ENGLEWOOD
Emmanuel Sanders Jersey , Colo. (AP) — Coach Vance Joseph said Monday “everything’s
being considered right now” when asked if he’s contemplating lineup changes or
taking over the play-calling from defensive coordinator Joe Woods.“It’s all
being considered. We’re still watching the tape to figure out what’s the best
course of action, but it’s all being considered,” Joseph said a day after the
Broncos‘ 34-16 loss to the New York Jets in which they allowed 512 yards, 343 on
the ground.Cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said he has no inkling of the changes in
store, except that “we’ve got to play better, we’ve got to execute better as a
defense, play with more awareness. They gave us a whole bunch of new looks in
the run game that we’ve got to be prepared for in the future and try to clean up
all of the mistakes.”Harris said he’s still confident in Woods.“Oh yeah, we just
watched the game and I can honestly say he had probably one or two bad calls,”
Harris said. “The rest is just poor execution.”The Broncos (2-3) are mired in a
three-game skid with the unbeaten Los Angeles Rams (5-0) coming in next week.
This marks the return of Wade Phillips, whose contract wasn’t renewed last year
after he molded a championship defense in Denver.Phillips left because the
Broncos wanted to promote Woods from secondary coach, but Woods hasn’t had
similar success.After cornerback Bradley Roby surrendered two long TD passes
Sunday, NBC analyst Tony Dungy declared, “The ‘No Fly Zone’ is dead.”Denver’s
defensive dominance is history, too.Despite the efforts of Harris and end Derek
Wolfe, who had his first career interception Sunday, the Broncos have one of the
worst defenses in the league — they’re ranked 26th overall and 30th against the
run.Star linebacker Von Miller has been quiet since a three-sack opener and
hasn’t come close to a sack in three weeks, but it’s Roby’s struggles that have
been the most notable.The Broncos traded Aqib Talib to the Rams last offseason
to clear both salary cap space and room for Roby, who got a pay raise this
season from about $1 million to $8.526 million in the final season of his rookie
contract.Roby’s adjustment from nickel cornerback to starter has been an arduous
one.After being criticized all season for giving too much cushion to the
receivers, Roby allowed a 76-yard touchdown catch by Robby Anderson and was one
of two unblocked defenders on Isaiah Crowell’s 77-yard touchdown run
Sunday.Afterward, Roby said ups and downs come with the position.“I have
confidence because I know my job is hard, I know that I’m always in man coverage
without a lot of help,” Roby said.Asked if he’d prefer more zone coverage to
help him out, Roby
said
Phillip Lindsay
Jersey , “I don’t want to comment on that.”Joseph said Roby has to play
more confidently: “That’s part of being an NFL starter. They go at you, they
make a play or two and you have to go back out there and battle. And if you
don’t it looks like that.”Roby hasn’t developed the short memory necessary for a
starting NFL cornerback.“As a starting corner every play can be a big play,”
Joseph said. “That makes it a difficult position in this league because it’s a
passing league, obviously, and if you’re not making plays on the ball, every
play can be a big play.”The Broncos’ defensive troubles are exacerbated by an
offense that’s turning the ball over too often and not finishing drives in the
red zone.Quarterback Case Keenum ranks 30th in the league with a passer rating
of 78.1. He has just five touchdown throws and his seven interceptions match the
total he had all of last year with Minnesota.The Broncos also got off to a good
start last year only to tumble into a two-month funk, and linebacker Todd Davis
said he’s confident this team can turn things around to prevent another losing
season.“Absolutely, we definitely have the guys in this locker room that care
about our team being great. So, I think we definitely have the willpower to turn
this whole ship around,” Davis said. “And that’s what we’re going to do this
week is turn this whole thing around.”Instead of reviewing the game film by
position groups as they usually do, Denver’s entire defense watched it together
Monday with Woods leading the session.“We’re making everything open and honest
about what happened and why it happened, so it keeps us all on the same
wavelength,” Davis said. “We’re just trying to get back to playing our brand of
football.”Notes: Ace Kyle Freeland isn’t the only one who didn’t get a chance to
take the mound in the Colorado Rockies’ best-of-five NL Division Series sweep at
the hands of the Milwaukee Brewers. Davis said he was slated to throw out the
ceremonial first pitch Monday night in Game 4.Courtland Sutton says Broncos
offense could break out “at any moment” When you watch Courtland Sutton, you
have to remind yourself he’s a rookie. When you listen to the rookie, you have
to remind yourself he’s not a 10-year veteran. On Friday’s 1st & 10 @ 10 on
Orange and Blue 760, the Denver Broncos rookie receiver nailed his interview
with Ryan Edwards, Andrew Mason and Steve Atwater. They talked about what led
the offense to flip the script in the second half against the Oakland Raiders,
how close Denver’s offense is to playing a complete game and how toxic losing
can be for a team with poor veteran leadership. Look for Sutton to play a big
role in Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens. He is owed a touchdown. In
all seriousness, what’s fun to think about is the difference he’ll make for the
Broncos, hopefully, for years to come. Bonus listen I preview Sunday’s game with
the guys, as well as discuss Sutton and his fellow Broncos rookie class.
