SB Nation User Blog: Broncs Cheer

Open Letter to Mike Tomlin from a Broncos Fan

Broncs Cheer — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:45:34 -0000

An open letter to Mike Tomlin and the rest of the Black and Gold braintrust...

Dear Mike,
I truly think you're one of the top coaches in the league, and so forgive my presumption, but it can't possibly have escaped your notice that losing to the Broncos this evening would be the BEST thing the Steelers could do to boost their playoff fortunes for the second half of the season:

Exhibit A: Those cats in Cincinnati nearly made the costly late error of beating the Broncos on opening day, but realized the error of their ways in the last 30 seconds and did the only prudent thing, tapping the ball to Brandon Stokely to preserve defeat.
They now control their destiny in the AFC North.

Exhibit B: The Cowboys were a team struggling to find their identity in Week 4, when Terence Newman made the play of their season, allowing Brandon Marshall to haul in his game winner and set off on that sublimely choreographed romp through the Boys secondary.
They now sit firmly atop the NFC East.

Exhibit C: The New England Patriots were destined for an AFC East dogfight with the Jets until finding their way in Denver in Week 5.
They're now a shoe-in for the division crown, and have rediscovered their championship swagger.

Exhibit D: The San Diego Chargers were reeling from inconsistent defense and a spotty running game before their special teams stepped up against the Broncos in Week 6.
They haven't lost since and will be a force to be reckoned with down the stretch.

Exhibit E: In a stunning show of contempt for deferred gratification and an utter collapse of discipline in the 4th quarter, The Ravens lost their way last week, and paid the price yesterday against Cincinnati.
They've been reduced to an impotent afterthought in the AFC North.

So Mike, you're a man among men, and a master motivator. I'm confident that you can find a way to fire up your troops and get them to bring their Z game tonight and "just lose baby."*

Sincerely,

A Fan

*After all, you wouldn't want to follow the advice of Al Davis these days, would you?

Seriously, Good luck this evening Steeler fans, and may the best team win....!!

An Open Letter to Mike Tomlin: A Loss Tonight Is Your Ticket to the Top

Broncs Cheer — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:34:14 -0000

Dear Mike,
I truly think you're one of the top coaches in the league, and so forgive my presumption, but it can't possibly have escaped your notice that losing to the Broncos this evening would be the BEST thing the Steelers could do to boost their playoff fortunes for the second half of the season....

Exhibit A: Those cats in Cincinnati nearly made the costly late error of beating the Broncos on opening day, but realized the error of their ways in the last 30 seconds and did the only prudent thing, tapping the ball to Brandon Stokely to preserve defeat.
They now control their destiny in the AFC North.

Exhibit B: The Cowboys were a team struggling to find their identity in Week 4, when Terence Newman made the play of their season, allowing Brandon Marshall to haul in his game winner and set off on that sublimely choreographed romp through the Boys secondary.
They now sit firmly atop the NFC East.

Exhibit C: The New England Patriots were destined for an AFC East dogfight with the Jets until finding their way in Denver in Week 5.
They're now a shoo-in for the division crown, and have rediscovered their championship swagger.

Exhibit D: The San Diego Chargers were reeling from inconsistent defense and a spotty running game before their special teams stepped up against the Broncos in Week 6.
They haven't lost since and will be a force to be reckoned with down the stretch.

Exhibit E: In a stunning show of contempt for deferred gratification and an utter collapse of discipline in the 4th quarter, The Ravens lost their way last week, and paid the price yesterday against Cincinnati.
They've been reduced to an impotent afterthought in the AFC North.

So Mike, you're a man among men, a genius among genies, and a master motivator. I'm confident that you can find a way to fire up your troops and get them to bring their Z game tonight and "just lose baby."*

Sincerely,

A fan

*After all, you wouldn't want to follow the advice of Al Davis these days, would you?

The Broncos Success - Is it Orton or McDaniels?

Broncs Cheer — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:35:07 -0000

Editor's Note - I thought this posst was an excellent example of how to have doubts about the Broncos, specifically Kyle Orton, and do it in a PRODUCTIVE manner. Excellent Post! - Guru

Note: I wrote this post during the bye week, when the Broncos' record was still without a blemish... Only getting around to posting it now...

When I read BroncosNL's post this week about which of our upcoming free agents we should prioritize, I was surprised to watch the ripples in my mind created by Kyle Orton slipping like a stone to the bottom of the list. Now I don't consider myself an Orton basher, and have been very happy with his development over the season. But when I dug a little deeper, I realized that there's a question burning in me like a southbound habanero burrito, and at risk of courting a little controversy and criticism, I'm really curious to hear what the MHR masses think.

My question is quite simply this:

How much of Orton's success is his own, and how much is directly and unequivocally attributable to the wundercoach, Josh McDaniels.

(Let's jump)

There's no right answer, of course. That's why the question is rattling around my brain like a bad penny in a garbage disposal. A QB is always largely a product of his system. And I'm honestly not trying to drag us into the tired old "should we have or shouldn't we have" debate comparing Kyle with he-who-will-not-here-be-named. I'm just trying to tease apart player from coach to gain a clear assessment of Kyle Orton through six glorious games [and one clunker], and it's not proving easy. I don't have the leisure time and/or self-discipline and/or Tivo/NFL Network capabilities of Lebowski or other posters here who do such a great job citing stats and specific examples in their posts, so I'm just going to throw some stuff against the wall and see what sticks and what comes back in splatters on my face.

--

My own current opinion is that Orton is nothing special. I think he has a good head on his shoulders, and he is an capable, if not excellent, game manager. I like his leadership, and his team-first attitude. But I think his greatest asset of all is his coachability, his willingness to buy into an excellent system. I think that what McD sought and found in Orton was a QB with some smarts who wouldn't push back, who would be willing to embrace without hesitation a program that plays to his strengths.

I suspect this observation won't be objectionable to many of the posters on MHR. It's pretty common knowledge that Orton's strengths reside between his ears rather than in the tendons of a rocket arm or elusive feet. But the natural follow-up question is: How exceptional are his strengths, really??
How many of the QBs in this league--starters or otherwise-- could have achieved what Orton has achieved were they in his cleats. What would this team look like with Peyton Manning taking the straddle handoff from Casey Weigmann 75 times a game? Or Matt Cassell? Brady Quinn? Tom Brandstater?? I have to confess that what I see when I look at Kyle Orton is a bland extension of McDaniels' philosophy and mental approach, wrapped up in a basically average NFL QB. Just how hard is it to find a QB that could do what Kyle has done this season?

McD may have dropped a clue in his presser last week:

“I don’t think there’s one specific type of quarterback that fits our system. I think the quarterback has to be smart. He has to understand what we’re asking him to do, which is a lot,” McDaniels said. “We ask him to try to really know the defense each week. We ask him to do a considerable amount in the running game, and be accurate, take care of the football and finish drives in the red zone and get it to the guys we think need to have it.

“So, are there a lot of players that could do that? Probably. Are we really happy with Kyle? Yeah. Because Kyle does those things. He is smart. He takes care of the football. He reads defenses. He’s learning more and more every week.”

To me, that line: ..."Are there a lot of players that could do that? Probably." says a lot. It says that McD thinks that he could slot other players in behind center and receive comparable results. The extension of this for me is that at least some of those players would have better skills--more mobility, a stronger arm, better accuracy--than Orton possesses.

Cause, with the admittedly notable exception of the New England game, there have been at least a few throws from Kyle in every game that made me cringe. Some of them have even been completions, but instead of leading a receiver into space they've made him stop or dive or drop to his knees. To my thinking, what has saved Kyle and by extension, the Broncos, has been the extraordinary soundness of McDaniels' approach. The coach's prioritizing of ball security and good decision-making have been a revelation to me. I have seen the light that, assuming the whole team is basically solid, a great game manager can beat a flashy QB more often than not.

But I want both. Call me greedy, if you will, but I want a QB who will show the intelligence and field generalship of a Kyle Orton and also make the exceptional play semi-regularly. And I'm not sure that Kyle Orton can do that. I'm eager to be proved wrong, and after the New England game I thought I had been. But I'm still not sure. I tend to think that the when the offense performs well, what we're seeing is McDaniels coaching. When it performs poorly, we're seeing the limitations of our QB.
And I have have nagging doubts whether Kyle is the kind of QB who can ever win a Super Bowl. For all his strengths, I still am afraid that when the screws tighten and every cable of this team is pulled taut and tested in the pressure cooker of NFL playoff football, Kyle will be the weak link that snaps. And I have caught myself wondering whether when Orton misses a throw, Josh McDaniels makes a mental note to save his pennies for an offseason outing to the quarterback store--because I think there are other quarterbacks out there that could out-Orton Orton.

Of course, maybe I'm wrong and either Orton deserves more credit than I'm giving him just for being who I perceive him to be, or he will continue to get much better and the bad throws will go away (like they did, more or less, against New England, when he was excellent).

So what do y'all think?

Poll

Who is responsible for Orton's success this year?

It's all Kyle, baby. He's the man for the job, and could lead us to a championship.

91 votes

Kyle's better than most, but I've got a few doubts. I'm willing to see him come back next year to give Tommy B more time to develop.

673 votes

Kyle's just average. McD's system should get all the credit, and we'll see someone else behind center next year.

301 votes

1065 votes | Poll has closed

Shanny may have been offered the Skins job and turned it down...

Broncs Cheer — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:43:38 -0000

Shanny may have been offered the Skins job and turned it down...

Nice Stat: Through the first four games, the Indianapolis Colts are averaging 2.7 yards more per...

Broncs Cheer — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:14:05 -0000

Nice Stat: Through the first four games, the Indianapolis Colts are averaging 2.7 yards more per play than their opponents. The next best team in the league is Denver at 1.8 yards more per play. Any team that’s over 1.0 yard more is generally in good shape to make the playoffs.

Jason Cole's column on Yahoo Sports

Did Romo forget it was fourth down? Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is getting a lot of criticism...

Broncs Cheer — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:23:02 -0000

Did Romo forget it was fourth down?

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo is getting a lot of criticism for throwing consecutive passes to fourth receiver Sam Hurd against Denver standout cornerback Champ Bailey on third and fourth down to end the game in Sunday's 17-10 loss. Is is possible that Romo didn't know it was fourth down? Following the final incomplete pass to end the Cowboys hopes, a video caught on KDFW Fox-4 shows Romo seemingly telling his linemen to line back up. He then flashes three fingers to one of the game officials. After hearing the response, Romo screams and walks off field. If true, Romo apparently forgot about the spike to stop the clock on second down.

from Fort Worth Star-Telegram via SI's Truth & Rumors

MHR "Survival Football" group on Yahoo

Broncs Cheer — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 16:33:18 -0000

I started a MHR group in Survival Football (pick one game correctly each week to avoid elimination).

You can join it here.

Group number: 20649

Password: MHR

This does enforce the rule that you can pick each team no more than once during the season...

Pick the Broncos Week 1, and receive the "Hey Koolaid!" Orange Star...

Anyone welcome to join.... (14 words to go... did I mention that anyone's welcome to join? Thought so...)

Coverage of BMarsh trial

Broncs Cheer — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:16:13 -0000

For anyone interested, Klis is getting updates from reporter Lindsay Jones from the Atlanta courtroom where Brandon's 2009 season may be decided. The 6-person jury was appointed by 10am (4 women, 2 men, for whatever that's worth), and opening arguments are over and done with. Looks like updates are being posted here.

I sure hope 1) that justice is served and 2) that Marshall is deemed innocent. He's still a big factor in this offense's potential effectiveness.

Going to the 49ers Game?

Broncs Cheer — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:40:39 -0000

I am!!

If there are any other Bay Area MHR regulars/newbies/lurkers who are planning to attend the game at Candlestick on Friday, let's meet for a frosty beverage beforehand or to compare notes (and for a frosty beverage) afterwards.

Also, if anyone has things they'd like me to look for and report on in Game One, I'm happy to take scouting requests. I'm not the most experienced observer--I've watched a lot of football, but mostly in a follow-the-pigskin kind of way--but am really looking forward to watching different aspects of the team's performance in this first outing. I'll take some notes and try to report on all the obvious stuff--QB play, whether the d-line is holding their own, how the young secondary guys look, and the back-up receivers--but I'd welcome advice or requests about other things to look for.

And if anyone wants a Michael Crabtree autograph, let me know...lol

Ready for some football!!

Marching in time with the MSM

Broncs Cheer — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:51:30 -0000

Apologies to those of you who have tired of the "The MSM is a bunch of idiots" motif, but this one is such a perfect little example--to the point of parody--that I couldn't pass it up....

So, over on the 4-letter network's blogsite, the training camp "Power Rankings" are out, and the home team weighs in at a predictable 27th out of 32 teams. Fine. Cut it out and put it in that box over there. We already know that we're going to need a bigger bulletin board well before the sun sets on the preseason. The guys are already in the locker room measuring the wall....

What is just classic, however, is Pork Chop's "rebuttal." He's been displaced as the voting expert on the AFC West, but feels the need to weigh in anyway--in a column called "Breaking Down the AFC West Power Rankings":

Our pre-training camp power rankings s have been released.

We have streamlined the voting process. I no longer have a vote. AFC South blogger Paul Kuharsky is the AFC representative.

I still have an opinion though, so here goes:

Could it be? A possible original opinion from the MSM? Hold onto your hats, ladies and gents...

Kuharsky ranked the Bolts 6th. Williamson's "dissenting" opinion: 6th-8th .....

The Chiefs show up at number 28. Williamson concurs: 28th-30th

The Raiders at number 30 get some love from PC, who feels they're underrated ("this team is not the third worst team in the league" he declares) and adjusts them to 25-28th (conceding that they're maybe the 5th worst....)

And the Broncos? Instead of #27, he's got them at 24-26....

I think Denver was slightly under ranked, but I understand why. There are a lot of questions about this team after a controversial offseason.

Now there's an opinion to hang that hat on..... Way to "break down" those power rankings.....!

Seriously, why in the world did you bother writing this column at all?? So that seven months hence when the final snap has been snapped, and the purely subjective final "Power Ranking" is released, you can say, "I knew the Raiders would be 28th not 30th! I just knew it!!" Strikes me as the perfect illustration of a group of "experts" that are contractually or genetically forbidden to think for themselves....