Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Can Learn From The NFL Divisional Playoffs

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Denver Broncos can learn a thing or two from the teams that were playing in the NFL divisional playoffs this weekend on offense and on defense. If they want to take that next step and find that secret sauce, how are they going to do that? We'll break that down much more here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. Hey, what's happening in Broncos country? Welcome into another episode of Lockdown Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, where you know it is your team every single day for all the Broncos news, content coverage,

Starting point is 00:00:43 analysis, and more that you get every single day all year long, even throughout the entire off season. Lockdown Broncos is the place to be. So thank you to all the everydayers and first listeners out there in Broncos country. Make sure you subscribe. However, you choose to listen to the show, I'm Cody Roark Broncos reporter for Mile High Sports. joined as always by Sarah Bedinger, site expert, predominantly orange.com. And look, Broncos country, we got a lot to break down here on today's episode of the show. A lot to break it down this week as we get ready to talk about our position previous. But we'll wrap up today's show by highlighting special teams coordinator Ben Codwika,

Starting point is 00:01:17 Sean Peyton making the decision late last week to fire him and to move in a different direction. What caused that to happen? We'll also take a look at what the Broncos defense can learn from the teams that played in the NFL divisional playoffs this weekend. and advanced and survived. We'll take a look and kick things off with what the Broncos offense in particular can learn from the teams that played in the NFL divisional playoffs this weekend here on today's episode show brought to you by friends over there at prize picks. Go to pricepix.com slash lockdown NFL and use code all over the wordcase, locked on NFL to win $50 instantly when you play $5.

Starting point is 00:01:51 Sayre, tell you what, a wild slate of games over the weekend here Saturday and Sunday. We've got to watch some NFL playoff football. Unfortunately, we didn't get to watch the Denver Broncos there. I tell you what, there were a lot of lessons to kind of take in from some of the games that we saw and some of the teams that we saw playing. Let's start on the offensive side of the ball here. What is it? Do we feel like Denver can learn from the teams that we're playing this weekend on offense in the playoffs? Well, I think, Cody, you and I talked about this before the show, but the Broncos do have one of the best assets already locked in for the future, which is got your quarterback.

Starting point is 00:02:25 You've got to have a quarterback that can be a difference maker in games like this. Shoot, I mean, it's survival of the fittest out there in the NFL. There's so many good quarterbacks in the postseason this year. And, you know, the final four, I think Cody indicated that beyond the quarterback, you absolutely non-negotiable have to have a stellar running game in order to make it past the divisional round. And even some of the best running teams in the league, like the Ravens and the Lions, even that wasn't good enough.

Starting point is 00:02:56 So you've got to be able to run the football. and I know that Sean Payton made some comments at his end of season presser about there's not many bell cow backs in the NFL anymore. Look, I know what he's saying there, but when is the last time that Sean Peyton had a great offense that didn't feature a certain running back? I don't think you need to necessarily have a bell cow back, but you do need to have somebody that you can feature at that position. And I think the NFL playoffs in the divisional round specifically really emphasize that. I don't feel like for Sean, too, it's got to be two backs, right? Like there were years where it was Camara and Mark Ingram, and the other years it was Camara and Latavius Murray.

Starting point is 00:03:35 Like you had two guys and they complimented each other relatively well. I agree with you in terms of the run game. My biggest thing is you need to have an absolute dog at the running back position. I mean, look, you aren't going to find many Sequan Barkley's available out there. And every time I see Seekwon break off a big run for the Eagles this season and obviously going over 200 yards in the playoffs over the weekend. I thought to myself as like, man, the Giants got to be kicking themselves. Though I will say this, I don't think Sequin would have had that level of success if he stayed in New York.

Starting point is 00:04:05 So going to obviously a great place. I think an environment like Philadelphia was great for him. Can the Broncos build that type of environment for a player, whether you sign a guy in free agency, whether you draft a guy in the NFL draft, that you feel like, hey, now that you're here, you can plug in and now you can just go because we have a good environment for you. We've got a good offensive line for you to be able to open up holes. So much of it has been, I think, consistencies in that department of running backs for Denver this year, not seeing the hole correctly.

Starting point is 00:04:34 And then sometimes it taking too long to develop a run play. And obviously, you're only going to get a few yards. But then that's where I looked at it. And it was the difference, right? You look at Sequin Barkley, what he was able to do. You mentioned the success of the running offense. Like, Jemir Gibbs, man, I'm just watching him for Detroit. It's like, man, every time this guy touches the ball, something special happens.

Starting point is 00:04:53 unfortunately the Lions, they didn't win that game. They were still able to put up 31-something points, you know, and obviously the run game Gibbs was a big part of their success in that regard. But you have to have an absolute dog. James Cook, another example. And a little throwing outbril mentioned even Ty Johnson for the Buffalo Bills. The Ravens' Bills game to me, like it kind of epitomized, like why you have to have a dog at the running back position?

Starting point is 00:05:16 Because think of it, if you're the Ravens, you're Lamar, like, why are you throwing it on a two-point conversion versus handing it to Derek Henner? from two yards out, right? They didn't do that, right? That was mind-boggling. But then you look at the Buffalo Bills on the flip side. Josh Allen used his legs and picked up first downs. But then it was James Cook. It was tied Johnson. Josh Allen didn't have to use his arm too much in that playoff game here. And it's like the formulas here for the Broncos to say, you know what? If we add this or this, we can do it because if you look at the Buffalo Bills, Sarah, look at their receivers. They didn't have any guy necessarily stand out in any way, shape, or form. They had a bunch of guys.

Starting point is 00:05:53 guys that were contributing role players, but they didn't necessarily have a star. Denver needs a guy. They need a dog there. But man, you have a run game. It balances things out if you also have a quarterback. It does, especially a quarterback that can run, which you mentioned Josh Allen, but how about Jaden Daniels in Washington? I know that maybe Bow Nix isn't the same exact type of athlete as those guys, but I do feel

Starting point is 00:06:16 like it's abundantly clear based on what we saw this past season, that he can be people can do it as much of an asset in the running game absolutely and you saw Washington like Washington doesn't have a say Juan Barclay but I mean Brian Robinson had a good game Austin Echler had a good game and because of the threat of jaden Daniels both scrambling off of past plays as well as design quarterback runs like Detroit just had no answer for that and Denver did not utilize that much this year and so I think there's something to be said, Cody, about your point of the Ravens not going for running the ball when they were going for two as well. Like that's another thing that I think I learned offensively for Denver going

Starting point is 00:06:58 forward is like when you have something that's working, like clearly working, don't get cute and be stupid about it. Like Mark Andrews should not be getting memed today. Like they should have never thrown that pass. Now, should he have caught the ball? You know, yes, absolutely. Catch the ball. You're highly paid to catch the ball. But at the same time, time you're ripping off big run after big run. Like there were a couple of drives that Buffalo just could not stop Derek Henry and Justice Hill, much less when you've got Lamar out there, who's a threat to run as well. And so just getting cute at the worst possible times, like, what is Todd Monkin doing in that situation where you need two yards? You've got two guys in

Starting point is 00:07:40 Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry who basically every time they carry the ball, it's going for two yards at, you know, before they even get hit by somebody. So that's where I think, if you're the Denver Broncos, and we saw this a number of times when something is working, like stop getting cute about it. We don't be messing around and being like, all right, well, these passing plays were working really well. So let's try the end around to Marvin Mims or let's start getting horizontal

Starting point is 00:08:08 when we're running the ball down their throat. I don't understand that. I understand there needs to be variety and there's going to the well too many times. But man, the playoffs proved that if you can find that bread and butter, man, stick to it offensively. Yeah, 100%. Look, there's another thing I think stood out clear as day. And I think this applies to most games. But specifically in the place, when you're playing teams where your margin for error against some of the better teams is very, very thin.

Starting point is 00:08:34 Denver ran up against that against the Buffalo Bills and the wild card round. But you look at teams like the Los Angeles Rams, you look at the Detroit lines. You look at the Baltimore Ravens, turnover, Sarah. Turnovers were the one thing that really did those teams in. Like Detroit had a pick six. Jared Goff through. He threw another interception right before half. I mean, they had too many turns.

Starting point is 00:08:55 They had a wide receiver throw an interception as well. And it's like when you have those amount of turnovers, you're affording those teams, extra opportunities, extra possessions. Somewhat, you know, you're able to score on one. But like for the commanders, they had great field positioning really after that wide receiver interception that James and Williams had thrown there. And it's just like they took advantage of those things, right? And they weren't one dimensional, which the Broncos offense a lot of times this year was

Starting point is 00:09:22 one dimensional. People want to say, what was the Broncos offense? Bo Nix was the Broncos offense. And look, and I also see another thing too. Like we can even talk to. I feel like it's fair to address this. I see a lot of Broncos fans tearing down Jaden Daniels. Look, Jaden Daniels is a terrific young quarterback, having a tremendous rookie season.

Starting point is 00:09:38 Bo Nix is a terrific young quarterback. Had a tremendous rookie season. Don't get into the little social media. or is they're trying to tear one guy down to build the other one up? It's not a good look. Enjoy that the game right now, Sarah, the NFL, I feel like with some of these young quarterbacks, 10 years from now, I mean, maybe not a thing. Like less, maybe five or six years from now.

Starting point is 00:09:56 We're going to be sitting here older, a little bit more gray hair on our beards. We're like, man, this is, the league is in a good place with these guys as QB. So enjoy it. Don't tear these guys down. They're obviously tremendous players, tremendous teams, different circumstances, different personnel. Those things matter. But, man, you cannot turn the ball over.

Starting point is 00:10:11 LA could not turn the, they turned the ball over in the snow. And look, that's the difference. You used to playing in California inside the dome for the most part. I know Stafford has played in snow games before and he was part of the NFC North, but turnovers, that doomed them.

Starting point is 00:10:24 And simply you can't do that. And I know you and I were talking off air before we even started the show. There was another element that I think is also important that the Broncos can learn in this game as it pertains to, maybe the conditions. Yeah, the elements, as it were, right? It's every AFC playoff game is probably going,

Starting point is 00:10:41 to be played in bad weather. I mean, unless the L.A. Chargers or the Houston Texans or the Miami Dolphins are hosting playoff games, which I mean with Buffalo in the AFC East and Kansas City in the AFC West, and even Denver now, as they've set their sights to winning the AFC West, like, where are you going to be able to go on the road and basically play a, you know, a good weather game in the AFC playoffs? Like, you're either going to Baltimore, you're going to Kansas City, Buffalo. we're talking about Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, like even Denver, right?

Starting point is 00:11:14 I mean, this time of year, like you're asking to play in the elements, basically, if you're in the AFC. And because of that, man, you have to be, like you said, taking good care of the football, able to run the football. Your quarterback has to be making good decisions out there. And you need to be able to have multiple guys that can carry that load for you offensively. So I think those elements, Cody, that's a big deal that you have to consider in your roster building.

Starting point is 00:11:39 you not only have to put together a squad that can win 10 plus games in the regular season when the weather is fine for the most part, but then once you get to the playoffs, now you're talking about, man, I need, we have to completely shift the way that we play these games now. Yeah, it's crucial. And every down and inclement weather matters. I mean, you had teams struggling and holding on to the football, even Baltimore. Like Baltimore used to play in some cold weather too. They had some problems secure in the football and it led to some missed opportunities for them against the Buffalo Bills. That's the offensive side in terms of what the Broncos, hopefully they were watching. They were learning. And even Sean Payton, hopefully he was watching, paying attention to in terms of what they could do on the offensive side to compete and make that next step in 2025. What about the defensive side of the ball?

Starting point is 00:12:21 What did the games this weekend tell us about what the Broncos defense needs to be able to do when the postseason rolls around? You'll get that much more here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. Today's Lockdown Broncos podcast who's brought you by friends over there at LinkedIn jobs and growing your small business in 2025 comes down to how. well you can hire. And let's face it, better hires, start with smarter insights. That's where LinkedIn comes in. With the strongest hiring data available, LinkedIn helps you identify the right candidates, giving you the confidence to make the best decisions for your business. I've used

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Starting point is 00:14:46 this offseason. But what do they need in 2025 to kind of match what we've seen from some of these teams that are having success here in January? Well, Cody and I are going to talk about that on today's episode. Lockdown Broncos in Broncos country. Thanks so much for all you everyday listeners out there who make us your first listen of the day. We appreciate you so much and can't wait to bring you all of the offseason content and coverage for your favorite team. So if you haven't done so already, hit subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts as well as on YouTube. And Cody, let's discuss this because when we watch these divisional round games, I mean,

Starting point is 00:15:21 Vic Fangio, the Philadelphia Eagles turned that defense around from, I think they were ranked 30th or worse in a lot of major categories last year. But also, you and I were kind of chatting before we started this show like Matt Milano and Buffalo. He might be the place that we start talking because that guy, he's coming off injury and still the range, sideline to sideline. Like what a difference he made for that Buffalo defense against the potential MVP, Lamar Jackson. Yeah, look, I would say guys like Matt Milano, even Alex Anzolomi of the Detroit Lions, like the way that those guys play, they have a specific trait. And not only are they very cerebrally sound football players at inside linebacker, but man, Sarah, they have the trait that the Bronco. currently do not have right now at linebacker.

Starting point is 00:16:09 And that is someone who can be sideline to sideline. Like Matt Milano, I mean, you go back and look at maybe how the Bill's defense. They were playing Bo Nix and the Broncos office. He was spying Bo Nix the whole game. And I was thinking to myself like, okay, you know, maybe they were, he was just spying Bo Nix just because they're like, hey, really the Broncos don't have a consistent threat of a run game except for Bo. Okay, we're going to spy him.

Starting point is 00:16:28 But, you know, I thought it was going to change a little bit when you're playing against Lamar Jackson, Derek Henry, and the Baltimore Ravens. No, he played spy to Lamar. Jackson and man, he had a couple of plays where he's just reading Lamar. And then all of a sudden, Lamar's taken a step to get outside the pocket. He's tracking downhill to a 45 degree angle and he's there like he's not getting out ran, but he's taking an angle where Lamar's got to make some tough choices. And I think defensively, you have a guy like that in the middle of the field, not your safeties, but in the middle at that second level, it changes, I think, what you can do from a

Starting point is 00:17:02 philosophical standpoint because Denver just had a lot of guys that would have to sit back in space and react to whatever was coming. That's where defenses, they were just throwing crossers across the middle of field because the linebackers, they're getting their depth to their drop into whatever their zone is. But then it's, okay, pressure is not getting home. It's being able to stay active. It's being able to say, oh, no, this route, scramble drill, I'm going to be able to plant my foot and get to another area quickly. Or you have a linebacker that can chase quarterback the way that the Matbelanos of the world or the Alex Anzolones or the Fred Warner's of the world can do that. Look, Fred Warner in the 49ers, weren't in the playoffs.

Starting point is 00:17:37 He's probably the pinnacle example. But Matt Milano is that guy. Zach Bond of the Philadelphia Eagles. If I'm not mistaken, he's going to be a free agent this year. Maybe a Sean Peyton wish list for that. Another example, like you need guys like that in order to take the next step, I think, defensively, especially in the postseason because those guys can stop the run. But, man, they can also chase in today's NFL, the athlete.

Starting point is 00:18:01 and mobile quarterbacks that can get outside the pocket because that's where this game has been heading for quite some time. Yeah, if your linebackers aren't as athletic or more so than the tight ends they'll be covering and the quarterbacks that they'll be chasing, then you have got a problem, serious problem on that side of the ball. And I think for the Denver Broncos, this is the one area of the roster that they have truly had to punt the last two years. Like, if you really think about it, Cody, right? because, I mean, the starters going into this season were Alex Singleton and Cody Barton. When Cody Barton was signed, it was pitched as a, the guy upgrades our special teams, not necessarily that he's going to be a premier starter for this team or where the green dot for this team.

Starting point is 00:18:44 They had to switch the vision on Drew Sanders. He was initially an inside linebacker, then shifted to outside backer off the edge. And now we don't exactly know what he's going to be doing going forward, but based on the end of this past season, kind of seems like he's going to stick around off the edge. And so I think you have a situation here where over the last two seasons, who on your roster is a building block or somebody that you even would keep? Because I think that we could definitely see a complete overhaul.

Starting point is 00:19:16 Like, did Justin Sernod play well this season when given the opportunity? Yeah, he played pretty well. Did Alex Singleton do well with his opportunity when, because he wasn't even supposed to be a starter. We're supposed to be Jonas Griffith with, with Josie Jewell, right? Alex Singleton did well, but is he going to be back at the age of 31 coming off an ACL injury? Is Cody Barton, who is also a free agent?

Starting point is 00:19:36 Is he going to be back? Because there was a lot of communication issues out there at that linebacker position that you and I talked about on this show. I could see that group being a completely overhauled group for the Denver Broncos this year because of what we've seen elsewhere in the league. I mean, which of the four teams remaining has weak linebackers? Like I kind of thought it was funny that the commanders went after like Bobby Wagner and free agency. Like that guy's old, right?

Starting point is 00:20:02 I mean, but how big of a difference has he made for the commanders? And you talk about Milano for Buffalo and Kansas City always has good linebackers. And then obviously. And those guys, yeah. Yeah. So in Philadelphia, that was a big area of emphasis because remember when they were in the Super Bowl two years ago, they had T.J. Edwards and Kaiser White, who were both incredible for Jonathan Gannon. And they lost those two guys the next year to free agency.

Starting point is 00:20:28 The defense went to crap in Philadelphia. Then Vic Fangio comes in where we know linebackers have to play at a high level and be instinctive. And tackling is non-negotiable, remember? So you go out and you get Zach Bond and Nicobi Dean has a healthy season and you fortify the depth there. All of a sudden, they're back in one of the top five defenses in the NFL. So to me, Cody, the linebacker spot is probably the biggest area of emphasis for this defense going forward. Yeah, I think it's going to have to be the biggest thing, too. And look, I would even say, too, you can take a note out of Philadelphia.

Starting point is 00:20:59 I thought that they're the line, the trenches there. I thought they were strong at the point of attack. They made things really hard for Matthew Stafford and that offense to really get going. Of course, I got guys like Jalen Carter there. Denver, we know that their defensive line, that was the massive upgrade that they made this offseason. And certainly, DJ Jones is set to become a free agent. A majority of Broncos fans, we put the poll out on lockdown Broncos, said that they really want DJ Jones back.

Starting point is 00:21:23 You've got Malcolm Roach behind him. So you got a good rotation with those two guys at your two deep. You've got Zach Allen. You've obviously got John Franklin Myers. You like those guys. But what is your two deep behind him? Jordan Jackson's a free agent. In Yoma Uazeriki, I don't know if he's going to be around on this team next year.

Starting point is 00:21:39 I just don't think that his development is in a good enough spot. I just didn't see it this year when we saw him play. So we'll see where things are kind of out here. But I think that you have to continue to redefine that, hey, the trenches are the most important on offense and on defense. We've got to continue to strengthen that if that can be the case and obviously upgrade inside linebacker. It's crazy when we think about it too. We talked about the offense. We talked about the defense. The biggest need for them is upgrading the second level of the offense, which is the running back position, second level of the defense, which is linebacker. I think

Starting point is 00:22:09 everything else will fall into place at that point. But I think those are probably going to be the two biggest needs. And then you add a wide receiver, like I said, a legit playmaker. And then you add a pass catching tight end that can produce in the passing game for you as well. And then I think Denver's ready to take another step forward here. We'll see what kind of staff changes, maybe kind of take place or happen throughout the offseason, which brings us to our next point here, Broncos country. Obviously, late last week, Sean Payton made the decision to move on from Ben Codwica, the team's special teams coordinator, what prompted this move and what could be on the horizon?

Starting point is 00:22:43 Are the Broncos looking to riz up their special team side of the ball? We'll take a look at that much more here on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. Today's lockdown Broncos podcast is brought to you about friends over there at Fandu. And as you all know it, Fandu, they are America's number one sportsbook. From the first whistle to the final drive, Fandu, they make the NFL playoffs even more exciting. And right now, new customers can bet $500 and get $300 in bonus bets if you win your first bet. That's $300 to keep the action going as conference championship weekend approaches. The big game is going to be approaching here in a couple of weeks.

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Starting point is 00:23:48 The fourth quarter action of today's episode of the show is here. And Broncos Country just want to say thanks once again to all the everydayers. All the first listeners out there who make this show exactly what it is. Even though that the off season is here, we're not on the off season. It is still grind time for us here. And obviously, if you want to know what's going on with your favorite team, the Denver Broncos every single day all year long throughout the entire off season, become an everydayer.

Starting point is 00:24:12 We got you covered Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, fresh objective coverage of all things, orange and blue. Plus, we got some really exciting things. coming up. Position recaps of the year. Grades, biggest needs, free agency wish lists, everything you could think of. You get it here, lockdown Broncos. So with that said, Sarah, obviously there were some changes to the coaching staff after a successful season here for the Broncos, 10 and 7. The first playoff appearance since 2015. Denver made an interesting decision. One I honestly didn't see coming. They fired, Sean Payton fired Special Teams coordinator last week,

Starting point is 00:24:45 really late Thursday, Friday. Ben Kotwika, he's now. not the special teams coordinator here for Denver. You know, the Broncos in our market for a new coordinator in that position, which I found to be interesting. But I also think if you look at maybe the different things, the tea leaves, maybe it made sense a little bit, even though that Denver was drastically better, they were one of the best special teams units in all the NFL this year.

Starting point is 00:25:08 Yeah, the curve was changed with Tom McMahon's units in Denver, wasn't it? Because it was so bad special teams-wise. I mean, they were just called the teams when, when Tom McMahon was there. There was nothing special about it whatsoever. So I get where Broncos country is coming from in this, Cody, the shock and surprise factor of it.

Starting point is 00:25:29 But to me, we talked about this a number of times on the show. Like you go back to the missed field goal against Buffalo, obviously before half. And Sean Payton talked about how, like, they felt like they had the gap closed at that point. And you miss a field goal.

Starting point is 00:25:44 And all of a sudden, the complexion of the game completely changes. Like making and missing a field goal, at the end of a half, it sets off a butterfly effect that we just can't know how different that game would have been. Maybe would it have been 31 to 10 instead of 31 to 7? Maybe. But we don't know.

Starting point is 00:26:01 We'll never know. And so you have that sort of situation. But you and I talked about like that Cincinnati game and the Los Angeles game before that, the two worst possible times for Riley Dixon to have the worst games of the season, maybe the Bengals game, maybe of his career, where setting up Joe Burr. and company for ideal field position consistently. You had the huge penalty on Tremont Smith on the punt return against the Los Angeles Chargers.

Starting point is 00:26:28 And I know we can nitpick at times. And like there are certain things that's like, oh, well, those are just isolated incidents. But in reality, the special teams as high as the floor was raised with, you know, Mike Westoff and Ben Kotwika coming in, I don't know if the special teams nearly cost the Broncos a chance at the postseason in 2024. I think it's fair to say that too. And I'll even throw in a couple of examples too. And some of those games that you mentioned, even Buffalo, the choice to even kick,

Starting point is 00:26:57 instead of kicking it out of bounds, not out of bounds in the back of the end zone for a touchback, but forcing a return and how many returns got past the 30 yard line, right? Worst case scenario, the opposing offense is going to start on the 30 yard line. But if you're going to kick in, you're going to force a return, you better make sure your coverage unit is going to tackle them at the 22, 23 yard line versus them getting like, close to midfield. There were a couple of returns, I think, once against Cincinnati, two against Cincinnati, one against the Chargers where that happened. I think one against Buffalo as well. And it's just like you can't allow those things to happen because now you're giving the opposing offense better field position than if you were to just kicked it out of the back of the end zone. And it was a touchback and they start on the 30 yard line. They got 70 yards to go instead. Now you got 50. You got 45 yards to go on certain things. Or you got 60 yards. When the field condenses, it makes your room for error. a little bit thinner here at this point. And I think that was definitely part of it.

Starting point is 00:27:53 And maybe, too, like even going back to the block field goal against Kansas City, when you look at everything, that was something that Chiefs player said that was on film. And certainly when you go back and you watch the film and some of the games leading up to that game specifically, yeah, there was a little bit of a trend. And they attacked and they exploited that. And that's on coaches to have to fix. I loved Ben Codwick. I thought he's a fantastic coach, fantastic teacher.

Starting point is 00:28:16 But it seems like at this point, and this was something also. a good friend Mike Cliss put out there. Really it kind of seemed like Westoff and Kotwicko were kind of a package deal. After that Kansas City thing, Westoff started having some health issues. He stepped away and Cliss had said something in his report along the lines that it made Kotwka a little bit more vulnerable in a sense. So now they make the change here. Chris Banjo, who's interviewed for the 49ers coordinator job and special teams,

Starting point is 00:28:41 he's still an assistant now. He could be a guy who's getting interviewed in-house. But all eyes seem to point on New Orleans Saints, former special teams coordinator, more recently interim head coach, Darren Rizzi, which I find interesting, right, because now it's like the Saints to Broncos coaching pipeline continues, though I do find it interesting. Rizzi came over to New Orleans in 2019, spent 2019, 2020 with Sean Peyton. Peyton stepped away after that, after 2021.

Starting point is 00:29:08 And then Rizzi kind of had a little bit more of a promotion. He got like associate head coach, special teams coordinator. So maybe he is one of those guys that Sean Payton is going to make an aggressive move for here. Yeah, because when you fire somebody like Ben Kotwika, who did help raise the floor of the special team, there's no question about it. Players love him. Obviously, you had Pro Bowl return man, Marvin Mims, the last couple of seasons.

Starting point is 00:29:32 Will Lutz won special teams player of the week a time or two, I believe, or maybe more. Yeah. So there was, the floor was definitely raised. There's no question about it. I don't mean to just say, here's all the negatives. He deserved to be fired. I think you can justify it based on some things that happened. but I don't know that you have a justifiable case to fire a guy like this unless you have somebody in mind to replace him with.

Starting point is 00:29:56 I think that's probably the biggest thing that you can take away from this. If you're a Broncos fan, it's like, wow, we fired a guy who, you know, there was a lot of success at that unit. I think it's because you have somebody that can be even better because Darren Rizzy's special teams units consistently in the top five, top 10 of the NFL in pretty much every metric. And so I think it's a justifiable deal when you consider that you have a chance to upgrade. Look, that happens at every spot on the roster, every offseason, right? And so nothing is going to be exempt just for the sake of continuity.

Starting point is 00:30:29 And especially if Westoff and Kotbika were a package deal, I get it from the Broncos perspective. And look, Cody, you put stuff out there on tape. Dave Tob, of the Kansas City Chiefs, he's going to take advantage of it. Look what happened against Houston this weekend. It wasn't a fluke. Like Houston must have been putting the same thing on tape because they block. a 35-yard field goal or less against Houston in the postseason. They started the game with a big kick return too.

Starting point is 00:30:54 They did. Absolutely. And so it's those little things that's like that's the difference for a team like Kansas City every year. It's like they do all the little things so maddeningly well that other teams just can't get out of their own way against teams like Kansas City. They can't help but make mistakes because these guys don't screw up. They don't really do things that, you know, over the course of time, it compounds.

Starting point is 00:31:15 and other teams do. So that's where the Broncos need those little edges. And over the course of a year, Sean Payton says 100 yards, seven points. How many of those hidden yards on special teams factored into over time in those one score games that the Broncos lost in 2024? So many of them too.

Starting point is 00:31:34 And to that point as well, you and I talk about it as well. Like when you look at some of these teams that are in the final four here at this point of the AFC, NFC playoffs, the margin for error that you and I talk about. with some of these teams like Kansas City and Buffalo, Baltimore even. These teams have a, like Baltimore had as many turnovers as they did and still had a chance to win that game or at least tie it, send it in an overtime.

Starting point is 00:31:56 So those teams have built in margins for error where they can make one or two mistakes and still have a chance and be in it. Whereas I think Denver, they're not at that point just yet because some of those mistakes really seem to snowball and become bigger. And that's what you cannot have. And I would say that is where you have to figure out, like, how do you put stuff? And I think that's where Sean Payton as being around Sean and seeing how Sean coaches, he, and look, Sean's got his own flaws as a coach.

Starting point is 00:32:25 And I think he'll even admit that. But I think that the emphasis and the goal here is to practice every situation, be as knowledgeable about any situation possible that could come up in the course of the game. It could come up maybe once every six years, but you need to know about it. That's where Sean is at because he believes in the, those things that you attribute to hidden yards or yards lost, opportunities lost out on, and things that can maybe be an inch from maybe missing a field goal right before halftime that could have tied the game up against Buffalo to, hey, now all of a sudden

Starting point is 00:32:55 you miss it, you lose momentum, and now it spirals out. Denver doesn't have that built-in margin for error yet because teams like Buffalo and Kansas City, they don't make those mistakes. And if they make a mistake once, they don't usually make it twice. And so that's where Denver has to be. And I think we've learned a lot about, maybe where this Broncos team can grow and obviously can become here in the postseason by looking at these teams as an example. And it should be fuel because I know the players are sitting there watching. And I think that's also it's a bittersweet part, right?

Starting point is 00:33:24 You wish the team that you're covering is playing in the postseason. The players obviously in Denver wish they were. But to see their thoughts live as the games going on, it also shows you a perspective. You don't get a see in the regular season as well. So that was kind of a cool insight here. But Darren Rizzy may be expected to be the top target here for Sean Payton to replace Ben Cotton because the team special teams coordinator. Will that happen?

Starting point is 00:33:45 Well, if it does, you know, you're going to have an episode of Lockdown Broncos to guide you there. But we're really going to begin a really fun preview series here where we take a look at every position on offense, every position on defense for the next two and a half weeks here. That's going to be fresh content for you, the listeners. We're going to kick things off on tomorrow's episode for all you every dayers with the Broncos quarterback position. What do we learn about in 2024? What does it look like?

Starting point is 00:34:07 What's the biggest question for it in 2025? And how can they address those questions? questions. That'll be tomorrow's episode of Lockdown Broncos, barring anything that's breaking news. You know, we got you covered here every single day all year long. To all the everydayers, first listeners, thank you so much for making the show exactly what it is. Sarah Bedinger, myself, we'll see you tomorrow.

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