Film room: How LB Justin Hollins forced a veteran off the Broncos' roster

Justin Hollins played two positions for Denver vs. the Rams. He shined in both but his performance as a pass rusher deserves scrutiny.

The Denver Broncos' rookie hybrid linebacker Justin Hollins has already shown a lot of promise to the team that drafted him in the fifth round. The Hall of Fame Game was a good start, but Hollins built upon that performance with each contest that followed. 

It wasn’t until the Broncos' fourth preseason game vs. the Los Angeles Rams that he really stepped up and showed the force he can be.

It isn’t just playing off the edge, but also dropping and playing off-ball linebacker. Hollins is a smart player, has good instincts, but also the athleticism and speed to get after the ball-carrier. 

In my pre-draft scouting notes on Hollins, there was a concern about holding up at edge when defending the run, or taking on blocks, but he has done a good job so far of dealing with those issues.

After watching over his performance in L.A., there are two plays that stand out as worthy of a deep-dive analysis. These plays will show exactly why the Broncos were content with letting go of Dekoda Watson two days later. 

Justin Hollins, along with Malik Reed, stepped up and gained the confidence of the Broncos' front office and coaching staff. Let's examine why. 

Play 1 (4th-&-1)

Hollins starts the play as a 6-technique, meaning if there was a tight end, he would be lined up head-on with him. Off the snap, Hollins is quick to read run play and starts crashing inside, but he does so cautiously in case it is just a play-action rollout. He has to maintain discipline on the outside, and just to nitpick a little here, he does crash in a little too far, but he has the speed and athleticism to rebound.

DL Mike Purcell (98) had a huge impact on this play and forces the Rams running back to adjust just after getting the handoff. This helps Hollins, but not because of the change of direction. As Purcell was getting into the backfield, he and his blocker cut off the tight end who is coming across to seal the backside’s angle. This gives Hollins a free run at the play. So why is it impressive for Hollins?

The takeaway

This play shows a lot of little things from Hollins that you don’t always see in rookies. He showed the discipline to just not crash completely inside, but was aware of his teammates, mainly Purcell, and what they were doing and adjusted his attack as a result. 

When he sees the back make the adjustment because of Purcell, Hollins squares up to the back and this is a key for this play. Hollins is in position to chase to the outside if the back tries to cut it outside, or take him on inside if the back keeps it inside as he does.

Sometimes what really speaks to a player’s development are the little things they do with their game. In such a short time, Hollins has shown a knack for sticking true to the basics and relying on the fundamentals to play. That is a form of discipline that you just don’t see often in rookies.

Play 2 (2nd-&-15)

Lined up again as the 6-tech, Hollins really showcases his speed, quickness and explosiveness off the snap on this pass rush.

Hollins is quick, and gets upfield with explosiveness. It was hard for the tackle to keep up with him because of how quick Hollins was off the snap. However, his speed was also an issue here. The tackle was able to get just enough of a push to get Hollins to take a deeper arc to the quarterback, which bought the quarterback enough time to make the throw.

The takeaway

For as quick as he is, Justin Hollins needs to show that he can plant and cut inside for a more direct path when rushing. Taking these wide arcs isn't going to work often with quarterbacks working to get the ball out faster. 

Hollins needs to plant his foot, and cut the angle. He also could do with an inside counter move and learn to bend the edge.

This play was a good one and showed why he can be so dangerous, but the speed and quickness needs to be properly weaponized. If Hollins can add a counter move, add some bend and learn to plant and take a more direct path, he can be a dangerous situational rusher because of the speed he brings. 

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