Horse Tracks: Broncos may struggle to replace Lloyd Cushenberry at center

Horse Tracks: Broncos may struggle to replace Lloyd Cushenberry at center
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The Denver Broncos got some of the best play at center last season in terms of pass protection from Lloyd Cushenberry III and replacing him is going to be difficult to reproduce in 2024 for the next guy.

An interesting tweet form March popped up in my feed that gave me pause. The chart from Football Insights broke down the pressure responsibility for each position along the offensive line and the results were compelling. For the Denver Broncos, it seems to suggest that filling Lloyd Cushenberry’s shoes at center could be a problem.

The whole interior line was strong overall, but Cush was one of the best centers in the league at not giving up pressures due to his responsibilities in protection. 6% was tied for the lowest percentage of all centers in the league, so that means Alex Forsythe or whoever ends up starting will have some big shoes to fill in 2024.

Also important to note that Russell Wilson led all quarterbacks in terms of being to blame for the largest share of pressures. He was a big part of the problem last year. Overall, the offensive line in Denver looks pretty strong and even their right tackle issues were merely slightly above average compared to the rest of the right tackles in the league.

If they can get good play out of their center this season, then Denver could be returning a fairly strong offensive line unit in the passing game. if that plays out, then it will bode well for rookie Bo Nix this season.

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