The Broncos Defense was one of 2019's bigger fantasy disappointments. It was a bottom-10 group (1 point for sacks, 2 for takeaways) after ranking in the top 10 in three of the previous four years. And it might be further weakened in 2020.
Chris Harris is headed for free agency; he's one of the league's best cornerbacks. Safety Justin Simmons (pictured), one of two defensive backs (the other is Tennessee's Logan Ryan) to rank in the top 15 at the position in both tackles and interceptions, is also set to be a free agent, although Denver reportedly plans to franchise him if they can't reach a long-term deal before the deadline.
Most likely, Simmons stays and Harris goes. Denver has been floated as a possibility to try and acquire Lions corner Darius Slay. Perhaps changes in the secondary will help this defense in terms of interceptions after it disappointed in two of the last three years.
In 2018, the Broncos had 17 picks, which was a top-5 number. In both 2017 and 2019, though, Denver had only 10 interceptions. They were bottom 10 both seasons. Their total of 37 over those three years ranked 22nd in the league.
INTERCEPTIONS, 2017-2019 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Team | '17 | '18 | '19 | Total |
New England | 12 | 18 | 25 | 55 |
LA Rams | 18 | 18 | 13 | 49 |
Buffalo | 18 | 16 | 14 | 48 |
Baltimore | 22 | 12 | 13 | 47 |
Kansas City | 16 | 15 | 16 | 47 |
New Orleans | 20 | 12 | 13 | 45 |
Chicago | 8 | 27 | 10 | 45 |
Pittsburgh | 16 | 8 | 20 | 44 |
Washington | 16 | 15 | 13 | 44 |
Minnesota | 14 | 12 | 17 | 43 |
Indianapolis | 13 | 15 | 15 | 43 |
Miami | 9 | 21 | 13 | 43 |
Seattle | 14 | 12 | 16 | 42 |
Jacksonville | 21 | 11 | 10 | 42 |
LA Chargers | 18 | 13 | 11 | 42 |
Philadelphia | 19 | 10 | 11 | 40 |
NY Giants | 13 | 16 | 10 | 39 |
Houston | 11 | 15 | 12 | 38 |
Cleveland | 7 | 17 | 14 | 38 |
Tennessee | 12 | 11 | 14 | 37 |
Carolina | 10 | 13 | 14 | 37 |
Denver | 10 | 17 | 10 | 37 |
NY Jets | 11 | 13 | 12 | 36 |
Green Bay | 11 | 7 | 17 | 35 |
Atlanta | 8 | 15 | 12 | 35 |
Tampa Bay | 13 | 9 | 12 | 34 |
Cincinnati | 11 | 12 | 11 | 34 |
Detroit | 19 | 7 | 7 | 33 |
Arizona | 15 | 7 | 7 | 29 |
Oakland | 5 | 14 | 9 | 28 |
Dallas | 10 | 9 | 7 | 26 |
San Francisco | 10 | 2 | 12 | 24 |
Denver's pass rush should be good again, with Von Miller returning and Bradley Chubb healthy. Getting more opportunism out of the secondary will be necessary for it to return to being a top-1o fantasy group.
--Andy Richardson