Initial expectations and projections for A.J. Bouye with the Broncos in 2020

DENVER — John Elway didn’t wait long to make his first move of the offseason. In fact, over two weeks before the start of the new league year, Elway struck a deal, agreeing to a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars to acquire cornerback A.J. Bouye.

Don’t be fooled by the trade, however. Despite only having to give up a fourth-round pick, Denver has sky-high expectations for their new cornerback.

Here’s what Denver can expect from their new stud cornerback in 2020.

Projections for 2020: Shutdown No. 1 outside cornerback; 3 interceptions; 11 passes defended; 50 tackles

The Broncos have been without a true lockdown outside cornerback since they traded away Aqib Talib after the 2017 season. That’s not a slight to Chris Harris Jr., either, as he made it clear he wasn’t a pure outside corner.

But now the Broncos have a pure outside cornerback with Bouye.

“That’s all I’ve played ever since I got into the league was outside,” he stated. “I know I can hold my own out there. So I’m definitely not worried about that.”

In 2017, his first year with the Jaguars, Bouye wasn’t just on the outside, he shutdown the outside. On his way to the Pro Bowl — and an All-Pro appearance — he had a career-best six interceptions.

Now, under Vic Fangio, Bouye enters a defensive system that fits his strengths mighty well. Because of that, another superb year can be expected for the NFL’s seventh-highest-paid cornerback.

Over his starting career, Bouye has averaged slightly under three interceptions per year and there’s no reason to expect him to falter from that. In fact, with Von Miller, Bradley Chubb and Jurrell Casey getting after the quarterback, Bouye could see a spike in interceptions and big plays as quarterbacks should have to make quick decisions.

Raking in an average of $13.5 million per season, the expectations for the new No. 21 should be similar to that of Denver’s former No. 21, Talib. While Talib’s level of play would be Bouye’s ceiling, his play should be that of an Talib lite.

Although Bouye was not a first-round pick like Talib, A.J. should benefit from having a strong supporting cast on defense, much like Talib did during his time in Denver.

Expecting Bouye to be the next Talib would be setting the bar too high. But the Broncos are counting on him to not be too far off.