Pittsburgh Steelers Meet The Opponent: Denver Broncos
By Donnie Druin
Defense
Total Defense- 22nd (375.5 YPG)
Passing Defense- 18th (247.6 YPG)
Rushing Defense- 27th (127.9 YPG)
Points Per Game- 14th (23.5 PPG)
Denver’s defense features Von Miller, one of the best defensive players not only at his position at outside linebacker, but in the entire league as well. Miller, currently tied for fourth in the league with 10 sacks thus far, anchors a Broncos front seven that has tallied a total of 31 sacks and 10 interceptions through week 11. Opposite of Miller sits potential Defensive Rookie of the Year winner Bradley Chubb, who has tallied 9 sacks for himself on the season thus far.
With Chubb’s freak athleticism and Miller’s high motor, it goes without saying that Ben Roethlisberger may feel some pressure when dropping back. Denver operates out of a 3-4 defense, and as great as the outside pairing of Chubb/Miller have been, it’s actually middle linebacker Todd Davis who leads the team in tackles, tallying 72 on the season. Brandon Marshall typically anchors the other ILB spot on what is (for the most part) a solid linebacking corps, but will miss this week with a bone bruise in his knee, allowing Josey Jewell to step in his place.
In the trenches, Derek Wolfe and Adam Gotsis anchor the defensive end spots with Domata Peko holding down the nose tackle position. With Denver ranking near the bottom of the league in run defense, the defensive linemen (along with the linebacking corp) have received criticism for their lack of production in run support despite what is believed to be one of the better defensive units in the league.
The focus all week has rested within the Broncos secondary, most notably on cornerback Chris Harris Jr. Before the last regular season meeting with the Steelers, Harris had maintained a two-year streak of not allowing a touchdown. After a meeting with Antonio Brown, the record streak was stopped with two touchdowns allowed to Brown in a loss at Heinz Field.
“I didn’t have a good game that night. It was tough that game. It was pretty much on me that game,” Harris Jr. said per TribLive.com. “It won’t be anything like that again.”
Harris remains one of the top corners in the league, and will likely find himself involved with Brown a lot on Sunday. Bradley Roby is expected to start opposite of Harris after clearing concussion protocol just a few days prior to gameday. Following the departure of Adam Jones, expect to see a lot of Tramaine Brock rotating in and out as well.
The starting spots at safety are commanded by both Darian Stewart and Justin Simmons. Simmons/Stewart both find themselves as top four leaders in tackles for the Broncos, establishing their presence throughout the game. Denver’s passing defense isn’t quite near the level it once was during their Super Bowl run, yet it remains one of the better defensive backfields in the league, and surely will look forward to a test against the Steelers high-potent offense.
With premier pass-rushers in Miller/Chubb, the Broncos have the luxury of only sending four players after the quarterback, freeing up the secondary to sit better in coverage. There’s no doubting the importance of stopping the likes of Brown or Smith-Schuster, yet will the weak run defense prove to be this team’s Achilles heel?