Broncos Aced the Offseason, per PFF, But Bigger Questions Linger

Winning the NFL offseason isn’t always predictive of what the regular season holds. League history is littered with examples of teams winning an offseason but failing to translate it into success come the football season. Teams still want to have a good roster-building period, though, and the Denver Broncos have had a good one. 

Pro Football Focus' Trevor Sikkema handed out his grades for each team’s offseason, with the Broncos getting an A. The Broncos tied with the Carolina Panthers for the third-highest grade, with the New England Patriots and Chicago Bears being the top two teams with an A+ grade.

What do all four of these teams have in common? They have a young quarterback they're building around. Sikkema didn’t get into how the Broncos built around Bo Nix, but he did highlight how they added to an already great defensive unit.

“The Broncos ranked 10th in the NFL last season in team PFF defensive grade (74.1), as well as in the top half of the league in run defense, coverage and pass rush," Sikkema wrote. "Now, they’ve added Dre Greenlaw, Talanoa Hufanga and Jahdae Barron, among other depth players. That group could absolutely be the best in the NFL."

As Sean Payton said before the draft, bolstering the defense is building around the quarterback. That said, seeing the Broncos continue to build up their defense was great.

Last year, Denver exceeded expectations despite having questionable talent at every level of the field. This offseason, the Broncos added Greenlaw, who, when healthy, should bring much-needed stability to the linebacker room. That room was one of the worst in the NFL last year, led by Cody Barton and Justin Strnad. 

Defensive play can be volatile year-to-year, but the Broncos have the pieces to improve on their success last year. There is a legitimate case for the Broncos to have the best defense in the NFL, but injuries could be their downfall.

While the Broncos have had success staying healthy over the last two seasons, Payton has also purged the roster of injury-prone players, for the most part. Time will tell whether it was Payton making those moves or the medical staff, and this season will be a good test of Hufanga and Greenlaw signings. 

There was a quick mention of the offense from Sikkema.

“Throw in some key additions on offense, such as running back RJ Harvey via the draft and tight end Evan Engram via free agency, and you have one heck of an offseason in Denver," Sikkema wrote. 

Both are key moves that fill the Broncos' two most significant needs. They needed a legitimate tight end receiving weapon and a legitimate and explosive running option out of the backfield. While not explicitly mentioned, these moves are meant to help Nix take the next step and attempt to avoid a sophomore slump. 

However, those moves don’t address another key addition the Broncos made to the offense. The Broncos did alright on third down, converting 39.6%, which was 11.3% behind the NFL leader.

The Broncos needed help to improve there. They needed reliability and someone who could run specific routes and add crucial blocking from the receiver position, which was covered with Denver's addition of third-round wideout Pat Bryant. 

Overall, Sikkema is accurate with the Broncos offseason grade. The Broncos made it clear they were targeting specific roles for their positions of need.

Hufanga, Greenlaw, and Engram arrive as free agents, with Barron, Harvey, and Bryant all filling needs and specific roles in their positions via the draft. Even adding Trent Sherfield in free agency and drafting Jeremy Crawshaw and Que Robinson are moves to improve Denver's third phase under new special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi. 

This was a calculated offseason by Broncos GM George Paton and Coach Payton as the team looks to help Nix take the next steps as the franchise quarterback. In doing that, the team's shot-callers want to make the Broncos a perennial playoff team and Super Bowl contenders, and they hope to do that last part here soon.