Safety Talaona Hufanga adds leadership, attitude, and physical play to the Broncos secondary

Hufanga was one of the Broncos big free agent splashes and could be an x-factor on an already dominant defense.

The Denver Broncos‘ defense exceeded expectations last season and helped carry the team to the postseason. However, despite having a top-ranked defense, it still had its flaws, which started to show late in the season and ultimately led to their loss in the wildcard round. They needed to upgrade their linebackers and safety positions because they were the weak points on their defense last season. Well, they went out and did just that and in a big way.

Their first big splash signing was former 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga. He’s an All-Pro safety who will add some fire, attitude, and physical play to the back end of the Broncos’ secondary. He will pair with Brandon Jones to give the Broncos one of the better safety duos in the NFL.

The Broncos would also go out and sign former 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw as well, to hopefully solve the issues they had at linebacker the past few seasons. Adding these two very good players to an already really good Broncos defense has this unit looking dangerous heading into the upcoming season.

Hufanga met with the media earlier in the offseason and was asked what drew him to Denver. He told reporters that the Broncos are a great organization and are led by people who are willing to buy in and want to grow as a team. He then called the Broncos defense incredible, and that he simply wanted to earn their respect and simply join a crew that already did well last year.

“I think for me it was definitely just a great organization first and foremost. People that are willing to buy in to these guys, and they really want to grow. This defense is incredible. You look from top to bottom, it’s just players. So for me, I just wanted to humbly come in, earn their respect and join a crew that already did really well last year for sure.”

Then there is the Bo Nix effect.

Hufanga was asked if he was aware of what Bo Nix was doing last year, and what about the Broncos quarterback stood out and impressed him. He told reporters that Nix is simply a guy who wants to work and complimented his leadership skills on and off the field. He also said he was able to watch a lot of football last year due to his injury and noticed how Nix always bounced back from adversity.

“Knowing him now I’ll say real quick because I can talk about my past, just seeing how he works is one thing. He’s the first in line, first guy who is going to run and going to beat a lot of guys in races. He’s a guy who just wants to work. For me, I was injured last year as well and got to watch a lot of ball. You see a guy who started off the year a little shaky, but that’s the beauty of it. He bounces back and shows up each and every week, even when things aren’t slotted in his way. Watching a guy that battles through adversity is something that I admire by watching him do it each and every day. We’ll go out there and try to do it again this year.”

Finally, Hufanga was asked what he believes he can bring to the Broncos’ defense to help them take that next step. He told reporters that first, he needs to earn the respect of his teammates, first and foremost. Then, he said he can use his experience of being in an NFC Championship Game and Super Bowl to help this ascending team be more prepared if they want to make a deep postseason run.

“You have to humble yourself each and every year because it’s a clean slate regardless if you’ve been there or not. I’ve been to a Super Bowl and I’ve been to NFC Championships. That has nothing to do with me being here. I have to come in here and earn the respect from my teammates first and foremost. I have to go out there and show them that I am willing to work and show them things that I have seen in the playoffs that is different than the regular season. Things that I have seen in the Super Bowl that are different than the regular season. But at the end of the day, we have to go through that journey together. That’s going to be something that is exciting that we have each other’s backs and we go out there and compete.”

If healthy, Hufanga will be an excellent addition to the Broncos’ defense on and off the field. He’ll provide some leadership in the locker room, wouldn’t be surprised if he was named a captain, and just give the Broncos another excellent player in their secondary.

Player Profile

Talanoa Hufanga | Safety | Broncos

Height: 6-0

Weight: 200 pounds

Age: 25 years old

Experience: 5th NFL season

2024 stats: Played 7 games and totaled 38 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss

Broncos S Talanoa Hufanga’s 2025 Outlook

Hufanga will slot in as a starting safety opposite of Brandon Jones in the Broncos’ secondary and hopefully, provide an upgrade over what they had last season. He will give the Broncos some leadership, experience, fire, and physical play while adding some much-needed attitude to the Broncos’ defense. While the Broncos’ defense was great last year, they lacked those one or two spark plugs on the defensive side of the ball, and I think they added one here in Hufanga (and Greenlaw).

Earlier in the offseason, Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton was asked what Hufanga would bring to the team. He told reporters that he is a great communicator, intelligent, and experienced, while mentioning that there is toughness in the way he plays. Payton added that there is something about Hufanga that stands out to you when you meet and visit with him, and called him a “big get” for the team.

“Well, he’s a great communicator, he’s super intelligent, his experience, and there is a toughness about the way he plays. Sometimes you can be a second defensive responder, and sometimes a first defensive responder, and he appears first a lot on the screen. There’s a style to how he plays. Part of that style—because he’s so physical and so quick to support—he’s had a handful of injuries, but there’s a toughness to his game. You guys will like him. There is something about him when you meet him and you visit with him. So that was a big get. We felt excited about that.”

The Broncos needed a player like this in their defense. Their defense is full of young players having breakout years that lacked the experience and overall leadership qualities that were needed. Hufanga brings playoff and Super Bowl experience, leader on and off the field, and as I mentioned, a physical presence on the field.

The one concern with Hufanga is his injury history. He has missed time the past two seasons with an ACL injury in 2023 and a wrist injury last season. However, the Broncos have one of the better strength and conditioning teams in the league, which has helped the team be one of the healthier units in the NFL the past two seasons. They have earned my trust here, and I believe they will have him in a good place to stay healthy moving forward.

Final Thoughts

I am excited about the addition of Hufanga to the Broncos’ defense. I understand the injury concerns but you have to trust the Broncos’ strength and conditioning to continue preparing the players and doing what they can to prevent injuries from happening.

He brings some violent play and attitude to the secondary that was really missed last year. He will also help cover backs and tight ends, which has been an area of weakness the last few years.

The Broncos have added All-Pro caliber players like Talanoa Hufanga and Drew Greenlaw, along with a high-upside rookie in Jahdae Barron, to an already talented defense. If all goes as planned and Hufanga and Greenlaw can stay healthy and play like they did with the 49ers and Barron lives up his potential, this defense will be elite.