Melvin Ingram

Melvin Ingram III
Position: DE
6-2, 247lb (188cm, 112kg)
Team: Los Angeles Chargers
Born: April 26, 1989 (Age: 31-309d) in Hamlet, NC
College: South Carolina (College Stats)
Weighted Career AV (100-95-...): 53 (1550th overall since 1960)
High School: Richmond (NC)
Draft: San Diego Chargers in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2012 NFL Draft.
Current salary: 14,000,000

Melvin Ingram has never been one of the best pass rushers in the league, he has always been a step below elite. That being said, Ingram is a very good pass rusher. His most recent full season was 2018 and he had 31 total QB pressures that year on 915 total snaps. For comparison Von Miller had 35 pressures in 2018 on 837 snaps. Ingram’s PFF grade that season was 71.8. His best season was 2017. PFF gave him an overall grade of 85.3 for that season. Von had a PFF grade of 91.5 in 2017 and 90.3 in 2018.

Ingram has been in the NFL since the 2012 season, but has only started 96 games mainly because of a slow start. He only started twelve games in the first three seasons recording a total of six sacks in the those first three seasons. He had zero sacks in 2020 in seven starts, but he had 43.0 sacks in the five seasons from 2015-2019. He made the Pro-Bowl in 2017, 2018 and 2019. His career high in sacks is 10.5 and he has done that twice in 2015 and 2017. Only 6.5 of his career sacks have come against Denver (in fourteen games) despite how poorly our offensive tackles have played during most of his career.

He has twelve games in his career with more than one sack, five games with two or more, one game with two and a half and one game with three. The game with 2.5 sacks came against Miami in 2015 and the game with 3.0 sacks came against Kansas City in 2017.

He is a fairly complete player 28 passes defended (career high 6 in 2015), 14 forced fumbles (5 in 2016), 70 TFL and 108 QB hits. For comparison Von Miller has played in 135 games and has 21 PD, 26 FF, 135 TFL, 216 QBhits and 106.0 sacks. Von is a generational pass rusher and first ballot Hall-of-Famer. Ingram is not, but few are.

Why he makes sense for the Broncos.

Ingram only makes sense for the Broncos if Von or Bradley Chubb are no longer on the team in 2021. Ingram, who is two months younger than Von, might be trying to find a place where he can win a ring before he retires. It would be a hard sell that Denver is that place in 2021, but that could change overnight. Given Ingram’s age and he might come a little cheaper than some of the other veteran edge defenders that Broncos might chase to replace Von or Chubb. Ingram might also like a chance to play twice a year against his former team.

Why he doesn’t make sense for the Broncos.

Ingram has reached the age when many edge defenders start to lose effectiveness. His age and his injury history make him a risky choice to replace either Von or Chubb (both of whom are also injury risks). Ingram missed most of the 2013 season with an ACL tear and about half of the 2014 season with a hip injury. He also missed nine games in 2020 with a knee injury (patella sprain).

Ingram’s best seasons have come when Joey Bosa has been fully healthy and playing opposite him. That might make him and the Bronco front office interested in a pairing with Von, but I think it is too much risk and too much cap to have invested in two aging edge defenders both of whom missed some or all of the previous season.