New Broncos Coach Must Get More from Broncos' Talented Defense in 2015

Quarterback Peyton Manning’s aging body will slowly start to heal over the next several weeks, and it’s likely by spring he’ll announce he is returning for a fourth year with the Denver Broncos.

"He just needs time to get healthy, rest," defensive end DeMarcus Ware told Lindsay H. Jones of USA Today. "Calm the brain down. Turn it off a little bit and then hit the restart button once it's time."

After firing head coach John Fox, the Broncos are also hitting the restart button. It’s unlikely whoever the coach is in 2015 is going to disrupt Manning’s offense. No quarterback has more input on the offensive side of the ball than he does.

The Broncos’ 15th head coach in franchise history is going to have to make his mark on defense in 2015.

Despite boasting one of the league’s most talented defensive units, they were a disappointment in many ways. General manager John Elway struggled to explain why the team didn't peak later in the season, but clearly he envisioned the Broncos playing with more passion late in the year. 

Elway said he was disappointed the team didn’t finish the season “kicking and screaming” and with more “fire” against the Indianapolis Colts, per The Denver Post. It's like Elway wanted the Seattle Seahawks defense and got a significantly watered-down version of it.

It’s no wonder the Broncos want to interview Seahawks defensive coordinator Dan Quinn, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. 

Unfortunately for the Broncos, they won’t be able to do so until the Seahawks conclude their season. Teams that already interviewed Quinn may have second interviews next week.

Although the Broncos finished second to the Seahawks with 4.7 yards per play allowed, they failed to make the big plays that a star-studded defense needs to make. The defense allowed 354 points, which was 16th in the league, and just barely below the 361.4 points an average team allowed in 2014.

Partially to blame was the lack of turnovers. With just 25 on the season, the Broncos finished tied for 24th along with six other teams and just above the league’s 23.7 average. They were 18th in turnover percentage, which compensates for the number of snaps on defense.

The defense did limit yardage on a per-play basis, but they yielded 311 first downs, including 219 on pass plays. The pass defense was supposed to be the strength of the team, but it turned out to be the run defense that yielded just 60 first downs—just one behind the Detroit Lions for the league lead.

The Lions not only had a great run defense, but they finished third in the league in points allowed. The Lions had similar strengths as the Broncos but managed to finish better in most every category despite a significantly worse offense and lesser personnel in the secondary.

Lions defensive coordinator Teryl Austin had an interview scheduled with the Broncos for Friday, but the status is up in the air after he had his second interview with the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday, according to Jeff Legwold of ESPN.com.

Austin seemed to maximize the available talent in Detroit to help propel the Lions to the playoffs where they lost to the Dallas Cowboys on a questionable call. The expectations for the Broncos put their entire coaching staff in a tough spot, but it's hard to make the case that they got the most of their talent on defense. 

The Broncos brought in free-agent defensive end DeMarcus Ware, cornerback Aqib Talib and strong safety T.J. Ward so they could suffocate offenses once they got a lead, but that wasn’t the case in 2014. Despite facing a league-high 641 pass attempts, they sacked the quarterback just six percent of the time—just a shade below the league’s 6.1 percent average.

The Lions finished with a sack percentage of 6.6 percent and the Seahawks with 6.8 percent. Both teams were similarly strong against the run and playoff teams, so they are directly comparable.

Stats	Broncos	Seahawks	Lions
Red Zone TD %	22.2% (18)	15.9% (1)	18.0% (3)
Turnover %	2.42 (18)	2.60 (8)	2.74% (5)
TD % (Pass)	4.5% (15)	3.4% (4)	3.9% (10)
Sack %	6.0% (21T)	6.8% (11T)	6.6% (15T)
INT %	2.8% (12T)	2.6% (14T)	3.4% (3T)
Points Allowed	354 (16)	254 (1)	282 (3)
Yards/Play	4.7 (2)	4.6 (1)	4.9 (3T)
Rush YPC	3.7 (4T)	3.4 (2)	3.2 (1)
Rush YPG	79.8 (3)	76.7 (2)	69.3 (1)

The 641 pass attempts against the Broncos didn't reflect in the interception percentage, either. The Broncos tied for 11th in the league at 2.8 percent. Even if we include so-called hits and pressures, what’s the point if they aren't effective?

Meanwhile, the Lions finished tied for third in the league in interception percentage. The Seahawks were slightly worse than the Broncos at 2.6 percent but had a better overall turnover rate at 2.6 percent to the Broncos’ 2.4 percent.

Opponents scored touchdowns on 4.5 percent of their pass plays against the Broncos, which was 15th in the league and the same as the league average. The Broncos didn’t get Ware, Talib and Ward to be an average pass defense.

The Lions were 10th in touchdown percentage on pass plays at 3.9 percent, and the Seahawks were fourth at 3.4 percent. The Seahawks and Lions were also among the best in the red zone. 

According to teamrankings.com, the Seahawks had a league-best 15.9 percent red-zone touchdown percentage, and the Lions were third at 18.0 percent. The Broncos were 18th, having allowed an embarrassing 22.2 touchdown percentage in the red zone.

Although their tough schedule was a factor, the Broncos just seemed to be missing a spark. Elway will likely look to provide that with his next head-coaching hire.

The Broncos will also interview Bengals defensive backs coach Vance Joseph, according to Mike Klis of The Denver Post. Outside of offensive coordinator Adam Gase and the rumored interest in Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak, per Schefter, the Broncos have started their coaching search with a heavy focus on enthusiastic defensive coaches.

Joseph was on Kubiak’s staff with the Texans and took over the defensive play-calling for Wade Phillips when the team made him interim head coach after Kubiak’s firing. It’s not unprecedented for a position coach to get a top job—especially not one like Joseph with ties to Elway via Kubiak.

Whether it’s Austin, Quinn, Joseph or the offensive-minded candidates like Kubiak and Gase, the next head coach of the Broncos must get more production out of the defense. If Manning doesn’t return to form, the pressure will be on the defense to carry the team next season.

Unless otherwise noted, all statistics via Pro-Football-Reference.com.