Thoughts over Sunday Nights Pre-Season Game 3

Sunday's game against the Chicago Bears and former Bronco QB Jay Cutler had over 70,000 fans in attendance. Talk about a play-off type atmosphere!!! All the added hype and television drama replays over Cutlers departure re-opened past wounds that probably won't heal anytime soon. Funny thing is at the end of the season last year I expected Cutler to be running out onto Invesco Field for our first pre-season game. What I didn't expect was for it to be for the other team! Irony in its best form.

Both teams on offense looked shaky from the start, and the defenses were dominating. Orton struck first on the Broncos 3rd drive that set up a Matt Prater 31 yard field goal. Cutler came right back with a drive of his own that set up a Robby Gould 40 yard field goal to tie it up at 3-3. After a few back and forth series that netted no scores the game changing moment happened that put the Broncos on the ropes. The same old game changing moment that has plagued the Broncos over the years. A long punt return to set up the go ahead score.

I have no idea why we (the Broncos) like to make high light reels for the leagues best punt returners and kick off returners. Regardless, Devin Hester took a punt 54 yards to our own 4 yard line. Chicago isn't going to try to pass the ball; they are a run first, hard nosed tough team and will hammer it in. Matt Forte put Chicago up 10-3.

Our next series ends with Kyle Orton slicing his right index finger on a defensive players helmet during an incomplete pass; he will not return to the game. Chicago gets pinned at their 2 yard line. Jay Cutler comes out and does what he used to do for Denver. He took the Bears 98 yards down the field and throws a 6 yard TD pass to Matt Forte with 13 seconds left before halftime. Chicago is up 17-3 and that is the only score that matters. In the 2nd half all the scrubs come out to play.

Personally, I was GLAD to see Cutler drive the ball 98 yards down the field. Images of Cutler in Blue and Orange immediately surface to mind. He showed everything that we used to have. The scrambling, the sliding in the pocket, the passes in tight windows for completions on the run, and especially the 3rd down conversions to keep the drive alive! McHoodie had a front row seat to view the franchise player he was too proud to acknowledge was as good a QB as Matt Cassel. McHoodie did his best to slow the 98 yard drive down with two fruitless challenges on throws from Cutler to Olsen and then the TD throw to Forte, but it was all in vain. That's what franchise QB's do! They make coaches (Lovie Smith) and they make fools of coaches (no need to fill in the blank here.)

There were a couple plays that could've changed the game in our favor. If Elvis Dumervil sacks Cutler for the safety this game is pretty much in our hands. He was just a split second slow on a few other times. And his frustration showed when he hit Cutler late for a penalty. It just goes to show you that this game is all about inches.

The Defense is definitely better, I'm sure of it now! Mike Nolan has done a phenomenal job changing to the 3-4. We are in great hands with Nolan, I hope he sticks around for years to come.

I am glad that this game is OVER and behind us. Kyle Orton can relax now and not have to try to prove he is our starter. He just has to let his finger heal. He was a bit over excited (hell I was too) which put him off target a couple of times. If there is anything I would wish for, its that Kyle Orton had a chance to come back out a couple more times to see if he could get a solid TD drive going.

The rest of the offensive weapons looked awesome. Royal did excellent, but he scared me when his arm got mashed by a big ole Defensive line man. Peyton did great, but he scared me too when he drove his knee into the turf and came up limping.

Our team is going to win some games this year. I'm confident enough to say that we're still the 2nd best team in the AFC West! IF we can beat San Diego soundly once, that will make my year! Cheers.

Thoughts over Saturday Nights Pre-Seaon Game 2

The Offense:

The Broncos offense looked sharp coming out of the gates. Kyle Orton proved he could engineer long drives and hit open receivers in the end zone. Jabar Gaffney made quite a few excellent catches, but he needs to finish off the drives. The pass he dropped in the end zone led to an ugly interception on the next play. My favorite players - Eddie Royal, Brandon Stokley, and Peyton Hillis - all looked stout and ready to play in the regular season. We sorely need Brandon Marshall.

The Defense:

It looks like we still need a lot of work, especially in the middle of the field. As far as the cornerbacks, when you're going up with the likes of T.J. Houshmandzadeh, chances are he's going to make you look bad. He burned Andre Goodman on a fade route for a TD. On the play before that he pulled an excellent ankle breaker move on Champ Bailey with a short sluggo route that Hasselback over threw him (should've been a TD too!) Early in the game the pressure on Hasselback was great, however it diminished greatly with a few short passes and screens. Our Blitz package needs to be disguised more. I hope Mike Nolan has some plans for improving the defense.

The Left-Handed Interception:

To me, pre-season give opportunity for situational football. Since the games are glorified practices, why not use them when given the opportunity? He's what I thought right away when we went for the TD on 4th down. First of all the starting offense was not going to come back out on the field, so in a sense, this was the final play of their game that mattered.

The situation: 4th and goal, play-off game, do or die, anything goes!

Although it turned out ugly in the end, I don't blame Kyle Orton for trying to make something happen. His right arm was being grabbed and he switched the ball to the left hand. Then he sent a floating dead duck up for grabs that was easily intercepted. He did what he had to given the situation. I could live with that play if it was the last play of the last game of the season.

Obviously if this was a real game with the time left on the clock in the 2nd quarter, then we would've kicked a field goal and gone in for half time to make adjustments on defense. But it's pre season and I believe the situation presented itself. It's nice to know that Kyle will do anything in a do or die situation, no matter the out come. Sure, he was ridiculed by the network for the play. I just don't think those that ridiculed understood what was really going on. I just hope I'm right, cheers! :-D

Invesco Practice

If the practice at Invesco is a glimpse of what the rest of the season is going to look like, then it's going to be a long season! 2 interceptions and missed throws to wide open receivers from our QB Kyle Orton drew Boos from Denver Bronco Fans! I hope it was a result of an improved defense instead of a declining offense, but it's probably more accurate to say it's a mix of both. Being the 2nd rank offense and a switch at the head of the offense result in a decline, having the 28th rank defense and a switch to a lot of players and positions result in an increase in performance.

Since the biggest trade of the 2009 off season happened earlier this year, my expectations are not high at all for the Broncos. So I guess I shouldn't be surprised by the out come nor the reaction of the fans. Both Orton and McHoodie answered questions realistically, fans boo when you deserve to be booed and cheer when you deserve to be cheered.

Since this division is probably still the weakest in the NFL, and Cassel isn't looking any better in KC than Orton is here, we might still have a chance to squeak out a couple wins here and there. Oakland should become good games again, but I'm still afraid that San Diego will kick our ass soundly. San Diego is the power house in our division and will probably continue to be for a couple more years. I'm only being as realistic as Orton and McHoodrat! Cheers.

Thoughts of the Kyle Orton, Brandon Marshall and Josh McDaniels Monday Interview

I finished watching all the interviews from Monday 6/28/2009 at the Broncos website with Kyle Orton, Brandon Marshall and Josh McDaniels.

Kyle Orton

It's hard not to like Kyle Orton. He's doing the best he can with the situation that he's been dealt. In his interview with the Denver media, he's a straight shooter. He didn't avoid any questions but rather answered them methodically and professionally. It's a great way to establish a solid stable foundation within the organization. The Broncos need all the solid players they can get.

Looking back, it's kind of funny how we as fan's didn't ask for the Spring fiasco, and probably neither did Kyle. After all, he finally established himself in Chicago as being the 'Starting QB.' After being upended and shipped to Denver as fast as you can order a Chicago Dog, it must have been the last whirl wind he expected from the windy city.

Personally I think that Kyle is a guy who just wants to call a franchise home; hoping our Denver Broncos football family will like him enough to grow on him and want him to stay. I like what I saw in the interview. I fear though that this is his one chance to run the table this season and I hope he does well. I'm a smuck when it comes to underdogs... I always like to root for them. Especially when it's a make or break situation. It's those types of stories that make sports history great. I really want Kyle Orton to be one of those stories.

Brandon Marshall

Brandon's body language and his answers to media questions pretty much tell the story. Brandon really doesn't want to play for the Broncos WITHOUT being PAID the BIG LONG TERM CONTRACT he is looking for. His only reason for showing up was to continue to get paid and also not to get fined. Right now it seems like he's just going through the motions (like a lot of unhappy employees) to earn a pay check. Sometimes work isn't as glamorous as we'd like it to be. But we all have to make a living, right? I'm wondering how the story pans out through training camp... for good or for worse?

Josh McDaniels

The interview with Josh McDaniels was straight forward, but was not very assuring about the Brandon Marshall situation. It seems like McDaniels answered all the questions regarding Marshall with intentional ignorance. I find this interesting because his focus in rebuilding has been all about character players. Right now whether McDaniels likes it or not, Marshall's character is in question. I really don't think that ignoring it is going to make it go away, and for now that's what it seems like he's doing.

What You See Is What You Get

There is a clear compare/contrast between Marshall and Orton. Both in comparison are in peculiar situations and both are in situations they didn't ask for. In constrast however, Marshall ended up in his situation for his off field antics. Orton ended up in his situation for other people and the Broncos organization off field antics. The other contrast is that Marshall is a very talented receiver, Orton is an average QB at best compared in respect to their peers. Kyle is doing everything he can to stay with the Broncos, Brandon is doing just enough to not get fined.

Kyle Orton is going to give it his all when he goes out on the field. There is no doubt about it. He seems solid and in the right state of mind to enter camp. I believe Rod Smith mentioned on the NFL Network a month ago that you have to enter camp that way. Orton definitely put in the necessary work during the off-season. I hope it pays off during camp.

I don't know if Marshall will be traded since his trade value isn't as much as it should be, but I don't know if he'll play hard either. I think that if they wanted to get rid of him, then the Broncos would have done it by now. Either that or they learned from dealing with a previous player that rushing the process through isn't the best way to handle the situation. Chances are he's going through the motions while his mind is elsewhere wishing for that contract that he wants. In my opinion, if you pay Brandon Marshall, this fiasco all goes away PLUS, you'll have a happy Pro-Bowl wide receiver, and a happier starting quarterback. Not only that but the whole offense should be on the same page and ready to roll come the regular season.

As for Josh McDaniels, he seems to be answering the questions about Marshall the same way he answered questions in April - lots of smiles, lots of lies, lots of singing and dancing, and for this fan a whole lot of lack for trust. I think he is intelligent and probably has to answer the question like he did, it's only day 1. However I hope he doesn't ignore the Marshall situation too long. Convincing Pat Bowlen to make Marshall happy would definitely make up for past mistakes.