The Denver Broncos have not had Riley Moss for about 3.5 games recently, and their defensive performance without him is shockingly bad. The Broncos have played three full games this year without Moss, who went down in Week 12 with what appeared to be a serious knee injury. Luckily, Moss avoided a major injury, but he has not played for the team since November 24th.
So it'll be about four weeks between Moss leaving that game and him likely suiting up in Week 17. Denver has since played three full games without Moss, and those were against the Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, and Los Angeles Chargers.
Riley Moss' impact on the defense is insane
Denver's defense allowed 26.3 points per game over their last three games without Riley Moss, which is a horrific number if we're being honest. Luckily, some defensive touchdowns helped saved them in games against the Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts.
The Broncos have scored 33 points per game over the last three, so they are kind of getting into some shootouts recently and have had no issues putting points on the board, which is great. But the main statistic that has truly impacted their defense is the passing yards allowed. Over the last three games where Riley Moss has not played, Denver has allowed a total of 899 passing yards.
And that comes out to about 300 yards allowed per game through the air. Opponents have rushed for 114.3 yards per game over the last three as well. Simply put, Denver has been giving up a ton of yardage since Riley Moss left the lineup. Two of their three highest yards given up in a game have come over the last three contests.
With Moss very likely returning, the Broncos' defense will need to return to their previous form and keep Joe Burrow and the Bengals' offense in check. If they are able to do that, it'll be a long day at the office for Cincinnati, who has to win-out to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Denver simply needs to win one more game, and they can even lose their last two games and still get in, but that is not likely to me.
Anyway, Riley Moss emerged this year as a very good starting CB for this defense, and Denver's CB2 spot was up in the air during the offseason. Moss beat out Damarri Mathis for the starting nod, and one positive that has emerged from Moss missing time is the encouraging play from rookie CB Kris Abrams-Draine, who was able to intercept Justin Herbert in the endzone in Week 16.
But Riley Moss' absence has been a huge blow to the Broncos' defense.