Getty Dre'Mont Jones celebrating after a big play.
The Denver Broncos are taking on the Seattle Seahawks tonight to close out the first week of the 2022 NFL season. Russell Wilson will start for the Broncos while Geno Smith will lead the way for the Seahawks.
Denver defensive lineman Dre’Mont Jones was hoping it would’ve been Drew Lock starting for Seattle tonight.
According to James Palmer of The NFL Network, Jones told him, “I wanted to F him up. I was rooting for him to win so I could get a chance to hit him and talk some trash.”
Jones and Lock were both drafted in the same year by the Broncos and were teammates until Lock was traded to Seattle as part of the deal that sent Wilson to Denver. Both players even spoke to the Denver media together in their introductory press conference, along with guard Dalton Risner, after they were drafted in 2019.
Jones Needs to Have Big Season
Entering his fourth season, Jones is also playing on the final year of his rookie contract. If Jones can stay healthy and help lead the Broncos to becoming one of the best defensive lines in the NFL, it’s clear the Broncos will be forced to pay Jones a big contract.
Jones was never the full-time start under former Denver head coach Vic Fangio. Jones never started more than eight games in a season, but has appeared in 43 games. Missing just six games over his career, Jones has shown flashes that he could become a valuable piece to the Denver defense.
As a rookie, the former Ohio St. Buckeye totaled up 3.5 sacks and six quarterback hits. The following season, Jones’ number improved dramatically. Sacking the quarterback 6.5 times and having 11 quarterback hits, Jones showed that he could get to the quarterback.
Back in April, Jones was asked what grade he would give himself from the 2021 season. “Out of a 10, I would probably give myself a 7.5. I think I left a lot of money out there myself, just from missing some sacks to slipping sometimes. I just got to be better.”
Last season, Jones’ numbers did drop slightly, but he still had a solid season. With 5.5 sacks, 11 more quarterback hits, and 31 tackles, Jones is looking to breakout.
Jones also mentioned that his goal this season is to have double-digit sacks.
Updates for Tonight’s Game
The Broncos will have a different right tackle starting than expected. Former Denver right tackle and now media member Orlando Franklin reported that the Broncos are starting Cam Fleming over Calvin Anderson.
With Billy Turner out battling a knee injury, Anderson was practicing with the starters all throughout camp and even in the preseason. It’s unclear how Fleming will look in this new system that the Broncos will run tonight, but it might be a little concerning.
Once Turner is healthy, it’s likely that he’ll become the everyday starting right tackle, since he was a starter for head coach Nathaniel Hackett up in Green Bay over the past couple of years.
Anderson will serve as the swing tackle for tonight’s game.
Wide receiver K.J. Hamler is back and ready to go after recovering from a torn ACL from last season. Hamler has made progress throughout the offseason and even in training camp and preseason. The third-year receiver even played in the final preseason game to get himself some reps and to test his knee.
It’s unclear how many snaps the speedy wide receiver will get tonight, but it’s safe to say that if the Broncos need to throw the ball deep, Hamler is their guy.
Randy Gregory will make his Broncos debut tonight after signing a monster deal in the offseason. At $14 million per year, Denver held Gregory out of the preseason and training camp after having surgery on his shoulder.
The Broncos haven’t had an elite pass-rushing duo since Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware, but with Gregory and Bradley Chubb, Denver is hoping they can get back to their winning ways of sacking the quarterback.