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Improved run defense, which ranked 30th last year, is an offseason priority. Fullback Burton is a Sean Payton kind of player.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo — When run defense is a problem, the first place to address is with the men up front.
Run defense was a Denver problem in 2023 as it ranked No. 30 in the league.
Malcolm Roach
The Denver Broncos made a move to improve their defensive line Tuesday by signing former New Orleans Saints’ defensive tackle Malcolm Roach to a two-year contract that with incentives has a maximum value of $8 million.
Roach, who turns 26 in June, is 6-foot-3, 290 pounds. He is best against the run as he had just one sack in his four years with the Saints, a period that included the 2020-21 seasons for head coach Sean Payton, who now holds the same role with the Broncos.
The addition of Roach decreases the chances of the Broncos won’t bring back Mike Purcell, the former Highlands Ranch High School and University of Wyoming standout who played the previous five seasons as Denver’s nose tackle.
Michael Burton
In other move, the Broncos re-signed fullback Michael Burton on a one-year contract.
Burton doesn’t put up much stats as a modern-era fullback — he only had 9 yards rushing on 7 carries and 8 yards receiving on 3 catches last year — but he is one of the league’s best lead-blockers and core special teams players.
Burton, 32, played 18 percent of the offensive snaps last year and 63 percent of special teams plays. A journeyman who has played for five teams in a career that is going into his 10th season, Burton played for Payton in 2020 — when a rookie named Malcolm Roach was his teammate.
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