris Jr. would be at or near the top.

When Harris suffered what is believed to be a hairline fracture of his fibula against the Cincinnati Bengals, a reasonable amount of doom and gloom sets in. Harris is a player who is capable of shutting down an area of the field for the Broncos and has been a model of consistency since he came into the league in 2011.

Losing a player of his caliber is not a good thing by any means.

But as is the case with any injury, the Broncos will have to make due. They are planning to do so with Bradley Roby, who has been up-and-down this season, along with Isaac Yiadom, a promising third-round rookie out of Boston College.

The team also is hoping for Tramaine Brock to regain his health after suffering an injury during the team’s win over the Steelers.

Brock was quietly having a solid year for the Broncos, so now the team is down two of its top three cornerbacks.

That is what led to the decision to sign Jamar Taylor, a former second-round pick of the Miami Dolphins.

As far as second round picks go, Taylor has been a huge disappointment. He spent three seasons with the Dolphins and wasn’t able to crack their starting lineup on a full-time basis or for any reason other than injuries to the players in front of him.

After three disappointing seasons with the Dolphins, Taylor was shipped off to the Cleveland Browns where he had a breakthrough season, picking off three passes and starting 14 games.

His production took a dip in 2017 for the Browns, and he was traded to the Arizona Cardinals for a sixth-round pick.

With the Cardinals, Taylor was once again unable to live up to his lofty draft status.

The Broncos are hoping they can extract the best out of him for the final month of the season. Taylor has a great chance to prove himself capable as a starting cornerback in this league or at least as a possible slot player, where the Broncos will have the biggest void.

Taylor has elite speed and athleticism, and the job of the Broncos’ staff (one absolutely littered with defensive backs experts) will be to put Taylor in positions where he can have immediate and sustained success.

The Broncos’ pass defense has given up its share of big plays this season but they do have a couple of things Taylor has never really played with consistently.

First and foremost, the Broncos boast the best pass rush duo in the NFL and the pass rush has helped the team create a lot of turnovers over the course of the past month.

Second, the Broncos have a .500 record, something Taylor is not overly used to in his NFL career.

This four-game audition could be a chance for Taylor to really prove to the Broncos and other NFL teams that he’s worthy of another contract in this league. The Broncos’ need at cornerback beyond this season makes this a particularly intriguing opportunity for him.

With Tramaine Brock still sidelined and potentially unavailable this week, Taylor’s two games of experience already this season against the 49ers will be a huge help to the Broncos.

The Cardinals only had two wins in the 10 games Taylor spent with them this year, and those games were both against the 49ers. He has studied Kyle Shanahan’s offense extensively this season and his team had success, holding them to 33 points in two games.

Hopefully some of that success can translate to the field this Sunday, when the Broncos hope to extend their winning streak to four games against the worst team in the NFL currently.

Taylor can be of help, and if he is, it will be a massive step toward reclaiming his NFL career.