Broncos Snubbed by PFF as Zero Players Make Top 101 of 2021

Something stinks here.

Broncos Country has barely been able to take a retrospective look back on the team's massively disappointing 7-10 finish, especially after another head coach bit the dust in the immediate aftermath. Now that new head coach Nathaniel Hackett has rounded out his new-look staff, fans can finally reflect on a season that was so underwhelming that zero Denver Broncos were deemed good enough to even make the Pro Bowl.

Adding insult to injury, Pro Football Focus snubbed the Broncos in the site's annual Top 101 Players of 2021 list, showcasing just how much the national media dismisses this team as an afterthought. Perhaps some fans could make a strong argument that second-team All-Pro safety Justin Simmons should have received some recognition, or star rookie cornerback Patrick Surtain II, but it’s worth noting that only part-time Bronco Von Miller made the list at No. 24.

“It once looked like Miller’s star had started to fade, but a trade to Los Angeles and the chance of another Super Bowl reinvigorated him. Against Tampa Bay in the playoffs, Miller notched his first double-digit pressure game since week 8 of 2019, and he showed that he still has some gas left in the tank. His perennial dominance against the run has stayed intact, and while he might not generate a league-leading rate of pressures in the future, he can still be extremely effective in that area.”

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Taking into account postseason performances, Miller lands at a fair ranking on PFF's Top 101 list, especially after he put in strong showings in for the Los Angeles Rams in January and February. PFF’s list is also based solely on 2021 play, meaning that past or future play isn't accounted for.

By discounting past performances or incorporating future projections, it serves as an indictment of how the Broncos roster has been squandered by the previous coaching regime. Miller’s resurgence could be a harbinger of Broncos GM George Paton pushing to re-sign Miller to provide a real boost off the edge.

NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers has also been strongly linked with a trade to the Broncos this offseason and he's unsurprisingly featured on the list at No. 18, but you have to figure his early postseason exit pushed him a little farther down PFF's rankings.

“There may have been no more efficient quarterback this season than Rodgers, whose ability to make big plays without putting the ball in harm’s way is arguably the best in NFL history. Rodgers recorded 38 big-time throws to just 12 turnover-worthy plays in addition to a 77.6% adjusted completion rate this season. His worst game came on the opening weekend, but he was as good as any quarterback in the league from that point on.”

These lists can be dismissed out of hand as simply filling in the blanks in the slow offseason news cycle, but everything PFF says about both Miller and Rodgers will certainly have most Broncos fans sold on the prospect of the two stars potentially providing an immediate upgrade to the team.

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