Broncos Defense Shines in Week 17 Win over Raiders

The Denver Broncos secured the second seed in the AFC by beating the Oakland Raiders in Week 17. The final score of 47-14 was the most points scored by the Broncos this year and the second-fewest points allowed by the Broncos in 2014.

Broncos defensive end DeMarcus Ware was appreciative that the team was able to build some momentum as they head into the postseason.

“It was really critical for the defense to go into this bye week [with] our confidence, knowing that we can be dominant and how we should play because at the end of the day, defense wins championships and we want to go into this bye week with that confidence and go into that next game.”

The Broncos defense shined in the win over the Raiders. Here’s a look at a few of the key players from Sunday’s victory.

Von Miller

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Derek Carr was under pressure most of the afternoon against the Broncos. The Broncos defense only blitzed on 22 percent of his dropbacks, but they were able to put him under duress on 26.8 percent of those snaps.

Von Miller—as per usual—was a big part of the pass rush.

Player	Team	GP	Sacks
Reggie White	Philadelphia Eagles	57	70.0
Derrick Thomas	Kansas City Chiefs	63	58.0
J.J. Watt	Houston Texans	64	57.0
DeMarcus Ware	Dallas Cowboys	64	53.5
Dwight Freeney	Indianapolis Colts	63	51.0
Von Miller	Denver Broncos	55	49.0
Richard Dent	Chicago Bears	63	49.0

Miller recorded his 14th sack of the season in the first quarter to move into fourth place on the club’s single-season sack chart.

The sack was the 49th of his career, tying him with Richard Dent for the sixth most in NFL history (since 1982) through a player’s first four seasons.

Miller said the future is bright for this defense.

“I think we have a solid foundation and I think our best football is yet to come," he said. "Hopefully it’ll come during these playoff games in the Super Bowl run.”

David Bruton

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With starting strong safety T.J. Ward inactive due to neck injury, the Broncos turned to veteran David Bruton to start. Bruton looked good in coverage, and he made plays as a run-defender as well. He finished the game against the Raiders with four tackles (three solo) and one pass defended.

Bruton was knocked out of the game by an illegal block in the back on special teams. He had to be put on a stretcher, and he was carted off the field and immediately sent to the hospital via ambulance.

Broncos head coach John Fox gave an update on Bruton’s status after the game.

“David Bruton [Jr.] was taken to the hospital but it’s just believed to be a concussion—not that that’s not serious, but a little better news than it could have been.”

Fox gave his thoughts on the hit, too.

“I saw the flags come in late, it was behind the play," he said. "I don’t know really what happened other than it was obviously was an illegal block. But I didn’t know much about that. Just happy to hear it wasn’t more serious.”

With the win, the Broncos have a much-needed bye week. This will be great for Bruton, as he can take it easy and try to get healthy before the team’s divisional playoff game.

Malik Jackson

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In addition to Miller, Malik Jackson was harassing Carr often during the game. Jackson finished the game with two tackles (both solo), one tackle for a loss, one quarterback hit and two passes defensed.

Jackson knows the team improved issues they had from the Bengals game in Week 16.

“I think so. I think last week was a game we needed, too," he said. "To see some looks and just get some character checks and let everybody know that is not easy, by no means at this time of the year. I think last week was a great example of us having to get better and we did this week, so I think we’re moving in the right direction.”

The Broncos defense will need to get as much pressure as possible in the postseason. Miller and Ware will be able to put opposing quarterbacks under duress from the edges, but this team will greatly benefit from a guy like Jackson getting pressure up the middle.

Todd Davis

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The Broncos have been working with backup linebackers at certain spots for most of the season. Todd Davis is the latest reserve linebacker to get thrust into a larger role.

Davis led Denver with six tackles (five solo), and he was one of four Broncos with multiple passes defensed.

Starting cornerback Chris Harris appreciated the way the backups on defense played Sunday.

“That’s huge. We’ve got a lot of depth and we just—it’s good to see everybody play and get their chance to get some film. In a regular season game, a lot of the young guys, they don’t get a lot of experience, but to be able to get that today was huge.”

Instead of being a liability in coverage, Davis did a good job of establishing proper spacing when asked to cover. He’s an aggressive player who loves to hit, but Davis played under control against the Raiders and did not overrun plays as a run-defender.

Brandon Marshall should return for the Broncos first playoff game, but Davis has proven that he can be an asset for the defense if called upon to play a larger role.

Summary

Defense wins championships, and this may be the best defense the Broncos have had in the Manning era.

Defensive tackle Terrance Knighton said he likes where this defense is heading.

“We wanted to come out and be dominant and get that juice going into the playoffs," he said. "It will be a while before we step back on the field, so we absolutely wanted to leave the field with a good mindset and not think about how bad we played for two weeks.”

Knighton concluded, “We wanted to think about how well we played for two weeks.”

Broncos fans should be excited about this team’s potential in the postseason. They’re firing on all cylinders as they head into the playoffs, and this defense could play tough enough to get this team back to the Super Bowl.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via email from the Denver Broncos unless otherwise noted. Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac.com. Transaction history provided by ProSportsTransactions.com.