2010 Denver Broncos Season Preview

The Denver Broncos started out on fire last season under the direction of first-year head coach Josh McDaniels. The Broncos stormed out of the gate to win their first six games, before stumbling home and failing to make the playoffs, after going 2-8 over the course of the last 10 games. However, looking ahead at the 2010 Denver Broncos Team Preview, the team has made the moves that they feel necessary to once again become competitive and a factor in deciding who will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl XLV.

The Broncos perhaps made the surprise pick of the 2010 NFL Draft back in April, when they selected quarterback Tim Tebow out of Florida in the first round. The Broncos had two first round picks in the 2010 Draft, and used their second one on Tebow, in spite of the question marks surrounding his mechanics and ability to develop into a prototype NFL quarterback

Offensively, the Broncos were led by quarterback Kyle Orton, who had the Broncos ranked 15th in the NFL in total offense, averaging 341 yards per game. Through the air, Denver averaged just over 226 yards, which ranked 13th in the NFL. On the ground, Denver was not up to their usual production, ranking 18th in the league behind rookie Knowshon Moreno. Scoring, the Broncos were towards the bottom of the NFL, ranking 20th, at 20.4 points per game.

On the defensive side of the equation, the Broncos were more impressive, ranking seventh in the NFL. They were stout against the pass, but very ineffective at stopping the run, ranking third and 26th respectively. The defense surrendered just 186 yards through the air, behind All-Pro corner back Champ Bailey.
2010 Denver Broncos Coaching Staff & Changes Head coach Josh McDaniels calls the offensive plays on Sundays, as he continues to do what he is good at after being offensive coordinator for the New England Patriots under head coach Bill Belichick. McDaniels was the coordinator when the Patriots navigated their way to a perfect 16-0 season in 2007. McDaniels hired offensive coordinator Mike McCoy to come in as he and McCoy have the same type of philosophy when it comes to an offensive game plan, line up in the shot gun formation. This could fit very well for Tebow, who hardly ever took a snap under center while at Florida. The Broncos bring in a new defensive coordinator to replace Mike Nolan. Don Martindale takes the reigns to lead one of the better defenses over the course of the last several years in the AFC.2010 Denver Broncos Key Free Agency Acquisitions & LossesAcquistions
DE - Jarvis Green from New England Patriots
QB - Brady Quinn traded from Cleveland Browns
NT - Jamaal Williams from San Diego Chargers
LB - Akin Ayodele from Miami Dolphins
DT - Justin Bannan from Baltimore Ravens

Losses
WR - Brandon Marshall traded to Miami Dolphins
TE - Tony Scheffler traded to Detroit Lions
LB - Andra Davis to Buffalo Bills
RB - LaMont Jordan to Free Agency
RB - Peyton Hillis traded to Cleveland Browns
CB - Ty Law to Free Agency
QB - Chris Simms to Tennessee Titans
C - Casey Wiegmann to Kansas City Chiefs
2010 Denver Broncos NFL DraftRound 1: Pick 22 - WR, Demaryious Thoms (Georgia Tech)
Round 1: Pick 25 - QB, Tim Tebow (Florida)
Round 2: Pick 45 - OT, Zane Beadles (Utah)
Round 3: Pick 80 - C, J.D Walton (Baylor)
Round 3: Pick 87 - WR, Eric Decker (Minnesota)
Round 5: Pick 137 - CB, Perrish Cox (Oklahoma State)
Round 6: Pick 183 - C, Eric Olsen (Notre Dame)
Round 7: Pick 225 - CB, Syd'Quan Thompson (California)
Round 7: Pick 232 - DE, Jammie Kirlew (Indiana)
2010 Denver Broncos QuarterbacksKyle Orton will likely enter training camp as the unquestionable No.1, but he will get competition from both Brady Quinn and Tim Tebow, two new additions to the Broncos quarterback depth chart. Orton was relatively effective last season, but struggled down the home stretch and as a result, Denver missed out on the playoffs. Tebow comes in as a rookie having known nothing but success in his time at Florida, winning two national championships and a Heisman Trophy. Quinn has struggled in his few years in the NFL in Cleveland, but the system that McDaniels runs should fit him better as he works his way into the depth chart. What McDaniels does with his stable of QBs is something that 2010 Denver Broncos Preview pages can't precdict.

2010 Denver Broncos Quarterback Depth Chart
QB - Kyle Orton
QB - Brady Quinn
QB - Tim Tebow
2010 Denver Broncos Running BacksKnowshon Moreno split time last season with Correll Buckhalter, but he possesses far too much talent to spliut time, and the Broncos did use the 12th overall pick on him last season out of Georgia. Moreno only averaged 3.8 yards per carry last season, and will have to make strides to improve in 2010. Buckhalter is a good role player as the back up running back and will help Moreno out, as he gained 642 yards last year.

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Running Back Depth Chart
RB - Knowshon Moreno
RB - Correll Buckhalter
2010 Denver Broncos Wide ReceiversMost notably, the Broncos lost Brandon Marshall, who is arguably one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, and now departs to Miami where he will play for the Dolphins. This season, look for the Broncos to use a three-wide set at wide receiver, with Eddie Royal Jabar Gaffney and rookie Demaryious Thomas out of Georgia Tech to team together an take over the production that Marshall produced. Neither Royal or Gaffney gave any reason to believe that they are poised for a break out session based on their performances in 2009, but they were overshadowed by Marshall. Thomas comes in looking to have the production level he showed in the ACC as a Yellow Jackets. On the whole, the receiver corps does not possess any big name players, but look for them to help out their quarterbacks.

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Wide Receiver Depth Chart
WR - Jabar Gaffney
WR - Brandon Stokley
WR - Eddie Royal
WR - Demaryius Thomas
WR - Eric Decker
WR - Kenny McKinley

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Tight End Depth Chart
TE - Daniel Graham
TE - Richard Quinn 2010 Denver Broncos Offensive LineLast season the Broncos offensive line was very spotty. It was a change of scheme from Shanahan to McDaniels. Shanahan implemented a zone-blocking scheme, versus the philosophy of McDaniels and a power-blocking game plan with the line. Left tackle Ryan Clady will not return until weeks priors to the season because of a torn tendon in his knee, which will hurt the line, but he should improve week to week. Seth Olsen will anchor the left guard, while center J.D Walton is expected to come in as a rookie and start, which will be key for the quarterbacks in the system to get reps with their new exchange. On the right side of the line at tackle, Ryan Harris will start, while at the right guard position Chris Kuper will sit, as he is a solid player in that position for the 2010 Denver Broncos.

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Starting Offensive Line
LT - Ryan Clady
LG - Seth Olsen
C - J.D. Walton
RG - Chris Kuper
RT - Ryan Harris2010 Denver Broncos Defensive LineThe Broncos bring in Jarvis Green from New England to come in and help build the new line for the team. Jamal Williams and Justin Bannan will fill out the remainder of the line in this 3-4 base set that the Broncos will run in the 2010 NFL Season. The Broncos are aging at that position, as all starters will be over 30 years old.

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Starting Defensive Line
DE - Justin Bannan
NT - Jamal Williams
DE - Jarvis Green
2010 Denver Broncos LinebackersD.J Williams and Mario Haggan anchor the inside positions on the linebacker unit, and are both very solid players. Robert Ayers did not have the best rookie campaign, but he possess the skill set to wreak havoc as a pass rusher from the linebacker position. There is no doubt the the Broncos are very thin at this position, and the lack of depth could be a concern.

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Starting Linebackers
OLB - Robert Ayers
ILB - D.J. Williams
ILB - Mario Haggan
OLB - Elvis Dumervil
2010 Denver Broncos SecondaryThe 2010 Denver Broncos Season Preview shows that the secondary for the Broncos possess two future hall of fame backs in Champ Bailey and Brians Dawkins. While both have resumes' that are up with the best in NFL history, they are aging as Bailey is 32 and Dawkins 36. Still, the duo are plenty capable of making plays on the field and this unit is unquestionably the strongest on the defensive side. Opposite Bailey and Dawkins is corner back Andre Goodman and Safety Renaldo Hill.

Projected 2010 Denver Broncos Starting Seconday
CB - Champ Bailey
CB - Andre Goodman
SS - Renaldo Hill
FS - Brian Dawkins

2010 Denver Broncos Preview