The match up this Sunday against the unbeaten Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos is a marque game for many reasons, for one the Colts are undefeated at 12-0 and going for an NFL record for consecutive victories and the #1 seed in the AFC throughout the plays. That's reason enough for any great team to want to go out and show the world on your home turf just how great you are. A win would definitely make a statement towards greatness and superiority in the NFL. They know what they need and want.

For the Denver Broncos this is a must win for themselves if they plan on playing after January 3rd at least in thinking. Sure they could lose this game and still possibly make the playoffs but, there are no guarantees of what the other teams in line are going to do. The mind set of this team is immediate and we need this game now, because without it there may not be any tomorrows. So, with all of that said how do we beat the unbeaten?

Continue reading this post »

Entering into week 13 doesn't leave me feeling very quavery, but it does have me a little concerned. The Kansas City Chiefs have of late been one of our toughest games to win, especially in Arrow Head Stadium in December. Shannahan couldn't do it and what makes new head coach Josh McDaniels think he can some how break this tradition? For one thing, his ideals and schemes are not the prior regimes schemes. What he has though is a system that is very hard to decipher and defend against, at least when it is working right. I want to discuss with the brilliant minds of MHR and ArrowHead Pride of how this game will be decided one way or another.

Continue reading this post »

Monday night's game against the Pittsburg Steelers was an exciting 3 qtr contest for both defenses. Heading into the 4th qtr down 14-10 you would feel comfortable knowing how our team has come from behind and pulled out the wins this year. But, this would not be the case, Pittsburg made the right adjustments on both defense and offense that we weren't able to do. The final outcome was 28-10 Steelers and this leave a nasty taste in my mouth.

Continue reading this post »

Special Teams are a very important component of a successful football team, just ask the San Diego Chargers about it. They were beat by the Denver Broncos on Monday Night football in front of the world by a score of 34-23. Now some say if it weren't for the 2 run backs that Eddie Royal made, the Chargers would have won the game. Hockey puck (no offense hockeyhippo), that wasn't necessarily the case at all. Let's see, if you take the 2 run backs of Royal's away and you take back the run back of Sproles away then the final score still comes out 20-17 Broncos victory. Hmm, ludicrous thinking there dolt fans.

But what it did do was put points on the board at an opportune time. I know, some will say, yeah but it also put our defense back out on the field without much rest. Let's look at it this way, if the offense sustains a long drive and scores andon the first play of the opposing touch they fumble the ball back to us then that puts the offense right back on the field with no rest. I don't hear them complaining and these players are conditioned to be ready on every play to go back on the field. It's football, things happen.

After the jump we'll take a look at our next opponent the Baltimore Ravens and see where they fit in our scheme of special teams and why we let Brett Kerns go. Here are some terms for punting:

Coffin corner: A punt angled toward both the sideline and goal line.

Directional kicking: Angling a kick toward the sideline to reduce the field for the returner.

Hang time: The length of time the ball is in the air following a kick – 4.5 seconds is ideal for a kick less than 50 yards.

Net punting: The distance of a punt minus the return yardage. Subtract 20 yards on touchbacks.

Pooch punt: A short, punch kick when a team is in the opponent's territory.

Continue reading this post »

I have a 'Hot Wings' recipe for the game tomorrow and I'd like to share it with you. I make several different things during the year such as Cajun Gumbo, New England Clam Chowder, BBQ Ribs and Beer Can Chicken. The recipe is as follows:

2 1/2 LBS of wingettes and drumettes

1 Lg bottle of Frank's Hot Sauce

1/2 bottle of Chili Sauce (Heinz)

1/2 cube of butter

1 lemon (juiced)

1/4 cup of honey

I brine the wings for 8 hours in cold water and Kosher salt (optional) then I boil them for 20 minutes. While they are boiling in a sauce pan I put in the remaining ingredients and bring it to a simmer. After the wings have boiled for 20 minutes I drain them in a strainer to remove all the water and place them on a baking pan and put them in the oven for 15 minutes at preheated 350 degrees. After 15 minutes in the oven take them out and drizzle the sauce to coat all and place back in the oven for 5 minutes. Take them out and serve with celery sticks and ranch dressing. Umm good. They will practically fall off the bone. Enjoy the game with Hot Wings and a cold brew. Hope we win.

One of the hardest things for a coach to do is call a player in his office and tell him his services are no longer needed and good luck in your endeavors. Every player has that in the back of their mind troughout their NFL career and it makes it hard not knowing if you'll have a job tomorrow. Below is a list of the 53 man roster plus one Reserve Quarterback and 8 man Practice Squad. I know I wouldn't want to be McDaniels' shoes and have to choose who goes and who stays, that would be very difficult to do. I will start off the offense, then the defense and on to the practice squad. Ultimate cuts will be last.

Continue reading this post »

Pat was sitting back in his easy chair watching one of his favorite Bronco games of the past when all of a sudden he heard a cry from the babies room. Not wanting to be bothered he continued to watch the game letting baby subtly whimper out it's first alarm. The nanny had gone shopping (3 years ago) and hadn't got back yet so it was his reluctant responsibility to care for the little Baby Bronco until her return. The baby's cry became more intense with such an urgency that Pat leaned back, turned his head (as he was thinking, not now, the best part is about to come on!) and I don't want to miss John's TD as he scratched his head and wondered why in the world his nanny (Shanahan getting the team back to the Super Bowl) hasn't returned yet? Looking down at his watch he noticed it was December 29, 2008, and with a sigh he got up and strolled down the hall to check in on Baby Bronco.

Continue reading this post »

"Livin' on the Edge"

The tight end position is one of the toughest positions to play on offense because they have several different things to do, and they must perform them all well to be successful. TE's must be good blockers when LB's, S and CB's try to sneak in to make a sack on the quarterback. They have to hold their ground and make a solid hit on the oncoming defender and if the quarterback gets under pressure he slides out, turns around to become the receiver. TE's should have good hands to make the catches, turning them into multi-faceted players used in various situations to gain yardage. The TE must be a fast runner. Many times the TE will be the lead blocker for running backs providing open lanes for them to run up the field.  And he's got to be a tough guy who can deliver a big hit on an oncoming defender. The tight end will often be sent out to catch passes in the middle of the field, where he will be covered by a couple of linebackers instead of cornerbacks. Linebackers are big guys with bad attitudes and they can expect a big hit from them and still be able to make the play.

Instructions on how to be a successful TE as stated in eHOW;

     Step 1

     Understand how to run effective pass routes over the middle of the football field. The middle of the field is  primary area where a tight end catches the passes from the quarterback. The middle is the most congested area,  which requires excellent body control to catch the passes and run the pass routes.

Continue reading this post »

The Denver Broncos will play for the first time as a collective group tomorrow night in San Francisco. this game of little meaning but filled with many matters should give the players a good look at how they will play together and gel better as a team. It will give us fans a view of certain players we have watched play for other teams, Pro and College and give us a first hand glimpse of our future. As a diehard Bronco fan I have one request to all of you players. Play hard, play smart, play aggressively, play tough and most of all play courteously.

Continue reading this post »

          The earth is covered by 2/3 water and the other 1/3 is covered by land. As in football, 2/3 of the team is offense and defense, and the other 1/3 is Special Teams. Why on earth any coach could ever think he could be successful with a solid offense, a solid defense and have a mediocre Special Teams is flat out nonsense. Special Teams is a vital part of any teams success as stated here by coach Shacklesford in his school of Special Teams. The Denver Broncos Special Teams ranked 31th in the national football league last year, not only being the laughing stock of the nfl, but creating very large holes for the offense and defense to dig itself out of. The chart below will give you an idea of just how bad we were on Special Teams and I copied the whole chart to give you an idea of what is needed on our team to make extra points and win more games, just with the S/T.

Revised as of 6/30/2009

This page lists an estimate of how many points, compared to league average, each team receives from the five elements of special teams: field goals/extra points, kickoffs, kick returns, punts, punt returns.  The total is then converted into a DVOA percentage so that it can be added in to offense and defense to create total team DVOA. 

Field goal rating compares each field goal to the league-average percentage of field goals from that distance.  Yards of field position from the other four elements of special teams are translated into points using a method that gives each yard line a point value based on the average next score an NFL offense is worth from that point on the field.  Kickoffs and punts are based on net yardage.  Kickoff returns and punt returns are judged on return yardage only. These numbers are then adjusted for weather and altitude based on stadium type (cold, warm, dome, Denver) and week. The system is explained here.  Two-point conversions and onside kicks are not included.

LAST YEAR represents last year's rank.  The top number in each category is in bold type.

The final five columns represent elements not found in the standard special teams ratings.

• HIDDEN represents the advantage teams have received from elements of special teams generally out of their control: opposing field goals, kickoff distance, and punt distance. It is listed as points worth of estimated field position, and is ranked from the team with the biggest advantage to the team with the biggest disadvantage.
• WEATHER represents the estimated effect of weather, altitude, and domes on each team's special teams performance. It is listed as points worth of estimated field position, and is ranked from the team with the biggest advantage to the team with the biggest disadvantage.
• NON-ADJ VOA shows special teams DVOA without the adjustments for weather and altitude.

 "Special Teams greatest asset is the ability to give your team better field positions!" 

How important is field position???

          Offense starts on...                                                    Chances of scoring...                            Percentage

Special teams are units that are on the field during kickoffs, free kicks, punts, field goal and extra point attempts. Most special teams players are second- and third-string players from other positions.

Special teams are unique in that they can serve as offensive or defensive units and that they are only seen sporadically throughout a game.

Special teams include a kickoff team, a kick return team, a punting team, a punt blocking/return team, a field goal team and a field goal block team.

There are also specialized players on these teams, including:

• Kicker (K) — Handles kickoffs and field goal attempts, and in some leagues, punts as well.
• Holder (H) — Usually positioned 7-8 yards from the line of scrimmage, he holds the ball for the placekicker to kick. The holder is often a backup quarterback or a punter.
• Long snapper (LS) — A specialized center who snaps the ball directly to the holder or punter. The long snapper is often an offensive linemen or backup Tight End; rarely a center.
• Kick returner (KR)— Returns kickoffs, generally is also a wide receiver or cornerback.
• Punter (P) — Kicks punts. In leagues other than the NFL, the kicker often doubles as the punter.
• Upback— A blocking back that lines up approximately 1-3 yards behind the line of scrimmage in punting and kneel situations. His primary job is to act as a second line of defense for the punter. Upbacks can receive a direct snap in fake punt situations.
• Punt returner (PR) — Returns punts. Often the same player as the kick returner, although not necessarily so.
• Gunner — A player on kickoffs and punts who specializes in running down the field very quickly in an attempt to tackle the kick returner or the punt returner.
• Wedge Buster — A player whose goal is to sprint down the middle of the field on kickoffs. While ideally, their goal is to reach the kick returner, their immediate goal is to disrupt the wall of blockers (the wedge) on kickoffs, preventing the returner from having a lane in which to get a substantial return. Being a wedge buster is a very dangerous position since he may often be running at full speed when coming into contact with a blocker. No longer an option in the NFL, only 2 can couple hands as of this year 2009.
• Hands Team — Used only during onside kicks, the members of a hands team are responsible for preventing the kicking team from recovering a kick, usually by recovering the ball themselves.

Because these aspects of the game can be so different from general offensive and defensive play, a specific group of players is drilled in executing them. Though fewer points are scored on special teams than on offense, special teams play determines where the offense will begin each drive, and thus it has a dramatic impact on how easy or difficult it is for the offense to score.

The Denver Broncos S/T's had more wrinkles in it than a hot tub at an old folks home and it was one of Coach McDaniels' main goals and focus to make sure it got some special attention..

Field position is a very important element of the game and should be used to benefit the teams overall out come to win, one point can make a difference between victory and defeat. The goals of the Special Teams is outlined here  and coach McDaniels when taking over the head coaching responsibilities of the team saw a need for some changes, releasing long snapper/tight end Mike Leach and replacing him with Lonnie Paxton who is a 3 time Super Bowl winner.

Eddie Royal handled most of the kick and punt returns last year as the chart here will show you, and will probably share the duty with McKinley and A.Smith.

Brett Kern is the projected punter although he has competition from Britton Colquit a rookie out of Tennessee. Kern 46 times for a 46.7 yd average, see his stats here at NFL.com'

Matt Prater is the kicker, a 3rd year player out of Central Florida has no competition thus far in training camp and is the projected kicker. Matt has some work to do to become a better kicker and some have displayed their displeasure in his performance so far, check out his stats here.

Scott O'Brien who was our Special Teams Coordinator the past 2 seasons was hired by New England to take over the same duties there. Coach McDaniels would have find himself a new coach to handle the S/T.

Continue reading this post »