The Denver Broncos defense has been dominant so far this year, so much so that they’re getting some serious praise on the historical side. The unit is currently on track to break the season record for sacks set by the Chicago Bears defense back in 1984, and comps are starting to surface that reference Denver’s 2015 championship defense, which was so tough on opposing passers that it became known as the “No Fly Zone” defense. 

Consider New York Giants coach Brian Daboll impressed. He’s coming into this week’s road game against Denver with a rookie quarterback under center, and he knows QB Jaxson Dart will have his work cut out for him. 

“They’re impressive every game,” Daboll said in an article written by Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. “They create a lot of negative plays. They have 30 sacks in six games. … They rotate guys, but (Nik) Bonitto is an unbelievable pass rusher. You can’t have a plan for all of them. They all can rush. I think 12 guys have at least a sack on their defense. (They’ve) got the reigning defensive player of the year, as a corner, (Pat) Surtain II, an Alabama guy. They’re just really good. They play good coverage, complemented with the front. They disguise well. They’re as good as it gets right now.”

Daboll also knows that Denver defensive coordinator Vance Joseph is a big part of why the unit is doing so well. 

“Vance Joseph,” Daboll said, “is really coaching incredible football.”

The Broncos will honor that 2015 defense on its 10th anniversary, and the alumni weekend will also include the Ring of Fame induction ceremony for the late wide receiver Demaryius Thomas, who passed at the age of 33 in 2021 due to complications from a seizure disorder. 

Joseph wasn’t on the 2015 coaching staff, but he did come up in the NFL under the tutelage of Wade Phillips, who was the defensive coordinator for that championship defense. The stars were pass rusher Von Miller and cornerback Aquib Talib, and Joseph understands what that means to Denver fans given that he did a stint as Broncos head coach that began in 2017. 

“I told our defense, ‘Man, let’s play well for these guys,'” Joseph said Thursday. “They were the standard for a long time.”

But the defensive coordinator also doesn’t want to hear the direct comps to the No Fly Zone group just yet. 

“It’s a small sample size right now for what we could and will be, in my opinion,” Joseph said. “With every win or every loss, we kind of just proceed the same way each week. We kind of go watch the tape, correct what’s bad, celebrate what’s good and move on. We don’t talk about numbers in the end until it’s over. Our routine hasn’t changed. We’re constantly chasing improvement every single week.”