Check out which Denver Broncos players made a significant impact against the Buffalo Bills as we take a look at the team’s the snap counts.
The Denver Broncos dropped their first game of the season to the Buffalo Bills last week 26-16. This was a tough game for both teams, but unfortunately the Broncos couldn’t pull off the victory. This was their first loss of the year and they will be playing their division the Oakland Raiders at home this Sunday at Sports Authority Field.
Related Story: Denver Broncos: 3 Takeaways vs. Bills in Week 3
Analyzing the weekly snap counts is a good way to which players are making a major impact for the team. The more snaps a player plays, the more important they usually are to the team’s weekly game plan.
Snap counts were derived from NFLGSIS.com.
Quarterback
Trevor Siemian, 70 snaps, 100 percent market share
Unless something drastic happens, the starting quarterback should play 100 percent of the snaps. It’s not a normal practice for a team’s coaching staff to work in the second or even the third string quarterback in the middle of the game. Either an injury or poor play are the usual causes for a shake up at the quarterback position.
Running Back
C.J. Anderson, 49 snaps, 70 percent market share
Jamaal Charles, 21 snaps, 30 percent market share
Andy Janovich, 28 snaps, 11 percent market share
Nothing new here, Anderson worked the majority of the snaps while Charles spelled him on passing downs and on a few drives. Unless he gets injured, Anderson will be the team’s main running back for the entire season.
Wide Receiver
Emmanuel Sanders, 62 snaps, 89 percent market share
Demaryius Thomas, 61 snaps, 87 percent market share
Bennie Fowler, 48 snaps, 69 percent market share
Cody Latimer, 11 snaps, 16 percent market share
Isaiah McKenzie, 9 snaps, 13 percent market share
Sanders and Thomas played the majority of the snaps with Fowler entering the game to play in three wide receiver snaps. Latimer and McKenzie were used sparring in this game.
Tight End
Virgil Green, 37 snaps, 53 percent market share
A.J. Derby, 29, snaps, 41 percent market share
Jeff Heuerman, 15 snaps, 21 percent market share
Green led all tight ends in snaps. He caught 3 passes for 18 yards, equating to a catch in every 12.33 snaps. Derby was the team’s second tight end, playing 41 percent of the team’s offensive snaps.
Offensive Line
Menelik Watson, 70 snaps, 100 percent market share
Ronald Leary, 70 snaps, 100 percent market share
Matt Paradis, 70 snaps, 100 percent market share
Garett Bolles, 70 snaps, 100 percent market share
Max Garcia, 36 snaps, 51 percent market share
Allen Barbre, 34 snaps, 49 percent market share
Watson and Bolles played all of the snaps at tackle while Matt Paradis played all of the snaps at center. Also, Ronald Leary is the first offensive linemen this year to play 100 percent of the snaps at guard. Garcia and Barbre alternated at the other guard spot.
Defensive Line
Derek Wolfe, 51 snaps, 78 percent market share
Adam Gotsis, 45 snaps, 69 percent market share
Domata Peko, 35 snaps, 54 percent market share
Shelby Harris, 29 snaps, 45 percent market share
Zach Kerr, 17 snaps, 26 percent market share
It appears that the common theme in this season for the Broncos, is that the coaching staff likes to keep their defensive line as fresh as possible by implementing a rotation amongst their defensive linemen. No surprise that Wolfe led the team in snaps, considering he’s the team stud on the defensive line.
Linebacker
Shaquil Barrett, 58 snaps, 89 percent market share
Brandon Marshall, 57 snaps, 88 percent market share
Von Miller, 55 snaps, 85 percent market share
Todd Davis, 41 snaps, 63 percent market share
DeMarcus Walker, 10 snaps, 15 percent market share
Corey Nelson, 8 snaps, 12 percent market share
Kasim Edebali, 8 snaps, 12 percent market share
Zaire Anderson, 3 snaps, 5 percent market share
Barrett, Marshall and Miller played the majority of the team’s snaps at linebacker. Todd Davis also received a lot of work even though he was spelled a few times during the game. The implemented a rotation with their younger players, so they could try to keep their starters fresh during the game.
Cornerback
Aqib Talib, 61 snaps, 94 percent market share
Chris Harris, 60 snaps, 92 percent market share
Bradley Roby, 30 snaps, 46 percent market share
The Broncos like to keep it primitive when comes to their cornerback rotation. They keep their starters, Talib and Harris, on the field for the entire game, while working in Roby for three wide receiver sets and to spell either of the two starting corners.
Safety
Darian Stewart, 62 snaps, 95 percent market share
Justin Simmons, 57 snaps, 88 percent market share
Will Parks, 27 snaps, 42 percent market share
Jamal Carter, 1 snap, 2 percent market share
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Like cornerback, the Broncos like to keep it simple at safety, playing mostly their starters, while working in Parks on nickel and dime coverages.