The Denver Broncos started off 2018 on the right foot with a home win against the Seattle Seahawks. But let’s look at some notable strengths and weaknesses this season.
The Denver Broncos kicked off their season with a home win over the visiting Seattle Seahawks, who are a drastically different team from the past few years. We’ve grown to be accustomed to the Seahawks dominating on both sides of the ball.
That will no longer be the case heading into the 2018 campaign.
The Seahawks lost Michael Bennett, Cliff Avril, Richard Sherman and Kam Chancellor on their defense. The “Legion of Boom” has come to an end (it was great while it lasted), and their defense is no longer intimidating as it once was. Safety Earl Thomas also seems to be unhappy with his current situation with the Seahawks, adding another wound in this defense. Thomas could be traded at some point this season.
Look into the Broncos’ victory over Seattle as you wish, but it’s a good sign nonetheless.
Now onto the Broncos, they made a couple of improvements this offseason. They made a huge upgrade at the quarterback position, from Trevor Siemian to Case Keenum. Keenum had a career year last year, throwing for 3,547 yards and 22 touchdowns. He did that with a talented receiving corps in Minnesota with the Vikings, but Broncos have a talented group as well.
It will be interesting to see how he performs in his new uniform.
The Broncos also added a few pieces on their already talented defense. Recently they added Adam “Pacman” Jones from free agency. They also added Tramaine Brock in the secondary, giving Chris Harris Jr. some help. He’ll definitely need it with the departure of cornerback Aqib Talib on the defense. Denver also acquired Su’a Cravens, who is one of the rare players who plays safety and inside linebacker. The defense of the Broncos can be scary good this year.
General manager John Elway and Co. drafted pretty well too. Their first-round pick, EDGE Bradley Chubb is a perfect fit to rush the passer alongside Von Miller. The Broncos drafted wide receiver Courtland Sutton in the second round. He can become an impact player early on. In the third round, they selected Royce Freeman at running back, hopefully replacing the production of C.J. Anderson. Freeman has a shot at the starting spot ahead of Devontae Booker, who’s been disappointing so far.
The Broncos come into this year as a team hard to gauge, especially with all of the new faces. I believe Broncos can be a surprise team to win the AFC West and make some noise in the playoffs. It all started in Week 1, as they withstood an impressive outing from Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson.
Here are the Broncos strengths and weaknesses heading into the rest of the regular season.
