Top 5 Denver Broncos impact players to watch vs. Texans in Week 2

Denver Broncos impact players vs. Texans: Caden Sterns, safety

The Denver Broncos aren’t going to be able to “replace” Justin Simmons, who is now on injured reserve with a quad injury for the next four weeks (at least). What they can do, however, is see a young player like Caden Sterns take advantage of a great opportunity. Sterns showed last year as a rookie that he is a playmaker, and he was one of the most effective Denver Broncos players on a per-snap basis all of last season.

It felt like any time Sterns was out on the field, he was going to make a big play. He sacked Lamar Jackson, got an interception to close out a game against the Jets, and had a brilliant pick off of Dak Prescott in the Broncos’ dominating win over the Dallas Cowboys.

Now, instead of playing a fraction of defensive snaps, Sterns is going to have to play basically the entire game against Houston and for the foreseeable future out there. We know he’s a big-time athlete, we know he’s a playmaker. What we need to see now is whether or not Sterns is truly capable of playing a bigger role in this defense as opposed to just coming in for the dime package.

Again, there’s really no replacing Justin Simmons. Simmons is one of the best overall players on the team and someone whose responsibilities on the field go so far beyond just the box score or what anyone can see on TV. Sterns has some big shoes to fill and thankfully, we have reason to believe he’ll do a fine job filling them.