The Broncos escaped Carolina with a 26-21 win on Sunday, but the box score didn’t tell the whole story. A few Denver players came out of that game looking like clear fallers, and the secondary - plus the interior run game - drew the sharpest criticism.
Jahdae Barron was at the center of it. With Riley Moss leaving after a concussion, Barron was thrown into a bigger role and had a rough afternoon.
He allowed six catches on nine targets, and Bryce Young kept coming after his side of the field. Denver also didn’t have much wiggle room because Kris Abrams-Draine was out with an ankle injury.
Barron’s season has already been uneven, and this one looked especially damaging. He has shown flashes of the first-round talent that made him a pick out of Texas, but he’s also been out of position too often. Missed tackles and shaky coverage instincts have piled up, and it wouldn’t be a shock if he ends up involved in a trade-deadline deal on Tuesday.
The backup safeties also landed in the spotlight, even if Devon Key’s play of the game kept him out of that criticism. Without Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Jones, Denver’s secondary felt the strain. Young averaged 7.08 yards per pass attempt, and much of that damage came by attacking Barron and the safeties.
JL Skinner and Taylor Rapp did their part in the tackling department, combining for eight stops, and Skinner added two pressures. But with three starters missing in the secondary, the backups were under constant pressure, and there were moments when the unit cracked. Hufanga is expected back after the bye, and that should help.
The blame didn’t stop there. Ben Powers, Luke Wattenberg and Quinn Meinerz are now getting attention for the run-game issues, too.
Denver managed just three yards per carry against a Carolina defense that has been one of the league’s worst against the run, and rookie Jonah Coleman finished with 57 rushing yards, 38 of them after contact. Runs between Wattenberg and Powers averaged only 2.0 yards, and another move before Tuesday’s deadline wouldn’t be a surprise.
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Henley brings the kind of versatility Denver has been chasing, with a skill set that fits the modern demands on the position and gives the defense more flexibility on third downs and beyond. The move also comes with a longer view attached, since the Broncos gave up future draft capital to make it happen, leaving the next question centered on how quickly Henley can settle in and whether this finally becomes the fix that sticks. [Read more 🡒]