FanHouse D.j.Williams

NFL Offseason Roadmap is a series focused on the needs of NFL teams as they begin the offseason.

How far do the Denver Broncos have to go to return to the playoffs? Their team was ravaged by injuries en route to a 7-9 record this season. A healthy team could have easily won another couple of games and found itself battling for a wild card. A more pessimistic view might point out that they got old in several spots because they haven't built well through the draft. That would indicate there's a longer road back to success. Either way, the good news is that, in Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Elvis Dumervil, they've got building blocks for 2008 and beyond. Here's where they need the most immediate help.

1. Defensive Stability – Jim Bates was hired as defensive coordinator and immediately installed a scheme predicated on big defensive tackles. It was a total flop. Sam Adams and Amon Gordon couldn't occupy blockers, leaving the middle of the field open to all comers. They overhauled the line during the season, but found no better results and that led to Bates's firing. New coordinator Bob Slowik must establish a strategy and stick to it if the team is to improve defensively. Be they big DTs or athletic ones, the team can't afford to veer wildly in such a short amount of time.

The Denver Broncos defense took a step backward this season because of instability along the defensive line, an ill-fitting scheme applied by now-departed defensive coordinator Jim Bates and poor tackling all over the field. The latter problem wasn't one person's fault but it wasn't helped by the loss of longtime middle linebacker Al Wilson to a neck injury.

When it became clear that Wilson wasn't going to be able to play this season, the Broncos released him. D.J. Williams took his place in the middle of the Bronco defense and, although he tallied 141 tackles, never erased the idea that he was a better fit as an outside backer. That imperfect fit could be rectified now that Wilson's gotten medical clearance to resume his NFL career.

He's a free agent and able to sign with any team but it would behoove the Broncos to see if he can still do the job. Wilson will be 31 when next season starts, not too old but eight seasons of NFL wars and the neck injury are obvious red flags for any team to consider. Still, he was a five-time Pro Bowler and the Broncos could use a return from the player that Wilson was in the past. He's worth a look and, if he can still go, he'd make Denver a better defense come the fall.

On the heels of yesterday's 34-20 defeat to the lowly Raiders, the Denver Broncos are quite rightly searching for answers to what's gone wrong over the last five quarters. There are plenty of places to assign blame. The defense has reverted to the porous unit of the first half and the offense turns the ball over too much. There are injuries, looming suspensions, questionable referee decisions and all the other reasons familiar to teams that can't seem to find a way to win.

Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post points the finger at Mike Shanahan and calls for the team to bring someone in to help the head coach with personnel matters. He points to the offseason acquisitions of Dre' Bly, Daniel Graham and Travis Henry, leaving out Simeon Rice for some reason, to underscore the need for help making those decisions. He could easily go further back and recall names like Dale Carter to further his argument that Shanahan isn't a shrewd evaluator of free talent.

But any discussion of Shanahan's personnel work must include the draft. That's been a mixed bag, at best, and does a better job of explaining why the Broncos have slipped to the second tier this season.

To get you ready for week 4, FanHouse is previewing all 14 NFL games. Here is your Denver Broncos at Indianapolis Colts preview.

2007 Records:
Denver Broncos: 2-1 (1st in AFC West)
Indianapolis Colts: 3-0 (1st in AFC South)

Last Week:
Jaguars 23, Broncos 14
Colts 30, Texans 24

When the Broncos have the ball: The Broncos need to get a big game from Travis Henry if they hope to control the clock and keep their defense off the field. They didn't get that against the Jags last week and it cost them the game. The Colts want their linemen to shoot the gaps and get upfield, much like the Jags, so the offensive line will have to be quicker off the ball to create gaps for Henry to exploit. When they put the ball in the air the Broncos need to keep Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis from rushing Jay Cutler's throws. If Cutler can utilize his tight ends (and if Daniel Graham can actually catch the ball) it would occupy Bob Sanders and stop him from forcing the ball into the jaws of Indy's Cover-2. The running game is the key, though, because if Henry can find the second level it would slow down the Colts line which would then make Cutler more likely to find Javon Walker and Brandon Marshall for big gains.