Did a change in perspective for Pat Shurmur provide a boost for the Broncos’ offense?

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos made a major change with their signal-caller and play-caller in Week 6.

After missing the previous two starts with a badly bruised throwing shoulder, Drew Lock was back under center for Pat Shurmur’s offense against the New England Patriots on Oct. 18. But Lock’s play-caller wasn’t with him on the field.

Pat Shurmur had moved into the booth to call the game from an aerial perspective.

“I was surprised none of you had really noticed that because you’re right, it did happen starting with the New England game,” Vic Fangio said before Wednesday’s practice. “I’ve always mentioned it to Pat. I didn’t make it a mandate that he go up there, but there’s no doubt that’s the best place to call the game from.”

That’s certainly played out on the field for the Broncos’ offense in the past six games.

Since Shurmur’s transition from the field to the booth, the Broncos are 3-3, which is significantly better than their 1-3 start. Their points per game, however, is relatively unchanged—going from 20.5 points per game in the first four games to 20.7 points per game in the past six with Shurmur in the booth.

But while the Broncos’ points per game haven’t drastically changed, their ability to move the ball has.

With Shurmur looking down on his offense from the booth, Denver is averaging 66 more offensive yards per game—nearly a 20 percent increase—and 29.1 more passing yards per game—roughly a 12 percent increase.

“I feel like any offensive coordinator that gets to be up in the box kind of controls it like a video game from a birds-eye view, I feel like it’s easier to see up there,” Drew Lock said on his offensive coordinator’s transition.

Denver’s rushing attack, led by Phillip Lindsay and Melvin Gordon, has taken off running since Shurmur made the transition in Week 6.

Before Week 6, the Broncos averaged 92.5 rushing yards per game. In the past six games, they are averaging 129.6 yards on the ground—nearly a 30 percent increase with Shurmur in the booth.

Week 6 is also when Lindsay returned from a turf toe injury he suffered in Week 1. But over the course of the following six games, both Lindsay and Gordon missed time and the team still had nearly 40 more rushing yards per game during that stretch.

“You just see more,” Fangio said on the benefits of a play-caller being up in the booth. “You’re more relaxed when you’re sitting down. You have your [play] sheets in front of you. You don’t have to rely on other people to give you information. I think it’s the best place for a play-caller to be for the most part.”

In the first four games when Shurmur was on the field calling the game, the Broncos didn’t top 360 yards of offense a single time. Since Shurmur’s been in the booth, they’ve eclipsed 400 yards three times.

On Sunday against the Miami Dolphins, Denver had a season-high in yards (459) and rushing yards (189) with Shurmur calling the game from the booth a mile high above sea level.

“I think what makes him comfortable being up there is that he and Coach [Mike] Shula have been with each other for so long and pretty much know each other and what each other is thinking to where he feels like he has a second him down there to be able to relay what they could be thinking without actually having to communicate with each other, which I feel like would make any O.C. comfortable being up there,” Drew Lock said on Wednesday.

Shula, the Broncos’ quarterback coach, was Shurmur’s offensive coordinator with the New York Giants when Pat was the head coach in 2018 and 2019. Shurmur brought Shula to Denver with him when he became the Broncos’ offensive coordinator this past offseason.

With the improvement Denver’s offense has had since Shurmur went to the booth, the Broncos’ offensive coordinator will continue to call the games from above.

“I think it’s the right place for him to be at this time,” Fangio stated.

While Denver’s offense hasn’t seen a noticeable improvement in points per game, nearly every other aspect has taken a sizable jump since Shurmur went to the booth. That, along with it being the “best place for a play-caller to be,” is why Shurmur will remain up in the sky during Broncos games.