Denver Broncos superstar cornerback Patrick Surtain II is routinely shutting down opposing No.1 receivers. It comes as no surprise.
Four weeks down already, Surtain has limited receiving assignments to only eight catches and a meager 85 yards combined. Surtain has thrived despite facing DK Metcalf, George Pickens, Mike Evans, and most recently, Garrett Wilson.
You might think Surtain would be shouting about his imperious performances from the rooftops, but the truth is, he's still all business.
"It means I'm doing my job at the end of the day," Surtain said on Sunday following the Broncos' 10-9 win over the New York Jets. "I'm just trusting my technique, honing in on it. I can't control the amount of targets I have, but if you sum it up like that, I'm doing my job for sure."
Surtain allows his coordinator to create a defensive scheme around his trusty talents. This has allowed Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph to move his attacking tendencies into high gear.
An aggressive pass rush relies on good coverage on the back end and vice-versa. Five sacks against Aaron Rodgers later, and the evidence is plain for all to see. If you were to take Surtain's skill set away from the Broncos defense, it would be singing a far different tune.
'Workmanlike' and 'stoic' aren't typically adjectives that come to mind when you think of high-profile cover corners in the modern era of brand-building superstars. Surtain is just different, and like a host of Denver defenders, the 24-year-old has his coordinator some flowers following their collective achievements at MetLife Stadium.
"Yeah, VJ is just dialing up. He has so much trust in us as players and that allows him to call these exotic schemes, show different looks and frustrate opposing offenses because his ability to trust us and his ability in his play calling," Surtain said of Joseph. "Obviously, these past few weeks it's paid dividends. The offenses we've been going against, and we played another great quarterback in Aaron Rodgers and, like I said, we're just going to keep on building and keep on performing. VJ is just going to keep on calling great calls defensively and we're going to get after it for sure."
Very shrewdly, Joseph is keying the star power he has on defense by unleashing the full potential of Surtain and defensive end Zach Allen. Just how far the defense can carry the Broncos remains to be seen.
Sooner or later, the offense under Bo Nix will have to start producing more points. After all, the Broncos still have four combined rendezvous with Patrick Mahomes and Justin Herbert left on the schedule.
Broncos head coach Sean Payton is savvy enough to know that his offense must generate more moving forward, but it sounds like he's extremely comfortable playing off the defense's ability to control games.
"I think as a play caller you're always paying attention to how your defense is playing. You have to," Payton said after beating the Jets. "I would say, at halftime, as a head coach, I liked how this game was unfolding."
Without this stellar defense, the Broncos would almost certainly be winless, and that speaks volumes of how important Surtain is to this team moving forward.
