Denver’s defense prevents Packers from scoring in stout performance

DENVER — After scoring 27 points during Sunday’s preseason game against the Packers, Denver’s offense looks to be building positive momentum ahead of the 2024 season.

But the Broncos’ defense arguably stole the show on Sunday, as the unit recorded two key takeaways and kept the Packers from scoring in Denver’s 27-2 win. Green Bay’s only points came via a safety late in the third quarter.

Coming off of a strong defensive performance last week against Indianapolis and a promising joint practice with the Packers on Friday, Head Coach Sean Payton said he is encouraged by the consistency the defense is showing.

“We played the run well at Indianapolis and then we came back off that game,” Payton said. “… [We’re] just kind of stacking these practices and building confidence. We had two takeaways. I think we scored 10 points off of them. We didn’t win the penalty battle, [but] we won the turnover battle. I’m encouraged.”

These two takeaways came from players who made their presences felt in last week’s win over Indianapolis. Defensive back Keidron Smith recorded his second interception of the 2024 preseason, while outside linebacker Jonah Elliss saw his consistent pressure pay off with a strip-sack and fumble recovery.

“I like his energy,” Payton said of Elliss. “… He’s someone that it’s not just one rush plan. He plays with passion and again, I’m encouraged with the rookie class. A number of these guys have a chance to contribute, and we’ll just keep working with him. It’s good to see his progress. He got a lot of snaps tonight.”

Several veteran players also made an impact on Sunday. Defensive end Zach Allen recorded a sack, while outside linebacker Nik Bonitto applied pressure that contributed to Elliss’ strip-sack and fumble recovery.

Bonitto said that there is a noticeable difference with this year’s defense and is eager to see the new energy continue to translate to on-field performance.

“We’ve got a lot of guys that just want to prove something,” Bonitto said. “… A lot of these guys have been waiting [for] their time to play, so it’s been good to have them on our team.”

Safety P.J. Locke is also encouraged by the effort he sees across the board from Denver’s defense, and he believes the sky is the limit for the hungry group.

“I think we can go as far as we want to go,” Locke said. “It’s all about confidence. … Our job as leaders, the older guys, is to let the [rookies] know … we can really do something.”

DENVER LOOKING TO ‘CLEAN UP’ PENALTIES

While Payton said that “there were a lot of positives” from Sunday’s win, he noted mistakes that the team will need to avoid in order to find success this season.

“We had enough penalties for three games, and we’ve got to get a lot of that cleaned up,” Payton said.

Denver committed 13 penalties for 120 yards on Sunday, and the Broncos will look to clean up their play ahead of the 2024 season.

“The penalties are tough because whenever you are moving the ball [and] moving it well and then you have a penalty that brings it back, it’s hard to overcome that,” quarterback Jarrett Stidham said. “This league is too good, the players on the opposite side are too good [and] the coaches are too good. Whenever it’s second-and-15 or first-and-20, it’s always hard to bounce back from that. We’ll definitely look at it and see what we can do to get better.”