Broncos Film Room: How Adam Jones’ release will impact the secondary against Pittsburgh and beyond

Adam Jones came and went without any lasting memories as a Denver Bronco, good or bad, but make no mistake, Jones’ impact was felt, and almost always in a positive manner.

There’s a reason the troubled Jones was still employed, as he possesses great instincts, technique and ball skills allowing to battle some of the NFL’s best receivers, much like he did against the Kansas City Chiefs and DeAndre Hopkins and the Houston Texans.

The Broncos options after Jones inspire little confidence, as Tramaine Brock has struggled more often than not in 2018, and young cornerbacks Isaac Yiadom and Brendan Langley have been unreliable at best. It’s no wonder the Broncos are 1-2 when Jones didn’t play due to injury, with their only win coming to the lowly Arizona Cardinals.

All options should be considered to patch up a secondary that’s been well below the recent standards set by the ‘No Fly Zone’ in the Mile High City.

Three-safety, big-nickel looks should be considered at this point, too, especially given the Broncos issues defending the run in nickel.

So we went back to the tape to see how the Broncos can patch up the weak spot on their defense and make a real push to the playoffs, starting with a tough matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers and arguably the best receiving duo in the game.

Lack of sideline skills

Where Pacman will be missed is in his ability to cover the sideline, an area in which Bradley Roby has really been inconsistent, giving up several big plays. The Broncos other options are lacking the speed and quickness required to punish offenses when going deep.

Tramaine Brock’s quickness hasn’t been great this year, forcing him to play tentatively and overly conservative, allowing receivers to get open as they break on routes—much like he is here below, playing in the right corner spot and getting turned around by Demaryius Thomas.

His speed down the sideline hasn’t been what it used to be, either, making him a liability in man coverage. In press, he can be physical at the line but doesn’t have the recovery speed, and when he plays off coverage, he just looks tentative, like he did in the example above against the Texans.

That lack of speed has shown up as Brock is asked to close on plays downhill, too, where he’s just been missing a half step allowing him to make plays on the ball.

His physicality and ball skills have been lessened. As a result, making him less reliable in coverage down the sideline, an area he excelled in when he was a standout for the San Francisco 49ers.

Brock has never been a fit as a slot corner and is even less so with his decreased quickness, making him a bit of a man without a country.

He’s been serviceable and is a safe option who won’t get beat for big plays—he hasn’t allowed a touchdown all year—but he isn’t as dangerous or sticky in coverage as Jones, or anywhere close to the same type of playmaker.

If Amari Cooper was getting open with such ease with his quickness and sharp routes down the sideline, Antonio Brown is going to feast on one-on-one opportunities against Brock on Sunday. 

His struggles defending the sideline haven’t just been in coverage, as he’s missed tackles and hasn’t always been on top of his game reacting downhill and closing on plays in a hurry. Brock might be the team’s best option at third corner, but he’s been nowhere close to the level Jones was when healthy.

Can you trust the young guys?

Brendan Langley has ample skills that could make him tough to beat in coverage outside, with great length and speed, but he’s raw, and it’s shown.

Even when he’s in perfect coverage, he can get beat as he won’t get his head turned around, and his eye discipline simply isn’t where it needs to be. He’s not a technician and will make sloppy mistakes like this defensive pass interference against the Oakland Raiders back in 2017, making early contact and not playing the ball at all.

By all accounts, the former Georgia University wideout looked better in camp this offseason than he did in his baptism by fire back in 2017, but he was still getting beat despite being in the right position.

After being called up from the practice squad, Langley is going to be tough to trust if forced onto the field.

Like Langley, rookie Isaac Yiadom has had similar issues, often being in the right spot but struggling to get in position to play the ball and turn his head.

His rough outing in Week 3 against the Ravens was a stark reminder of his youthful struggles in coverage.

Yiadom, much like Brock, isn’t a sudden mover nor does he possess the speed to stick with the NFL’s fastest wideouts. This could be a serious issue if he’s asked to cover some of the speedy receivers still remaining on the Broncos schedule like Brown, Marquise Goodwin, Travis Benjamin, and John Ross, just to name a few.

He’s a reliable tackler, and while he’s played too tentatively in his rookie year to fly downhill and produce big stops, he seems to be in the right position at the right time and is a physical defender.

However, when pressing up on the line, his calling card as a collegiate standout, he’s been beaten too easily and isn’t re-routing receivers.

Right now, Yiadom is a lesser version of Brock, without the refined technique, polished instincts, or smarts to avoid getting beat for big plays.

Putting him on the field for any extended length of time would pose a major issue for the Broncos ‘D’, as the rookie is certain to get picked on until he shows the ability to make plays on the ball.

Is it time to implement more three-safety looks?

Will Parks has played well and only gotten better as the season has progressed. He’s been extremely reliable in two-high safety looks, flying downhill with supreme confidence, playing the ball and producing strong tackles.

His ability to confidently cover crossing routes across a formation and necessary speed to stick with receivers in such situations has stood out, too.

Parks’ instincts reading and reacting have been extremely promising this season as he’s become a valuable run defender, too.

His impact defending the run brings a whole other element to the Broncos play in sub packages, and there’s no stronger argument that can be made for three-safety formations then the added value Parks gives to the run defense.

Outside of Parks, the other options at safety are a bit limited, with Su’a Cravens still getting into the swing of things—and frankly not playing great in his first taste of action as a Bronco.

Young safety Dymonte Thomas has shown promising traits in coverage; he plays fast, and his instincts are on point, but it’s hard to assess his true ability in only nine defensive snaps the entire regular season. Giving him more snaps could unlock more big-nickel formations if he proves to be up to the task.

Of course, the only flaw in using three safeties is it takes Chris Harris Jr., the Broncos and maybe NFL’s best slot corner out of the slot, forcing him to play outside at all times. This solution would only work in certain matchups against teams that don’t have dangerous underneath route runners.

In conclusion

Most of all, the Broncos need Roby to play his best, something he’s done in a select few games while disappointing in a major way in his other appearances.

Brock can hold his own if not challenged deep, where he’ll allow too big of a cushion, and Yiadom is just too unreliable in situations where he has to turn and run. Langley is the most toolsy outside corner on the team but he’s anything but trustworthy right now, the Broncos need him to step up and grow into an NFL player overnight to stay above water on the defensive back end.

The Broncos have options but very few clear upgrades over Jones, how Vance Joseph and Joe Woods—who both have their jobs due to their talent in scheming the back end—chose to patch up a secondary that’s already struggled in 2018 could make or break the season, and their jobs.