Broncos Film Review - 2020 Season

[lomaxgrUK]

2nd quarter notes

- Jeudy doing work from the slot to open the 2nd. Love him in there. He has the quickness to operate inside, and he's way too quick for the occasional Safety man coverage you get in the slot. Terrell Edmunds (a Safety) has no hope of running across the field with him. Hell of a throw by Driskel too, sliding to his left
- False start by Vennett. Not a good enough team to commit penalties in the redzone
- Take a sack the next play. Go to the link I provided earlier for a breakdown of this

- I mentioned in my notes from the Titans game that Purcell played too many snaps. You can see we're making an effort to manage them in this game
- Missed tackle by Callahan costs 20 yards and a 1st down
- Through 3 Steeler possesions, we haven't generated a single pressure from a non-blitz or without a free runner at the QB. Fangio dialling up DB blitzes now to compensate. Really struggling for explosion in our 4 man rush

- Tuitt and Heyward is a monster combo for the Steelers on 1st down in the run game. So strong
- Entire Steelers DL (Tuitt, Heyward, Aluahu) meet at the QB a couple of plays later. Hard to get any Offense going when your pocket looks like this

- Cushenberry, Glasgow getting smoked now by the Steelers interior DL. 3rd down, Driskel looks for Fant but it's bracket double coverage. Too slow to come off it, but can't come across field with his read because he's got 2 men in his lap. Bolles is having a very good game thus far. Dupree a non-factor on 3rd down again

- Ojemudia couldn't have played that long ball to Claypool much better. He's stride for stride until the ball arrives. Great ball by Ben. It's something we don't do often enough - taking a 1v1 shot down the sideline against single high safety look, almost always on 1st down (Defense in base package). No chance for Simmons to impact that play from the middle of the field. Shame, because we got a hit on Ben via a nicely designed pressure package that saw Shelby crash inside, and Johnson blitz the vacated gap

- I think Wilkinson is happy with the arc he forces Watt to run, but Cushenberry is beat straight off the line by Aluahu and thus Driskel can't step up at all. He gets whacked by Aluahu for a sack
- With a new QB in, one sack is going to be enough to foil an entire series. Just can't take sacks

- I didnt even know that Courtland tore his knee chasing down that INT from his own drop. Jesus. That is the definition of a brutal rep for him. It's good pass pro, a good throw and a terrible drop. Such a shame

- If Risner doesn't get smoked by Dupree, I think we score on that underthrown long ball to Hamler near the end of the Quarter. Driskel can't step up because of Dupree, and Hamler has blown by the slot CB down the field. He probably should still have caught it

FIRST HALF SUMMARY

* Honestly, I think our outside pass pro has been good. Bolles has been excellent, and even Wilkinson, sans the last play to end the half, has played good enough considering he's on an island with a premier pass rusher.
* Unfortunately, the inside pass pro in the 2nd Q was awful. Risner and Cushenberry have been bullied, and Glasgow has certainly had his struggles
* Driskel has thrown the ball well from what chances he's had. Good decisions and some accurate balls. Impressed
* Our Defense lacks explosion, especially in the front 7. Chubb had some nice plays in the run game to stop the Steelers scoring after our turnover, but sans that he is struggling to explode when moving forwards
* Our only pass rush is generated by scheme, not individuals. That catches up to you eventually
* We've been pretty stout in the middle. I saw Shelby got a really good PFF grade - I assume that comes  from the 2nd half, because he's not done much of note in the 1st
* I like both Ojemudia and Bassey. Both are fluid, and I like their decisiveness. Got to catch the ball though, rook!

[thebestever6]

15 hours ago, lomaxgrUK said:

Before I start my notes, I would definitely recommend people watching these videos - https://thednvr.com/the-turning-point-how-denvers-inability-to-change-protections-cost-them-the-game-and-their-quarterback/

They are obviously far more detailed and far more intricate than mine, given Mike McChesney played in the NFL!

Holyyyy helll that protection is awful man for the resources Elway has given to Munchak which has been a decent amount I'm shocked how poorly the line plays. The backside you can't pick up a stunt??? Like really and as usually Wilkerson is beaten like a drum . I'm sure Drew could have done more to stay in one piece but this play isn't as on him as a thought the line got abused.

[lomaxgrUK]

3rd quarter notes

- I love the effort Attaochu plays with. Just a shame he isn't any good at rushing the passer
- The Simmons INT was all down to coverage. No pass rush at all from a 4 man rush on 3rd and long. Terrible throw by Big Ben, and really bad job by his receivers to try and give him something as the play broke down. Our guys really didn't have to do anything beyond cover the initial route tree
- That block in the back/unnecessary roughness call on the INT was such a BS call. Big Ben literally turns his back on the eplay as AJ is about to block him. Awful officiating

- Nice catch by Hamler on 3rd and long, bad ball by Driskel. Really similar throw to the one Lock made to Jeudy early in the 1st. Behind the receiver when there is nothing but grass in front of him. You can't put it down to timing when the throw is this far off the mark. Nice separation at the top of his route by Hamler. Pass pro was great too

- Cameron Heyward is just wrecking our run game. He's so strong, man
- Throw the ball to the guy you're staring at, open by 5 yards, Jeff ... And dont take a sack. Throw it out the endzone

 

- Justin Simmons has been all around the ball in this 3rd quarter. He's playing in the shallow middle a lot more, and he's made 2 plays behind the LOS and 2 more within 3 yards of the LOS
- The 4th and 2 incomplete pass by Big Ben was again another turnover caused by coverage, not pass rush. Think Kareem got away with a hold, too

- You could make a case for Garrett Bolles being our best player on Offense in this game through 3 quarters. He's been excellent
- Protection has been shifted in this 3rd quarter to basically double TJ Watt. Glasgow is sliding his way. Honestly, I don't think Wilkinson has been that bad but that's just me
- Another stunt inside gets Cushenberry, and it's a quick pressure on the gut. Him and Risner still have a lot to work on re: their chemistry 
- Any time you identify Noah Fant in man coverage vs a LB, we have to go that way. Driskel does it twice in two plays - one goes for a 15 yard TD, the other for the 2 point conversion

 

[grizmo78]

19 hours ago, thebestever6 said:

Holyyyy helll that protection is awful man for the resources Elway has given to Munchak which has been a decent amount I'm shocked how poorly the line plays. The backside you can't pick up a stunt??? Like really and as usually Wilkerson is beaten like a drum . I'm sure Drew could have done more to stay in one piece but this play isn't as on him as a thought the line got abused.

I put some blame on Lock too. He should be noticing the coverage and should be helping his line identify which way to shift. It's too tall of an ask for the center to be able to see that all. To go even further, this is on the whole offensive line and QB to communicate and make sure they're in the right call and protection. 

[thebestever6]

1 hour ago, grizmo78 said:

I put some blame on Lock too. He should be noticing the coverage and should be helping his line identify which way to shift. It's too tall of an ask for the center to be able to see that all. To go even further, this is on the whole offensive line and QB to communicate and make sure they're in the right call and protection. 

I have no clue what the call was you're probably right it's a shame they're a road team driving the first drive and on the most critical third down that happened and all heck breaks loose he just had no shot on that play.

[AKRNA]

Great stuff!

I always look forward to your analysis.

[lomaxgrUK]

1st quarter notes

- Poor of Wilkinson to hold on that Driskel scramble, but the scramble was caused by Cushenberry losing to Vea straight off the snap. Nothing open downfield for Driskel
- Vea is one of the biggest men I've ever seen on a football field. So hard to move in the run game
- On 3rd down Jeudy's release was ridiculous. Shame his route ran him straight into a 2 deep safety look. Nice pocket for Driskel but he throws too early and the play is way short of the sticks

- What on earth is Trey Marshall doing on the blocked punt ... He's the personal protector and he literally lets the guy go right passed him

- If Ojemudia tackles with arms and not his head, Godwin doesn't get the TD. Understand the situation, rook. You don't need to force the ball out, it's 3rd down. Wrap up and bring him down

- On the 3rd down on our 2nd possession, Risner gets beat by a D/E stunt AGAIN. How can you not be aware to a D/E stunt when your starting QB got hurt as a result of one last week? It was 3rd and 12 and the pressure comes from the backside. No chance for Driskel and he gets whooped

- The Buccs max protect package is so big ... Gronk and OJ Howard to go with 5 Lineman

- Have to hit the throw above. This team just isn't good enough for miscues like this
- 3rd and 8 and we call a play that has a whopping 2 players beyond the sticks. Buccs have 7 dropped in coverage so the play has no chance at all

- Seeing our ST unit celebrate a tackle made after a net 35 yard punt is a pretty good reflection of the state of our ST unit right now

- Buccs are 3rd and 9 and we rush 3. No pressure, and the Buccs would've got a 1st if not for Lesean McCoy falling over for now apparent reason
- Nice read by Callahan to sniff out the WR screen. He sees the RT pulling and correctly closes on Evans, forcing Brady to throw it in the dirt
- There is just no rush at all. Granted, a lot of that can be attributed to how quick Brady gets it out, but even the inside guys just aren't pushing the pocket at all
- Below is just way too much of a cushion given by Callahan to Miller, especially with Safety help over you. That's an easy pitch and catch for Brady

- Buccs play calling is taking advantage of a poor personnel matchup on 2nd and 10. We're in our base 3-4 personnel vs a 3 WR personnel look from the Buccs. That leaves Attaochu over Godwin in the slot, who takes a WR screen for 9 easy yards. No way Attaochu is going to have the coverage instinct to drive on the WR who is just sitting waiting for the screen; he's more worried about his coverage assignment
 

Edited September 29, 2020 by lomaxgrUK

[lomaxgrUK]

2nd quarter notes

- Nice play design for a big completion to Fant. It's a naked bootleg off PA, with Fant pretending to block then leaks out. Totally alone for a big 20+ yard play
- Couple plays later Driskel, once again, fails with blitz pickup and is sacked easily. Winfield is lined up right at the LOS with no receiver in sight. What do you think he's doing, Jeff? He's blitzing. Call off the play action and change to a quick hitter ... Sacked for a 10 yard loss

- If we're going to scheme up pressure, we're going to have to disguise it better than this. You can see above that the Buccs have two WRs split out to the right, yet the Broncos have FOUR guys over them. Do you really think Tom Brady isn't going to sniff that out? The call puts Jewell in man coverage so it's on Simmons to not be so wide in his alignment and thus alert Brady to the overload which shows blitz. Sure enough, we send P.J Locke (had to google that number) on a nickel blitz but Brady gets it manned up perfectly and the play goes for 30+ on a long ball to Miller
- Buccs have got something in Jensen (C) and Marpet (LG). Some combo is that
- Finally a pressure, as Harris beats Cappa (RG) with a nice swim move right off the snap
- We have to send men to create pressure, which vacates space in the middle of the field and Brady is just eating up. It's that slow death Offense that the Titans did to us to. High, high completion % on 3rd down and 5 or less

- Vea is just eating Cushenberry alive
- Poor awareness by Noah Fant to give up a sack. We're late to the lane, so no chance for audible. Fant's role is to fake blocking down the zone PA run to the left, and then flow back with his QB on the rollout. The problem is, the Buccs have Barrett aligned outside of Fant, thus if Fant doesn't have the game IQ to disrupt Barrett, he's got a free run to the QB. The real issue here is how slow we are to the line, thus  giving us no chance to get out of this terrible call vs that kind of a defensive front. Driskel could've shown better athleticism to dodge the sack, but he's shook by this point

- Unreal throw and catch by Brady to Howard straight after we punted. Perfect coverage by Jewell way down field
- Ojemudia gets away with poor hip positioning on the next play. Evans does him on a double move because Ojemudia is facing away from him Evans. Bad throw gets him off the hook. Pressure by Chubb after he beat Gronk 1v1

- First play of the 2 minute drill is a sack. Another pressure that was diagnosable presnap but we didn't. Glasgow then missed the blitzing DB up the middle and its a 10 yard loss
- Honestly, when they are manned up correct, Bolles and Wilkinson haven't had issues with Barrett or JPP at all
- Nice zone recognition by Hamler to sit in the empty spot. Easy throw for 15 yards
- I can't believe the Buccs went to a 4 man rush with soft zone behind it for our 2 minute drill. Hats off to Driskel for making the throws, but we know he's fine when he has a bit of time

 

[lomaxgrUK]

I did watch the 2nd half of the Buccs game, but didn't take extensive notes. More of the same really. The DL got stouter against the run, Shelby showed a bit of pass rush. 

Still think Driskel made our OL look worse than it was, sans Cushenberry. Will get onto the Jets game asap.

[lomaxgrUK]

1st quarter notes

- Some early pressure from Chubb. Inside move on Becton. Chubb TRIPLE teamed (2 TEs, LT) on one play from the Jets later in 1st drive
- We haven't rotated a single player on Defense through 6 snaps. Chubb, Purcell, Harris, Reed on the DL
- Tackling on the Darnold run was ... Yeh, not good. Nice hussle downfield by Williams at least

- Didn't affect the run play, but Bolles got knocked on his butt on our 1st play from scrimmage. Really heavy hands from Jenkins (OLB)
- Great athleticism by Risner on the zone run to the left. You can see below that #95 for the Jets is in the B gap. A reach block in this situation is maybe the hardest thing in football for an interior OL. Risner's man is play side, i.e he has outside leverage and the play is coming straight for him. Risner has to flip his hips and find a way to seal off #95 to the inside of the run. Look at the stills below to say where #95 was aligned presnap, and where Risner was able to get off the snap. That's A+ athleticism. Play goes for 15 yards.
It's well done by Cushenberry too, in that he understands the play and the leverage required. But his job was much easier than Risner's, given the alignment of his man

- Cushenberry and Glasgow might've both got away with a hold on our 1st pass attempt. The former ends up on the floor
- Really nice throw to Patrick on 3rd and 7 by Rypien. It has to be accurate and outside, because McDougald is coming down on the inside. Risner beaten by an outside rip move by Bryce Huff. He's struggled this year when Defense's have moved edge rushers inside on 3rd down (Steelers did this a ton, as did the Buccs)
- Bad read by Gordon which went for 3. If he went where the play was designed, it's a big play right up the gut
- 3rd and 7 from the 20 and we call a screen to Freeman who's aligned out wide. Yuck. Jets in bump coverage (short field), and the play is shut down immediately. Bad, bad call

- Can't be given up 3rd and 9 to this team. Bassey doesn't feel the pick and Crowder is wide open. Chubb gets a chip from the TE with no block from the OL, but whiffs on the sack
- Zero interior pass rush from anyone other than Chubb, who's only had 1 win himself
- I remember Aikman mentioned this play in commentary - Darnold has a wide open man on a crosser (Ojemudia in coverage) but doesn't pull the trigger and goes for a 10 yard sack, but zero pass rush again

 

 

[thebestever6]

Did Hamler tweak the same hamstring that bothered him before? Man guy always seems injured

[lomaxgrUK]

9 hours ago, thebestever6 said:

Did Hamler tweak the same hamstring that bothered him before? Man guy always seems injured

 

 

[Broncofan]

2 hours ago, lomaxgrUK said:

 

 

Fangio is just providing cover there.   Soft tissue injuries in large muscles are always at risk for reoccurrence.   Saying it’s a different area is meaningless - the risk of reinjury applies to the whole muscle - it matters little that it’s a different area - because then it’s a cascade effect.   The risk of aggravating it is sky high for RoS. 
 

This is going to be an issue for RoS.   Hopefully it doesn’t turn into a Will Fuller-like situation where it’s a career-long situation.   But at the very least it’s definitely a problem that limits his 2020 outlook.   The staff would be very wise to use kid gloves here.  

Edited October 8, 2020 by Broncofan

[lomaxgrUK]

2nd quarter notes

- Good footwork in the pocket by Rypien to keep a play alive, giving us 3rd and 2 rather than a sack. Quinnen Williams splits the Risner/Cushenberry double team to get in the backfield, but Rypien subtly slides to his left to hit Vannett on the crosser. Move within the pocket, keep your eyes downfield - one of the best traits of an NFL QB
- LOVE the shot call to Jeudy. It's an underthrown ball, but I love the playcall and the execution (sans the throw). We are in 12 personnel (2 TE, 2 WR, 1 RB) on 1st down. Shurmar knows that is going to give a crowded box, and almost definitely a single high safety look. This is the presnap look. It's exactly what we want - single high Safety, crowded box.

You can see the single high safety is cheating towards Hamler's side, likely because the RCB isn't in off coverage like the LCB, meaning he is more susceptible to a deep ball. It may also be because Hamler's route tree is more likely to send him on a go route than Jeudy. The 2 WRs are on go routes - nobody else is running a route. It's a playaction shot play.
But the best bit of the play is Rypien very subtly looking off the single high Safety to give Jeudy as much room as possible to make a play.
Below shows Rypien looking left, knowing he's going right the entire time. Look at the space for him to make a throw. Yes, it's undethrown, but the playcall and execution makes this throw a lot higher % throw than most think it would be. We really should be doing this more often.
There are no pass pro issues because of the play action and the fact we're in max protect.


- Run stuff by Malik Reed courtesy of Shelby Harris going north on a zone run. Don't flow with the blocks - get north
- A bit of a hot take here; I think Jewell has really developed in space. We play A LOT of zone coverage, and our LB's are forced to play a lot zone with depth (Jewell especially). I would actually go as far to say that Josey Jewell is actually good in space. Not as much in man coverage vs TEs, but going in space. I know a lot won't agree with that. 
- Chubb's 1st sack is entirely thanks to Shelby Harris. Harris' first move is outside of the RG to get him to overrset, then he swims back inside into the hole vacated by the RG. The Center help is too late. Chubb had overrun the play entirely, but Darnold ran into his lap whilst escaping Harris

- No clue what Rypien is doing on the 1st Desir pick. His 1st read is actually there to Fant in a levels concept towards the boundary. He would've needed to drop it over the head of underneath zone coverage, but it's not a high level throw required. We actually get two pass rushers on the floor (Risner and Cushenberry with the pancakes), so the plays goes on for an age and Rypien had time to take off for a small gain. Instead, he makes a really poor throw to Desir (hell of a catch by him)

- Whilst we play zone in most early downs, we tend to play man coverage on 3rd down because we're almost always send at least one on a blitz. Hard to play zone when you're blitzing

- What a ball from Rypien for that 30 yard pass to Patrick on 3rd and 7. Not a clue why the Jets stacked the box and gave away their single high safety look, though. Buccs were far superior in their disguise on 3rd down
- Hold on Glasgow. Beaten inside off the snap on a run play
- I kinda hate the QB slide rule, if I am honest. I get the meaning of it, but it's so difficult for defenders to pull out of making a tackle in milliseconds
- Bolles had two brilliant plays as we ran it in. 1st and goal from the 6, he does excellent to get inside leverage on his double team, so he can easily peel off to the 2nd level. Gets us down to the 1. He then buries a man on the goal line and Gordon goes right by him for the score

- Purcell has barely played in this quarter. That is definitely something to do with the knee injury he's been listed as having on the report this week
- Bassey has struggled running with Crowder from the slot. Big play in the Jets 2 min drill goes for 30, where Bassey falls down looking tired. Chubb close to getting home
- Ojemudia bites on an out and up double move, but it's great range from Jackson to force the throw outside, and Darnold misses
- First sighting of Timmy Jernigan, late in the 2nd quarter as a DT in a 4 man front
- Bassey slipping again, another completion to Crowder for a 1st. He had really good coverage, but slipped. Think that is his legs giving up on him
- 3 targets, 3 completions for about 50 yards on this drive against Bassey. 
- Vic has seen enough - Bausby is in and Callahan has gone inside. 2nd snap for Bausby is a PBU in the endzone. He was in position to pick it, in truth. Ojemudia follows it up with a PBU of his own. Still no sign of a pass rush
 

[lomaxgrUK]

3rd quarter notes

- Quinnen Williams was disruptive on 1st drive to start to the 2nd half. Blew up a run play then had a QB hit on 3rd down which led to a punt. Beat Risner on the run play, Cushenberry on the pass play

- I think it's fair to say Levante Bellamy hasn't played much gunner before he got to the NFL. Our punt coverage remains a huge weakness. Not enough speed on that unit in my opinion

- The PI call on Ojemudia on the deep ball was utter BS. Perfect coverage
- 3rd and 4 wheel route in the redzone to Frank Gore; yeeeeesh, Adam Gase ... Good coverage by Jewell but still - that is an awful call

- 2nd drive of the half and Quinnen Williams is having is way with Risner in the run game
- The next play, we double Williams with Bolles and Risner and they stay on the block; no 2nd level peel. Glasgow comes on the pull and makes it in time to pick up the 2nd level block. Fant is left 1v1 with the OLB on the edge (Bolles is inside, remember) and does enough to allow Gordon to gallop through for 20 yards
- the Jets have created zero outside pass rush. Competition is weak but I still want to praise Bolles and Dotson thus far (8 mins left in the 3rd)
- We finally found a use for Vannett! Use him as a screener on one of those pick plays ... Him and Fant align to the same side on 3rd and 8. It's man coverage, so Fant comes across the formation whereas Vannett goes the other way, thus creating traffic for the DB covering Fant. The DB can't stick with Fant in that much traffic, and he's wide open for a 1st down (Fant got hurt on the play). Great subtle movement in the pocket again by Rypien to buy time to get the ball away. A simple T T game inside does Risner and Cushenberry, with both Quinnen Williams and Franklin-Myers getting quick pressure
- Great play design for the TD throw to Patrick in the back of the endzone. Freeman motions out and the LB follows him, so Rypien knows it is man coverage. The Jets line up their SS right over Butt, so it has to be either single high Safety or zero coverage. Either way, one seem has to be open. Butt occupies the middle of the endzone to hold the Safety, Rypien also holds the Safety with his eyes, looking at Jake, then fires a perfect ball to Patrick in the seem

- I've seen more from Malik Reed covering WRs this season than I have from him as a pass rusher. Not even exaggerating
- First Defensive snap for McTelvin in his NFL career with 4 mins left in the 3rd. Makes a tackle whilst being doubled, too
- (Misses a tackle on his 2nd snap)
- Nice work disrupting his slot guy at the LOS by Duke Dawson on 3rd down. Berrios is Darnold's read, but Dawson doesn't let him into his route and the ILB blitz gets there before Berrios can release

- What a tackle by the Jets Punter on the Spencer return ... Ty Cleveland has to go bash the Punter before he gets the chance to make the tackle