The State of the Denver Broncos
by hoosierteacher
on Sep 29, 2008 2:29 PM MDT
in The Quest
It's time to take an honest self evaluation. There are a lot of good things to take comfort in if you are a Broncos fan. There are also some things that need to be faced that should keep you awake at night. I want to look at both.
Coming from a coach's perspective, folks shouldn't panic over one game. On the other hand, folks shouldn't get too excited over the 3-0 mark we were at before the KC loss. What we have on our hands is a very, very good team that has some terrible flaws. Yes, we beat SD and NO, but the games were close enough to be decided by a two point conversion and missed FGs. We beat Oakland, but that's not much to brag about. We also lost to KC, and that's a concern.
We'll look at what can be adjusted for and what probably can't, and where this puts the team as it continues The Quest.
Read on...
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Denver Broncos @ Kansas City Chiefs - The Edge
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 27, 2008 6:21 PM MDT
in 2008 Game Previews
For all your Kansas City Chiefs News, check out Arrowhead Pride
2008 OFFENSE
| Category | Broncos | Chiefs |
| Points Scored | 38.0 (1st) | 10.7 (30th) |
| Passing | 301.7 (2nd) | 144.7 (28th) |
| Rushing | 130.3(10th) | 113.7 (16th) |
| Total Offense (yards) | 432.0 (2nd) | 258.3 (28th) |
2008 DEFENSE
| Category | Broncos | Chiefs |
| Points Allowed | 28.0 (28th) | 26.0 (24th) |
| Passing | 315.7 (32nd) | 153.0 (4th) |
| Rushing | 106.5 (15th) | 204.0 (31st) |
| Total Defense (yards) | 421.7 (30th) | 357.0 (25th) |
The numbers seem to indicate the Broncos have the advantage when they travel to Arrowhead to face the Chiefs. Broncos fans know better, however, since we have seen many strange things over time in our travels to the Show Me state. The Broncos are looking to 4-0 and win consecutive regular season games in Kansas City for the first time in nearly 30 years. Can they get it done? Let's find out.
It's Broncos/Chiefs. Who has "The Edge"?
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MHR Chalk Talk -- Week 4 - Denver Broncos at KC Chiefs (part one)
by hoosierteacher
on Sep 24, 2008 3:00 PM MDT
in 2008 Game Previews
YOUR SOURCE FOR THE VERY BEST
IN DENVER BRONCO PRE-GAME ANALYSIS
MILEHIGHREPORT.COM
For all your Kansas City Chiefs News, check out Arrowhead Pride
Denver comes into this feeling like they are on top of the world. They are already 3-0, and now face a division opponent that is 0-3. With a win, Denver will have scored at least one win against each AFC West rival. For the playoff race, this means that Denver can do no worse than tie if a tiebreaker comes down to intra-division records.
Denver may also be licking their lips in anticipation for the game. While KC is a difficult venue for the Broncos to play in, injuries and uncertainty plauge the Chiefs. Huard is taking the helm at QB from Thigpen, and LB Edwards is out with an injury. Surtain (CB) is questionable. A 4-0 start would be great for the Broncos, but it would be foolish to assume that the game is already over.
Read on...
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Should a 3-0 Broncos Team Have Any Concerns?
by hoosierteacher
on Sep 23, 2008 3:00 PM MDT
in The Quest
At this point in the season it feels pretty good to be a Broncos fan. Cutler is playing like a Pro Bowl talent, and his targets are playing at the same level. Perhaps the best news about the Broncos is the youth movement.
Does anyone doubt that Clady and Harris will play at offensive tackle for years to come? How about Marshall and Royal? The team is throwing points at opponents at a staggering rate, and the Broncos faithful are loving it.
But questions remain, even for a team out to a three and zero start. It may not be pleasant to consider, but it bears discussion.
- Some statistics point to an effective defense, and the case can be made that the defense isn't doing so bad. On the other hand, teams are putting up a lot of points.
- Does the offense need balance? Can we really keep winning putting the ball in the air so much?
- Are the Broncos changing their identity on both sides of the ball, leading to new era? Is this a good thing?
Let's look at these points and bring together our community at Milehighreport.com for a discussion.
Read on...
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Broncos 34 - Saints 32 - The Monday, Mike Shanahan Extravaganza!
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 22, 2008 5:26 PM MDT
in Weekly Pressers
I am taking a "glass half-full" approach to the defense, but what about the coach? Let's find out in his transcript from his weekly Monday meeting with the press --
On the defense
“We have talked about it from day one. You have to be able to stop the run to have a chance to have a good defense, and we did that holding them to 3.5 yards per rushing attempt. That is where you start. We will get better with our pass defense as time goes on. We are doing a number of things that are new in comparison to a year ago. It just takes some time. If we have the effort that we had overall, offense, defense and special teams, good things will happen for our football team.”
On if he is alarmed at the defense giving up so many points
“I am not alarmed at all because if you get that kind of effort overall, good things are going to happen. You have to be alarmed because you gave up so many passing yards but that is something you can work on and get better at. You have drops and different zones. You get different things that different offenses do that you have to adjust to. You get different scheming and different quarterbacks that can sometimes give you different opportunities to come up with big plays. We have to get better on third downs. They were 8-14 on third downs, and they had a third down and 12 and a third down and 7 when it was 21-3 and that game was almost over. You just have to be on with your zone drops and you have to make a tackle here and there. It is something we can work on, especially with that type of effort. That was as hard as we have played in a long time.”
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Denver Broncos 34 - New Orleans Saints 32 - Making the Grade
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 22, 2008 9:58 AM MDT
in 2008 Post Game Notes
Another nail-biter for the Broncos came down to the final seconds, and again the Broncos survived. Let's take one last look at the 34-32 win over the Saints before getting right back to the AFC West and the Kansas City Chiefs. We'll talk much more about that, but it is time for this week's edition of "Making The Grade" where I will grade the Broncos performance from the day before. The most important "grade" is the one on the scoreboard, and for the Broncos this week it was another W. What about the players performance? Let's take a look....
| QUARTERBACK | |
B- |
Jay Cutler -- 21/34 - 264 yds, 2 TD, 1 INT To be so young and so talented. Jay Cutler had another solid football game, yet the Broncos signal caller still left me a bit wanting. Perhaps because Cutler is so good so young I expect too much. I'll except that reasoning and give you that I am the one with the problem. Still, call me spoiled in what I am looking for from Cutler. As was stated in the open threads yesterday, Cutler has the weight of the football team on his shoulder right now, which magnified every mistake he makes. Yesterday it was the interception on the first play after the Saints had scored a touchdown to cut the Broncos lead to 21-10. That is a big drive for the Broncos at that point because the defense had just spent a long time on the field and needed the break. It was a bad decision to throw into double coverage, but I won't blame Cutler for having confidence in both his arm and his receivers. There were also a couple of throws Cutler flat out missed, leaving yards and points on the field. I know, I'm being overly critical, but Cutler plays quarterback in Denver, it comes with the territory. The offense is still scoring at an impressive clip. They scored points on 5/10 possessions yesterday, including 3/5 for Touchdowns. For the season, the Broncos have scored on 18/29 possessions(62%), with 13/18 resulting in 6 points(72%). Those numbers will win you alot of football games.
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Weekly Presser - The Mike Shanahan Monday Spectacular
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 15, 2008 8:25 PM MDT
in Weekly Pressers
On if anyone called him and asked him why he went for two against the Chargers -- "Not really. I am pretty happy we made it though."
On if he was planning on attempting the two-point conversion ahead of time --
"We talked about it when we got the ball. I told these guys to get ready for it because if we score a touchdown, we are going for two. I just wanted to get it into the back of their mind. You can always back off of it if you want but I wanted them to be ready. If we scored, to go for two."
On attempting the two-point conversion to win the game --
"As I said before, you kind of have a gut feeling. We have a lot of confidence in our offense, offensive line, your receivers getting open and just coming into an important game. We only got about six plays in the third quarter and we had a bunch of plays in the fourth quarter that got our momentum going. I thought that with the coin flip, it was worth taking the chance."
On if it is in his personality to go for two in a win-lose situation --
"You go with your gut feeling. I remember the one time we were playing the Rams and we had the ball backed up right around the 30-yard line and we went for it on fourth and one. Our defense had been on the field for a long time. Was it a smart call? Probably no. You can kind of get a gut feeling with your football team and you just do what you think is right. I thought that was the right call and thankfully it worked."
On Chargers RB Darren Sproles --
"Sproles is one of the most underrated backs in the National Football League. He has great strength and great speed. When he caught that screen pass he ran away from a couple of our players that can run. He has strength, quickness, agility and if you make one mistake on kickoff coverage, he is gone. I have a lot of respect for him. It is a great one-two punch that they have."
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Denver Broncos 39 - San Diego Chargers 38 - Making The Grade
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 15, 2008 12:40 PM MDT
in 2008 Post Game Notes
One last look at the Chargers game before moving full throttle to Week 3's Home matchup with the Saints. We'll talk much more about that, but it is time for this week's edition of "Making The Grade" where I will grade the Broncos performance from the day before. The most important "grade" is the one on the scoreboard, and for the Broncos this week it was another W. What about the players performance? Let's take a look....
| QUARTERBACK | |
B |
Jay Cutler -- 36/50 - 350 yds, 4 TD, 1 INT It was another monster performance for Cutler. He was on target all day long, and to throw 50 passes and complete 72% of them is simply amazing. I can't, however, give Cutler anything better than a B because of the Red Zone pick. That play could have easily cost the Broncos the game, had things turned out differently. These things are going to happen with a young quarterback, however, and it is his effort at making a play every time he takes a snap that enables him to make 25 good plays before he makes 1 bad one. The hope is he learns from it and doesn't repeat it. Cutler knows this, and I am confident that we won;t see many more plays like this going forward. As an offense, the Broncos are still rolling, and through two games the team has scored points on 13/19(68%) possessions, with 10/13(77%)scoring possessions resulting in touchdowns. |
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San Diego Chargers @ Denver Broncos -- The Edge
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 12, 2008 11:04 AM MDT
in 2008 Game Previews
For all your San Diego Chargers News, check out Bolts From The Blue
2008 OFFENSE
| Category | Broncos | Chargers |
| Points Scored | 41.0 (1st) | 24.0 (23rd) |
| Passing | 300.0 (4th) | 211.0 (11th) |
| Rushing | 141.0 (11th) | 105.0 (20th) |
| Total Offense (yards) | 441.0 (4th) | 316.0 (15th) |
2008 DEFENSE
| Category | Broncos | Chargers |
| Points Scored | 14.0 (10th) | 26.0 (25th) |
| Passing | 157.0 (10th) | 246.0 (27th) |
| Rushing | 150.0 (25th) | 142.0 (23rd) |
| Total Defense (yards) | 307.0 (15th) | 388.0 (27th) |
Week 2, and Broncos fans are riding high after dominating the Raiders. Can they do it again, and at the same time take a two-game divisional lead over the Poweder Blue??? Let's find out...
It's Broncos/Chargers. Who has "The Edge"?
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Denver Broncos 41 - Oakland Raiders 14 - Post Game Notes
by TheSportsGuru
on Sep 9, 2008 5:47 AM MDT
in 2008 Post Game Notes
OPENING THOUGHTS
* - With the win, the Broncos improve to 31-17-1 in season openers for a .633 winning percentage, third-best in NFL history.
* - Broncos Head Coach Mike Shanahan improves to 12-4 in season openers in his career, second-best all-time among coaches who began their careers in the Super Bowl era (min. 14 games).
Highest Winning Percentage in Opening Day Games
Mike Ditka 11-3 (.786)
Mike Shanahan 12-4 (.750)
Bud Grant 12-6 (.667)
A ROYAL INTRODUCTION
* - Broncos rookie WR Eddie Royal finished with the most receiving yards (146) and the fourth-most receptions (9) of any NFL player in Week 1. Royal added two rushes for 9 yards, two punt returns for 19 yards and a kickoff return for 11 yards, bringing his all-purpose yards total to 185.
* - Royal’s 146 receiving yards marked the sixth most by a player in his NFL debut in league history with those records dating back to 1960. He posted the first 100-yard receiving game by a player in his debut since Anquan Boldin had an NFL-record 217 receiving yards in his first game with the Cardinals (9/7/03). His 146 receiving yards also were the second most by a Broncos rookie in his first game with that record held by WR Rick Upchurch (153 on three receptions with 1 TD) vs. K.C. (9/21/75).
* - Royal’s nine receptions were the most by a Broncos rookie in his NFL debut.
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