Denver Broncos ranked 13th in continuity by ESPN for 2020 season

The Denver Broncos have a number of pieces returning from the 2019 season, but are also a very young team.

The Denver Broncos have transformed into a young team during their rebuild.

There have been some ups and downs since their Super Bowl 50 victory over the Carolina Panthers, and they finally seem to be on their way to some future success.

That is not without the help of some continuity. ESPN has ranked the Broncos at 13th overall in terms of continuity. Their explanation is as follows:

"13. Denver Broncos: 75.7% snaps returningOffensive snaps returning: 73.2% (23rd)Defensive snaps returning: 78.1% (8th)Starters returning: 18 (8 offense, 9 defense, 1 special teams)Non-coordinator assistants returning: 13 of 16Coordinators returning: 2 of 3 (Ed Donatell, DC; Tom McMahon, ST)Starting QB: Drew Lock, 2nd yearHead coach: Vic Fangio, 2nd year (7-9)What it means: Offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello was fired a week after the season. Fangio hired Pat Shurmur to replace Scangarello and Mike Shula as quarterbacks coach. Much of the draft was used to add more help around Lock, and as a result, the Broncos have several returning players who started games at receiver, for example, who will have a far more difficult time starting games this season. So, the Broncos’ number of “returning starters,” especially on offense, is deceiving in some ways, given the influx of rookies. — Jeff Legwold"

The team’s offensive ranking by snaps returning (23rd) isn’t that great, but let’s look at the big picture here.

They traded Emmanuel Sanders to reshape their receiving corps—they drafted Jerry Jeudy, K.J Hamler, and Tyrie Cleveland in this year’s draft. I love Emmanuel Sanders, but I would do that again. Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, DaeSean Hamilton, Fred Brown, Diontae Spencer, and Juwann Winfree are all still on the roster.

A bigger offensive snap percentage in quarterback Joe Flacco (52.36 percent) is long gone, leading the way for Drew Lock, who played 30.12 percent of the snaps during the 2019 season.

On the offensive line, Ronald Leary, who played 74.31 percent of the offensive snaps in 2019, is gone. They have Dalton Risner (96.16 percent) and Graham Glasgow (0 percent) at the guard positions. Glasgow, of course, was one of the new offseason signings this year.

On defense, the Broncos lost two key starters: cornerback Chris Harris Jr. and defensive end Derek Wolfe. Harris Jr. was on the field for 98.87 percent of the snaps (2nd among Broncos defensive players). Wolfe was in on 49.58 percent.

The player on the defensive side of the ball who played the most snaps is Justin Simmons at 99.72 percent. That percentage is just incredible.

Denver is going to have several new starters on offense — Graham Glasgow, rookie center Lloyd Cushenberry (if he beats out Patrick Morris at center), and Jerry Jeudy. K.J. Hamler will be the slot receiver, which would make the number go up to four.

On defense, the Broncos added some new faces. They added to their cornerback depth with A.J. Bouye and their defensive line with Jurrell Casey. Those two players are replacing the two defensive starters I mentioned earlier.

Another “new” face that will be on the field for the first time for the Broncos is cornerback Bryce Callahan. Callahan missed the 2019 season with a foot injury.

This Broncos team is definitely a young one. They have just four players who are 30-years old or older. That number is incredibly low.

Hopefully, the team continues on the right path and is able to be successful for many years to come.