Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - WATCH: Denver Broncos Defense Could BREAK NFL Sack Record in 2026

Starting point is 00:00:00 For the last couple of seasons, the Denver Broncos defense has come close to breaking the NFL sack record in 2026. They could do it. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Happy Friday, Broncos country. I'm Cody Rourke. joined as always by Sarah Beninger on today's episode of the show. We're going to tell you what the Broncos defense may look like if Drew Sanders turns out to be great this upcoming season. Plus, what will it look like the Broncos defense suddenly flips the script next year, and they force more takeaways than they did in 2025.

Starting point is 00:00:41 But we're going to kick things off by talking about how the Broncos could finally break that NFL sack record here in 2026. I mean, the Broncos defense, the pass rush, as we know, the last couple of seasons here, Vance Joseph has been in his bag, Jamar Kane has been in his bag, and the Broncos have had so many contributors getting after opposing quarterbacks. We saw in 2024, 64, 63 sacks,

Starting point is 00:01:04 which set a franchise record led the NFL. And we thought, you know what, that was pretty good. 2025. They up the ante. 68 sacks for this Broncos defense. Once again, setting another franchise record, but falling four sacks shy of tying the Chicago Bears record back in the day. Yeah, they are so close.

Starting point is 00:01:24 And they were on pace this past year, right? For a brief time, they're not even a brief time for actually a large portion of the season. And it felt like they were going to actually break that record. from the Chicago Bears. And I know a lot of folks are saying, well, you got to do it in 16 games if you want to truly beat the bears. And I agree.

Starting point is 00:01:41 I mean, yeah, let's see if the Broncos get this done in 16 games, right? But regardless if it takes 16 or 17 games, I think breaking the 70 sack mark, even without John Franklin Myers out there, Cody,

Starting point is 00:01:53 is a realistic goal for this team because they have so many pass rushers. I mean, even without JFM, we're talking about Nick Benito, Jonathan Cooper, Zach Allen. And then, of course, the rest of the cast of characters out there that contributed to that, not to mention that Vance Joseph loves to send defensive backs and linebackers on blitzes. So the pass rush comes from so many different angles for this Broncos team.

Starting point is 00:02:19 And they already have one of the best defensive fronts in the NFL. So you got to figure, hey, they're going to try to break their own record. It's 70 or bust this year. Yeah. And there's nothing wrong with that, too. I mean, gosh, even if you just still find. the way to land in the 60s, even if you don't get to last year's total. I mean, it's a success.

Starting point is 00:02:37 That's a very impressive mark. And it highlights just how good Vance Joseph's attacking style defense is. You mentioned the cast of characters. You know, I think a lot of people when they think of sacks, they think of just outside linebackers, defensive line. But no, it's, as you mentioned, it's corners. It's nickel defenders. It's safety's getting involved.

Starting point is 00:02:55 It's the offball linebacker position. And the Broncos, I'd say at every level have really good pass rushers. The bigger question coming into this offseason, certainly is how do you replace JFM's seven and a half sacks that he had last season? Well, certainly maybe one player could take on more sacks, right? Nick Benito obviously led the Broncos in sacks this season, but could there be another reality where Nick Benito gets his typical number, 14, 14 and a half, maybe ups the ante gets there a little bit more

Starting point is 00:03:21 because there was a conversation early on in the season where he was actually on pace to break the overall sack record. Miles Garrett ended up doing that this year in 17 games, but Nick Benito went a stretch of games without getting a sack. Jonathan Cooper won't a stretch of games without getting a sack. And it's easy to wonder, like, what if the Broncos didn't run into that scenario where they had these stretches of games where those guys weren't getting after the quarterback. But the thing I like about Denver's defense where it's like, okay, if Benito and Cooper aren't getting sacks,

Starting point is 00:03:49 well, Zach Allen is, JFM was. Jayquan Macmillan is blitzing off the edge. He's getting two sacks in the game on Patrick Mahomes. It is coming from everywhere. But one thing I like, Sarah, is that Denver at the offball, linebacker position specifically, they have a blitzing linebacker that is a sackbacker. That is Justin Sternat, four and a half sacks for him last season. Now he's in a full-time starting role.

Starting point is 00:04:12 I'm curious to see if Vance Joseph fully unleashes him this upcoming season. But I think the Devers production is going to be one of the highest in the league here once again. And you and I have talked about like, we've said things like Justin Sternad has been the team's best linebacker over the last two seasons. And folks out there listening might wonder, like, what is the reason? why you're saying that. Other than obviously we've seen the big play that he made against the giants, right? The interception that helped that amazing comeback. But one of the biggest reasons why we say that about Justin is because of his ability as a blitzer. He's made more splash

Starting point is 00:04:46 plays over the past two seasons than any other player that the Broncos have thrown out there at the linebacker position when you talk about tackles for loss. You talk about sacks. You talk about game changing interception. I mean, it's all Justin Sernat. And what, he brings to the table in that regard, a dynamic three-down weapon for this team, but especially as a blitzer. Now, what makes him effective as a blitzer? Well, you've got to have great vision, right? I mean, just like running backs have to hit the hole at the right time and avoid, you know,

Starting point is 00:05:16 getting hit at the line of scrimmage or kind of, you know, shed tacklers. So do linebackers have to get through the line of scrimmage on their side of things and get through a pass-protecting running back or get through a chip from a 10 that's maybe coming across the formation or whatever it may be. be, Justin Sernad knows how to do that. He's got great vision out there as a blitzer, and he's just a heat-seeking missile when it comes to getting after the quarterback. So I love his ability to make plays behind the line of scrimmage.

Starting point is 00:05:44 And so, yeah, as a sackbacker, have we even seen the best of what Justin brings to the table just yet? Because he's never been a, I mean, he's been a starter for this team, but has he ever gone into an off-season program as the unquestioned starter? I think that's going to be really interesting. And I know we're talking about sacks. We're talking about setting the NFL sack record or breaking their own team records in that department. But Justin's going to help them.

Starting point is 00:06:09 Yeah, he's going to do that. And the thing is, is he disguised as well. I have a film breakdown that's already up for the everyday or all access club. When Sternad re-signed to a three-year extension, it showcases exactly what he does. And he never shows necessarily when he's coming, right? The Broncos, they're on that double mug look where they'll bring both linebackers, stand them up in the A gap. One guy will blitz.

Starting point is 00:06:29 both guys will blitz or one or both guys will drop back into coverage. Sternat is the guy that I think is the most effective guy. He's got the physicality there too in terms of his size. He's taller. So I think that does help. And the Broncos, the way that they attack too, it's, it's almost like dancing, right? You have a dancing partner. Well, their dancing partners, the defensive line and that front that they have up there

Starting point is 00:06:49 because they attack and they rush a specific way. They have certain stunts that create these openings to say, hey, if this quarterback hesitates for one second, he's going to get sacked sternat has been one of those guys here now one thing i think it was impressive about Denver's defense with the collective group of guys that were able to contribute in the sack department was that you had consistency across the board on your defensive line right zach allen nick benito jonathan cooper john franklin meyers those four players each had seven plus sacks last season you want to see that continue here but does that happen with enyoma uazerike does that happen with savion Jones. Right now, I think the easy answer, like when you're looking at it right now,

Starting point is 00:07:29 is like, nah, those guys aren't going to get seven and a half sacks. If they do, we're going to be greatly surprised. And that's obviously a huge benefit to where Denver would be at. But I still think there is a missing piece here for the Broncos defense. And maybe, maybe that happens now with Malcolm Roach getting after the quarterback, maybe a little bit more. Maybe more DJ Jones getting after the quarterback, even though that's not really what they were brought in for. That's not what they're known for. That could also be something. and that maybe changes the dynamic. Maybe we'll see more Talanoa Hufanga on Blitz looks this season.

Starting point is 00:08:00 I would love to certainly see that here for Denver. But let me ask you this at the top of it. Broncos country, feel free to chime in as you're tuning into today's show. Do you think the Broncos will get at least 65 sacks next season defensively? I do. I think that they're going to get 70. And I think it's going to be a huge effort.

Starting point is 00:08:18 Yeah, I love it too. I think it's going to be a huge effort from those edge guys this coming season. Like you said, I mean, there were stretches where even with 14 plus sacks that Nick Bonito didn't have a sack. And Jonathan Cooper, you know, eight sacks last year, right? So there were stretches where those guys could have maybe even done more or where teams are kind of adjusting their game plan. But shoot, what if those guys both go out there and get double digit sacks?

Starting point is 00:08:43 Once again, I mean, right there, you're already kind of helping replace some of that production that's left behind by John Franklin Myers. And then also, I mean, we will get more Q Robinson. this year will we get more Jonah Ellis? Will we get a fully healthy Jonah Ellis? When we get Savion Jones progression that you mentioned? I mean, those are all things that as we're kind of looking here in terms of the,

Starting point is 00:09:05 you know, not even just glass half full, but really sort of seeing these players from the vision that the team has for them, right? Cody, because the team's not sitting there thinking, oh, this guy's going to bust out.

Starting point is 00:09:17 You know, he's not going to work out for it. Like the team is putting faith in some of these guys, right? In Yomo Luazerrique, Savian Jones. And if you dust off the old scouting report on Savion Jones, I mean, he plays with that relentless motor. He's got a good inside swim move.

Starting point is 00:09:32 He's got the ability to win with effort and bull rush. And he's got the ability to win with quickness off the ball. So there's different ways that you could maybe see this happening. Or does the team go out there and still add a Cameron Jordan as we've kind of thrown out there? I mean, there's different ways that you could potentially create this scenario of 70 plus sacks. but I think the Broncos are going to get there. Broncos country, make sure you let us know what you think the Broncos defense will get this upcoming season in terms of their SAC production here. One thing they absolutely must get better at in 2026, though, more takeaways.

Starting point is 00:10:06 And we'll tell you, what will it look like if the Broncos suddenly flipped the script in this category, this upcoming season? Today's episode with Lockdown Broncos is brought to you by Indeed. If you're dealing with workplace chaos, deadline stacking up, your inbox is overflowing in the one position you have to fill is still sitting open when the pressure is on. and you need the right hire. This is a job for sponsored jobs. Indeed, sponsored jobs helps you reach the people who actually fit what you're looking for in a candidate, the skills, the experience, the location. So you're not just hoping that the right candidate stumbles across your post.

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Starting point is 00:11:17 The Denver Broncos were a takeaway machine in the playoffs against the Buffalo bills. can they keep that going in the 2026 season? Heck, what if they flipped the script on last year where Sean Payton was kind of disappointed at the end of the season in the amount of takeaways that they had? Well, we're going to break that down and what that could look like and who could step up to help this team in the takeaway department

Starting point is 00:11:37 on today's episode, Lockdown Broncos. And Broncos Country, we appreciate you so much. All you every dayers out there that make us your first listen of the day, every single day. We appreciate you for rocking with us all throughout the off season. And just a reminder, a real easy way to support. the show and you listen already so we appreciate you for that but another easy way to support the show is by becoming a part of the everyday club and cody's going to have some more stuff to talk about

Starting point is 00:12:02 with that later but you can check out the link in the show notes for more information on that we appreciate you for considering it cody let's talk about the we talked about the potential of being sack masters in uh 2025 i think one of the most confusing things for me is the fact that this team has 60 plus sacks in each of the last two seasons, but not a lot of strip sacks, right? I mean, I think Jayne Macmillan had one in the first game of the season against Cam Ward to kind of close out that game. And I don't think it was until Nick Benito had one that the Broncos had any others. I can't remember exactly how many there were, but it was an absurd low number considering this team had 68 sacks last season. So if nothing else, you kind of feel like, all right, the

Starting point is 00:12:48 cream's going to rise to the top a little bit in the strip sack department. That could help tremendously in flipping the script on these takeaways. Yeah, and they need to find a way. I mean, it's crazy to think you mentioned week one against the Titans being one. And then the last week of the regular season against the Chargers is when the last strip sack happened. That's crazy to actually think about when you put it in their perspective. Like that's such a long drought when you have that number of sacks.

Starting point is 00:13:13 So certainly, I mean, obviously the Broncos is doing a great job of getting stops, right? getting after the quarterback. I think one area that can improve in the takeaway department, we'll talk about interceptions here in a minute. But when Denver does get home, it's finding a way to pop that football out of the quarterback's hands. Denver didn't necessarily do that. Heck, there was one point where we were talking about takeaways.

Starting point is 00:13:32 You're like, you know, the Broncos, they had, I think, under double digits at one point. We're saying, you know, we're not counting Jonah Ellis's special team strip that he had all the way in week three against the chargers. Denver had a really, really hard time with this last season. Sarah and I have the numbers that kind of put it in a perspective here. These are the games where the Broncos went without forcing a takeaway in a game. Week two, weeks four, five, and six, week nine, week 14, week 16, and 17,

Starting point is 00:14:00 an AFC championship game. So nine games last season for Denver where they didn't have a single takeaway. Imagine, and they still found ways to win those games. There were a couple of games, though, that they did lose. The one game that they lost where they didn't force a single takeaway, Sarah, was against the Jacksonville Jaguars. They lost that game in week 16. You look at another game here.

Starting point is 00:14:21 They were able to win, beat the Houston Texans on the road without forcing a single takeaway. And they beat the Bengals, the Eagles, and the Jets without forcing a single takeaway. But then they didn't have one in week two against the Colts. Didn't force a takeaway allowed over 26 first downs for Daniel Jones and that Colts offense. And it resulted in a loss.

Starting point is 00:14:40 So two of those seven games, Denver lost because they didn't force a takeaway, which is also crazy. And I think that's where people look at Denver and say, well, you know, you look at the one score games. That could easily flip. You are right. It could easily flip. But if Denver's defense finds a way to get more takeaways, right? Strip sacks, more interceptions in the secondary.

Starting point is 00:14:59 I mean, that's exactly what Denver needs. You have to find a way to come up with that, especially if teams aren't going to target Pats or Tan. Taleno who Fonga had like six or seven dropped interceptions this past season. It was kind of mind-boggling there. So maybe that turns around here this upcoming year. Yeah, I think that you make some great points, and it really paints a great picture of what maybe Sean Payton's frustration was at the end of the season in the takeaway department is missed opportunities. You know, those one score games where Sean also talked about, you know, I think I'm paraphrasing, but he said basically, I'm not naive enough to think that, you know, those three of those games or more couldn't have swung the other way, right?

Starting point is 00:15:39 and how do you swing those games from one score games to now being blowout victories, right? That's what takeaways help you do because the Broncos already have a dominant defense when it came to third downs, when it came to, you know, dominating in the red zone. I mean, situationally, just an outstanding defense all throughout last season, pass rush, record setting two straight years in a row. So when it comes to the takeaways, this is how you eliminate the, you know, I guess being scared. of one score games if you're a fan of the team and wondering like are they going to be able to sustain that?

Starting point is 00:16:14 Well, how about you just start kicking the crap out of the teams that you're playing, right? I mean, you start beating them up because you are taking the ball away and you are putting your foot on the gas. That is something that the Broncos can absolutely do better in. And I think they will because like we talked about, 68 sacks last season and barely two strip sacks. I mean, that's crazy. that that probably like you know uh von miller is probably like hurting in his heart from afar like he felt

Starting point is 00:16:44 it in the force like yoda did when you know order 66 is going down he felt it in his in his soul you know and von miller is probably thinking like oh my gosh 68 sacks and only two strips like that is something that has to get better but like you said interceptions are part of it as well riley moss had 19 past breakups last season love to see some of those turn into interceptions as well Yeah, I agree. Turn some of those tips into picks. Riley, I think, was the one Bronco that forced the first interception, had the first interception of the season or forced it, right? I think Brandon Jones had the first interception of the season. That came, I believe, against the Los Angeles Chargers in week three. I'm looking at other teams last year, Sarah, and the Bears obviously led the NFL with 33 takeaways of their opponents. The Jaguars were second with 31, and the Houston Texans had crazy good defense that they had. at 29. Denver was far below. It's also crazy to see that they tied essentially with the Cardinals, the Lions, and the Patriots and overall takeaways defensively last season. So you can be a stubborn defense. You can get stops. But it is, I'd say, the ability to take the football away that was

Starting point is 00:17:54 the difference maker. And I don't know if you had a chance to catch Pat Sertan on Julian Edelman's podcast yet. But he was talking about with Sean Payton saying like there were these games defensive like he'd give the players bats. It was a bat game. they'd call it. The Buffalo Bill's game, he said that he gave, Sean Payton gave the players oxygen takes and said it's going to require everything, four cores. Well, it took more than four quarters. It took four quarters and overtime for the Broncos to find a way to come up with a big play and to win that one. But you mentioned it. It really wasn't until the Bill's game where the Broncos just all of a sudden had this turnover crane rolling. And you and I were talking about,

Starting point is 00:18:30 man, it couldn't have come at a better time. I know that was on your Broncos postseason wish list going into the playoffs and we got that. But man, could you imagine if Denver is able to do that more consistently in the regular season? That's going to only benefit them of getting off the field. Let's say you score defensively. That helps your offense. That helps you collectively as a team.

Starting point is 00:18:48 But let's say you give Bo Nix and the Broncos offense, which we think is going to be so much better this upcoming season, great field positioning. That's exactly what it's about. And I think that's what hurt the Broncos last season offensively is the fact that the defense at times was not rewarding them with good field position. They're getting stops. but punters are pinning the offense behind the 20 inside the 10 consistently. That's where you can really start to play fully complimentary football

Starting point is 00:19:10 is by getting the football away from the opposing offense. Yeah, I just think that number that you just posed right there for the Chicago Bears and the Jacksonville Jaguars, imagine this Broncos team with 33 takeaways. I mean, that is that, yeah, I don't know that they lose a game. I don't know that they have anyone score games. Like that is that's two turnovers per game. I mean, that's that is crazy stuff, especially because I mean, I know Bo Nix has thrown

Starting point is 00:19:39 his share of interceptions in the first two seasons of his career. But shoot, I mean, it's not like he's putting the defense in positions every single game where it's like, hey, you just you got to rely like this guy is going to throw a pick or two every single week. I mean, I don't think he's that he's at that level. Like just imagine this offense being set up. I know that we saw in 2024, like, remember the Broncos? I think they were, I think they had nine wins by nine points or more or 10 wins by nine points or something

Starting point is 00:20:07 like that, right? And I bet you the turnovers and takeaways, I bet you it was a lot better in 2024. So that number right there is just mind boggling. Maybe that's a little too much to ask, but as we're kind of doing optimistic superlatives here, I mean, shoot, let's get two turnovers a game. The bears did it. And they gave up 50 some odd points of the lions. They had a terrible defense at times last season. So create those takeaways, Broncos, and get rid of those one score games without having to worry about the pendulum swinging the other way. All right. So let's get into maybe a too early prediction here. Last year, Denver 19 total takeaways, where do you see them at? What's a number you feel like you'd be comfortable saying that they're going to improve on this year? Let's say 25.

Starting point is 00:20:51 I mean, is that that's fair. That's a fair median. Yeah. I think you consider the strip sacks, right? I mean, 68 sacks and two strip sacks. Like, there's nuts. Yeah, 25 turnovers, 25 takeaways at minimum, I think, for the Broncos this year. I like that. I think that would be a good goal for a unit to have for this upcoming season. Broncos country, let us know what goal, what number you want the Broncos defense to have from a defensive takeaway standpoint this upcoming season.

Starting point is 00:21:17 But coming up next, we're going to continue on with the what if series. What if Drew Sanders actually turns out to be pretty good for the Broncos this summer and in the preseason, what could that mean for him going forward? We'll tell you about that here on today's episode, Locked on Broncos. Today's episode of the show is brought to you by friends over there at Home Chef. And this time of the year where all you really want is something warm, easy, and satisfying. That's why Home Chef has become such a go-to for so many folks like myself, my wife, because it takes the stress out of dinner and makes it simple to actually enjoy cooking again.

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Starting point is 00:23:21 They have a lot of upcoming flavor innovations that are planned. So find your new favorite flavor five hour energy shots available online at five hour energy. com or Amazon. Drew Sanders enters a make or break year for him inside of the Broncos defense as he is on the last year of his rookie deal. And he's missed a lot of time due to injuries. But this is his last chance. What if he turns out taking advantage of this opportunity and becoming something special here for Denver defensively? Look, time is of the essence here for him, Sarah, as we look at the Broncos defense.

Starting point is 00:23:51 certainly the bigger questions that we've had about the depth of this position. Drew Sanders, if he actually can stay healthy, which is the hope, and we're praying for that for him this upcoming season, this summer, and in the offseason program, I imagine what that will look like as the Broncos maybe try to figure out what their depth at this position is going to look like in the future, especially considering they just re-signed Justin Ad and Alex Singleton. Here's the thing that Drew Sanders brings to the table that Alex Singleton doesn't

Starting point is 00:24:18 simply have the ability to get after the quarterback. He is a pressure player. Sean Payton has pinpointed, and there could be a situation where the Broncos use him this season if he can stay healthy. He's one play away. That's the thing. I mean, for Drew Sanders, that has to be your mindset. This offseason is,

Starting point is 00:24:34 hey, I'm one play away from being in that starting lineup alongside either Alex Singleton or Justin Ser Nad. And not that you want any of those guys to get injured by any means. That's not what I'm saying. But that's the level of readiness that Drew has to have this off season, is that, hey, I'm one play away from.

Starting point is 00:24:51 my number being called. And at this point, he's going to be a fourth year guy. That's crazy in itself to think that this is Drew Sanders' fourth year in the NFL already. And we've seen so little of them. But you are going to be likely competing against a number of guys that were undrafted free agents and then whoever the Broncos select in April's draft. Right. So your competition is going to be a lot of guys that they're fighting, scraping, and clawing

Starting point is 00:25:18 for roster spots. And then some rookies that are going to probably be coming in. him with a decent draft status. So to me, if I'm Drew Sanders, I'm sitting there thinking all I have to do is beat out rookies and undrafted guy. And not in a, you're not sitting there and saying like, well, in sort of a pompous sort of way. But like ultimately, the Broncos didn't bring in a Dre Greenlaw.

Starting point is 00:25:40 They didn't go get Devin Lloyd in free agency. They didn't go get, you know, Quay Walker or any of those guys, Caden Ellis, who I would have loved to have seen. They didn't go get any of those guys. the only players that they're going to be bringing in, most likely, are rookies and special teams guys. So Drew, I mean, he's still in a crazy good situation overall. I mean, with Sir Nad and Singleton atop the depth chart,

Starting point is 00:26:03 and we've seen before across the NFL, guys break out in their contract years all the time. I mean, Drew's not, it's not like he's never played before. So he's going to get an opportunity and a golden one at that to show that he can still do this and he could still be the player of the team drafted him to beat. No, and you're right. And you make a good point about like who he has to compete against right now. And really the biggest person he's got to compete against right now is himself. You know, it's easy, I think.

Starting point is 00:26:31 And to be in his situation where, hey, you're going into your fourth season, two of your years have been impacted due to injury. The limited time that you have seen like one year, you spend time at offball, then you get moved middle through your rookie season to edge rusher. You play some edge rusher rotation. Then you suffer an Achilles injury. You miss time. You come back.

Starting point is 00:26:48 and you suffer another injury. You're coming into training camp and last year and you're back to offball linebacker where you're going to compete for a starting job with Sternad and Alex Singleton, alongside Dre Greenlaw, who was the starter there that Denver brought in, and then you suffer a foot injury and you miss the entirety of the season. Nobody has been more frustrated about it than I think Drew has. And I'm curious, like, how has the time not on the field? How has it impacted him as a player, right?

Starting point is 00:27:14 Because the offball lineback position, and we've seen it, we've talked about on this show, in Vance Joseph's defense, there's so much you have to factor into movement, motion, formation, how things change when you're in match, being able to cover guys. Like, does Drew have it up here to be able to process all that and learn it inside this defense where Drey Greenlaw, who we all know is one hell of a freaking player, very smart player, he had such a hard time learning this defense, right? So for Drew, he's been in the room, he's learned it on paper, not having the title on task, I think is definitely something to keep an eye on here.

Starting point is 00:27:50 But I think the traits there, I think the ability to go out there. And, hey, even if I'm not starting, I'm playing special teams. I think one guy that is already on the linebacker roster that is going to push him, I think is going to be Jordan Turner, who won an opportunity to be a practice squad player for them, shine in the preseason, was able to pressure the quarterback, get a couple of sacks last year. He's going to be a guy I think is going to play some special teams. He's going to be competing for some prime special teams opportunities here

Starting point is 00:28:16 this upcoming season. Yeah, no doubt. And the Broncos were ramping up Drew Sanders at the end of last season right before the AFC championship game to potentially be available for the Super Bowl. So I think the team still does value him pretty highly. And it's also important to remember we've brought this up regarding Marvin Mims being the first ever draft pick that Sean Peyton and, you know, George Peyton made together when he joined forces back in 2023. But Drew Sanders, just a couple of picks later, was the first defensive player that they picked after bringing in Vance Joseph, right, as the defensive coordinator. So I think that's important to remember as well that as they identified back when they were building this roster and when they were saying,

Starting point is 00:28:58 hey, we've got to pick up the pieces from the Russell Wilson trade. And this is kind of the vision for my defense and what I see being important for it. I could still see the Broncos going. And this is what we're doing. We're kind of approaching it from the super optimistic point of view of like, and asking the question, like, what if Drew Sanders is great? What if he does become that guy who was an all-American off-ball linebacker in his first, that was the first opportunity he got at Arkansas, right, to do it.

Starting point is 00:29:25 He was a backup to Will Anderson Jr. as a pass rusher at Alabama, caught in a log jam there, playing special teams. We know how much Sean Peyton loves Nick Sabin guys. Drew Sanders is a football player. And he's somebody who, you know, he shined at the last moment that he got an opportunity at the college level. This is kind of the mirror image of that in the NFL. It's kind of now your next last shot to prove,

Starting point is 00:29:51 like can you get a second contract in Denver? Can you be somebody that this team can rely on, not just for special teams, but can you get into that rotation? Can you help with the first point that we made? Because Drew can't. He's proven that in limited action. He can rush the passer.

Starting point is 00:30:06 He can get out for the quarterback. So can you help this team get to that 70 sack mark? I think this is shaping up for him to still be an impactful player, even though it's a bit of a white whale sort of situation right now. It's like, does this really exist? We're going to find out this offseason. Yeah. And to your point about him switching from, you know, where he was at Alabama as an outside linebacker going to Arkansas playing that off ball linebacker, his first year, what was it, nine and a half sacks at the offball linebacker position? I mean, there was something there.

Starting point is 00:30:38 And that's something that Sean Payton has highlighted, though. He has said, like our vision for Drew, he's a pressure player. Okay. So how can you maximize that, especially at the offball linebacker position? I still think there may be even times this year, Sarah, where the Broncos,

Starting point is 00:30:53 maybe they face a bigger running back or a tougher running back, right? Maybe they go to their penny front in that situation, but it wouldn't even surprise me if they even add it at times, an additional linebacker on the field in certain packages just to help with that dynamic.

Starting point is 00:31:07 I'm curious to see what Drew does this upcoming season. We'll see where he's at when the Broncos take the field obviously for mandatory mini camp, which is going to be in June. That's when we know the Broncos will actually take step foot on the field. They're going to be in the weight room doing conditioning and all that stuff leading up to that. Football action stuff, that's not going to come until the month of June folk. Sean Payton has been very on the record of saying that considering how far they made it, the grind that was and the grind that is to come here for this Broncos football team.

Starting point is 00:31:34 And maybe, maybe Jacob Roder Griegers will be part of that mix as well here for the Broncos going into their offseason program. I'm very excited about what is to come here. Broncos country, as always, you know, Sarah and I, we got you covered every step of the way. On our next episode that we're going to have for you on Monday, we're going to sit down, we're going to debate and make the case for who the Broncos should take at pick number 62. What positions? We're going to look at running back. We're going to look at linebacker.

Starting point is 00:31:59 We're also going to look maybe at the tight end position as well. We're going to go through all of that on Monday's episode, Lockdown, Broncos's country, enjoy the week, and enjoy this weather. See you next time.

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