The Broncos might get linebacker Von Miller back at some point this season, but they won’t know if that’s the case for a while and that means it will be up to others to provide the pass rush that Miller has supplied throughout his time in Denver.
Bradley Chubb’s return from a torn ACL is a welcome part of that effort, although head coach Vic Fangio has suggested that he might not play a full workload right off the bat. Jeremiah Attaochu and Malik Reed are also going to see a lot of playing time on the edge, but safety Justin Simmons stressed that they can’t rely on one player being able to replace Miller’s production.
“For Malik or Jerry or any of the guys, there’s no replacing Von,” Simmons said, via Kyle Newman of the Denver Post. “There’s no, ‘Hey, step up and step in there and do what Von does.’ That’s way too much pressure on them. Von is among the best in the league, so the onus is on the team in general to [fill his void]. . . . It’s going to take all of the defense and a whole team effort.”
Attaochu had 21 tackles and 3.5 sacks on 322 defensive snaps last season while Reed posted 27 tackles and two sacks while playing 44 percent of the time as a rookie.