The Denver Broncos‘ defense under Vance Joseph has been the backbone of a dominant season, one that ended with a division title, the No. 1 seed in the AFC, and legitimate Super Bowl expectations. But even after edging past the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round and advancing to the AFC Championship Game against Drake Maye and the New England Patriots, former Bronco Mark Schlereth made it clear he wasn’t impressed with Denver’s defensive showing in the divisional round.

“I thought this defense got out-schemed, they got outplayed, they got out-executed, they got out-physicalled, if you will,” Schlereth said on The Rich Eisen Show. “…They didn’t have a plan to stop (James) Cook. The running back just ran roughshod through them at, I don’t know what it was, six, seven yards a carry. They never really adjusted on the pitch play…I thought the Broncos’ defense gave up multiple plays and made multiple mistakes from a communication standpoint that could have been the difference in that game.”

That criticism stands in sharp contrast to what Denver’s defense had been all season. Under Joseph, the unit finished top five across the board. They’re third in points allowed at 18.3 per game, second in total yards allowed at 278.2, and first in yards per play at 4.5. Still, Schlereth wasn’t evaluating the résumé. He was reacting to what he saw against Buffalo.

And the numbers from that game back him up in key areas. Yes, Denver won 33–30 in overtime and earned the right to host New England. But defensively, the Bills moved the ball with surprising ease. Buffalo piled up 449 total yards, repeatedly staying ahead of the chains. The run defense, in particular, cracked. James Cook rushed for 117 yards on 24 carries, while Josh Allen added 66 yards on 12 carries of his own.

The problems didn’t stop there. Allen finished 25-of-39 for 283 yards and three touchdowns, with Dalton Kincaid leading all receivers at 83 yards on six catches. Buffalo converted 10 of 15 third downs, went 3-of-5 in the red zone, recorded 28 first downs, and held the ball for nearly 41 minutes. That kind of control is usually a red flag for a defense.

So when Schlereth questioned Joseph’s unit, it wasn’t coming from nowhere. The Broncos did struggle, at least by their own elite standards. The struggles just went unnoticed, considering the spotlight going to the team’s win, and the Bills firing Sean McDermott after the loss. Which naturally makes you wonder: Does Schlereth’s critique sit right with the Broncos’ struggles? That’s where things get tricky.

After all, Denver flipped one of its biggest season-long weaknesses at exactly the right time. Over the 18-week regular season, the Broncos generated just 10 interceptions and four fumble recoveries, a known concern heading into the playoffs. Against Buffalo, that script changed. Denver forced five turnovers, including two interceptions of Allen and three lost fumbles. Those plays didn’t erase the defensive issues, but they absolutely swung the outcome.

That’s why Schlereth’s critique both lands and falls short. The Broncos were pushed around defensively in ways they hadn’t been all year. But they also did the one thing they’d struggled to do all season, take the ball away. And that’s ultimately why they’re still standing. And as Schlereth also noted, Allen’s mistakes played just as big a role in shaping the final result.

Mark Schlereth called out Josh Allen for poor performance

Mark Schlereth didn’t frame his criticism of the Broncos’ defense in isolation. He attacked it from both angles. First, he called out Vance Joseph’s unit. Then, he pivoted to what he believed was an equally important factor: The Bills’ failing to capitalize offensively. In Schlereth’s view, Josh Allen and the Bills could have scored 50 points on Denver’s defense but didn’t, largely because Allen didn’t play to his usual standard.

“I thought Josh Allen played one of his worst football games,” he added. “He missed three or four touchdown passes in that game. That game, they could have hung 50 on Denver’s defense…I thought Josh Allen missed a couple of wide-open touchdown passes, had a couple of balls picked that were to me were bad throws, or at least one was a bad throw. I don’t understand why he was emotional at the podium because he just really played for Josh Allen’s standards a poor football game.”

And while Allen’s stat line doesn’t look disastrous at first glance, the details tell a different story. He finished the divisional round with 349 total yards, but that production came with two interceptions, three sacks, and several missed throws in key moments, exactly what Schlereth was pointing to. One sequence in the fourth quarter summed it up.

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With Buffalo in position for end-zone shots, Allen had Dawson Knox open on a post route on 3rd-and-10 from the Denver 32 with 16 seconds remaining. The throw sailed high. A completion there had a real chance to be a touchdown, or at worst, first-and-goal inside the five. Instead, the opportunity disappeared. That’s why Schlereth had no problem calling out Buffalo’s mistakes alongside Denver’s defensive struggles. In his mind, the Broncos didn’t just survive a rough defensive outing; the Bills helped make it possible. Now, the Broncos will face the Patriots’ offense next weekend.