Photo courtesy Eric Lars Bakke, Denver Broncos Football Club
                                                                      
The Denver Broncos defensive has been a nice surprise through the first two games of the season. The Broncos held the Cincinnati Bengals to 7 points last week and the Cleveland Browns to 6 points today. Also, the sacks and turnovers are way up from 2008. The switch from the 4-3 to 3-4 appears to be working better than most analysts and fans expected.The biggest reason for the quick turnaround has been the emergence of outside linebacker Elvis Dumervil.

Elvis Dumervil stands 5'11" and weighs 248 lbs, according to the Denver Broncos official roster. When he was drafted in 2006 out of Louisville, many scouts and coaches felt he was too small to play defensive end in the NFL. Dumervil has been the Broncos best pass rusher the last 3 seasons as a defensive end. His best season came in 2007 when he posted 12.5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries and 56 tackles.

In 2006, some scouts saw Dumervil having to play outside linebacker to make it in the NFL. The Broncos took a chance on using him at the defensive end position. In 2009, the Broncos coaches again took a chance on Dumervil. This time it was on him the learning how to play outside linebacker. The biggest change for Dumervil is learning how to play in space. Covering backs/receivers and making tackles in the open field will be a much bigger part of his game. So far Dumervil has looked pretty good on open field tackles and in pass coverage…oh and you can’t forget the 4 sacks! I think most would agree that Dumervil has played way better than most people thought he would.

This is where James Harrison, the outstanding outside linebacker of the Pittsburgh Steelers comes in. Harrison stands 6'0" and weighs only 242 lbs, according to the Pittsburgh Steelers official roster. Harrison came from relative obscurity to be arguably the best defensive player in the NFL. Harrison, like Dumervil, had to learn to play outside linebacker as he was a defensive end in college. While learning the position, he was cut by the Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens. Eventually Harrison learned how to use his speed, power and leverage to beat opposing offensive lineman on his way to 24.5 sacks in the last 2 seasons. The amazing thing is that not only does Harrison sack the quarterback, he makes many open-field tackles and plays tough run defense.

The success of the 2009 Denver Broncos defensive unit may depend on how well Elvis Dumervil can continue his transition from defensive end. I see Dumervil making doubters out of many people across the country, just the way James Harrison did with Pittsburgh. Playing outside linebacker in the 3-4 defense will allow Dumervil to continue to make plays in the opponents backfield, as well as overpower running backs and wide receivers in the open field. Don't expect Dumervil to be the Super Bowl MVP or the AFC Defensive Player of the year, but he will be an impact player and maybe even a pro bowler. Elvis Dumervil just might be Denver's version of James Harrison...