Recovering Broncos

The Broncos’ offense seems to be coming around. Kyle Orton is the symbol of stability and it seems like most of the players are healing from their injuries. I am pretty happy with rookie left guard Zane Beadles and rookie center JD Walton on the offensive line. They have played most of the preseason games at Cincinnati and vs Detroit and didn’t look too bad. Sure, at times in the Detroit game there were hurries and sacks allowed but Denver’s two best blockers Daniel Graham and Ryan Clady weren’t in action to block Pro Bowl defensive lineman Kyle Vanden Bosh and 2nd overall pick Ndamukong Suh. Pass protection shouldn’t be a problem with Denver this year. I am more concerned with run-blocking on the offensive line. Part of that should be fixed with Denver completely going away from zone blocking to the power blocking scheme. This should make it easier for Knowshon Moreno, Correll Buckhalter, and LeDale White to gain yards.
Today, I heard news of Eddie Royal being used as a slot receiver. I think it’s a great move. He’s the best route runner on the team and he can make huge plays from short passes. We know Jabar Gaffney will be Orton’s #1 receiver but #2 is still up in the air. Demaryius Thomas was drafted to make up for the loss of Brandon Marshall but he seems to keep re-aggravating his foot injury and now appears to have a stress fracture. I predict either Eric Decker or Brandon Lloyd will take the #2 spot opposite Jabar Gaffney. We will see. So far it looks like Denver’s diamond in the rough is tight end Marquez Branson. The undrafted free agent out of Central Arkansas has looked good in preseason games so far! (3 catches for 20 yards and a touchdown vs Detroit). I am just thrilled to see signs the Broncos are healing and appear primed for the regular season in a few weeks.

True "Wild" card team

It is that time of year again. When the Rockies have slacked off much of the season and pull it together when it matters (kind of how Shaq used to in his prime). The Rockies once again have proven they can beat any team at Coors Field. Their home record to date is 41-20 (2nd in major league baseball), but no one has ever questioned the Rockies at home. Their road record is a pitiful 25-40 (tied for 9th worst in baseball). Surprisingly, the Rockies have the same road record as the Kansas City Royals! Whether the Rockies make the playoffs or not, they will look back on this season and see not one road trip going .500 or better. This makes me glad I never vacationed to see the Rockies play on the road this season. I will assume they correct their mistakes on the road and I will proudly represent the purple and black somewhere away from Coors next season.
All hope is not lost for Colorado this year. The Rockies are on a 4-game win-streak and are only 4 games back from the wild card spot at 66-60. The Rockies have little room for error from now until the end of the season. Granted, they don’t necessarily have to win 21 out of 22 but they have to play much better baseball on the road. This time last year the Rockies led the wildcard with a 72-54 record but on the road they were 36-30! Of the 36 games remaining in the season, Colorado plays 19 games at home, leaving 17 road games. If the Rockies plan on making the playoffs they must play stellar on the road winning at least 14 of their remaining 17, and continue to win at home, taking at least 12 of their remaining 19 games. If the Rockies can manage to win 26 of their remaining 36 games they will make the playoffs. The Rockies must find consistency in their bats like they have during this win streak. Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki cannot carry the team by themselves. The Rockies need continued production from Dexter Fowler and Todd Helton, as well as Ian Stewart and Seth Smith. The bullpen must be able to close out games. Huston Street has saved 2 straight games after coming out of his rut, and Joe Beimel has played very consistent lately. Rafael Betancourt disappointed me Monday night when he let the Braves back in it in the 9th inning. If Tracy leaves Manny Corpas on the bench and the bullpen consistently closes out games, the Rockies should be in great shape for October.

Elvis Out

Losing Dumervil last week in training camp obviously hurts the Broncos. Although Dumervil is Denver’s best player, all hope is not lost for the 2010 season. Josh McDaniels has built the Broncos on the philosophy of all players performing as a team, not relying on one player or super star to win. This exact philosophy is about to be put to the test. As long as Robert Ayers steps up Denver should be fine. Without Dumervil, Denver's linebackers consist of guys like DJ Williams, Wesley Woodyard, Mario Haggan, Jarvis Moss, Darrell Reid, and Spencer Larson. Since DJ Williams has played all linebacker positions with Denver, maybe Coach Martindale should consider moving him back on the outside and start Spencer Larson in the middle. Denver could also help themselves by signing Adalius Thomas to a one-year deal to fill the void left by Dumervil. Sure Adalius doesn't rush the quarterback like Dumervil but he would sure help relieve some of the pressure off the rest of the linebackers. Plus he used to play in New England with Josh McDaniels and he is a very versatile linebacker/defensive lineman hybrid similar to what Dumervil is, just not as good. Denver also has hope because our front 3 defensive linemen are all proven veterans in Justin Bannan, Jamal Williams, and Jarvis Green. Our depth is solid in our front 3 with Ryan McBean, Ronald Fields, Marcus Thomas, and LeKevin Smith backing them up. In years’ past our defensive line has traditionally worn down toward the end of the season, so not only will these guys be ready for a 16-game regular season, they also make our linebackers’ jobs easier despite the loss of Dumervil. With a strong defensive front 7 that should make our secondary’s job easier as well. Future Hall of Famers Champ Bailey and Brian Dawkins will be impactful as usual, along with roll players Andre Goodman and Renaldo Hill bringing consistency to the secondary. I really like rookie Perrish Cox. He already seems more impressive than 2nd round pick Alfonso Smith whom we traded a 1st round pick to Seattle in exchange for. Now we have the defense covered I will cover our young, up and coming offense later this week.
It’s amusing how most of the national media predicts a 6-10 season for the Broncos after news of Dumervil’s injury. They predicted a similar outcome after we lost Jay Cutler, yet we still managed to go 8-8 last year. In reality, looking at the Broncos’ schedule we play 6 games vs the AFC West (otherwise known as the AFC Worst) with a combined record of 22-26 last year. Granted, each team in our division will be improved, but so should the Broncos. I expect 3-4 wins out of our 6 games vs the AFC West. Denver also faces the weak NFC West which had a combined record of 24-40 last year. The NFC West is clearly in rebuilding mode with Seattle changing coaches/regimes, Arizona losing their future Hall of Fame QB Kurt Warner, and St Louis, is well.. St Louis. The team I am most concerned about out of the NFC West is San Francisco. This game is played in London in late October, which will be tough for Denver because of travelling fatigue and they are facing a team that loves to wear down their opponents with the run-game. Coach Singletary made his commitment to the run-game very clear when he drafted 2 offensive linemen in the 1st round of this year’s draft (Mike Iupati and Anthony Davis). Hopefully McDaniels has a plan to stop it or at least contain it. Denver’s clear advantage vs San Francisco is at QB, where all 3 of our QB’s are better and more serviceable than Alex Smith, who’s game is rubbish. Out of the NFC West I am expecting at least 3 wins, which brings our win total just from the AFC West and NFC West to around 6-7 wins. This leaves 6 other games (@Jacksonville, vs Indianapolis, @Tennessee, @Baltimore, vs New York, and vs Houston) to find 2-3 more wins. All hope is not lost in Denver. We should remain competitive.

Floyd Little

Congratulations to Floyd Little for being the third Denver Bronco to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame! He deserves it. I obviously wasn't around to see him play but I know he meant a lot to the Denver Broncos. Back in the 1960's the Broncos were terrible and no one cared to attend the games. His nickname was “The Franchise” because he forced the build out of Mile High Stadium and was so exciting to watch he started selling out the stadium and saved the Broncos from relocation. Mile High Stadium sell-outs are a tradition that still lasts to this day. I am on a 5-year waiting list for season tickets to the Denver Broncos. In 1971, Little was the first Bronco to exceed 1,000 yards in a single season, with an NFL-best 1,133 yards that year. In 1972 he was voted “Running back of the Year” by the Professional Football Writers of America. From 1968-1973 he led all of professional football in rushing yards and retired 7th all time in professional football history with 6,323 yards and 54 touchdowns. Little was the first Bronco to have his jersey (44) retired. Although he retired 7th all time, the top 6 ahead of him had already been voted in by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, which was common for pre-merger players of AFL teams. Little finally got his turn this past Saturday when he was enshrined. His hall of fame speech was inspiring. He urged anyone who heard his voice to be a leader in whatever you do; to leave a legacy for your family to be proud of. Floyd Little never gave up; even when odds were against him in his life. 37 years after he played his last game, he still personifies who a true Denver Bronco really is.