Cleveland Browns Jerome Harrison (C) is tackled by Denver Broncos Wesley Woodyard (L) and Ronald Fields (R) for a loss during their NFL football game in Denver, Colorado September 20, 2009. REUTERS/Mark Leffingwell (UNITED STATES SPORT FOOTBALL)

 Click here to read part one of “The Way I See It.”

Disclaimer: My ignorance, which I am seeking to rectify, regarding the 3-4 defensive scheme is probably going to be apparent in this post. I am going to take my crack at assessing the Denver Broncos’ defensive line. In my opinion, this is the area where the Denver Broncos need the most improvement, especially at the nose tackle position, which is what this post will be all about.

One thing that I do know about the 3-4 is this: you must have a beast at nose tackle. I used to play pick-up basketball games with a guy who played nose tackle for Arizona State University, and he defined the role of nose tackle as follows: “My job was to make the linebackers look good.” There is a lot of truth to that. A threatening nose tackle will draw enough attention from the interior offensive line, thus, freeing up the inside linebackers for run and pass blitzes.

Right now, I don’t see anyone at defensive tackle who is that much of a threat–no offense to Ronald Fields and Marcus Thomas. Fields and Thomas combined for 52 total tackles and zero sacks, pass deflections, and forced fumbles. Those really aren’t the type of numbers to strike fear into the hearts of opposing interior linemen.

So, where do we go from here regarding the nose tackle position? Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh and Oklahoma’s Gerald McCoy, two prospective 3-4 beasts, are most likely going to be long gone after the first ten picks in the 2010 NFL Draft. Do the Broncos try to trade down to a top five pick to have a chance at either of these prospects? They probably don’t have any kind of a chance of getting the number one overall pick, so Suh is most likely out of the picture. It doesn’t hurt to imagine, though, does it?

There are three nose tackles available via free agency whom I think might be an upgrade, Vince Wilfork, Casey Hampton, and Ryan Pickett. All three are unrestricted free agents and played in 3-4 schemes. Hampton would probably be the best player, but he is 32 and would probably be more of a short term fix. Wilfork and Pickett both had less total tackles than Ronald Fields and the same amount of sacks, zero. Wilfork only played in 13 games, however.

The problem with the 3-4 is the difficulty in finding such a dominant defensive tackle; they are few and far between. Denver definitely needs to do something here if they are to improve the horrible display they showed in week 17 when Jamal Charles ran all over the Broncos D. Maybe Hampton would be the way to go for the short term. The NFL is, after all, becoming more of short term league.

The most likely thing that will happen, in my opinion, is that McDaniels will try to load up on as many New England guys that he can; hence, Vince Wilfork will be wearing blue and orange in 2010. He is definitely a beast as far as size is concerned. My concern is…well, did you see the way Wilfork and the rest of the Patriots defense played against the Baltimore Ravens on Wild Card weekend?

There are certainly other defensive tackles available via the draft and free agency. I am basing this analysis on the needs of a 3-4 defense. There is one guy whom I haven’t mentioned, and I think he could be a plausible acquisition in the draft. His name is Terrence Cody of the national champion Alabama Crimson Tide.

My main concern with Cody would be his stamina. The dude proved to be a beast as far as pass deflections and field goal blocks are concerned, but can he handle the intensity and speed of the elite players of the NFL? He certainly handled it in what is arguably the toughest conference in college football. I think he would be worth a shot. However, I don’t think that the offensive “guru” Josh McDaniels is going to agree with me.

Something has to be done. If nothing is done through the draft or free agency, then, hopefully the new defensive coordinator will be able to coach Ronald Fields into a premier nose tackle. The Broncos need to start bringing the orange crush from front and center.

So, to sum it all up, here are my top four scenarios (that I think are realistic):

1. Use the first round pick to take Terrence Cody. If he struggles with stamina, Ronald Fields would make an excellent number two nose tackle. Cody is too big and too passionate to pass on if he is still available when the Broncos make their first pick.
2. Go after Casey Hampton in free agent signings and sign him to a two or three-year deal. During that time, make moves to acquire a top tier nose tackle via free agency or the draft.
3. Do nothing and keep drafting receivers and running backs, but, please, Josh McDaniels, switch back to the 4-3 (probably not realistic) if you don’t care to address the nose tackle need.
4. Go after Vince Wilfork or Ryan Pickett via free agency.

What do you think the Broncos should do regarding defensive tackles?

What’s happening, Broncos fans?

I am going to start a series entitled “The Way I See It.” This will be my reflections and opinions on how the Broncos are looking in each category, some changes I would like to see for the 2010 season, and some potential possibilities via trade, the draft, or free agency.

I would love to get your feedback on my opinions. Do you agree? Do you think I am full of crap? What do you think would work? So on and so forth.

Category #1: The Hallowed Quarterback Position
Quarterbacks have a lot to live up to in Denver, and it is not because of Jay Cutler. It is all because of John Elway, the undisputed face of Denver Broncos history. QBs have been highly scrutinized since the legendary number seven retired, flying high off of back-to-back Super Bowl wins.

Brian Griese, Jake Plummer, and Kyle Orton all had something in common: they all had talent, but, in the eyes of many fans, they could never live up to the greatness of John Elway. Look, I have a ridiculous amount of respect for John Elway as a football player and fully appreciate what he did for Denver Broncos football. However, I am not going to sit and lament in Rick Pittino-like fashion that “Shannon Sharpe is not walking through that door. Steve Atwater is not walking through that door. John Elway is not walking through that door.” Yes, it is true that those three players aren’t coming back, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t appreciate the new players that are here now.

Kyle Orton was a decent quarterback this season. His last game was atrocious, sure. Nevertheless, he showed me that he can manage a game and demonstrate conisderable poise. I have listened to so many people blast him for not being a good quarterback: “He can’t throw the deep ball…He can’t scramble…He relies too much on Brandon Marshall…” Orton is not perfect, but neither were Jay Cutler or John Elway (Oops, I can’t believe I said that!) for that matter.

I believe that Kyle Orton is the right quarterback for 2010. I will not accuse anyone of being a hater of the Denver Broncos if he or she disagrees. I definitely don’t think that Chris Simms has anything left after what he showed us in Washington and against San Diego, and Tom Brandstater is just not ready to be a starter. I think Josh McDaniels could focus on making Brandstater into the second string quarterback in 2010 and give him more preseason experience.

Orton has the experience as a starter in the NFL ,and, more importantly, he started 15 games for the Josh McDaniels-led Broncos. Trading for another starting quarterback, though not completely out of the realm of possibility, would deplete any chemistry that developed this season. Also, as far as I’m concerned, using a first or second round pick on a quarterback would be very wasteful.

With Kyle Orton as the Denver Broncos quarterback in 2010, there are a few things that I would like to see happen:

• Red zone conversions–The amount of touchdowns did not match up with the way that the Broncos moved the ball with Kyle Orton at the helm. It may not be Orton’s fault completely, especially on those third and short plays (more indicative of a weak running attack), but the quarterback has to find ways to get his team into the end zone. Four field goals against Oakland is just not getting the job done.
• Avoiding sacks–While I appreciate that, for the most part, Orton didn’t try to force a lot of throws, I did not appreciate all of those sacks he gave up (159 yards lost in sacks) on third down or to take the Broncos out of field goal range. Orton has shown from time to time that he has the ability to scramble. What a help it would be if we could rely on our quarterback to create a couple of yards with his feet on those third and short plays. He may never be as good as Plummer and Cutler were with the bootlegs and rollouts, but isn’t it the quarterback’s job to be able to improvise with his feet?
• Better distribution–There is a point to the argument that Orton relied too heavily on Brandon Marshall, but I don’t think it is fair to say that he doesn’t spread the ball around. The way that Marshall played this season, what quarterback wouldn’t throw the ball his way? What I mean by “better distribution” is establishing a type of passing game where any receiver can have a big game. Gaffney, Royal, and even Brandon Lloyd have the potential to do a lot of damage on offense, especially Gaffney who had 21 receptions in his last two games. Going into week 17, Marshall had 61 more receptions than any other Broncos player. There are other options, and in 2010, I am guessing that Brandon Marshall is not even going to be an option.
• Consistency–Orton at times seemed like a sleeping giant this season after the Broncos fell behind (Indianapolis and Philadelphia), but it would turn out to be too little too late. This relates to the the whole red zone conversion woes. Orton will not win over his harshest critics if he doesn’t show that he can move the ball at will at any time.
• Give him what he needs–There are some things that need to happen for Orton to play to his potential: (1) The offensive line needs to give him better time and protect the pocket. (2) The offensive line needs to produce good gaps for the run; no running game equates to difficulty in the passing game. (3) The running game needs to explode so that Orton can start relying on the play fake. Right now, the running game isn’t all that respected, so a play fake doesn’t really fake any defenses out.

As you can see, there are a lot of other pieces that I mentioned that need to come together for Kyle Orton to play at his best. Those pieces will be addressed in the coming days and weeks.