Denver Broncos Add Super Talented 21-Year-Old Player to Their Defense

In the NFL, every team is always striving to get better, regardless of their current performance. Denver Broncos’ outside linebacker Jonathon Cooper echoed this sentiment: “I think there’s always going to be growth, no matter how well you’re doing or what kind of defense you have. There’s always going to be areas that we need to improve on.”

The Broncos’ defense, already among the league’s elite, aims to improve—but pinpointing exactly where is the challenge. The unit has been impressive, holding opponents to single digits in each of their last two games. Statistically, they rank third in the NFL in points allowed, second in yards allowed, and give up the fewest yards per drive. Their pass defense is particularly strong, ranking third in passing yards allowed and second in net yards per pass attempt.

If there’s a “weakness” to address, it’s the run defense, which allows 4.1 yards per carry—still ninth-best in the NFL. But as Cooper suggested, improvement isn’t just about fixing weaknesses, it’s about making your strengths even stronger. “The areas that have been our strengths, we can make them even more efficient—more of a strength,” he said.

Still, the pursuit of progress goes beyond just fine-tuning. Defensive lineman Zach Allen emphasized consistency: “The past two weeks, we’ve been pretty consistent throughout the whole game, compared to the first two games, where it was either a quarter or a drive.” While consistency is key, it’s not necessarily a direct path to improvement.

Allen also highlighted that the NFL is a “gameplan league,” where teams continuously throw new looks at their opponents. “Every team will try to find a weakness to pick apart,” he said. He stressed the importance of adjusting on the fly, saying, “I think we’ve been doing a pretty good job, but obviously, adjusting on the fly against stuff you haven’t seen is going to be a key for us. I think we have really good communication and smart guys who can handle that.”

While the message from the players seems to be “more of the same,” the addition of new talent could also spark improvement. After linebacker Alex Singleton tore his ACL, the Broncos bolstered their defense by adding veteran linebackers Kwon Alexander and another accomplished player to their practice squad. Alexander, who made the Pro Bowl in 2017 and led the NFL in solo tackles in 2016, brings experience and leadership to an already solid unit.

In the end, the Broncos’ defense isn’t necessarily looking to fix glaring issues—it’s about continuing to excel, adapt, and find new ways to dominate.