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Running down the significant stats and notable numbers following the Broncos’ 34-20 Week 2 win over the Colts on Sunday afternoon. As you might expect, more than a few will have a decidedly defensive slant.
Denver’s two game-clinching defensive touchdowns Sunday – Aqib Talib’s 46-yard interception return and Shane Ray’s 15-yard fumble runback – give the Orange & Blue nine defensive/special teams TDs in their 21 regular-season and postseason games since the start of the 2015 season.
Talib’s pick-six was his fifth as a Bronco and the ninth of his nine-year career and ties him for the fourth most in NFL history. Only Rod Woodson (12), Charles Woodson (11) and Darren Sharper (11) have more. Talib’s fifth pick-six as a Bronco is good enough for the franchise record.
Ray’s fumble return, meanwhile, was the first score of his two-year career, and it, of course, was set up by Von Miller’s strip sack of Andrew Luck. It’s was the second of Miller’s three sacks on the afternoon. Borrowing from a tweet by Broncos’ PR head honcho Patrick Smyth, Miller – in his last four games dating back to last season’s AFC Championship Game – has totaled nine sacks, 10 QB hits and four tackles for loss. He also has an interception and three forced fumbles. And, oh yeah, one Super Bowl MVP honor.
The Broncos’ current run of defensive success is even more remarkable considering the caliber of quarterbacks they’ve faced in their last five outings. Ben Roethlisberger, Tom Brady, Cam Newton (twice) and Andrew Luck have combined to complete 108-of-207 passes for 1,305 yards, three TDs and five interceptions for a paltry 66.6 passer rating. The Denver D, meanwhile, has totaled 22 sacks, 56 QB hits and forced three fumbles in those five contests, while holding the opposition to an average of 16.8 points per game.
None of the last five opponents have topped 20 points, and overall since the start of 2015, only six of the last 21 Orange & Blue foes have scored 21 or more points.
On the subject of point totals, you may have noticed that Newton and the Panthers returned to their high-scoring ways Sunday in a 46-27 rout of the 49ers. Since the start of last season, Carolina has averaged an NFL-best 32.9 points in 19 games against non-Denver opponents. In two games against the Broncos, the Panthers have scored a total of 30 points.
On Sunday, the Broncos limited Indy to 253 yards or an average of 3.83 yards per play. Denver, meanwhile, totaled 400 yards, averaging 6.15 per play. On the season, the Broncos are averaging 5.80 yards per play to the opposition’s 4.37 – a league-best differential of 1.43 through Sunday’s action.
In a switch so far from last season, the Broncos actually have 103 fewer penalty yards (76-179) than the opposition so far, which ranks second in the league. That will definitely surprise some on the national level given the coverage the team’s “dirty” defensive play has received. In 2015, Denver was accessed 290 more penalty yards than its regular-season opponents for an average of 18.13 yards per game, which ranked 29th.
Offensively, the Broncos penetrated the Colts’ 40-yard line on seven of their nine possessions Sunday, but only came away with a single TD to show for it. The other six ended in four made field goals, one missed field goal and an interception. On the season, Denver has had 13 possessions inside the opposition’s 40 but have turned those into only four TDs and 40 points with four turnovers.
Finally, seventh-round pick Trevor Siemian completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 266 yards Sunday as he outdueled a QB counterpart drafted No. 1 overall for the second straight game. But Siemian only has one TD pass and three interceptions to show for it this season. That’s far too similar to the 19-TD-pass/23-pick ratio Denver QBs Peyton Manning and Brock Osweiler had a year ago.
