We haven’t seen a Broncos’ defense like this since the No Fly Zone

Coming into this season, I looked forward to seeing Bo Nix and the offense level up in a big way to help this Broncos team move closer to their championship aspirations.

I expected our defense to improve as well, but I thought the offense was where the story was going to be this season.

I honestly missed the boat. This defense is absolutely baller.

And unlike last season, they’ve held up under big tests against big-time opposition.

In 2015, we were all treated to the most phenomenal defensive machine the league has ever seen. They had an absolutely astounding secondary and a lethal pass rush in their defensive front.

This defense is a wrinkle away from that, from what I see. They have the best defensive front I’ve seen in ages throughout their rotation. They also have a superb secondary (though I’d give the nod to the boys from the No Fly Zone as being a better secondary top to bottom).

What is so similar between these two juggernaut defenses is the scheme. Both Wade Phillips and Vance Joseph have talented man coverage players and are just letting it ride on damn near every snap that our guys can just match their opponents.

Underneath, that frees up the front to be really creative on what they do. They oftentimes only rush four. That doesn’t necessarily mean the front four on the line, though. Joseph drops different players from different spots to either man cover a back or drop into a helping zone at times.

The defensive front has every trick in the book at its fingertips, and they bring damn near everything from game to game. Stunts, twists, edge-to-inside loops, safety blitzes, and a partridge in a pear tree are in the playbook and utilized to keep offenses on their toes.

With the talent this defense has, the love gets spread around. Operah is handing out sacks, and everyone on the defense gets one. The Broncos this year have 12 players with a sack, 12 players with a tackle for loss, and pressure coming from any and all directions.

What’s scary is that beating a team that runs man is pretty straightforward. You just need to man up and beat your guy.

The question is, who can actually do it?