The Denver Broncos fell short of a playoff berth with a third consecutive losing season in 2019.
The team hopes to be better in 2020 with head coach Vic Fangio having a full season under his belt, pushing forward with the promising Drew Lock at quarterback and a brand new offensive coordinator in Pat Shurmur.
But to realize improvement — much less get to the playoffs and win some games once there — it takes a collective effort. For the Broncos to reach their full potential next season, these five players need to bounce back.
Note: This list will not contain any free agents. So the likes of Chris Harris and Connor McGovern will be absent as their futures remain uncertain.
1. Ja’Wuan James
If the Broncos don’t want to pay James for absolutely nothing again, the right tackle needs to bounce back in a big way. That starts with being on the field.
James was one of the worst free agent signings any team in the league made this offseason, but a bounce-back year could help atone for that. Should he have another year in which he almost doesn’t play at all, the Broncos would likely be forced to move on.
2. Von Miller
It’s hard to put the team’s defensive leader on this list when he led the team in sacks again and made the Pro Bowl, but by almost any measurement, it was a down year for Miller.
He only had eight sacks, the lowest of his career since 2013 when he played in just nine games due to an early-season suspension and season-ending injury.
We can make up excuses for him such as teams showed him extra attention or that he was adjusting to Fangio’s scheme, but he is still paid to get to the quarterback and anything less than a double-digit sack season should be considered lackluster, at best.
3. Brandon McManus
To say that McManus was bad in 2019 would be false. He did make 29 of his 34 field-goal attempts. But he needs to be more reliable from long range.
McManus only missed two kicks all season from under 50 yards but once you get into the 50-yard attempts, it’s a coin flip with McManus. Kickers in today’s NFL not only need to have a strong leg, but they must be accurate.
From beyond 50 yards, McManus was just 4-of-7 on the season. It’s clear he has the leg to make kicks, but he needs to show he can make them much more often than miss.
Maybe then, his coach will trot him out for that 65-yard attempt before halftime or the end of the game.
Teams change kickers at a rate that is far more frequent than they did at one time. That’s not to suggest that McManus should fear for his job security, but having a guy who can regularly connect on the long field goal is a huge weapon.
He needs to work on that long-range accuracy this offseason.
4. Bryce Callahan
Obviously, right?
A free agent signing equally as bad as that of James, Callahan didn’t play a single down all season. A foot injury ended up giving him much more trouble than originally anticipated.
It’s widely known how well Callahan knows the defense that Fangio likes to run from their time together with the Chicago Bears, but he must show he can overcome his injury.
The idea of Callahan being the Broncos’ slot corner is enticing, but any missed time for this guy next year will allow a ton of doubt to creep in.
5. Bradley Chubb
Chubb’s second professional season ended early due to a partial tear of the ACL in his knee and it was about that same time that it became clear that this season was sunk.
Chubb finished with just 16 tackles and one sack on the season and he should be prepared to come back with a vengeance and wreak havoc on opposing quarterbacks next season.
Hopefully, for the Broncos, Chubb has a strong offseason of rehabilitation and returns as the same player he was as a rookie when he registered 12 sacks.
