Broncos coach Vic Fangio has an idea to fix NFL’s playoff seeding

Broncos coach Vic Fangio has an idea that he believes could fix the NFL’s playoff seeding problem.

The NFL’s playoff seeding system is flawed because division winners are ranked higher than non-division winners even if they have a worse record. A team that has a losing record (such as 7-9) could host a playoff game if they play in a bad division and win their division.

That kind of scenario could come into play in the NFC this year.

The Cowboys currently lead the NFC East with a 7-7 record. If the season ended today, Dallas would host the 49ers (11-3) in the first round of the playoffs. San Francisco would be punished for playing in a better division than Dallas. That shouldn’t happen.

Broncos coach Vic Fangio has an idea that would prevent that kind of scenario from happening in the future.

“Since the league went to 32 teams, which was when the Texans came in in 2002, my ideal suggestion — which has never been put forth in front of anybody important — I don’t think there should be divisions,” Fangio said on Dec. 11. “I think you’ve got 16 in each conference. Everybody should play each other once. That’s 15 games. Then if you want a 16th game, you play a natural rival from the other conference — Jets and Giants play every year, Eagles-Steelers, Texans-Cowboys, etc., play every year.

“Then keep it at 16 games, but you’ll avoid the problem that’s going to happen this year where probably an 8-8 team is hosting a 12-4 team. You’re going to get the six best teams in each conference. The divisions always float. There are some that are easy some years, some that have a bunch of good teams, that switches back and forth every couple years. I just think that’d be a good way to avoid it.”

The one drawback with Fangio’s plan would be the lack of non-conference games. If a team played a different non-conference opponent each season, it would take 16 years for an AFC team to play against every NFC team.

Would that be better than the current system? Fangio thinks so.

Fangio also isn’t a fan of the league’s proposed 18-game schedule. He suggested a reasonable substitution: two bye weeks.

“I just think 16 is more than enough,” Fangio said. “You can see some of these teams, us included to a degree, the injuries start to pile up. If they want an extra week of TV, give everybody two byes during the season.”

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Broncos haven’t been this bad since early years following AFL-NFL merger

The Denver Broncos have not had three consecutive losing seasons since the years immediately following the AFL-NFL merger.

Though there is a way to consider the 2019 season a success for the Denver Broncos, ultimately, the team will have a losing season for the third consecutive year. That hasn’t happened for quite a while.

You have to go all the way back to the AFL-NFL merger.

For clarification, a winning season is one in which the team finishes 8-8 or better. A losing season would be one in which the team lost more games than it won. A winning season is not necessarily one that ended with a playoff berth.

Still, the Broncos have been remarkably good in finishing at least .500. The fact that it was nearly 50 years ago that they had three straight losing seasons is incredible.

Let’s go all the way back to the last time it happened.

The time: 1970-1972

The merger between the old AFL and the NFL took place in 1970. The Broncos were a bad team in the AFL with a total record of 39-97-4 in 10 seasons. They never made the playoffs.

That run of mediocrity carried over into the team’s first few seasons in the NFL and that is as big a reason as any as to why the team had three straight losing seasons following the merger.

In 1970, the team went 5-8-1. The next season, they were 4-9-1 and in 1972 they were 5-9.

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Ex-Broncos OLB Shaq Barrett earns Pro Bowl nod after leading NFL in sacks

In his first season as a full-time starter, former Broncos outside linebacker Shaq Barrett leads the NFL in sacks.

After spending the first five years of his career as a rotational pass rusher behind Broncos stars including Von Miller, DeMarcus Ware and Bradley Chubb, outside linebacker Shaq Barrett became a free agent in March.

Barrett made it clear that he wanted to go somewhere where he could be a starter and he picked the Buccaneers, betting on himself to win a starting job. Denver couldn’t offer him a starting position over Miller or Chubb.

Barrett’s gamble paid off as he quickly emerged as a starter in Tampa Bay and had a breakout season in 2019, leading the NFL with 16.5 sacks through 14 games. His previous career-high was 5.5 sacks in 2015. Earlier this week, Barrett was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career.

Barrett’s success as a starter hasn’t been a surprise to Miller.

“I’m definitely not surprised,” Miller said in October. “All the plays that he’s making, he made them in practice. The spin versus the Rams, he’s done stuff like that. Interceptions, he’s done stuff like that here in practice.”

Barrett is scheduled to become a free agent again in 2020. Bucs coach Bruce Arians said earlier this week that Barrett “ain’t going nowhere.”

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Broncos RB Phillip Lindsay seeking 1,000-yard season

Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay is 151 yards away from a 1,000-yard season.

Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay needs to average 75.5 rushing yards in each of the team’s final two games (against the Lions and Raiders) to finish the year with a 1,000-yard season. Lindsay hopes to accomplish that feat but he’s not putting his own goals above the team’s goals.

“A personal goal, I want to get to 1,000 yards, but ultimately it’s just about going out there and helping my team win a game,” Lindsay said Wednesday. “That’s the most important. If we can win these last two games, do it with style, do it with confidence and have [Drew] Lock throw all kinds of touchdowns and we run all kinds of touchdowns, I’ll be happy.

“One thousand is 1,000. Nine-something is almost the same.”

If Lindsay had to choose between going 2-0 to close out the season or totaling 1,000 yards and losing, he’d choose to win. Hopefully it won’t be an either/or situation for the second-year running back.

Detroit allows 113.2 rushing yards per contest and Oakland allows 105.8 rushing yards per game. If Denver gives Lindsay the majority of the team’s carries over the next two weeks, he has a shot at a 1,000-yard season.

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Broncos legend Randy Gradishar a finalist for 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class

Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among the finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Former Denver Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among 38 finalists for a special Centennial Slate 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. Former coach Dan Reeves (who coached in Denver from 1981-1992) is also a finalist.

Gradishar was a key member of the Broncos’ defense from 1974–1983. During that time, Gradishar earned seven Pro Bowl nods and Defensive Player of the Year honors (1978). He helped Denver’s famous “Orange Crush” defense lead the Broncos to the Super Bowl in 1977 and is a member of the team’s Ring of Fame.

The Hall of Fame’s selection committee has put together a list of eight coaches, 10 contributors and 20 senior finalists for next year’s class. Of those finalists, 15 members will be selected to be enshrined in Canton, Ohio.

In addition to those 15 members, five modern-era players will be part of the 2020 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. Safeties Steve Atwater and John Lynch are among the modern-era semifinalists. Earlier this year, late owner Pat Bowlen and cornerback Champ Bailey were part of 2019 class.

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Broncos RB Phillip Lindsay on WR Courtland Sutton: ‘That man’s a Pro Bowler’

Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton is a Pro Bowler in the eyes of running back Phillip Lindsay.

Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller was the only Denver player named to the AFC’s Pro Bowl roster this week. Safety Justin Simmons, wide receiver Courtland Sutton, nose tackle Shelby Harris and defensive end Derek Wolfe were all snubbed. Sutton is a second alternate, so he still has a chance to reach the All-Star game.

Broncos running back Phillip Lindsay, who was voted to the Pro Bowl last year as a rookie, said Sutton is an All-Star in his eyes.

“I texted Courtland and I told him that no matter what, he’s a Pro Bowler,” Lindsay said Wednesday. “You go out there, you get double-coverage and you get 1,000 yards like that man did, you’re a Pro Bowler. You don’t have to have someone tell you that.

“That’s just like someone saying they tag you and this is what you are. Nah. You go out there and you show it. That man’s a Pro Bowler. He’s an All-Pro and he is going to continue to show it.”

Sutton has caught 63 passes for 1,019 yards and six touchdowns through 14 games this season. To make the Pro Bowl, he will need two of the AFC’s receivers to drop out of the game. The conference’s All-Stars this season are Keenan Allen, Tyreek Hill, DeAndre Hopkins and Jarvis Landry.

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Broncos will have Trey Marshall fill in for Kareem Jackson at safety

The Broncos will start Trey Marshall in the place of suspended safety Kareem Jackson to close out the season.

With starting strong safety Kareem Jackson suspended, the Denver Broncos plan to start first-year defensive back Trey Marshall across from free safety Justin Simmons in the final two games of the season, coach Vic Fangio said Wednesday.

“We haven’t seen Trey play a lot of defense since preseason, but he gets reps in practice and we’re confident he can go out there and do his job,” Fangio said.

Marshall has played primarily on special teams this season but he has gotten some rotational reps on defense and has totaled nine tackles.

There had been some speculation that Will Parks might fill in for Jackson but Denver plans to keep Parks at nickelback. Parks has been playing through a hand injury and still performing well.

“He’s overall giving us good play for the most part and he’s playing with an injured hand where he has to wear a cast,” Fangio said. “That hinders him somewhat, but overall he’s done a good job.”

With Marshall at safety and Parks at nickelback, cornerback Duke Dawson will be called on in dime situations to serve as a sixth defensive back.

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Broncos vs. Lions broadcast map: Will the game be on TV?

Will the Broncos’ game against the Lions be televised in your area? View the TV broadcast map here.

The Denver Broncos will host the Detroit Lions at Empower Field at Mile High in Week 16 of the 2019 NFL season on Sunday, Dec. 22 at 2:05 p.m. MT. The game will air on CBS and in-market fans can stream the contest using FuboTV (try it free).

Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Rich Gannon (analyst) will call the game for CBS with former NFL kicker Jay Feely reporting from the sideline.

On the radio, the game will air in English on KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM and on The Fox 103.5 FM. The contest will also air in Spanish on KNRV 1150 AM.

Denver owns a 7-5 advantage in the all-time series but Detroit has won two of the last three meetings with the Broncos, including a 45-10 win on the road during the 2011 season.

Fans in the yellow areas on the map below will get the game on local CBS stations, according to 506sports.com.

Fans in the red (including Alaska and Hawaii) will see the Baltimore Ravens take on the Cleveland Browns and those in the blue will see the Pittsburgh Steelers face the New York Jets. Fans in the green will see the Oakland Raiders take on the Los Angeles Chargers and those in the orange will see the Cincinnati Bengals face the Miami Dolphins.

For the first time in 10 weeks, the Broncos are considered betting favorites. Denver is a 6.5-point favorite at home against Detroit.

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Why this season can be considered a success for the Broncos

The Denver Broncos are sitting at 5-9 and will miss the playoffs again, but it hasn’t been all bad.

The Denver Broncos are 5-9 and there are two games left in the season. They will finish with a losing record for the third year in a row. That’s a total disaster, right?

Sure, if you choose to look at it that way. Many fans of the Broncos will do just that. After all, the fanbase expects success year in and year out. But let’s be honest, this season wasn’t going to be successful.

There were fans and guys on radio stations making outlandish predictions such as the team going 11-5 this year, but what was that based on other than being a total Broncos “homer”?

The team was coming off two very poor seasons in which they were hardly competitive for the most part. The team had a first-year head coach and a brand new quarterback.

That’s not a team that is likely to go 11-5. And of course, they didn’t even sniff that level of success.

However, for one reason and one reason only, this season can be considered a success. You guessed it: Drew Lock.

The fact that the team put Lock in to see what he had was a big move, even if the organization wasn’t completely sold on him starting this season. It gave them the chance to see what he had.

Playing Joe Flacco or Brandon Allen was not going to bring about any talk of the future, since one of those guys is at the end of his career and the other is a backup, at best.

The success Lock had in his first two starts made one thing quite clear for the Broncos . . . they don’t need to worry about a quarterback with an early pick in next year’s draft.

That gives the team something it hasn’t had since Peyton Manning was the starter and that is the ability to build around a quarterback. That doesn’t mean that Lock is guaranteed to be the quarterback of the future, but it does mean the team has a guy that could be.

Trevor Siemian wasn’t that guy. Brock Osweiler wasn’t that guy. Paxton Lynch proved to not be that guy. Case Keenum wasn’t that guy and Flacco wasn’t that guy.

Lock possibly could be.

That’s exciting. Because going into the offseason, the organization and the fans don’t have to be worrying about who the quarterback is going to be. Instead, the team can use its picks to give Lock a better offensive line or to give him another talented target to throw the ball to.

A 5-9 record is no good. Being eliminated from the playoffs is certainly no fun. But looking at things from a realistic perspective, the Broncos did have some good come from the 2019 campaign.

As a result of this and things like the development of Courtland Sutton, the play of safeties Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson and other promising rookies such as Noah Fant and Dalton Risner, the Broncos are a franchise with the arrow pointing up.

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Broncos promote DB Alijah Holder, add two players to practice squad

The Broncos added cornerback Alijah Holder to the 53-man roster on Tuesday and signed two players to the practice squad.

The Denver Broncos have promoted defensive back Alijah Holder from the practice squad to the 53-man roster, the team announced Tuesday. Denver had an opening on the roster after safety Kareem Jackson was suspended for two games for driving while ability impaired.

Holder (6-2, 188 pounds) played cornerback at Stanford but is expected to serve as a rotational backup safety. He spent the first 15 weeks of the season on the Broncos’ practice squad after signing with the team as an undrafted free agent in May.

Assuming Holder will play safety, he will join Justin Simmons, Will Parks and Trey Marshall as Denver’s top four safeties to close out the year.

The Broncos also signed safety P.J. Locke and defensive lineman Jay-Tee Tiuli to the practice squad Tuesday. Both defenders are rookies. Last week, offensive lineman Corey Levin was signed to the Bears’ active roster from Denver’s practice squad. Levin’s departure and Holder’s promotion created the two openings for Locke and Tiuli.

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