ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — No one brings a five-man blitz like Broncos’ defensive coordinator Vance Joseph.
Joseph will send an extra fifth pass rusher on 30 percent of the snaps. Tampa Bay’s Todd Bowles, Washington’s Dan Quinn and Minnesota’s Brian Flores send a fifth attacker about 27 percent of the time.
Flores, a more exotic blitz coordinator, brings the most 6-man pass rushes. The Raiders are second in six-man blitzes and Joseph is third.
A big reason why Joseph feels comfortable calling so many blitzes is he has confidence in his three cornerbacks – Pat Surtain II, Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian – to handle man-to-man coverage.
And no one in the league covers better than Surtain, a first-team All Pro in 2022 and Pro Bowl starter each of the past two years.
His mindset when Joseph dials up the blitz?
“In my head I have a clock relative to the pass rush,’’ Surtain said in an interview this week for the Broncos Huddle that will be shown at 6:30 tonight (Friday) on 9NEWS. “And when you call those exotic blitzes the ball has to get out fast. It makes me think, “OK, the ball’s got to get out quick so I’m not as worried about the deep shots, or deep ball but I can be comfortable in my (back)pedal to make plays on the ball because I’ve had vision on the QB knowing he’s going to want to make a read as fast as he can.
“You know when you call those pressures, us on the back end, we know that we’re on islands but we also know the clock is working in our favor and then we can be more aggressive.”
Aggressive to the point Surtain already has three interceptions in the 7 games he’s played this year. Compare that to the two previous seasons when he had three interceptions combined.
Nothing hurries a quarterback into making poor throws or decisions like a fierce pass rush. Is that why Surtain’s picks are up in 2024?
“It was only a matter of time,’’ he said. “That’s something I wish I could control more but when the picks come, they come in bunches. So once you get that first one there’s plenty more to come.
“I set a goal for myself to have at least six picks. And that’s what I’m trying to get to at least. I think I’m off to a good start, I just have to keep on building on it.”
For only the only second time in his four-year career, Surtain missed a game this season. He suffered a concussion on the first defensive play against the Chargers and there wasn’t enough time for him to clear the protocol for the following Thursday game at New Orleans.
He turned his absence into an advantage.
“I think looking back on the week that I missed, I was able to sit back and really spend time with family, spend time with close ones, kick my feet up and rest,’’ Surtain said. “And much needed rest. Because during the season you’ve got to study your opponent, you’ve got to get treatment, you’ve got to do everything etcetera to prepare yourself for the game.
“Some time you’re all locked in on football but that sort of navigated me away from different things off the field that I can’t capitalize on so that time off I was able to really spend quality time off the field.”
Although quiet by nature, Surtain has become a leader first by example – young players don’t emulate the backups; they watch how the top players go about their business – and this year he’s been a little more vocal as he was named one of the team’s six captains.
In true captain style, Surtain hosted a Halloween party earlier this week for several of his teammates. He dressed up as Frankenstein.
“Had a mask on, I had a makeup artist come and did my hands,’’ he said with a smile. “So I had a full Frankenstein effect going on. It was great.’’
Bo Nix came as Maverick from Top Gun. Jarrett Stidham was Batman. Cody Barton was Water Boy. Surtain gave a best-costume nod to Damarri Mathis, who came as one of the Men in Black characters.
Then it was back to work Wednesday in preparation for the Broncos’ game at Baltimore in an AFC matchup of 5-3 teams.
“I think these next few weeks are very pivotal,’’ Surtain said. “Obviously we know Baltimore is a great team but we’re looking forward to the challenge. I believe this is a good test for us to see where we’re at but we absolutely have the utmost belief and understand our standard that we’ll be able to win this ballgame. So we’re looking forward to it. We’ve got to attack each and every day the right way and prepare the right way on the (practice) field and that sets us up for success.”
One word to describe Baltimore quarterback and two-time league MVP Lamar Jackson?
“I think he’s an ‘opportunist,’’’ Surtain said. “He creates plays on his own that you rarely see throughout the game. The plays he makes you rarely see. He’s a one of one kind of player. We’re looking forward to the matchup. Obviously he’s a great player so that will be a good test for us.”
