Only two teams have blitzed at a higher rate than the Broncos (42.1 percent) this season, and Joseph has been unpredictable in how he designs those blitzes and when he calls them. The same goes for the coverage schemes Denver plays on the back end – there’s plenty of Cover-1 and Cover-3, but also a mix of two-high safety concepts and some Cover-0 sprinkled in as well.
“I think (Joseph) does a really good job,” head coach Shane Steichen said. “He’s multiple with his coverages – he mixes those things up. His fronts – he gets in a different fronts out of his nickel stuff, which he does a good job there, too. So, they do a good job. They’re aggressive, aggressive in nature. And so, they’ve been playing really good football defensively.”
Cornerback Patrick Surtain II may be the biggest name on Denver’s defense, but he’s hardly their only star player. Defensive end Nik Bonitto is tied with the Browns’ Myles Garrett for the second-most sacks in the NFL (11), while fellow defensive end Jonathan Cooper is tied for 14th with eight sacks. Defensive tackles Zach Allen and John Franklin-Myers both have top-seven pressure rates among interior linemen; Allen’s 56 total pressures are the second-most among defensive tackles behind only the Kansas City Chiefs’ Chris Jones.
And Surtain, of course, is established as one of the NFL’s top cornerbacks. No cornerback has a higher Pro Football Focus coverage grade (90.8) than Surtain; he’s top five among cornerbacks in passer rating allowed (61.6), interception rate (8.3 percent of targets) and explosive play rate allowed (0.9 percent of targets). Naturally, opposing offenses shy away from throwing his way: Surtain has been targeted on just eight percent of his coverage snaps this season (36 targets, 442 coverage snaps), per Pro Football Focus.
“Surtain is a hell of a football player on the outside,” Steichen said.
All these players and schemes working together have pushed…
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