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5 Things the Denver Broncos Must Do Well in 2016

By John Sarianides

Oct 4, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak on his sidelinesin the first quarter against the Minnesota Vikings at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 4, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak on his sidelinesin the first quarter against the Minnesota Vikings at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports /
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After winning Super Bowl 50, most NFL observers seem to think the Denver Broncos will take a major step back due to the retirement of Peyton Manning and key free agent defections.

While there is a chance the Broncos do take a step back, head of football ops John Elway has done a great job of addressing the quarterback position and keeping most of the defense intact.

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On the surface, the Broncos will be a different team in 2016, especially on offense. In some ways, they’ll be better. Manning’s lack of mobility really limited what coach Gary Kubiak could do on offense.

Kubiak is from the Mike Shanahan school of offense. Run the football, throw your screens and drop back passes, and emphasize play action. Kubiak couldn’t do those things with Manning, but he can with either Mark Sanchez or rookie Paxton Lynch.

Here are five things the Broncos must do well schematically in 2016 in order to repeat as champions.

1. Paxton Lynch Needs to Develop Into the Starting Quarterback: Gary Kubiak and his staff must develop Paxton Lynch into the starting quarterback this season. Lynch has the size, arm strength and mobility to thrive in Kubiak’s offense. Denver has a good enough ground game and defense to protect Lynch. If the offensive staff brings Lynch along in his development, they can win with him this season.

2. Pound Away: Elway re-signed both C.J Anderson and Ronnie Hillman, because he knew the Broncos will need to run the ball even more than they did last season. At least initially, anyway. Kubiak can do more in the running game now because he doesn’t have to be in shotgun the majority of the time. Look for the Broncos to run their staple inside and outside zone running plays, but I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw them in more two-back formations with an emphasis on power football.

3. More 21 Personnel: As I mentioned earlier, it wouldn’t surprise me if the Broncos were in more two-back formations this season. That’s because they’ll use more 21 personnel (2 RBs, 2 WRs and 1 TE). The Broncos have the running backs and tight ends necessary to play in this personnel grouping. They also have two receivers in Demaryius Thomas and Emmaunel Sanders that can beat man coverage on the outside. Having receivers that can do that is another key when it comes to playing in 21 personnel.

4. Replace Malik Jackson: Defensive end Malik Jackson was a jack of all trades defensively for the Broncos. He played defensive tackle and defensive end, depending on the front call. Jackson signed with the Jaguars this off-season, and the Broncos will miss his versatility. Derek Wolfe will fill some of that role, as will veteran Jared Crick. Long term, the Broncos are hoping rookie Adam Gotsis replaces Jackson.

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5. Maintain Diversity on Defense: What made the Broncos so tough to play against last season was their defensive diversity. Depending on the opponent, defensive coordinator Wade Phillips might bring more pressure out of his 3-4 base or he might sub, rush three and drop eight like he did against the Patriots. That type of diversity in scheme is tough to prepare for offensively. The Broncos will continue to mix things up and play this way defensively, because it makes it tough on the opponent.

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