3 Lingering Big Moves Broncos Must Make on Defense

It's not even an option; the Denver Broncos have to get busy on these moves.

Oct 29, 2023; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Markus Golden (44) takes the field before playing the Jacksonville Jaguars at Acrisure Stadium. / Philip G. Pavely-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Broncos training camp is underway, as the rookies reported on Wednesday, and the veterans will soon follow on July 23. With the 2024 season is rapidly approaching, there are still roster areas where the Broncos can use some additional help.

We already examined what moves the Broncos should make on offense, so now it's time to examine the defensive side of the ball. 

Name Riley Moss CB2 Opposite PS2

When you look at what the Broncos need to do on offense, it starts with naming Bo Nix as the starter and it's a similar thing here. According to reports from OTAs and mini-camp, Moss looked the part of a starting corner.

He's entering his second year after a redshirt rookie season of sorts. The Broncos used two third-round picks to get Moss, so they need to give him the job and see if he can hold onto it. 

Naming Moss the starter wouldn't mean he couldn't lose the job. If he struggles, bench him and go to Levi Wallace, who is a decent veteran corner but best suited as a depth option.

Wallace is under contract only this year, while Moss is still under his rookie contract for the next three seasons. It doesn’t do the team any good for the long-term outlook pf the position if another year of a rookie's deal is wasted with a veteran free agent in town for one season. 

The Broncos need to figure out what they have in Moss, and naming him the starter would give him the most opportunities to show what he is and hold onto the job. It would provide a clear picture of whether the Broncos must continue looking for a partner for Surtain or if they finally found one in Moss. 

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Sign Another ILB

The Broncos have a solid linebacker in Alex Singleton, but they don’t have a decent enough option to pair with him. Cody Barton has multiple years of bad play, Jonas Griffith can’t stay healthy, Drew Sanders is hurt, and the rest are unknown quantities on defense.

There are still some free-agent options available that the Broncos can consider to add more competition to the room and, at the very least, improve the depth. Zach Cunningham would be one of the top options available.

With his play style, Cunningham could be a decent complementary piece to Singleton. Another one is Shaquille Leonard, who is similar to Singleton. Both of them are experienced veterans and should be able to pick up things quickly and add to the needed competition. 

If it isn’t one of them, then there isn’t much else out there unless the Broncos want to take a chance on Kwon Alexander. The issue is that all three of them could be chasing rings and not looking to sign with a team that's in Year 1 of a rebuild.

Sign Another OLB

While the Broncos have serious potential with their edge room, they're full of questions. Baron Browning has had issues staying on the field and is a free agent after this season, as is Jonathon Cooper.

The Broncos need Nik Bonitto to step up, and Jonah Elliss is a rookie working back from injury. Teams need depth off the edge, especially with a unit replete with injury questions.

Yannick Ngakoue is a reliable pass rusher, but he has bounced around the NFL due to poor run defense. While the Broncos have plenty of questions about their run defense from the position, Ngakoue can add pass-rush depth, which is needed with how much the Broncos struggled to generate pressure last year without blitzing. 

Shaq Lawson, Emmanuel Ogbah, Markus Golden, Carl Lawson, and Melvin Ingram are some other options. The best one of them all is probably Golden, who has worked under Vance Joseph when they were both with the Arizona Cardinals.

Golden has picked up 40 pressures in six of his nine seasons and has been a consistent run defender throughout his career. The familiarity between coach and player is a bonus, but adding a reliable and consistent run defender would help fill the most prominent weakness at the position. 

Bottom Line

All three of these could help the team in a big way as the Broncos prepare for the season. There are some high expectations for this team, despite the rebuild trope, and it's often the little things that make the difference between success and failure. 

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