Four seasons ago two players quietly entered the NFL, going 137th and then 142nd overall in the 2012 NFL Draft. Who would have known that after three seasons of varying success, injuries and many other obstacles that they would be poised to not only play, but be relied on to lead a stellar defense?
Malik Jackson and Brandon Marshall are entering the 2015 season with high expectations for themselves, and defensive coordinator Wade Phillips may be the man to turn them into stars. It will be easy for people to overlook the two late-round draft picks on a Pro-Bowl rich defense, but those same people may be forced to give Marshall and Jackson their just due when the season comes to an end.
“This is the year that they can go ahead and put a stamp on their name,” Danny Trevathan, teammate and another late 2012 draft pick, said of the two Thursday.
Both Jackson and Marshall are coming off two impressive seasons. Marshall started 14 of 15 games in 2014 and led the team with 110 total tackles. Jackson logged more than 500 snaps and ended up ranking third in the entire NFL as a 4-3 defensive end, according to Pro Football Focus.
Marshall was the backbone of the defense before he suffered a serious foot injury in Week 15. He returned for the Indianapolis Colts playoff game January 11, despite his plantar fasciitis. After undergoing surgery and rehabilitating alongside Trevathan, Marshall is ready to top his 2014 season while keeping focused on the whole picture.
“I‘m just focusing on the little things and trying to stay healthy and obviously doing all of the soft tissue work to make sure my body is on point so I can exceed my expectations,” Marshall said recently. “I think a lot of it is I have the experience that I had last year that I didn’t have at the beginning. That experience is going to help me out in the beginning. Hopefully, I’ll be able to just get the ball rolling early.”
Marshall bounced around on the practice squad his rookie season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, compiling just three special teams tackles. After being waived by the Jaguars, he spent the first 16 weeks of 2013 on the Broncos practice squad before being signed to the active roster December 24. He made one defensive tackle in the regular season finale and one special teams tackle in Super Bowl XLVIII.
In 2014 he burst onto the scene, mostly due to injuries to Nate Irving and Trevathan. This season he is ready to show the NFL that he and players like Jackson can be major contributors, no matter where they were drafted.
“Those late round picks aren’t really expected to do much,” Marshall said Wednesday “We just want to show that there is value throughout the draft.”
Marshall quickly showed that, despite lingering pain in his foot, he was back to his versatile self in the second preseason game of 2015. He made three tackles and had two passes defended against the Houston Texans in limited playing time. Head coach Gary Kubiak has been pleased with Marshall’s progress and announced Thursday that he will not be on any sort of “pitch count” or playing time limitations.
Jackson, like Marshall, started his career as a relatively unknown talent and has played his career in a 4-3 scheme that has limited his ability to make plays. Despite that fact, he pushed through his late-draft status and forced John Fox and company to give him opportunities. In his three previous seasons with the Broncos he started eight games and compiled 89 career tackles; he had a career high six sacks in 2013.
Now, for the first time to start a season, he will be a weekly starting defensive tackle in the NFL and his teammates are excited to see what he can do. DeMarcus Ware, a very cerebral player and student of the game has seen encouraging progress from Jackson.
“Malik really got a whole different concept of who he really is and how he plays the game. When he was a 4-3 tackle, he was more of that two-gap type of guy trying to stop the run, but he was sort of our pressure guy. Now, in Wade’s defense, he is that ‘pressure tackle’ getting to the quarterback and making those big plays. You can see how he’s trimmed down a little bit, gotten that quick-twitch muscle back, rush the passer and do those things this offseason.”
Marshall and Jackson both admitted that they were unaware of the close proximity of their draft positions but have spoken to each other about taking the next step as professionals. Jackson’s glimpses of greatness showed early when Marshall arrived to Denver.
“Malik has been doing a great job,” Marshall said of his 2012 draft class teammate. “Before he was just a situational pass rusher and every time he would get in he would make a play. So for him to be in every down now, I think this is going to maximize his potential.”
The 3-4 scheme Phillips has brought to Denver has excited Jackson and may be the catalyst to unlocking his full potential.
“This is a new scheme and after I saw what Seattle and what Michael Bennett was able to do with that defense I was just wishing to get a defense like that. Mr. [John] Elway saw that he had the keys to run a 3-4 and brought Coach Phillips in. It has been a blessing to me,” Jackson said Thursday. “Instead of trying to prove myself I am trying to get better and take that next step. It is about becoming a player like [Peyton Manning] or a player like [DeMarcus] Ware, where you are consistently doing the right things.”
Jackson has had the unique ability to both be a run-stopping interior lineman as well as work as an edge pass rusher. In Phillips’ system he will be able to utilize both skill sets and believes he can reach some new personal goals.
“Making it to the Pro Bowl is taking it to the next level of my career. That is always the plan. I’m just trying to get about 10 sacks, more than the six I got in my sophomore year and just come into myself as a player and a person as well as pushing those stats.”
Jackson and Marshall had a quiet preseason due to injury and preservation of health, but both will be unleashed Sunday to pursue not only their team’s ultimate goal, but also to show the NFL that they are not only bargain fifth-rounders, but building blocks of a great defense. Trevathan, a player who knows plenty about proving people wrong, knows what he has in his No. 54 and No. 97 and now is just waiting for them to show the football world.
“It is up to them,” says Trevathan. “From what I see right now they have the great mindset to come out here and establish themselves as two of the best players in the league.”
Email Sam at sam@milehighsports.com and follow him on Twitter @SamCowhick
