Broncos Player Grades For Week 4 vs. Ravens

The Broncos suffered their first defeat of the season at the hands of the Ravens in what was a disappointing showing by multiple players.

Week 4 was a tough loss for the Denver Broncos as the Baltimore Ravens outclassed them in multiple ways. Watching over the film, it felt like the Broncos bought into their 3-0 hype, leading to them overlooking the Ravens. 

In addition, multiple players on both sides of the ball failed to execute consistently, leading to the 23-7 loss that felt even bigger. With how the players performed in this game, it was a rough one to grade. Fortunately, there were a handful of players who stood out in a good way for the Broncos. 

But, unfortunately, this game sunk the Broncos back down to earth and that might not be the worst thing. 

Before I get to the individual player grades, here are a few quick notes about how grading works. Each player starts with an average grade of 50.0 and with each positive play, his grade goes up. With each bad play, it drops.

Just how much a player's grade fluctuates depends on his overall impact on the snap. After all, missing a block away from the play isn’t as costly as the lead blocker completely whiffing and letting the run get stopped for a loss.

The Positive

Javonte Williams | RB | Grade: 85.8

The rookie running back managed to pick up some decent yards on the ground, but the Broncos quickly went away from their running game. Williams also showed up well as a pass protector when he was kept in to help with the blitz. He keeps showing his promise and potential, but the blocking upfront has limited him quite a bit. 

Melvin Gordon | RB | Grade: 80.3

Both running backs were poised for a big day for the Broncos until the coaching staff panicked and went away from the run. Gordon also showed up as a receiver out of the backfield. The difference between Williams and Gordon was in pass protection, where Gordon was alright, while Williams was great. 

Dre'Mont Jones | IDL | Grade: 79.4

Facing off against Lamar Jackson put Denver's defensive front in handcuffs, and it showed. However, Jones made his presence felt right away. After blowing up an early run play, the Ravens switched to double-teaming Jones frequently, making him disappear. He still had some great plays against the run, but he has to do better fighting through double teams, and his spin move needs to be thrown out the window.

Shelby Harris | IDL | Grade: 77.9

The defensive line had its issues generating pressure because it was playing contain on Jackson. Harris got after the quarterback decently well, though. He picked up four total pressures against the Ravens and held his own against the run. Harris was solid for the Broncos and did what he was supposed to do, despite issues behind him. 

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The Negative

Natane Muti | RG | Grade: 12.2

The Ravens attacked Muti by exploiting his lack of length in multiple ways. Baltimore made blocks harder for him to reach and attacked his hands to keep him from getting onto blocks. This led to him allowing eight total pressures and often struggling in the running game.

Bobby Massie | RT | Grade: 21.5

The veteran right tackle has barely managed to make it out of the negative over the first three weeks. He has never had a grade higher than 50 and was only greater than 40 in Week 1. Unfortunately, Massie has gotten worse each week and Denver should be close to considering a change. 

Justin Simmons | S | Grade: 24.7

There was a lot of commotion about Simmons after a Bleacher Report article said he needed to be benched, and this isn't a game to use as an argument against it. Simmons struggled in coverage and lost his man multiple times. He did have some nice plays, even against the run, but the plays he allowed were of higher impact. Simmons doesn't need to be benched, but he needs to step it up and avoid making the coverage mistakes he did this week. 

Other Noteworthy Grades

McTelvin Agim | IDL | Grade: 59.8

The second-year player finally got to see the field and played relatively well. However, he is stuck at the bottom of the depth chart as there are technical issues that the Ravens often used to shut him down. There is potential with Agim, but there is still development that is needed. 

Justin Strnad | LB | Grade: 51.1

It was clear that in his second start, Strnad was outmatched by the Ravens. Baltimore challenged him with his reads and general awareness, which hurt the defense at times. He flashed his potential, but like Agim, he isn't there yet.

Garett Bolles | OT | Grade: 30.3

This was a lousy game from Bolles and nowhere near the level of play the Broncos need. While he has struggled to start the season, he's been the most consistent piece on the offensive line, but that wasn't the case in this outing. It's been a while since Bolles had such a bad game, so we'll see whether he can bounce back against an outstanding edge duo in Pittsburgh.   

Teddy Bridgewater/Drew Lock | QB | Grade: 33.0 & 23.2 

It was a rough day for both quarterbacks, primarily due to poor blocking up front and confusing blitz packages. Denver needed more, and neither quarterback brought it to the table. So whoever ends up starting against the Steelers, he has to step up. 

Caden Sterns | S | Grade: N/A

There were only seven snaps from Sterns, which is less than the 15-snap requirement to earn a grade as it is too small of a sample size. However, on his seven snaps, Sterns had four highly impactful plays, and his remaining three were good as well. Grading just these seven snaps would have his grade at 99.3, which is why the sample size matters. That said, he deserves to get more snaps on defense going forward. 

Make sure to check out the video above for the MVP of the game. 

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