Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain II needed to pause for a moment and collect his thoughts.
Since he and Riley Moss combined for three interceptions in a Week 5 win over the Las Vegas Raiders, he’s been trying to find a nickname for Denver’s newest cornerback tandem. When asked on Wednesday if he had made progress, Surtain said he’s going to let the fans decide.
“I don’t know… ‘Pulp Fiction’?” said Surtain, referencing John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson’s characters from Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 film. “I’m interested to see what (the fans) have to say.”
Moss also wants to see what kind of nickname fans will come up with on social media. But he admitted that “Pulp Fiction” isn’t a bad idea.
“I think that’s valid,” Moss told The Denver Post.
Broncos inside linebacker Justin Strnad offered his input, calling Denver’s starting outside cornerbacks “Batman and Robin.”
Given how the two have played together during the first five weeks of the season, a nickname is almost certain to arise. Surtain and Moss have been one of the best cornerback tandems in the league, with Surtain allowing a 48.3 passer rating as the nearest defender while Moss has given up a 69.3 passer rating.
Nicknames suddenly became the theme of the week after Sean Payton’s postgame presser on Sunday. That’s when the Broncos head coach said Bo Nix had “a little bit of Ferris Bueller in him” following a heated sideline interaction with the rookie quarterback. Nix later called his head coach “Dennis the Menace.”
“That was my nickname from (Pro Football Hall of Fame head coach Bill) Parcells. So ‘Dennis the Menace’ and ‘Ferris Bueller,’ there we go,” Payton said.
Moss offered up “Lethal Weapon,” a play on Mel Gibson and Danny Glover’s characters from the 1987 film, as a possibility. Perhaps, Surtain and Moss could lean on the film “White Men Can’t Jump” for inspiration?
Recently, Surtain posted an image of his and Moss’ faces photoshopped on Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson’s characters in the 1992 comedy.
“It’s hilarious,” Moss said. “I don’t know who it was, but someone posted that a couple of weeks ago, (but) it took off after I got the pick and Pat posted it. It’s funny as hell.”
Broncos blitz at a high rate on first down: It’s fair to say that Denver’s defense has been more fun to watch than the offense. The Broncos, led by defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, have fully embraced this aggressive mindset. One interesting stat that shows how aggressive the Broncos have been is they have a blitz rate of 49.2% on first down — the highest in the league, according to Next Gen Stats.
Denver has totaled seven sacks on first down — tied with San Francisco for most in the NFL — and 18 pressures. That could bring challenges for the Chargers, who have allowed the fifth-highest pressure rate on first down (37.5%).
Third-down struggles: One of Denver’s recurring issues on offense is third-down production. This season, the Broncos have converted 24.6% of their 69 attempts on third down. Earlier this week, tight end Adam Trautman said the key to better results is getting into more third-and-short situations.
The Broncos have run 10 offensive plays on third-and-short (1-2 yards), 26th in the league, and 27 plays on third down with three to six yards needed, according to Next Gen Stats. Denver has faced the sixth-most third-and-long (more than seven yards) situations with 33.
The Broncos’ reliance on the short passing game and Nix’s struggles at being an efficient down-field passer have factored into the team’s struggles. In 17 offensive plays on third-and-10-plus yards, Nix has averaged 4.9 yards per attempt, with most of his passes resulting in check downs. Nix has the second-lowest completion percentage on intermediate throws (28.6%) while completing 37.5% of his attempts of 20-plus yards.
The Broncos have gained a first down on seven occasions when they faced a third down with seven or more yards to go. It’s hard when the Broncos keep putting themselves in those spots. It’s even worse when the offense hardly gives them a chance to gain a first down because of its inconsistency pushing the ball down the field.
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