Denver Broncos: What We've Learned Through Week 4 of Preseason

The Denver Broncos wrapped up the preseason with a 3-1 record. They played their final warm-up game on Thursday night against the Arizona Cardinals, and there were several questions answered in that matchup.

The process of going through the offseason can forge a team into a champion. The Broncos have worked diligently this offseason to find the right balance between talent, personnel and scheme. They’ve got amazing talent on both sides of the ball, and this may arguably be the most well-rounded team of the Peyton Manning era.

Now, the team must trim the roster to the best 53 players they can find. They’ll be cutting or releasing players before Saturday’s deadline, and they may even be making moves to acquire more talent via trades—or from other teams' cut lists.

Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak knows this time of year is tough because of the roster cuts.

“It's very difficult," he said. "I told them last week, I didn't think we had a guy in our locker room before the game that couldn't play in this league. Sometimes you just have to keep battling and those guys will. It's a tough day from that standpoint.”

Here’s what we’ve learned about the Broncos through four weeks of the preseason.

The Offense Needs to Shake off Some Rust

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Manning returns for his fourth season as the starter for the Broncos, and this year he’s going to be running a new offense. During training camp, Manning showed a stronger arm than he ever had before during his time in Denver. He looked somewhat uncomfortable working from under center at times, but Manning seemed to improve within the offense as training camp continued.

During the preseason, Manning and the first-team offense couldn’t get into a rhythm.

Manning played in two preseason games, and he was only able to get the team into position to score six points. He came out in the shotgun formation against the Houston Texans, but the first-team offense sputtered because of penalties and dropped passes. In the game against the San Francisco 49ers, Manning was under duress from pass-protection breakdowns up front.

After the 49ers game, Manning discussed the improvement process:

“I think it’s important for us to improve through the season, and like I said, would we like to be a finely tuned machine going into Week 1? Sure. With some newness, some different players and some different things that we’re doing, that’s what we’re working toward.”

Manning continued, “Certainly, I think the key is for us to improve through the season. Now, we’re not making excuses. You can still win games as you’re still kind of finding your identity and figuring out the things that you can hang your hat on.

“We’ve got some starters out, potentially. [WR] Emmanuel [Sanders] and obviously we’ve got good competition there with [G] Evan [Mathis] and [G] Max [Garcia], and whatever rotation ends up at the offensive line, so we’re still very much kind of figuring out who we are and what we’re going to be as far as the things we can really hang our hat on.”

The veteran quarterback concluded, “I think we’ll develop those throughout the season. I still think we can win games as we’re developing kind of that identity.”

It’s just going to take some time for the Broncos to be hitting on all cylinders. Early in the season, we could see the defense carry the team at times. However, by at least the midway point of the campaign, the Broncos offense should be performing like a well-oiled machine.

C.J. Anderson Is Primed for a Big Year

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The Broncos are going to feature their rushing attack early and often in 2015. Leading the way will be third-year running back C.J. Anderson. He entered training camp as the starter, and he didn’t give up his spot. Anderson faced competition from Montee Ball earlier this offseason, and he was also able to hold off Ronnie Hillman through the preseason. He now enters the regular season at the top of the depth chart.

In this zone-blocking system, Anderson could post career-best numbers in 2015.

An undrafted free agent in 2013, Anderson has worked hard to prove himself as a capable starter. Now he’s got the top spot, he’s been working even harder to hold onto that position.

He went into this season with a chiseled physique, improved speed and quickness and the mentality that he wasn’t going to relinquish the starting job. In fact, Anderson doesn’t even want to share the workload with a change-of-pace back—he wants the rock as much as possible.

Anderson had a lot of praise for the improvement of the young offensive linemen in front of him:

“Every day. They're working every day, and you can see it. The holes are just—they're looking like college to be honest. The holes are tremendous. There are some plays they're going to lose because they get paid on the other side of the ball, too, but we're working really hard and we're happy and proud about it, and we're just going to keep grinding on it.”

With the addition of veteran guard Evan Mathis, the Broncos rushing attack should be even better—and Anderson will be the primary beneficiary.

Emmanuel Sanders Should Be Ready to Go Week 1

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The first-team offense has been missing a key piece with Emmanuel Sanders out of action for the entirety of preseason. A strained hamstring, suffered on August 8, kept Sanders on the sidelines while his teammates trudged through camp and the preseason.

The Broncos tried to work out Sanders before the first preseason game, against the Seattle Seahawks, but the veteran receiver felt a little soreness afterward and the team just shut him down.

Needless to say, the Broncos have been extremely cautious with their star wide receiver. That patience and caution should now be rewarded, as it looks as though Sanders will be ready to start in Week 1 of the regular season.

Before the final preseason game, Kubiak revealed that Sanders was close to returning: “If we were playing [regular season] this week, Emmanuel is ready to go. I think we went about it the right way. There have been no setbacks this week. He's had good work.”

Getting Sanders back on the field should be a huge benefit for Manning and company. His return to action should help the Broncos offense move the chains consistently and keep drives alive.

The Tight Ends Are Going to Be Heavily Involved

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In addition to pounding the rock, the Broncos are going to use their tight ends frequently on offense. A hallmark of the Kubiak offense, the tight end position is frequently used to move the chains in this offense.

The Broncos lost Julius Thomas to the Jacksonville Jaguars in free agency, so they went out and acquired Owen Daniels off the open market. In addition to signing Daniels, the Broncos kept Virgil Green around with a contract extension.

Both of these veteran tight ends should play a big role on this offense—but they’ll do it for different reasons.

Daniels is going to be the primary pass-catcher for the Broncos. He knows the Kubiak offense like the back of his hand and should be a reliable and consistent target for Manning. Daniels knows how to find the marker, and he’ll be a crucial target when the team needs to move the chains or pick up tough yards.

Green is going to be the primary blocking tight end. He is an underrated receiver, but he’s such a good blocker that his main job will be blasting open holes for the rushing attack. If needed, Green can make plays as a receiver, but he may not be involved as a pass-catcher as often as some Broncos fans think.

Though the first-team offense struggled through the preseason, Daniels was not overly concerned with the lack of points. After the game against the San Francisco 49ers, he expressed his thoughts on the matter:

“I don’t think there is a lot of concern. We’ve got to make good use of our time the next couple weeks. I think people are used to seeing a lot more points on this offense. But I don’t think there’s need to hit the panic button. We’re getting yards, and we had a lot better day in third-down situations. That’s an improvement from last week and we just have to get ready for Week 1.”

The new-look offense is going to be a bit boring compared to what Broncos fans have become used to in the Manning era. Instead of spreading the field with a shotgun formation and multiple wide receivers, the Broncos will often be using two tight end sets.

The Broncos Pass Rush Is Fierce

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There’s no question this Broncos defense is going to be one of the most aggressive units in the NFL. Wade Phillips takes over as defensive coordinator this year, and his 3-4 defense is famous for getting a lot of pressure on opposing quarterbacks. That will be no different this year, as the Broncos should be able to put quarterbacks under duress with great frequency in 2015.

Leading the way for the defense will be outside linebackers Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware.

Miller could set the sack record in 2015, and recording at least 20 sacks is very possible. He looked like a beast in training camp and the preseason. Miller should give opponents nightmares because of his speed, ability to bend around the edge and quickness when bursting to the quarterback.

Ware should be able to snare double-digit sacks again this year. However, the Broncos will be mindful not to wear the veteran down as the season goes on. Last year, Ware only recorded two sacks over the final eight weeks of the regular season. In 2015, the team has a better rotation of pass-rushers behind Ware to help keep him fresh.

In addition to Miller and Ware, 2015 first-round pick Shane Ray will be a vicious presence on the football field. The rookie has a great appreciation for the Phillips defense:

“Honestly, we just have to give a lot of credit to our coaches. Coach Phillips puts in a really good position all around on defense to be aggressive, make plays and get sacks. I think, as a team, we've taken all of our coaching, been as aggressive as we can and made plays.”

Ray concluded, “I think preseason and what we've done is just a reflection of us taking coaching and being a good football team.”

Guys such as Ray and Shaquil Barrett should be able to give the Broncos plenty of punch from the outside. Add in a pass-rusher such as defensive end Malik Jackson, and it’s easy to see how this team could get near the team record for sacks in 2015.

All quotes and injury/practice observations obtained firsthand. Record/statistical information provided via the Broncos' media department unless otherwise noted. Advanced stats via ESPN's employees-only database.

Contract and salary-cap information provided by Spotrac. Transaction history provided by Pro Sports Transactions.