Broncos DVOA shows defense fell off sharply down the stretch

Back in late October, the Denver Broncos defense was dominating every opponent. According to Football Outsiders, they were the second ranked defense midway through the season. However, injuries began to take its toll on the defense and it showed in the second half the season.

The defense had a defensive DVOA of -19.0% in Week 7, but by the end of the season they had fallen to a DVOA of -5.2%. That ranking is still good for 10th best in the NFL, so this isn’t a slap in the face just noting how the defense struggled to keep up their dominant pace to start the season. When they apply their weighted DVOA rankings, they fall to 18th overall in defensive DVOA at -0.4%.

If you thought the offense flipped the script after Nathaniel Hackett was fired, you’d be mistaken. They were ranked 27th in offensive DVOA in Week 7 at a disgusting -14.6% and finished the season ranked 29th with a DVOA of -13.0%. If you were wondering about Special Teams, they also finished 29th in DVOA.

With a new coaching staff incoming this offseason, these are the baselines we’ll look to see the team improve on.

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