Malik Jackson handled the question without hesitation. His answer might help calm the nerves of fidgety Broncos fans wondering whether it could happen again.
Jackson, a Denver defensive end, immediately knew the reason for the question when he was asked if the defense has been worked on stopping the Hail Mary pass. He didn’t need any reminders of Baltimore quarterback Joe Flacco’s 70-yard touchdown pass to Jacoby Jones against blown coverage that allowed the Ravens to tie the score at 35 with 31 seconds left in the fourth quarter a year ago. The Ravens won 38-35 in double overtime in the divisional-round playoff game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High.
“We’ve worked on that all year in practice,” Jackson said of defending the Hail Mary pass. “We worked on it last year. They just made a play. It makes you upset when they do that, when you’ve practiced stopping it.”
The Broncos face a different set of challenges Sunday against San Diego — namely, slowing what has been a potent Chargers running game. The 6-foot-6, 290-pound Jackson is a key figure in Denver’s defensive game plan.
“This year has been a huge year for me,” Jackson said. “I came in wanting to show what I had learned (as a rookie last year). I started out playing sparingly. I started earning more playing time. I gradually grew up, and the season kind of went the way I thought it needed to go.”
Jackson leads the Broncos in tackles for lost yardage (11) and in quarterback hurries (15).
Denver coach John Fox has been pleased.
“I think he has improved tremendously,” Fox said. “He and (rookie) Sylvester Williams have both improved a lot. Our young guys have gotten more time, some of it due to injuries, some of it due to their getting better. They improved a lot in practice and both have stepped in and done a very good job.”
Jackson looks at his season as only a beginning of what he can do.
“I’m just barely there,” he said of his place on the Denver defensive front. “I have some qualities and traits, but it’s the guys around me. They draw the double-teams, and that allows me to show what I can do.”
But he’s been around long enough to start to feel that he belongs.
“You have to be un- comfortably comfortable in this business,” Jackson said. “There’s always somebody else who wants what you have.”
Fox is confident his team has made strides on defense since a 27-20 loss to San Diego on Dec. 12.
“I believe the goal of every team is to improve every week, every day,” Fox said. “That doesn’t change whether it’s preseason, regular season or playoff season.”
Jackson said the Denver defense is coming together as a unit. He said the Broncos will try to stop the San Diego running game and force veteran quarterback Philip Rivers into longer down-and-distance plays than they did when the teams last met and the Chargers gained 177 yards rushing.
“We have to stuff their run game,” Jackson said. “We’ll see what Philip Rivers can do then.”
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296, imoss@denverpost.com or twitter.com/irvmoss
