Frank Clark spent the first eight years of his career playing as a 4-3 defensive end, first with the Seattle Seahawks (2015-2018) and then with the Kansas City Chiefs (2019-2022).
After the pass rusher signed a one-year deal with the Denver Broncos, some fans and pundits speculated that Clark would remain a defensive end (as opposed to transitioning to outside linebacker in the team’s 3-4 defense).
When the Broncos wrapped up minicamp last week, coach Sean Payton confirmed that Clark will play OLB, not DE, in Denver.
“He’s an OLB,” Payton said. “He’s an edge player.”
In their base defense, the Broncos have OLBs line up on the edge with DEs lining up as interior defensive linemen.
Of course, these position names could prove to be semantics given that Clark — and many of the team’s defenders — are versatile players who can line up at various spots. Even as an OLB, Clark could spend time at a traditional 3-4 DE spot. The Broncos will have the personnel to get creative with their pass rush this year.
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