How Far Can You Go with Secondary Options in the Denver Broncos

In the NFL, a team’s secondary is only as strong as its depth—and for the Denver Broncos, this truth was put to the test in 2024 when injuries sidelined key starters like Pat Surtain II and Justin Simmons for stretches of the season. While the Broncos’ starting secondary ranks among the AFC’s best, their backup options—role players and young talents—have had to step up in high-pressure moments. The question now is: How far can the Broncos realistically go with these secondary options, especially as they enter the playoffs, where every play and every defensive stop matters? How Far Can You Go with Secondary Options in the Denver Broncos explores the strengths, weaknesses, and limitations of the team’s backup defensive backs, and whether they can support a deep postseason run.

How Far Can You Go with Secondary Options in the Denver Broncos first breaks down the Broncos’ secondary depth chart beyond the starters. At cornerback, behind Surtain and Damarri Mathis (the team’s No. 2 corner), the Broncos rely on two players: Riley Moss, a 2024 third-round pick, and Essang Bassey, a four-year veteran with limited starting experience. Moss, a college standout at Iowa, has shown promise in slot coverage—he’s allowed just 53% of passes thrown his way to be completed in 2024—but he lacks Surtain’s size (5’11” vs. 6’2”) and struggles against physical wide receivers. Bassey, meanwhile, is a reliable special teams contributor but has been exposed in man-to-man coverage when forced into extended action: in a Week 9 start against the Green Bay Packers, he allowed 6 catches for 92 yards and a touchdown. At safety, behind Simmons and Caden Sterns, the Broncos have P.J. Locke, a hard-hitting reserve who excels in run support but struggles in deep coverage, and Jamar Johnson, a 2022 seventh-round pick who has played fewer than 100 defensive snaps in his career. This depth chart reveals a clear pattern: the Broncos’ secondary options are competent in specific roles but lack the versatility to replace starters in all situations.

To gauge the limits of these secondary options, How Far Can You Go with Secondary Options in the Denver Broncos examines their performance during Surtain’s four-game absence in Weeks 9-12. With Moss and Bassey filling in, the Broncos’ pass defense dropped from 6th to 18th in yards allowed per game, and opposing quarterbacks posted a 92.3 passer rating against them—up from 78.1 when Surtain was on the field. The backups also struggled to create turnovers: the Broncos recorded just 1 interception during Surtain’s absence, compared to 4 in the eight weeks before he was injured. However, there were bright spots: Moss held his own in slot coverage, allowing just 3 catches for 28 yards in a Week 11 win over the Cleveland Browns, and Locke recorded 12 tackles and a forced fumble in a Week 10 victory over the Chicago Bears. These performances suggest the secondary options can contribute in short stretches or specific packages—like Moss in the slot or Locke in run-heavy sets—but they can’t replicate the elite play of starters. “Our backups are good players, but they’re not Pat Surtain or Justin Simmons,” Broncos defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero admitted after a Week 12 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. “We have to scheme around their strengths and hide their weaknesses when they’re in the game.”

How Far Can You Go with Secondary Options in the Denver Broncos also considers how the Broncos’ scheme can maximize these backups’ effectiveness—and where that scheme hits its limits. Evero has designed specific packages for the secondary options: Moss primarily plays in the slot, where his quickness can counter slot receivers; Bassey is used in zone coverage, where he doesn’t have to isolate against top wideouts; and Locke is deployed near the line of scrimmage, where he can focus on stopping the run. This scheming worked in regular-season games against teams with average passing attacks, like the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts. But against elite offenses—like the Kansas City Chiefs or Buffalo Bills—the scheme’s limits become clear. In a Week 15 loss to the Bills (with Sterns sidelined and Johnson playing 20 snaps), the Broncos allowed 312 passing yards and 2 touchdowns, as Bills quarterback Josh Allen exploited Johnson’s inexperience in deep coverage. For the Denver Broncos, this loss highlighted a critical reality: the secondary options can handle regular-season matchups against average competition, but they’re unlikely to hold up against the NFL’s top passing attacks—exactly the kind of teams the Broncos would face in the later rounds of the playoffs.

Another factor in assessing these secondary options is their ability to handle the physical and mental demands of a long season—and a potential playoff run. The Broncos’ backup defensive backs have played fewer than 30% of the team’s defensive snaps in 2024, meaning they’re not used to the wear and tear of extended action. In the playoffs, where games are more physical and practices are more intense, this lack of reps could lead to fatigue or mistakes. For example, Bassey looked gassed in the fourth quarter of his Week 9 start against the Packers, allowing a 45-yard touchdown pass that nearly cost the Broncos the game. Locke, meanwhile, has a history of minor injuries—he missed two games in 2023 with a hamstring strain—which could be exacerbated by increased playing time. The Broncos’ medical staff has taken steps to manage this risk, limiting the backups’ reps in practice and using them in rotational roles during regular-season games. But if a starter suffers a long-term injury in the playoffs, the backups would have to play 60+ snaps per game—a workload they may not be prepared for. For the Denver Broncos, this is a significant risk: a key injury to Surtain or Simmons could derail their playoff hopes, as the secondary options aren’t built to handle extended starter minutes against elite competition.

The final layer of How Far Can You Go with Secondary Options in the Denver Broncos is the team’s long-term plan to improve its secondary depth—and how that impacts their current ceiling. General manager George Paton has acknowledged the need to add more talent to the secondary, telling reporters in October, “We’re always looking to upgrade our depth, especially in the secondary, where injuries can happen quickly.” The Broncos are expected to target cornerbacks and safeties in the 2025 NFL Draft, with a focus on players who have the versatility to play multiple roles. In the short term, however, the Broncos will have to rely on their current secondary options—at least for the remainder of the 2024 playoffs. This means Evero will need to continue scheming to hide their weaknesses, and the backups will need to play mistake-free football. For the Denver Broncos, the answer to “how far can you go with secondary options” is clear: they can win regular-season games and maybe a playoff game or two, but a Super Bowl run is unlikely unless the starters stay healthy. The secondary options are competent, but they’re not elite—and in the NFL, especially in the playoffs, elite talent at key positions often makes the difference between winning and losing. As the Broncos prepare for the postseason, their biggest hope is that their starting secondary stays on the field—and their backups don’t have to be tested beyond their limits.