Broncos Player Grades for Week 15's 24-15 Win Over Cardinals
A win is a win. The Denver Broncos managed to get their fourth victory of the season while keeping the Arizona Cardinals winless in the Mile High City.
The first half of the game was rough for the Broncos' offense, but they made the proper adjustments and came out big in the second half, leading to their second-highest point total of the season. While there were some bad performances, most players did quite well in the team's 24-15 win over the Cardinals. Of the 32 players that qualified for a grade, only six were below 50, while 12 were above 70.
The Broncos' defense did a tremendous job. Although they were facing a backup and third-string quarterback, the Broncos kept them from putting up points, as they have done all season.
However, this time, unlike in other games, the Broncos' offense did its part by not only scoring points but by finishing drives in the end zone.
Let's jump into the grades, but first, if you want a quick rundown of how our grading system works, click here.
MVP(s)
Offense: Latavius Murray | RB | Grade: 74.2
Murray was on one against the Cardinals. He showed more speed and burst than the rest of the season while maintaining his power to pick up positive yards. It wasn't only as a rusher that Murray did well, but also as a blocker.
Defense: Patrick Surtain II | CB | Grade: 81.2
This was the best game of Surtain's young career. He essentially shut down DeAndre Hopkins. Of his seven-catch, 60-yard day, only two receptions for 22 yards came against Surtain. Surtain had some issues against the run, but they were not as prominent in other games.
Quarterback
Brett Rypien | QB | Grade: 55.8
This was a game-managing performance from Rypien, but an interception and two fumbles hurt his overall grade. Denver got the run game going, which took the pressure off of Rypien and allowed him to make the throws he needed to instead of trying to force passes for more.
The Positive
Damarri Mathis | CB | Grade: 78.8
Mathis shut down his side of the field and was targeted only twice throughout the game. One of his targets, he sat on the route, read it perfectly, and nearly came down with the interception. This game showed the most promise from Mathis in the season.
Justin Simmons | S | Grade: 75.6
Simmons has mostly struggled this season, but he was great against the Cardinals after a rough one last week. Not only did he pick off two passes, but Simmons was also quick and accurate with his reads against the run to come up and help make the play.
Alex Singleton | LB | Grade: 75.2
Singleton is the Broncos' leading tackler, but he has had some bad games this season. This was one of his better games, where he flew around the field and consistently hit the right lane against the run.
Eric Tomlinson | TE | Grade: 73.5
The signing of Tomlinson has not been great for Denver, as he was supposed to be the blocking tight end and has struggled there. However, he was great against the Cardinals as a blocker and caught his second career touchdown.
Marlon Mack | RB | Grade: 71.7
Mack looks like he did when he first came into the NFL before the injuries. He has looked quick and light on his field while showing great vision with the ball in his hands.
Andrew Beck | FB | Grade: 71.1
After missing a few weeks with an injury, Beck was back in the lineup and killed it as a blocker. Sixteen of his 21 snaps came as a run blocker, with two more snaps coming as a pass blocker and maybe three of those 18 snaps were negative, whereas the rest were great plays from him.
The Negative
Nik Bonitto | OLB | Grade: 42.7
Bonitto didn't do much as a pass rusher, picking up one pressure on 15 pass rush snaps. His play as a run defender was bad, but fortunately, it was covered up by the play of those around him.
Graham Glasgow | IOL | Grade: 42.7
This was a rough game for Glasgow in pass protection, but he did a great job as a run blocker, which helped save his grade. While Glasgow was credited with giving up only two pressures, there were a few other pass-protecting plays he struggled with and got bailed out by the quarterback or a teammate.
Baron Browning | OLB | Grade: 43.1
Denver has gotten a lot out of Browning, but the last four weeks have been extremely rough for the pass rusher. He did get credited for three pressures against the Cardinals and a half-sack, which is great, but he was missing in action outside of that. A vital area for improvement this offseason will need to come against the run.
Kareem Jackson | S | Grade: 43.7
Jackson has probably been the worst starter on the Broncos' defense this season and has only had two good games. It is clear he has lost a step and isn't what he used to be, but another issue is how late he has been with his rotations and reads.
Luke Wattenberg | IOL | Grade: 44.5
This was a step forward from Wattenberg, who had a clean game in pass protection, allowing zero pressures on 15 pass-blocking snaps. The issue was in the run game, where he got no push upfront if he wasn't flat-out beaten.
Tom Compton | OL | Grade: 48.8
Compton allowed pressure on three of his 18 pass-blocking snaps, and there were multiple other plays where he struggled. What makes those three pressures worse was they were all sacks, and he got beaten or made the wrong read. However, his ability as a run blocker was on display, which is why the Broncos brought him in during the offseason.
Other Noteworthy Grades
Jerry Jeudy | WR | Grade: 74.6
Jeudy was moved around the formation and had success for the Broncos. He caught all but one target for 76 yards, but what was even better to see was the effort as a blocker on the edge.
Eyioma Uwazurike | IDL | Grade: 72.4
What a great showing from the rookie. He didn't pick up pressure, but he got his hands up, which led to a batted pass. While he only played six snaps against the run, he did a good job there for the Broncos, which has been the concern of his game.
Mike Purcell | IDL | Grade: 67.7
Purcell was stout in the middle of the Broncos' defense and ate up a lot of space. His play upfront helped the linebackers make a play on the ball carrier frequently, which led to the 3.7 average yards per carry from the Cardinals.
Freddie Swain | WR | Grade: 57.3
While it wasn't a great game for Swain, it was good. It becomes great when you factor in how long he has been with the team. Despite being brought in during the week, Swain played like he knew the playbook and the verbiage for years. One thing that stood out with Swain was how fierce he was when blocking on the edge, as it helped the backs bust off a couple of long runs.
Dalton Risner | IOL | Grade: 52.7
Risner played a clean game in pass protection, allowing a single pressure. However, he struggled a lot in the run game. There were some great blocks by Risner, but the same issues in the run game that have been there throughout his career remained. It was a nice step forward, however.
DeShawn Williams | IDL | Grade: 39.8
While Williams struggled at times against the run, he did a great job getting after the quarterback, finishing with a whopping 2.5 sacks. Even his run defense improved from what he had shown for most of the season.
Coaches
Nathaniel Hackett | HC | Grade: 68.9
Hackett was part of the process with the adjustments for the second half on the offense that worked out so well for the unit. He also didn't have those head-scratcher decisions he had throughout the season.
Klint Kubiak | QBs Coach/Play-caller | 71.2
Kubiak did an excellent job as a play-caller, especially in the second half. The adjustments made for the offense after allowing five sacks in the first half worked out. Again, this was a great showing from the play-caller to help cover the backup quarterback while calling plays to his strengths.
Ejiro Evero | DC | Grade: 75.7
This was a great game from Evero, who consistently called the right plays at the right time. There were some lapses from his unit where the play calls weren't the best, but it wasn't often. Evero is one of the best young defensive minds in the NFL for a reason.
Dwayne Stukes | STC | Grade: 53.2
While the special teams unit wasn't problematic like it's been in previous weeks, it is still a struggling unit. Part of the issue is overall talent, but the coaching has been bad, as have the decisions with the unit.
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