Random Broncos Thoughts - Preseason Game 1 - at Bears

Broncos 31 Bears 3

Thoughts from the first night Manning donned the Blue and Orange:

-I have to say that it's weird seeing Peyton Manning in a Broncos uniform. That number 18 behind center looks so glorious, though.

-If you're going to try and glean something from watching Peyton play only 10 plays, you're clearly working with an insufficient sample size. Still, there is reason for both caution and optimism. Let's be honest, Manning looked rusty. His first completion probably should have been intercepted, and while the interception in the end zone was a great play by the Bears defense, it wasn't exactly perfect throw, either. Still, we saw flashes. He walked to the line, checked out the secondary, and gesticulated wildly a few times...always a Manning staple. Plus, he looked cool and confident in the pocket and made you feel like he knew what he was doing. (Which clearly he does.) 

-As I watched the game, I saw on Twitter someone posted "Manning is the only quarterback NOT to lead the Broncos on a touchdown drive tonight. QB CONTROVERSY IN DENVER!" Clearly, it's a joke. And it did make me chuckle.

-Why do Bears fans hate Caleb Hanie so much? Surprisingly strong vitriolic reaction for the Bears former backup QB in Chicago.

-No matter how dominating a 31-3 blasting of a strong Bears team feels, pinch yourself and remember it was just the first preseason game. Still, if you're a Broncos fan you have to be pleased with a game in which the defense looked strong, the offensive line was opening holes and protecting the quarterbacks, and just about everything was working. It feels good, even as you keep reminding yourself that it's just the preseason.

-How great a name for a running back is Xavier Omon? The 3rd year back from Northwest Missouri State is my early favorite for "Player I Root For A Little TOO Strongly Simply Because He Has the Best Name on the Preseason Roster" award.

-You have to admire the bravery of wide receiver Mark Dell sporting the number 15 with so many psychotic Tebowfiles still roaming the streets of Denver. Perhaps he wanted to see his number in the stands everywhere when he plays a home game. Between Tebow and Brandon Marshall, the #15 has more baggage than I'd want to carry with me if I were a fringe player trying to snag a roster spot.

-Watching the local broadcast, and spots kept appearing for Charity Water...a personal favorite cause of mine. They provide clean water for people in undeveloped countries as a way to help out places where people die due to the terrible drinking water available. Truly a great cause, and it warmed my heart to see so many spots for them. If you have a chance, toss a few bucks their way...www.charitywater.com.

-I thought after Noah's Ark that God promised never to flood the earth again, and yet I was beginning to doubt that for awhile seeing the weather in Chicago. Just one more weather related reason I never want to live in the Windy City. A nice place to visit, but you wouldn't want to live there.

-I'm going to enjoy the Jack Del Rio defensive coordinator era. One, because he's a former head coach acting in a coordinator role, which always seems to work well. Two, because it appears his defense is going to be pretty good. And most importantly, Three: I constantly keep thinking of him as "Jack of the river" which is just fun.

-I'm a devout believer that Tebow is not a legit NFL quarterback and Manning was totally the right move, but even I have to admit that there were a few times when I saw Caleb Hanie collapse in a heap tonight that I became a little nostalgic for a little Tebow escapability. Yep, I missed Tim just a tiny bit tonight.

-Brock Osweiler looks like an NFL quarterback. He's got a ton to work on, but you can see why Elway made the questionable decision to draft the kid in the 2nd round when there were so many other pressing needs.

-Derek Wolfe is exciting!

-Man, I hate the preseason. September can't come soon enough.

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 16 - vs Chargers

Chargers 33 Broncos 28
On a cold, but exciting day of football, Ryan Mathews and the Chargers proved to be just a bit too much for the Broncos to take.

Mercifully, the 2010-11 season comes to an end. A season which saw a wide receiver take his own life, a coach get caught in a videotaping scandal and subsequently get canned and the Broncos fall to their worst record in their 51 year history couldn't end quickly enough. The Broncos will have to start picking up the pieces and try to see if they can rebound and rebuild quickly.

Leading that rebuilding effort will be fan favorite John Elway, who is poised to take a position with Denver that has yet to be officially announced, but is rumored to be something along the lines of VP of football operations. That sound interesting, but just because John was a football god on the field doesn't necessarily mean he has the touch as a personnel guy. Although, much like Tim Tebow, we will hope for the best even though we have little in the way of actual proof in which to believe. Although, for a team that finished 4-12 and has little going for it other than an exciting but crazy raw athlete at quarterback and the number 2 overall pick, hope is a valuable commodity.



Before the rebuilding could begin, this year's version of the Broncos had to cross the finish line, doing so against a Chargers team that is much too talented to be finishing outside of the playoffs. The Chargers used a whole lot of running from rookie halfback Ryan Mathews and a whole lot of bad tackling from the Broncos defense to roll to a 33-28 victory over Denver this afternoon out at Invesco Field. There were nearly 8,000 no shows, but that number could have tripled had Tim Tebow not been getting his third career start. The curiosity factor of seeing Tebow play definitely ramped up interest in the Mile High city.


Tebow rewarded the enthusiasm with a rather uneven effort. I am beginning to think that Tebow is incapable of throwing the ball in a manner that is pleasing to the eye. Dude just throws ugly. Although his passer rating was a lousy 58.2, he wasn't completely terrible overall. The fact is that Tebow is part quarterback, but he's also a good portion of a running back too. The passer part of the equation was rather lackluster today. Tebow made some of the worst throws that I've ever seen tossed by a quarterback in the NFL today, but then he also made some very nice tosses as well. The rookie is quite raw, but what he lacks (severely) in polish, he does tend to make up for in grit and enthusiasm. Yes, he only threw for 205 yards, and missed some receivers so egregiously that one might question whether or not he's good enough to be a passer in the league, and threw for two terrible interceptions; however he also ran for 92 yards and a touchdown, and despite having a somewhat bad day, he still nearly engineered a comeback for Denver.



I think questioning his ability is not out of the question, but it's impossible to deny that the guy is exciting and that he makes things happen. The team rallies around him, and plays hard for him, and he's just so darn earnest about playing football. It's easy to doubt him, but it's hard to not want to see him do well. John Elway's first tough decision will be whether or not it's a wise idea to trust in Tebow as the quarterback of the future, or consider picking up a solid stud quarterback when they are in the unusual and rare position of being able to draft so highly with the second overall pick.

The final game of the year wasn't all about Tim Tebow, though. The defense played Phyllis Rivers tough, although Phyllis was able to throw for 313 yards, he did not look all that amazing throughout the game. It was definitely a down day for the Chargers quarterback. More than making up for that was the aggressive running of Ryan Mathews, as the Chargers back went for 120 yards and three touchdowns.

It was far from a good day for the Broncos defense, but I need to give credit to Andre' Goodman. Dude had a solid day at corner.

After Mathews ran for his third touchdown of the day with less than 8 minutes remaining to put San Diego up 33-14, it appeared all hope was lost. However, a quick Cassius Vaughn kickoff return for a touchdown, and another quick drive from Tebow which ended with Timmy running in for a score of his own, the game tightened up. The Broncos were able to recover an onsides kick with 23 seconds left, and the small crowd that had not left early was rewarded by their dedication by a few Hail Mary attempts that thudded to the ground, and the Broncos falling just shy yet again of a win.

Is this the quarterback of the future, or just another McDaniels misjudgment? Time will tell.

So, the curtain closes on the worst season in Broncos history, and there are more questions than answers. How much of a winning effect can the winningest quarterback in franchise history bring as an executive? How will the Broncos use the highest draft pick they have ever had? (#2 overall) Is Tim Tebow the quarterback of the future? Who will be leading this team next year? Did Eric Studesville show enough in his brief tenure as interim head coach to merit the job permanently? (I say no, by the way.) How quickly can this defense get things turned around? Will Champ Bailey be back? (For his sake, I hope he goes someplace he can win quickly since he is in the twilight of his career, and the Broncos are going to need more than just a little time to get back to being a good squad.) So many questions, and only time can provide the answers. For now, Broncos Nation needs some time to heal. 4-12 is a rough year. Good night, and good luck. Go Broncos!

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 14 - Broncos at Raiders

Raiders 39 Broncos 23

Uncle. Thankfully, the Broncos don't need to face the Raiders again this year. For those not counting at home, with the 39-23 drubbing that Oakland put on Denver yesterday, the Raiders have now hung 98 points on the Broncos this year.

We got to see Tim Tebow, and he looked confidence inspiring. Then you look at his stats, and you realize that no matter how encouraging he might have made you feel, the dude completed only 50% of his passes and for only 138 yards. 8 completions is not going to win very often in the NFL, and it didn't yesterday. Of course, 78 yards rushing helps, too. Tebow did almost as much damage with his legs a including a 40 yard scamper up the middle that was very reminiscent of the form which won him a Heisman at Florida.

Unlike almost every game he played at Florida, though, Tebow's team was less talented than the opponent, and lost. It was an odd feeling watching Tebow, as his truly does carry himself with confidence and yet it's obvious the coaching staff has zero confidence in him. The handcuffs were on, and it was painfully obvious they trust him to do too much. However, when he was allowed to toss the ball, although his delivery looks weird, it looks good in the air. His accuracy was much higher than I was expecting, and after the game, I felt like he might have a shot.

Actually, the game in Oakland was almost exactly what I wanted. Tebow looked good (not great, but good.), the Broncos played tough and hung with Oakland for awhile, and most importantly...they didn't hurt their draft position by winning a meaningless game. It's strange having your team have nothing to play for. As the game is going on, I am cheering for them to win, but as soon as it's over I'm almost relieved they lost.

The fact is, this is a team that was plus two in turnovers, got decent production from a rookie quarterback in his first start, and still lost by sixteen points. The defense looked foolish on several occasions, allowing a fullback to scamper 73 yards on a basic screen play and giving up a 71 yard touchdown on a reverse on the game's first play. The Raiders more than doubled the Broncos total offense, gaining an obscene 502 total yards. (Add that to the 508 from the first game, and the Raiders gained 1010 yards of total offense against the Broncos this season, Egad.) Then, just to make sure the Raiders scored just about every possible way, they got a safety.

So, the Broncos are bringing up the rear of the NFL, as right now, I'm not sure there is anyone they could beat. We could wallow in sadness about it, or believe that there is no way to go but up from here, right? (They can't possibly get WORSE, can they?) The rebuilding may take a few years, or it could take less than that, as this is the NFL and teams do rebound often to get good quickly. For now, let all Broncos fans take comfort in the fact that this particular edition of the Broncos can only shame us two more times before we get an offseason to try and heal a little bit. Have a Merry Christmas, and Go Broncos.

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 13 - Broncos at Cardinals

Cardinals 43 Broncos 13

It's gotten to the point that kickers are making the Broncos look bad. Jay "Wheels" Feely trots into the end zone in a Cardinals rout of the Broncos.

So, McDaniels is gone, but the horrid stench of his aura is clearly still very much on the team. When a team fires their head coach during mid-season, they can either get a bounce out of it, or become a totally deflated group of players who just don't care. The Vikings and Cowboys got the bounce, it look like the Broncos are deflate city, though. In what may have been the most meaningless regular season game in NFL history, the Broncos acted like they really couldn't be bothered to put on a professional appearance. Seriously, the Broncos were nearly beaten singlehandedly by a kicker. (Nice wheels, by the way, Jay Feely)

Rookie John Skelton out of Fordham acquitted himself well against the porous Broncos defense.

This game felt more like a presason matchup, only there was apparently even less on the line. Adding to the preseason feel, the Cardinals even started John Skelton, a quarterback drafted in the fifth round who began the year as a 4th stringer. Then Skelton outplayed his counterpart Orton. The Broncos came out against a dreadful team in Arizona and got blown out. Kyle Orton, one of the few brights spots of this overmatched and undertalented team, just gave up today. His heart wasn't in it, and neither was his head, and by the end he was just tossing up interceptions on a platter. The final pick which was returned for six had the look of someone who didn't care what happened to the ball he threw. Orton's aim was off, he was out of sync with the new playcaller Mike McCoy, and it just was a terrible day for the Broncos quarterback.

The defense also played terribly, tackling poorly and generally looking completely lost on the field. When you're getting blasted by the Cardinals offense, you're clearly not giving it your best. The Broncos weren't getting beaten by the 1989 49ers out there, this was a team that had not scored a touchdown in 9 quarters before their kicker ran one in against the Broncos.

If a running back blossoms on a 3-13 team, does anyone realize it?

There were two bright spots in a sea of darkness. The first was running back Knowshon Moreno, who is blossoming into a legit NFL back on this team that the world has justly forgotten about. The second is Champ Bailey, the cornerback who is likely playing in his final weeks in Denver. Those two played well, the rest of this disaster played like a team that could not possibly care any less.

Puzzling to me is why the Broncos decided to not play Tim Tebow. The season is over, and they were getting blown out. I would have started him to find out what you have and at least put these final few games to some constructive purpose, but after falling way behind, what would be the shame in putting him in and letting him get a little experience? He really needs to get some playing time in these meaningless final few games, it makes zero sense to not at least let him face a few live rounds of action and see how he responds. Plus, it's about the only card the team can play to keep the fans interested, and there is zero buzz around this city for the Broncos right now. Hopefully they start Tebow next week in Oakland, Seriously, why not at this point?

Thanks for the memories, Champ. You're a class act.

So, the city of Denver is left with a football team that doesn't appear interested in competing, and really...it might be for the best. Losing the remaining games can only help with draft positioning, and really, would anyone in Orange feel better about 6-10 as opposed to 3-13? I'm not used to having a month left in the season and having it not matter at all. Lack of hope is hard to take as a football fan. I'm still a Broncos fan, of course, but let's just say I'm not sticking my chest out about it these days.

Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead!!! McDaniels is fired in Denver! And there was much rejoicing!

Don't go away angry, Josh. Just go away.

McDaniels fired! Not the news I was expecting to hear tonight, but I can't wipe the smile off of my face. 11-17 and the worst personnel decisions on record are no longer in charge of the organization. Clearly, he has left Denver in shambles, and it'll take us some time to try and pick up the pieces, but the arrogant man who refused to listen to others, who made baffling decisions both on and off the field, and who was indicted in his very own Spygate scandal. Quite the legacy.

The Belichick coaching tree is diseased, apparently. Hopefully the Broncos and Pat Bowlen will be wise enough to avoid the New England family this time. So long as we don't bring in Brad Childress or Wade Phillips, I see this change as a positive.

The final straw was finding out that Belichick Jr. was following the lead of his mentor even when it came to cheating. That whole video taping scandal in London was made all the worse by the fact that in addition to hurting the honor of our proud franchise, he still was losing. So now we have four games to muddle through this random interim period. Someone named Eric Studesville, the running backs coach, has been elected to run things for the next few weeks. Seems random, but how much worse could he possibly do? Perhaps he'll even benefit from the interim bounce that the Vikings and Cowboys have enjoyed. It doesn't hurt than their next game is against the Cardinals. I don't see a win streak of more than one game, if we even get that, but I don't care. The highlight of this lost season is that McD is McDone! Viva los Broncos!

I am almost as happy as he looks. Except that my team is a burning pile right now thanks to him.

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 12 - Broncos at Chiefs

Chiefs 10 Broncos 6

What a difference three weeks make. When last we saw these two teams on the field they combined to score 78 points in a Broncos runaway win and Todd Haley refused to shake Josh McDaniels hand. On Sunday, the two teams combined for a whopping 16 points, and Todd Haley gave Joshie a big hug.

What a farce. Can you say overcompensating?

Although I really don’t want him as my coach anymore, I will give Josh McDaniels this: He excels and finding new and interesting ways to lose games. This week, rather than his usual successful passing game with no running game and a defense that tries to chase it’s opponents from behind as they routinely break off huge plays, he mixed it up. The defense was stout, the running game excelled, and the Broncos completely failed at passing and scoring. Then, at the end, when a victory was possible, he totally abandoned the tremendous run game and kept Kyle Orton throwing despite the fact that the passing game had proven worthless all day and then punted despite being down only 4 points and needing only a few yards for a first down and there were less than three minutes to go. I guess I have to hand it to him, because he got the ball back with fifteen seconds from his own 8, so his strategy worked gangbusters. Quite the innovator, that McDaniels; Jason Whitlock tweeted out after the game that McDaniels is in totally over his head, and I couldn’t agree more.



In a game that was totally winnable for the Broncos, they refused to open it up and take chances, and the result was a forgettable loss to a team that now holds a two game advantage in the AFC West. (By the way, with the Chiefs…Yes, they will almost certainly win their division barring a complete collapse against an easy schedule, but bet heavily against them in the playoffs. It’s free money) The Broncos loss was not unexpected at this point, they lose almost every week anymore. And it wasn’t even that disappointing, as it’s probably better for the Broncos to get a good draft pick by losing. It was just kind of sad. This season is over, and there isn’t much reason to care for the final quarter of the year.

Anyway, let’s break down the game a tiny bit:

Positives:


Knowshon Moreno: The Georgia product finally lived up to his potential that caused him to be picked in the first round last year. He was punishing opponents and making things happen as he broke big play after big play and also gained the tough yards. The Broncos might have won the game had they stuck with the run game instead of going almost exclusively with the subpar passing game the final few drives. 161 yards on 23 carries is a great day.

Champ Bailey: Dude was a beast making some glorious tackles and plays, and even getting a sack. Makes me sad that this great player is spending his twilight NFL years laboring for such a crappy team.

The Defense: Made a big goal line stand, and held the Chiefs to a miserly 10 points on offense. The Broncos didn’t lose the game on the defensive side of the ball. You hold a team to ten points, you need to win. Especially when you scored 49 points against them the last time you played.

Negatives:

Kyle Orton: Nine completions on twenty-eight attempts. A quarterback rating of 46.3, and an average yards per pass of 4.2. You can’t win with stats like that. Orton has been very good this season, but he looked out of his depth and completely hopeless all day. His accuracy was atrocious, and on top of that, he lost a critical fumble late in the game. Definitely his worst game of the season, and possibly his worst game as a Bronco.

Josh McDaniels: Challenging a 9 yard gain in the first quarter, even if you’re correct, is dumb with the limited nature of the rules instant replay challenges. Then not challenging a potential fumble when your team picks it up and runs it inside the 10 is a big time head-scratcher. But the worst thing he did on the day was punting the ball on 4th and 4 from his own 44 with less than 3 minutes left. You have to go for the 4th down conversion there, you just HAVE to. There isn’t much time left, so even if everything goes perfectly with you punting, you will get the ball back with less than a minute deep in your own territory. The Broncos had 2 timeouts left, so no matter what happened, they needed to stop the Chiefs from getting a first down, and even if the Chiefs stop you and then kick a field goal, you’re still within one score. If you pick up the fourth down, you still have time so that you don’t have to hurry, and you have the ball in a good spot. McDaniels meekly calling for a punt in that scenario was the worst thing he could have done.

Final Thought:

The Chiefs could not be less impressive to me. Todd Haley seems like a rabid dog on the sideline, he’s the kind of coach that I’m certain that NFL refs dread having to work with. He just complains about everything and yells and just gets under your skin. He got under MY skin as I was watching on television, and I didn’t even hear what he was saying. I just dislike that guy, and his fake overcompensating hug of McDaniels was just ridiculous. I don’t care about him offending the honor of McDaniels, as I want that guy ridden out of town on a rail; but just the general douchiness of Haley rubs me the wrong way. Between him in Kansas City and Phil Rivers in San Diego, it’s getting to the point where the least objectionable team in the AFC West to me is the Raiders. Egads.

Just shut it, Todd.

As for the Broncos, I still want them to win games as I watch them, but in retrospect, I’m rather glad they dropped that one. Winning it would have just hurt their draft placement. I feel like the Broncos get one more win. (Next week in Arizona, if you’re curious.) Possibly two if they can overachieve at home the day after Christmas against a lukewarm Houston Texans team, but right now, the best case scenario for the Broncos is a 5-11 season. Hopefully the offseason goes better than this wretched season has. Only a month more, Broncos fans, then we can begin our Fire Joshie vigil! Go Broncos!

Douche.

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 11 - vs. Rams

Rams 36 Broncos 33

It's pretty much to the point where Broncos fans should be cheering for losses to improve the draft position, isn't it? This season has been a rough one for the Denver faithful, made even harder by the fact that our coach is apparently taking after his mentor's example and running with it. It's bad enough that the organization was fined for illegally taping practices, but if you're going to cheat, shouldn't you at least win?

Enough moaning about the season, in the latest episode of the epic tragedy that is the 2010 Broncos season, the Broncos jumped out to an early lead, then let the Rams go on a rather unsightly 33-3 run before ALMOST coming back. In the end, it was another in a string of numbing losses that are beginning to just bleed together into a splendid tapestry of failure. I mean, when you're giving up 36 points to the mediocre at best Rams offense, you clearly have failed as a franchise.

Even the excitement of a comeback was not to be. Kyle Orton has put up some pretty good numbers this year, but one thing we have really learned about him this season is that when the game is on the line and he has his last opportunity to rally the troups, he will fold like a Texas-hold em player holding a 7 and a 2. Orton is good at garbage time, but he lacks the Elwayness (Yeah, I just made that word up.) to engineer a game winning drive.

Granted, Orton's defense didn't do a whole lot to help him. 36 points?!? To the Rams? I don't feel like breaking this thing down. I was there, and the crowd was dead. It was the most empty that Invesco Field has been for a game since the stadium opened. There is no hope for the Broncos, and the only thing that would energize the fan base at this moment is if Pat Bowlen would cut loose Josh McDaniels. It's dark times for the Broncos fan base, and we're just not happy with the team. Hopefully we can draft well and turn this thing around next year. As for now, Josh McDaniels has really changed the culture in Denver...used to be the Broncos were always competitive, even in their down years. Now we don't have the expectation of even mediocrity, and we're reduced to wondering how high our first pick will be next year. I liked the old culture better, I must say.

A few thoughts about Sunday's game:

Sam Bradford is the real deal. He looked about as composed as I've ever seen a rookie quarterback. I was impressed.

Brian Dawkins is washed up. He likes to flap his arms and gesticulate, and he will occasionally make a big hit, but that doesn't mask the fact that he's getting beaten in coverage, and he's more inclined to try to strip the ball than just make a tackle. Stripping the ball is good, but you really need to make a tackle, Brian.

Knowshon Moreno is improving and is actually starting to like like he may have been a good pick.

Dominating opening drives for the Broncos are not to be believed. For the third straight game, Denver opened the game with an authoritative drive down the field for an easy looking touchdown. Denver's record in those games? 1-2.

Brandon Lloyd is the brightest spot it a somewhat dark season for Denver. He's routinely making amazing catches and has become an elite receiver which no one saw coming, and still am scratching my head at that fact.

Eddie Royal is exciting. Not always in a good way, but the dude makes exciting things happen.

For a split second, the snow was falling, the Broncos had rallied from down 20 to down just 3 points left with the ball and momentum of having just partially blocked a Rams punt, and it felt like it was going to be a special game with a memorable ending. Sadly, it turned out to be another loss that will be quickly forgotten.

Can we never wear those blue pants again? The monochrome look just seems so minor league footballish. Yuck.

I'm not turning in my Broncos fanship, but I must say that this season has not been fun. I find myself wondering how Lions fans do this year after year after year. I have a whole new respect for them. And Mr. Bowlen, if you're reading this. Can we please get a different coach in here, already? I know, we haven't even given him two full years yet, but 5-16 over the last 21 games has not exactly been good times, you know? Oh well, Go Broncos!

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 10 - Broncos at Chargers

Chargers 35 Broncos 14
Subtle. Stay Classy, San Diego.

I knew that thumping of the Chiefs was a mirage. Welcome back to the crappy Broncos season. After an initial amazing drive where the Broncos marched down the field like a machine, the highlights for Denver were pretty much over. Things were going well for most of the first quarter, but after the Broncos stopped the Chargers where the punting unit came on, Mike Scifres took the long snap and tossed a 28 yard reception to Mike Tolbert to convert a 4th and 14, and the game swung to the home team for good.

Mike Tolbert gashed the Broncos all night to the tune of 111 yards.

I don't really know who you blame this on. The Chargers are just better than the Broncos. The Broncos are bad. They are unable to stop people, they are unable to sustain offensive momentum, and they are just not very talented. Not sure there is much in the way of scheming that can be done to take away the disadvantage of not being as talented as your opponent. This is a bad team, and it's not going to get better for awhile.

They need to draft well and stockpile some talent. I'm not sure that McDaniels is going to be around long enough to see this turn around, and frankly, I'm not sure he should. Between trading away Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall, Peyton Hillis, Tony Scheffler and Alphonso Smith, and then getting rid of three valuable draft picks for a backup quarterback who has amassed all of 1 career throw to this point, I'm thinking that a rebuilding effort suffers with this kind of personnel decision making.

The Broncos are a big bowl of meh right now. Not much interesting or captivating, nothing to look forward to, and little hope that things are going to turn around soon. Broncos nation needs more signs of hope, and one freak blowout win in the middle of the season isn't enough to make us forget that the team is 3-7 and amongst the dregs of the NFL.

Hey look, there goes another Charger down the field!

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 9 - vs Chiefs

Broncos 49 Chiefs 29

Head and Shoulders above the Chiefs.

More please! I'm not sure what got into the Denver Broncos on Sunday, but I'd like to bottle it and have it poured out on to the field each Sunday. We are two days away from the game now, so breaking it down feels silly, plus I am feeling exceptionally lazy right now, so I'm not going to do a full breakdown. However, I will say that I attended the game on Sunday, and jumped up and down repeatedly and lost my voice from joyful cheering.

I had a good feeling about the game, but that meant I thought we might win on a last minute field goal or something, not run the Chiefs out of the building. I can't help shake the feeling that this was an aberration, and the mediocre Broncos will make their return to the field against the Chargers next Monday night, but for one day, we were the kings of the world in the NFL, and it felt good.

Just a few random thoughts about the game:

Brandon Lloyd: How has this guy gotten to be an elite receiver this year after so many years of being a journeyman? Weird, but delightful. He was incredible on Sunday.

Tim Tebow: Yes, he threw his first pass, for a touchdown no less, and of course, I'm cheering for the kids. Hopefully he'll give a lot to Broncos football over the coming years, but for the love of all things holy, Denver. Can we tone down the irrational exuberance a touch whenever he comes into the game? It's embarrassing how wild the stadium gets every time he walks onto the field. The bated breath and ultra enthusiasm is not quite warranted just yet. Let's let him earn our adoration, instead of just blindly cheering each time he takes a sip of water, okay? Thanks.

Kyle Orton: That'll do. Fantastic game. Nuff said. This guy is actually earning the accolades and is treated as an afterthought by Broncos fans which is weird to me.

Matt Cassel: Wow, was he awful. If you look at his stats, you'd think he was making a case for a Pro-Bowl appearance. However, if you watched the game, you'd realize why stats can not always be trusted in the NFL. His stats were 33-53 for 469 yards and four touchdowns. However, he was constantly missing open receivers, making poor decisions, and just plain stinking up the joint. You'd have loved to have started him on your fantasy team, but if you're a Chiefs fan, he's a big reason you lost.

Instant Replay failure: Felt like home cooking, but in the first quarter on the bomb to Jabbar Gaffney that made the score 21-0, the Chiefs challenged, but the refs declared that the replay system was inoperable, so the call on the field would stand. Somehow in the second half, it was working well enough to reverse a call for the Broncos that ended up being called as a Brandon Lloyd touchdown after further review. I do sort of feel bad about this. How come the Broncos got a chance to have a play reviewed later on if that chance was denied the Chiefs earlier in the game? Fortunately, this game was a no doubter, so it's not like anyone can say that the Broncos didn't earn this win.

49 points: Yup. I just wanted to type it again to see how ridiculous it looks to see that the Broncos actually scored that many. I still find it hard to believe days after.

Todd Haley: Get over yourself. It's not as much fun to be on the losing side of things, is it? Remember that you yourself won by 20 on this very same field 11 months ago. Shake Josh's hand, already. Oh, and we'll try to make sure that our instant replay system is operable next year for ya.

Orange Jerseys: The NFL needs to mandate that these things become the Broncos permanent jerseys ASAP. They are beautiful. The Broncos are supposed to wear orange.

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 7 - vs Raiders

Raiders 59 Broncos 14
The first of many, many, many embarrassing moments for Denver today.

Inexcusable. Embarrassing. Disgusting. Worthless. Heartless. Hopeless. Gutless. Pathetic. Other than that, no problem.

Somehow the Broncos lost by 45 to a team run by THIS guy!!

FIFTY-NINE POINTS?!?!?!? TO THE RAIDERS!!! THE BLEEPING OAKLAND RAIDERS!!!! THE TEAM RUN BY AN UNDEAD CRAZY PERSON? A TEAM THAT HASN'T WON MORE THAN FIVE GAMES IN A SEASON SINCE 2002!?!?!?!?

I'm not going to put a whole lot of effort breaking down that miserable excuse of a football game that took place at Invesco Field today. There is nothing worth reliving here. The Broncos didn't try, so why should I? Here is the readers digest version of what I regularly do in the recap:

Positives: None. Not a one. Seriously, nothing positive worth mentioning. Move along...

Negatives: Did you see the game? Did you see the final score? The entire afternoon was a negative. The Broncos were outscored by 45 points at home by a team that is terrible and has been terrible since we were only in the second year of the George W. Bush presidency. It is fine to lose a game, but to get throttled like you're a High School JV team is unacceptable.

In fact, let's look at how ridiculous this game was from a statistical viewpoint, with no commentary needed.

Total Plays:

Raiders 74
Broncos 50

Rushing Yards:

Raiders 328

Broncos 75

Turnovers:

Broncos 3

Raiders 0

Touchdowns:

Raiders 8

Broncos 2

Time of Possession:

Raiders - 38:39

Broncos - 21:21

Final Score:

Raiders - 59

Broncos - 14

This was more embarrassing than losing 55-10 to the 49ers in Super Bowl 24. At least that was a good team. This was a 2-4 team playing with little confidence. I've been defending Josh McDaniels, but this is unacceptable. Pat Bowlen should blow this whole thing up. Fire McDaniels, Fire his whole coaching staff, do it tonight. Immediately.

That team gave up and showed zero pride and zero heart. The Broncos are the laughingstock of the league tonight, and with good reason. McDaniels is 4-13 in his last 17 games, and it's harder to mail in a game any harder than the Broncos did today. They gave up 59 points in 3 quarters of play, and it could have been 75 points if Tom Cable didn't take his foot of the accelerator in the 4th quarter. If you were a betting man and somehow were able to get the Broncos plus 44 points, you STILL would have lost.

This is hard to stomach. At one point early in the fourth quarter in order to try and keep an audience that had no reason to keep watching this hot garbage, one of the announcers on CBS tried to promote the rest of the game by saying, "Will the Raiders crack 60? Stay tuned to find out!"

In the fifty years of the Raiders, this is the most points they have ever scored in a single game. There is no silver lining in this game. This cannot happen again. If McDaniels still has a job tonight, he has to figure out a way to beat the 49ers next week in London. I'm sure the NFL has to be pleased with their decision of which game to send overseas next week. A 1-6 team versus a 2-5 team that just lost by 45. Egads.

This season is quickly being flushed down the toilet, and the great vibes that came from a very competitive game against the Jets last week are long gone. This Broncos team appears to be very broken, and my faith in the man that has been tasked with fixing it is very low. I wasn't expecting a ton from the Broncos this year, but I kind of hoped we could keep a home game against the Raiders within 40 at the very least.

Oh well, I may be a disgusted Bronco fan, but I'm still a Bronco fan. This too shall pass, and hopefully SOMEDAY they'll be a good team again. It's just that doesn't seem likely at this point. I remain faithful to my franchise, even if today was one of it's lowest moments. Go Broncos. (Maybe next week we'll actually show up.)

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 6 - vs Jets

Jets 24 Broncos 20

LaDainian Tomlinson and the Jets just barely squeaked by a very game Broncos team in Denver on Sunday.

"Grand Theft: Football Game." I tweeted this out as I angrily walked back to my car after from Invesco Field on Sunday. I was livid at the end of the game, and now that I've had time to digest it, I'll concede that MAYBE it was conceivable for the ref to toss a flag for pass interference on 4th and 6 which basically handed the game to the Jets. However, I still believe the ref really should have kept the flag in his pocket.

The Broncos won that game, and then a call that shouldn't have been made was made, and they lost it. It was a beautiful Colorado October day. Invesco Field was more Orange that it has ever been. The Broncos were playing with a passion and intensity that we haven't seen all year, and they were outplaying the Jets. Heck, even Tim Tebow scored his first career touchdown today. It was a game that by all rights should have been Denver's, and yet at the end, it wasn't.

Champ Bailey is still very good.

That was an awful way to lose a game that the Broncos really deserved. Then to have it end with a whimper on a bobbled snap, when we were poised for a epic finish...It just hurt. That was a entertaining game from start to finish, and to be robbed of the drama at the end was hard to take. In the end, it was a game that although it will go down as a loss in the record book, I felt better about my Broncos at the end of it. There are no moral victories in the NFL, but this game was about as close as one can get. The Broncos were a good team today, and they really should have beaten a team that has to be considered Top 5 in the NFL right now.

Positives:

Syd'Quan Thompson was just one of many Broncos on the defensive side who had a very solid game.

The Defense: The Broncos defense was stout today. Forcing a team that had previously only given up one turnover into three today. Mark Sanchez looked over matched for much of the day. The Broncos defense gave up only 319 total yards, and they were great on 3rd downs holding the Jets to 5-13 on 3rd down. Sanchez hadn't thrown an interception all season, and the Broncos took 2 from him, and almost had three or four more additional that they just dropped.

The Running Game: The running-game challenged Broncos out rushed one of the better running teams in the NFL today 145 yards to 129 yards. Tim Tebow got into the act as the second leading rusher with six carries for 23 yards. Kyle Orton also had several key scrambles, and Knowshon Moreno returned from injury to have a solid day as well. After several weeks of a dreadful rushing attack, it was nice to be competent again.

Tim Tebow knows how to celebrate a touchdown.

Tim Tebow: His touchdown run in the second quarter was electric. I haven't seen a Bronco crowd that excited about a touchdown since the Elway era. Even though he only ran for 23 yards on the day and his long run of the day was a mere six yards, every time he was on the field the excitement levels jumped. Denver has fallen completely in love with Tebow.

The Color Orange: Okay, so this may sound dumb, but the Broncos game today felt a little old school. It was officially "Orange Sunday" with that phrase being plastered all over things from souvenir cups to rally towels that were handed out. The Broncos were wearing Orange, the crowd came decked in more orange than I have ever seen at Invesco, and the atmosphere was almost collegiate. I know it has very little to do with the outcome of the game, but today's game felt a little different and more intense, and as crazy as it sounds, I felt like the fact that Orange was so predominant today transferred to the intensity of the team on the field. Yes, that is a ridiculous thing to say, but I honestly felt it today.

Negatives:

This should not have been a penalty.

Pass Interference: You can't make that call. You just can't. Renaldo Hill and Santonio Holmes were both going for the ball. You have got to let that one go. If that flag never hits the ground, the Broncos kneel on the ball a few times and walk off the field with a well deserved win. Ugh, that hurts.

The Game ended with a fizzle, as Kyle Orton was unable to corral this fumbled snap.

Kyle Orton: He's been gangbusters all season, but today Kyle was off. His passes were often off target, he seemed to be not on the same page with his receivers, and there was just something not quite right about his game today. He finished a rather poor 14-34 for 209 yards. He still played with a lot of heart, and made some big plays with his feet, but today was not his finest hour.

The Field Goal unit: Lonie Paxton flubbed a first half snap that caused what should have been an easy field goal try to not even be able to be kicked, and Prater missed a 49 yarder. Not that we can blame the loss on that, but those are six points that would have been valuable in a four point loss. On the plus side, Prater did nail a 59 yarder at the end of the half that would have been good from 67 yards.

Final Thought:

Demaryius Thomas hauls in a touchdown to put the Broncos up 17-10.

This really should have been a win, and I'm proud of my team. There are different kinds of losses. All of them hurt, but after the Ravens loss last week, I was embarrassed to be a Broncos fan. After today's loss, I was proud of my team, and am hopeful for the future. Still...a win would have been nice, especially considering how close they came. Oh well, we'll get em next week when the hated Raiders come calling. Go Broncos!

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 5 - at Ravens

Ravens 31 Broncos 17

Ray Rice and the Ravens ran roughshod over the Broncos on Sunday.

Ugh. That was ridiculous. If you're a Broncos fan, that was hard to watch. Sometimes, the other guy is just better than you. In the case of the Ravens...much better than you. The Broncos didn't have a prayer today, not only were they less talented, which we already knew...they played bad football. They hadn't played like a badly coached team all year, but today they appeared to be over matched and under prepared. You're bound to lay an egg from time to time, and going into Baltimore is a tough game for anyone, but I'm hoping this isn't the beginning of a trend.

There is no way to sugar-coat this game...The Broncos got whooped.

The Broncos lost the game, they lost the battle at the line of scrimmage, they lost two safeties and their first round pick wide receiver for the day (possibly longer), they lost their ability to not get massively penalized, and they lost their way. If you bet on the Broncos, you lost your money. It was truly a lost weekend. The Broncos probably lost their luggage on their flight home.

Positives:

One of the few bright spots for Denver, Brandon Lloyd is really have a crazy good season from out of nowhere.

Brandon Lloyd: Granted, many of his 135 yards and his second touchdown came in garbage time, but Brandon Lloyd shone brightly for the Broncos on a day where little went right for Denver in a mostly horrible game. He made some outstanding catches and continues to be one of the biggest surprise stories of this NFL season. In his 8th NFL season, this journeyman has bounced from the 49ers, Bears, and Redskins and finally arrived last year as a deep bench guy for Denver playing in all of two games for the Broncos in 2009. He has never had more than 48 catches in a season now he already has 30 after only five games, and he currently leads all NFL players in receiving yardage. Yup, from scrapheap to number one. Great story this year.

The Broncos stopped Rice and the Ravens on drive number one...a theme that unfortunately didn't hold for the rest of the day's proceedings.

Goal line defense: The Ravens had little trouble moving the ball all day, but once it got inside the 10, the Broncos at least made it difficult. The first drive of the game when the Broncos sacked Flacco at the 15 yard line on Fourth and Goal from the 1 raised my hopes for the day...Those hopes were quickly dashed, but at least they were briefly raised.

Negatives:

Offensive line: The Ravens defense is solid, but the Broncos offensive line made it look spectacular. Although Orton was only sacked once, he didn't have nearly enough time to make it through his progressions and even worse, the O-line is getting zero push. The running game is non-existent to the point it's embarrassing. The offense cannot be this unbalanced and survive. Defenses are cheating on the pass game, because there is absolutely no threat that the running game will do anything. The result is short drives, quick punts, and a tired defense. It's getting to be a huge problem for this team.

The offensive line was able to do little to stop Ray Lewis and his band of merry men in purple.

Run Defense: The Ravens marched through the Broncos defense with no difficulty. Ray Rice had a huge game with 133 yards on 27 carries, and when the Ravens brought in Willis McGahee it got even worse for the Broncos, as he averaged 6.7 yards per carry in relief of Rice. The Ravens were so effective running the ball, they used the passing game sparingly, yet effectively as Flacco only completed 14 passes, but that was all they needed to blow out the Broncos.

Penalties: Ten Penalties for 90 yards, and many which came at crippling times for the Broncos offense. Denver was undisciplined and it cost them any chance at a win. If they were going to go into Baltimore and win, they'd need to be special, they were anything but.

Final Thought:

The Ravens are very good, the Broncos are mediocre at best. This game revealed just how wide that spread was. The statistics and final score, while quite imbalanced, are still somewhat misleading, as the Ravens D let up a bit at the end and the Broncos got some garbage yards and points at the end. This was a blowout, and it was even worse than you might think if you didn't watch it. The most telling stat was total time of possession and total number of plays. The Ravens held the ball for 36:17 to 23:43 for Denver. Even worse, the Ravens ran 73 plays to 52 for the Broncos. Denver could have lost this one by 30, easily.

Lets take a moment to appreciate Kyle Orton. He went over 300 yards for the fourth straight game despite having the handicap of not having a running game. People can clamor for Tebow if they like, but that would be foolishness, as Orton is playing tremendously well right now.

It's probably better that we don't dwell on this one too long. Although, It's not like life gets easier next week, as the Broncos will welcome in the Jets who are looking good thus far this season. This may be the start of the inevitable slide, but here's hoping that McDaniels can get back in the lab and come up with something that stops the bleeding a little. I don't expect playoffs this year, but I'm hoping for progress this season which leads to hope for the future. The Ravens game was the first time this season that it looked like the Broncos were moving backwards, which is discouraging. Oh well, we'll try to remain positive as we cheer for our boys. Despite the tough game, Go Broncos!

Broncos Gameday Recap: Game 4 - at Titans

Broncos 26 Titans 20

Correll Buckhalter hauls in the winning touchdown late in the 4th quarter in Tennessee today.

Best win of the season? Undoubtedly. Hopefully there will be more like this, as the Broncos went into a hostile stadium as a pretty decent sized underdog, and despite a complete inability to run the football...they were able to find a way to scrap together an impressive victory.

Despite getting outplayed for the majority of the game, the Broncos found a way to win this one thanks to some strong defensive play, hot and cold special teams work, and another terrific outing from their quarterback...and also in no small part to a well-earned pass interference flag. The end result was a 26-20 win on the road in a game it appeared they had pretty much lost right up until the final minutes.

The defense truly held up it's end of the bargain today in Nashville.

It was a refreshing win, an unexpected win, but not a win that was without significant flaws. Mostly it was a win that came as a result of the Broncos playing how they need to play to win. They aren't going to overpower you with their talent, but they can take advantage of all the breaks and pull out a win, even when you don't expect them to. I'm going to chalk some of that up to good coaching, as if I can say one thing about the 2010 Broncos at the quarter-pole: They have been very well coached.

Positives:

Another big day for employee number 8.

Kyle Orton: Once again, we need to give massive kudos to the quarterback. All this focus has been on Tim Tebow as the quarterback of the future, but if the Purdue quarterback keeps playing like this, it would be foolish to replace Orton. In addition to throwing for 341 yards on 70% passing, he also led the Broncos in rushing...a fact that is more a negative comment on the run game than a positive comment about Kyle's wheels, but a fact nonetheless. He had one terrible play in which he was trying to force a throw to pick up a first down and caused an interception, but apart from that, it's hard to be much better than Orton has been so far. The Broncos are at .500 due to their quarterback, and he has been fantastic thus far this year. He has thrown for 817 yards in just the past two games. If he keeps doing this, eventually even the national media are going to clue in to how good of a season he's having.

Brian Dawkins helped shutter the Titans offense for the day.

The Defense: The Broncos ran 76 plays to the Titans 52, and a lot of that was due to the defense getting Vince Young and company off the field quickly. Young threw for only 173 yards, and Chris Johnson was held to a measly 53. The Broncos defense only gave up 13 points (one TD came on a kickoff return) and basically they stuffed the Titans repeatedly. Considering how often this defense looks like hot butter and opponents offenses look like a knife, this was a refreshing change of pace on the defensive side of the ball for the Broncos.

Brandon Lloyd = Stud.

Brandon Lloyd: Somehow, this journeyman has become a superstar this year. The dude is only 3 yards away from being the leading the entire NFL in receiving yards. He is getting open or just finding a way to make the catch when he's covered. It's nothing short of incredible.

The Broncos Mr. Reliable so far this season: Matt Prater!

Matt Prater: Hey, his longest was only 36 yards, but in an age where kickers seem to regularly shank makable field goals lets hear it for Prater thus far. He went 4-4 on field goals today, the dude is still 100% on kicks for the season, and in addition to that he kicked that wonky kickoff that bounced really high in the air and allowed the Broncos to recover it. All in all, a very strong day for the Bronco kicker.

Negatives:

I'm not saying that Laurence Maroney couldn't have rushed for 100 yards today, it's just that at today's pace, he'd have needed 200 carries to do it.

Laurence Maroney: I was never a big fan of Maroney in New England, but now that he is a Bronco...I really dislike the guy. He hasn't done or said anything wrong, but something about the way he carries himself and the way he carries the ball rubs me wrong. It doesn't help that he averaged a whopping 0.5 yards per carry today. It's not like the O-Line is helping him out at all, but yikes. He's done little to impress in his first two games for Denver. Hopefully Knowshon will be healthy enough to play next week.

The Offensive Line: The run blocking is non-existent, and when Kyle Orton wasn't being sacked for one of the six sacks they allowed, he was scrambling around like a madman. The line is young and needs time to mesh, but they have a LOT of room for improvement right now.

Marc Mariani runs away from the Broncos...all of them, that is, for a third quarter touchdown.

Kickoff Coverage: Reading your opponents name as he runs into the end zone is never a good thing if you're a kickoff cover team. At least they made up for it by icing the game with an exceptionally flukey kickoff recovery late in the game, but they are allowing teams to break or nearly break way too many runs.

Final Thought:

I'm not flat out saying the Broncos offense is unbalanced, but they have the number 1 passing offense and the number 30 rushing offense in the NFL right now...so I guess I am flat out saying that they are unbalanced. The only shock there is that there are actually two teams in the NFL worse at running the ball. Even with that handicap, they are moving the ball thanks to Kyle Orton being better than I expected and the wide receivers lapping expectations thus far. Broncos fans were worried that we wouldn't be able to replace Brandon Marshall, and all we've done thus far is have two receivers with more yards, and three receivers with as many or more catches than Marshall has gotten in Miami. Now if we could just run the ball...

Regardless, winning on the road is always a big deal, and doing it against a fairly talented and well regarded team like Tennessee is even better. It was a terrific win, one I hope we see replicated several more times this season. Go Broncos!