SB Nation User Blog: chopperpilot

Ryan McBean, the difference maker?

chopperpilot — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:17:56 -0000

Starring at my computer screen trying to figure out what happen to our Denver Broncos, I had nothing. Our offense is fine, not great, but good enough, our special teams are suspect, but were suspect at 6-0. The one thing that changed for me was our run stuffing defense that allowed some pass plays here and there, but by shutting down the opposing team's running game gave us a chance to win each week. This was no longer the case and I couldn't figure out why. The only reason I could come up with was McDaniel's explanation of lack of team defense and players suddenly being undisciplined. How? How does our defense go from the most disciplined to the least disciplined over night? It just doesn't add up. Just when I was ready to throw in the towel I noticed Ryan McBean's name was no longer on the injury report. Odd, I've heard nothing about his return all week so I started to do a little research to find out what his return might mean. This is what I found...

McBean played in almost 7 complete games before injuring his knee. His stats aren't exactly eye popping with 11 tackles, 6 solo and 1 QB hurry, but in his 7 games starting at DE the Broncos defense gave up an average of 86 yards rushing. In the two games McBean has not played our defense has given up a staggering 173.4 yards rushing. Holy crap! Not only that, but in McBean's 7 games our defense only gave up more than 100 yards rushing in one game. That was McBean's last game and it was against the Ravens. The Ravens ran for 125 yards that game, but 63 of those yards (more than half of the 125 yards) came on Baltimore's last drive of the game with less than 7:00 minutes remaining and the outcome all but an after thought. Coincidentally, that 63 yard drive was the drive when McBean injured his knee. Since then our defense has never been the same.

I know this sounds a little out there, a bit of a reach, at least it does to me. But, what if, just what if McBean is the unsung hero of this defense? What if his unselfishness and willingness to take on one, sometimes two blockers and his ability to hold his own that allowed other players the opportunity to make the tackle at or near the line of scrimmage? What if it's his presence that anchors the D-line on first and second down and allows fresh legs to come in on third downs to rush the quarterback? What if his return is the shot in the arm this defense needs to get back on track?

I may be crazy, but maybe, just maybe I may be right..... Just Maybe.... I guess we'll find out tomorrow...

Thanks for your time and let me know your thoughts. GO BRONCOS!

Strength of Schedule

chopperpilot — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:04:45 -0000

Denver has played a lot of tough teams throughout the first half of the season and I wanted to compare the rest of the playoff caliber teams to see how the strength of schedules stack up. I researched the 12 teams that would be in the playoffs if the playoffs started tomorrow. In addition to opponents records and winning percentage, I broke down each teams wins versus 3 levels of opponents. The first level is the "Contender" or playoff teams. All 12 of these teams have a minimum of 5 wins and no more than 3 losses. The next tier of opponent is the "Wannabes" or average teams with 4-4 records +/- 1. The last tier of opponent is the "pretenders" or teams that have 3 or less wins. My research is listed below the jump and is in descending order from best to worst strength of schedule. Following my research is brief analysis and poll. Thanks for your time and I hope you enjoy.

Broncos 6-2 Opp. 36-28 Pct. .563 Vs. Cont. 4-1 Wana. 0-1 Pret. 2-0

Falcons 5-3 Opp. 35-29 Pct. .547 Vs. Cont. 0-3 Wana. 1-0 Pret. 4-0

Cardinals 5-3 Opp. 35-31 Pct. .530 Vs. Cont. 0-1 Wana. 4-0 Pret. 1-2

Bengals 6-2 Opp. 34-31 Pct. .523 Vs. Cont. 1-1 Wana. 4-1 Pret. 1-0

Steelers 6-2 Opp. 32-32 Pct. .500 Vs. Cont. 3-1 Wana. 0-1 Pret. 3-0

Saints 8-0 Opp. 29-36 Pct. .446 Vs. Cont. 2-0 Wana. 5-0 Pret. 1-0

Cowboys 6-2 Opp. 29-36 Pct. .446 Vs. Cont. 2-1 Wana. 0-1 Pret. 4-0

Chargers 5-3 Opp. 29-36 Pct. .446 Vs. Cont. 0-2 Wana. 1-1 Pret. 4-0

Patriots 6-2 Opp. 28-36 Pct. .438 Vs. Cont. 2-1 Wana. 2-1 Pret. 2-0

Eagles 5-3 Opp. 28-37 Pct. .431 Vs. Cont. 0-2 Wana. 1-0 Pret. 4-1

Colts 8-0 Opp. 26-39 Pct. .400 Vs. Cont. 1-0 Wana. 4-0 Pret. 3-0

Vikings 7-1 Opp. 24-40 Pct. .375 Vs. Cont. 1-1 Wana. 3-0 Pret. 3-0

Some fans and most the media may be ready to right off the Broncos for the rest of the season, but I'm not one of them. My Broncos are 6-2 despite playing 5 playoff caliber teams (more than any other contender) and 4-1(better than any other contender) in those games. We lost to 1 wannabe and basically shut down the 2 pretenders we played. Would I rather be 8-0 or 7-1, heck yeah, but at what cost? The Colts, Vikings and Saints (23-1combined record) have played 5 contenders combined with a 4-1 record against them. I'm not saying Denver's better, but at least Denver knows where they stand and what they need to fix going forward.

And about going forward, Denver plays 3 contenders, 1 wannabe and 4 pretenders in the second half of the season. A much easier schedule should result in 6 or 7 wins along with confidence and momentum going into the playoffs. I may be on the short list of kool-aid drinkers left, but I know football and I know good things are ahead.

I'm proud of my Broncos for being 6-2. I'm proud of my team for playing as a team. I'm proud of the coaches and players for working so dang hard in practice. I'm proud of the players for giving every ounce of effort on game day. I'm proud of the coaches for respecting the players. I'm proud of the players for respecting each other and the coaches. I'm proud of the unprecedented amount of "faith" and "praise" and "humbleness" that resides in that locker room. I'm ecstatic to be a Bronco fan and can't wait to kick off the second half of the season!

13-3 BABY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Poll

What are your expectations of the Broncos for the rest of the year?

Deep into the playoffs and as good of chance as any to make the Super Bowl!

21 votes

They'll make the playoffs, but not the Super Bowl.

63 votes

They'll be lucky to make the playoffs.

5 votes

Stick a fork in em, they're done!

1 votes

90 votes | Poll has closed

Now, who's #1?

chopperpilot — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 19:50:37 -0000

Despite blue and orange kool-aid being the drink of the nation this week, Denver is still considered by most the worst of the unbeaten. Almost every power ranking has Denver fifth or sixth and I wanted to see if I could find out why? This led me to compare the win/loss records of the teams each unbeaten has well, beaten...... Here it is.

The Colts 5-0 The Vikings 5-0 The Saints 4-0 The Giants 5-0 The Broncos 5-0

Jaguars 2-3 Browns 1-4 Lions 1-4 Redskins 2-3 Bengals 4-1

Dolphins 2-3 Lions 1-4 Eagles 3-1 Cowboys 3-2 Browns 1-4

Cardinals 2-2 49ers 3-2 Bills 1-4 Bucs 0-5 Raiders 1-4

Seahawks2-3 Packers 2-2 Jets 3-2 Chiefs 0-5 Cowboys 3-2

Titans 0-5 Rams 0-5 Raiders 1-4 Patriots 3-2

Total 8-16 Total 7-17 Total 8-11 Total 6-19 Total 12-13

The Giants opponents have the worst winning percentage at 24% and the Giants have not beat a real contender. Minnesota's opponents are second worst with a 29% winning percentage and they have not beat a contender either, (the 49ers were a contender until the got dismantled by the Falcons). The third lowest winning percentage are the Colts opponents at 33% and not one of their opponents even has a winning record. New Orleans opponents look better and have a 42% winning percentage which include the Eagles and Jets who could end up in the playoffs. Last, but definitely not least, our Broncos have beaten five teams with a combined winning percentage of 48% to include division leading Bengals and Patriots.

The Broncos have beaten THREE teams with winning records, again compared to the Saints TWO, the Giants and Vikings ONE and the Colts ZIP!

This just reiterates the bias and laziness that has infected the media and why I come to MHR to learn about football and enjoy discussion of a GREAT TEAM in a GREAT SPORT.

Hope you enjoyed the read, I try to only post when I feel like I'm adding something to the discussion and not just because I have an opinion and DANG IT it needs to be heard...., so I hope this post falls in line with that.

Quick Raider Assessment

chopperpilot — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 21:49:14 -0000

I thought I would share my observations of the Raiders through two quarters against the Saints

The defense played absolutely horrible. They gave up 3 long touchdown drives to the Saints on the first three drives. They gave up what should have been 2 TD's to the second stringers, but settled for 1 TD and a field goal due to two unnecassary penalties negating back to back TD's resulting in the field goal. They were out schemed, pushed around and just looked horrible and I hope this becomes a trend throughout the season.

The offense has potential, but is weak if pressure is applied. JaMarcus Russell is an athletic QB, but doesn't read defenses very well and doesn't make adjustments at the line. He will make a lot of good throws though and you definitely want to put pressure on him. The O-line is less than stellar allowing several sacks, so applying pressure shouldn't be to difficult. Young athletic receivers, but will drop many balls this season. Darren McFadden is scary good. Lots of running back depth as we know. Good TE's.

Special teams were pretty good, great coverage on their many punts.

As usuall a very undisciplined team. Many penalties, 7 for 74 yards in one half, yikes.

Summary,

McDaniels is a genius when it comes to finding and exploiting a teams weaknesses. The Raiders have many so we should dominate them. The only chance they have to beat us is if we beat ourselves. I think those days are in the rearview mirror, so I predict 2 wins with little to no doubt.

Accountability for oneself and praise of others equals Leadership

chopperpilot — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 14:19:23 -0000

Main Entry: ac·count·abil·i·ty

: the quality or state of being accountable; especially : an obligation or willingness to accept responsibility or to accountfor one's actions

Main Entry: 1praise

1 : to express a favorable judgment of : commend

I don't care what arena you might be in, football, the corporate world, military, etc., if you are in a leadership position you need to take accountability when things don't go good. If you say I did this wrong, it was a mistake, a bad decision and I understand that I can't continue to do it and will work hard not to, your peers and/or subordinates will follow you. In addition, when you talk about the things that went right you should praise those around you and use the word "we" to show unselfishness and unification. Doing these two things will not go unnoticed and will gain you the support of those around you.

The opposite of this is to say "we" every time you talk about what went wrong. This demonstrates that you are not willing to accept the responsibility of your leadership role. Likewise, when speaking of what went right if you us "I" your peers will notice your self glorification and I guarantee people will not follow you and not work as hard for you because they know you'll hog all the credit.

Think about where you work and who you work for or with and I bet you will be able to find examples of both styles.

Now to my point, both Orton and Cutler made several bad decisions in their first preseason games and things didn't go as well as both teams would have liked. I'm sure most everyone has watched both players post-game interviews, regardless if you have or have not I want you to take a few minutes and watch them and decide for yourself who takes accountability for making bad decisions and who says "we" when referring to the positive and which player blames the lack of game planning twice (throwing the coaches under the bus), the lack of a starting running back and tight end (throwing their backups under the bus), the lack of his leading receiver's skill set, so I'll have to learn from it (throwing him under the bus), and says "we" need to go back and look at what "we" need to improve, (not being accountable for his mistakes and throwing the entire offense under the bus.), while never once saying I made bad decisions, I forced the ball, I locked onto one receiver, I need to go and watch film to correct my mistakes.

I'm not sure how to insert direct links, but Orton's video is obviously on the Denver Broncos website, likewise Cutler's video can be found at ChicagoBears.com.

I would love to hear what all the haters out there have to say about my perspective and please, tell me which QB you would follow.. As always I would love to hear the thoughts from the Bronco "faithful" too.

Also, take a few minutes and watch McD's post-game and take note of how he and his staff take responsibility for their mistakes and how it all starts with them. Now that's accountability!

Go Broncos. 13-3 BABY!

What does it take to be a NFL Champion Team cont...?

chopperpilot — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 20:19:30 -0000

continued.....

Running Backs

2008 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Willie Parker 210 791 3.8 34 5 0 0

Mewelde Moore 140 588 4.2 32 5 0 0

2007 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Brandon Jacobs 202 1009 5.0 43 4 4 3

Derrick Ward 125 602 4.8 44 3 2 1

2006 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Joseph Addai 226 1081 4.8 41 7 2 2

Dominic Rhodes 187 641 3.4 17 5 2 2

2005 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Willie Parker 255 1202 4.7 80 4 4 0

Jerome Bettis 110 368 3.3 39 9 0 0

2004 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Corey Dillon 345 1635 4.7 44 12 4 3

Kevin Faulk 54 255 4.7 20 2 0 0

2003 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Michael Pittman 187 751 4.0 17 0 2 0

Thomas Jones 137 627 4.6 61 3 3 1

2002 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Antowain Smith 182 642 3.5 30 3 0 0

Kevin Faulk 178 638 3.6 23 0 3 3

2001 ATT YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Antowain Smith 287 1157 4.0 44 12 4 4

Kevin Faulk 41 169 4.1 24 1 1 1

2000 yard rushers....., zero. 1300 yard rushers......, one. Versatile, team first players that don't put the ball on the turf very often..... a lot. It appears here that a SB team needs a couple of guys that can share 350 carries, avg 4.2 yards per carry score a dozen TD's, only turn it over 3 or 4 times, and be able to block and catch it out of the backfield.

So, do we have what it takes?

Offense: An above average offense. A line that allowed 11 sacks in 616 attempts. A line that was 2nd in the league in yards per carry with 4.8 despite an unprecedented 6 backs on the I.R. and finishing the last quarter of the season with a cell phone salesman carrying the ball. A QB that will give his team every chance to win based on his 21-12 winning record with a team that had no receivers and an average defense. A receiving and tight end group that is as good as any in the NFL. A group of running backs that are versatile and going to create problems and headaches for defensive players and coaches. Check. Check. Check. Check. Check. Check.

Quarterback: A smart, game managing player that will complete 61-62% of his passes, throw for about 3200 yards, 22 TDs, around 12 ints., have close to a 90 QB rating and pull himself off the turf 25 to 30 times( with Denver's O-line a lot less). Kyle Orton, CHECK.

Wide Receiver/Tight End: A group of talented, unselfish, crafty route runners and pass catchers and good down field blockers. Eddie Royal, Brandon Stokley, Jabar Gaffney, Kenny McKinley, Daniel Graham, Tony Scheffler, Richard Quinn and Brandon Marshall if he so desires to grace us with his presence. Check.

Running Back: Two versatile, team first players that can share 350 carries, avg 4.2 yards per carry, score a dozen TD's, only turn it over 3 or 4 times, and be able to block and catch it out of the backfield. Peyton Hillis and Knowshon Moreno. Check. Similiar backups that can fill in at any moment. Correll Buckhalter, LaMont Jordan, and Ryan Torain. Check.

Turnover Ratio: A head coach and coaching staff that focuses on fundamentals like holding onto the ball and stripping the ball from the carrier. A coaching staff that doesn't just "talk about the importance of turnovers," but one that implements drill after drill that require each player's full attention to be on turnovers all the time. A coaching staff that has the players running laps of shame when they fumble it. A coaching staff that has its players in full pads 2 to 4 hours a day hitting each other with one focus in mind of holding on to the ball or stripping the ball. Check. Check. Check. Check....!!!!!!!

Defense: A group that will be at least average, but above average at points allowed. A group that was trimmed of the fat to say the least and replaced with a group of quality starters and one freak of nature. A group of serviceable lineman that will bend, but not break. A linebacking corps that will be big, physical and attacking the offense on every play. A back four that will keep teams out of the end-zone and cause turnovers.

This is my analysis and I hope it was worth your time.

P.S.

If anybody thinks that Coach McDaniels does not know what he is doing, they are DEAD wrong. He brought in a QB that fits the mold of a SB champion, got rid of a gun slinger for some draft picks that improved our defense, brought in Gaffney and drafted Mckinnley to compliment our solid receiving corps, brought in 3 RB's and drafted 1 RB that fit the mold of a SB Champion running back to compete with Hillis and Torrain. He also brought in defenders that are big, tough, smart, football savvy, and proven winners. If you can't see all the good McD has done you need to visit your local eye doc or apply to work at ESPN or the NFL network.

I want to thank all of you for the hard work you put in to make this offseason somewhat bearable. I want to thank John Bena and co. for this website and most importantly I want to say 13-3 Baby!!!!!!!!!

What does it take to be a NFL Champion Team?

chopperpilot — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:58:55 -0000

With so much focus on the Prima Donnas of the NFL I wanted to find out what it truly takes to be a NFL Champion. The Media is so concerned with the Brett Favres(1 SB win in 18 seasons) and Terrell Owens(0 SB wins in 13 seasons) (a combined 1 SB win in 31 seasons) , I wanted to see if we stood a chance to win the "Big Game" without our two Prima Donnas, Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall.

I started my focus the year our head coach began his NFL coaching career with the 2001 SB Champion Patriots and went through every SB winner thereafter to include the current 2008 SB Champion Steelers. I did an extensive stat comparison and then analyzed the stats to come up with some of kind of answer or key for what it takes to be a Champion in the NFL.

I needed to know if we were truly doomed without Jay Cutler and potentially without Brandon Marshall (until he inks a new contract or steps onto the grass at Paul Brown Stadium Sept. 13 with a Bronco Jersey on I won't be sure if he will be part of the 2009 Denver Broncos), so here it is....

Before I looked at the individual players I wanted to look at the teams overall performances. Below are the stats and to the right is a brief description of how they compared to the rest of the league.

2008 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

Pittsburgh Steelers 311.9 (22) 105.6 (23) 206.3 (17) 347 (20) Less than average offense

Opponents 237.2 (1) 80.3 (2) 156.9 (1) 223 (1) Great defense

2007 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

New York Giants 331.4 (16) 134.3 (4) 197.1 (21) 373 (14) Great running game

Opponents 305.0 (7) 97.7 (8) 207.3 (11) 351 (17) Above average defense

2006 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

Indianapolis Colts 379.4 (3) 110.1 (18) 269.3 (2) 427 (2) Great offense

Opponents 332.3 (21) 173.0 (32) 159.3 (2) 360 (23) Less than average defense

2005 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

Pittsburgh Steelers 321.8 (15) 138.9 (5) 182.9 (24) 389 (9) Average offense

Opponents 284.0 (4) 86.0 (3) 198.0 (16) 258 (3) Great Defense

2004 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

New England Pats 357.6 (7) 133.4 (7) 224.3 (11) 437 (4) Above average offense

Opponents 310.8 (9) 98.3 (6) 212.5 (17) 260 (2) Above average defense

2003 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

New England Pats 314.9 (17) 100.4 (27) 214.5 (9) 348 (12) Average offense

Opponents 291.6 (7) 89.6 (4) 202.0 (15) 238 (1) Great Defense

2002 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

Tampa Bay Bucs 312.6 (24) 97.3 (27) 215.3 (15) 346 (18) Below average offense

Opponents 252.8 (1) 97.1 (0) 155.6 (1) 196 (1) Great Defense

2001 Yds (Rank) Rush Pass Pts

New England Pats 305.1 (19) 112.1 (13) 193.1 (22) 371 (6) Good at scoring points

Opponents 334.5 (24) 15.9 (19) 218.6 (24) 272 (6) Good at not allowing points

My analysis is that if you don't have a great offense you better have a great defense and vice versa. However, only one team (Indy) won without a less than average defense. The more preferable scenario is an average offense that is above average at scoring points with a better than average defense. If your defense is only average they better be above average at points allowed.

Nothing here that made me go ah ha, but a good foundation to go forward with.

To continue the overall team theme, I wanted to look at the all important turnover ratio, OR IS IT.....?

GIVEAWAY/TAKEAWAY

2008 Giveaway Takeaway

Pittsburgh Steelers 25 29 +4

2007 Giveaway Takeaway

NY Giants 34 25 -9

2006 Giveaway Takeaway

Indianapolis Colts 18 25 +7

2005 Giveaway Takeaway

Pittsburgh Steelers 21 28 +7

2004 Giveaway Takeaway

New England Pats 27 36 +9

2003 Giveaway Takeaway

New England Pats 24 41 +17

2002 Giveaway Takeaway

Tampa Bay Bucs 21 38 +17

2001 Giveaway Takeaway

New England Pats 28 35 +7

Only the 07 Giants won the SB with a negative season turnover ratio and I would be willing to bet they were positive throughout the playoffs, just a guess. The average ratio was just over +7 and the mean was around +8.5.

This is an ah ha moment and if a team wants to be celebrating in February they better be positive in their turnover ratio. If not, chances are slim to say the least..

Now, moving into the individual numbers we'll start with the player that touches the ball on every offensive snap, no, not the center and yes, except for the Miami Dolphins...:-).

QUARTERBACKS

2008 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Ben Roethlisberger 16 281 469 59.9 3301 7.0 17 65 15 80.1 46

2007 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Eli Manning 16 297 529 56.1 3336 6.3 23 60 20 73.9 27

2006 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Peyton Manning 16 362 557 65.0 4397 7.9 31 68 9 101.0 14

2005 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Ben Roethlisberger 12 168 268 62.7 2385 8.9 17 85 9 98.6 23

2004 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Tom Brady 16 288 474 60.8 3692 7.8 28 50 14 92.6 26

2003 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Tom Brady 16 317 527 60.2 3620 6.9 23 82 12 85.9 32

2002 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Brad Johnson 13 281 451 62.3 3049 6.8 22 76 6 92.9 21

2001 G CMP ATT PCT YDS AVG TD LNG INT RAT Sack

Tom Brady 15 264 413 63.9 2843 6.9 18 91 12 86.5 41

Brett Favre sightings...., zero. Smart, game manager type player sightings....., seven or eight (my verdict is out on kid brother of boy wonder :-). Your quarterback needs to complete around 61-62% of his passes, throw for about 3200 yards, 22 TDs, around 12 ints., have close to a 90 QB rating and pull himself off the turf 25 to 30 times.

This is another ah ha moment. No gun slinging, rope throwing, triple coverage testing rocket arms.. Only smart, game managing, leaders. WOW, MSM how this fact would shatter your paradigm of thinking and cause many hours of fetal position, corner of the room crying from self doubt . That is if they got past their 9 or so stages of denial.

Next, I wanted to look at the position where Prima Donnas are more ramped than cockroaches in Southern Alabama. There has to be at least one on every team......, right?

Wide Receivers/Tight Ends

2008 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Hines Ward 81 1043 12.9 49 7 1 0

Santonio Holmes 55 821 14.9 48 5 2 1

Nate Washington 40 631 15.8 65 3 0 0

Heath Miller 48 514 10.7 22 3 1 1

2007 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Plaxico Burress 70 1025 14.6 60 12 0 0

Amani Toomer 59 760 12.9 40 3 0 0

Jeremy Shockey 57 619 10.9 29 3 0 0

Sinorice Moss 21 225 10.7 20 0 1 1

2006 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Marvin Harrison 95 1366 14.4 68 12 1 1

Reggie Wayne 86 1310 15.2 51 9 1 0

Ben Utecht 37 377 10.2 26 0 1 1

Dallas Clark 30 367 12.2 40 4 0 0

2005 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Hines Ward 69 975 14.1 85 11 0 0

Antwaan Randle El 35 558 5.9 63 1 2 1

Heath Miller 39 459 11.8 50 6 0 0

Cedrick Wilson 26 451 17.3 46 0 1 0

2004 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

David Givens 56 874 15.6 50 3 0 0

David Patten 44 800 18.2 48 7 0 0

Deion Branch 35 454 13.0 26 4 0 0

Daniel Graham 30 364 12.1 48 7 0 0

2003 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Deion Branch 57 803 14.1 66 3 0 0

David Givens 34 510 15.0 57 6 0 0

Troy Brown 40 472 11.8 82 4 0 0

Kevin Faulk 48 440 9.2 27 0 1 1

2002 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Keyshawn Johnson 76 1088 14.3 76 5 0 0

Keenan McCardell 61 670 11.0 65 6 1 1

Michael Pittman 59 477 8.1 64 0 0 0

Joe Jurevicius 37 423 11.4 26 4 1 0

2001 Rec YDS AVG LNG TD FUM LST

Troy Brown 101 1199 11.9 60 5 2 1

David Patten 51 749 14.7 91 4 1 0

Kevin Faulk 30 189 6.3 28 2 2 1

Marc Edwards 25 166 6.6 17 2 3 1

Terrell WHO? Well, what about Keyshawn and Dirty Harry, I mean John Wayne, oops again, I mean Plaxico, there we go.. I think Gruden did a good job humbling Keyshawn that year, so that leaves 1 out of 8 top receivers and 32 total pass catchers that was a prima donna.

Another ah ha moment. I guess a team just needs talented, unselfish, crafty route runners and pass catchers and good down field blockers. Who would have thought? The way the MSM destines every team that picks up T.O. as the off season winner, I would have never guessed. They're so far off most of the time I feel like literally hurling sometimes when I think about it.

Last, but not least is the running back. My favorite position because there is nothing more I love in football then when the defense knows you're running the ball and you still stuff it down their throat. Oh, how I miss T.D. and Mike, Orlandis, and Reuben and how I'm going to love Peyton and Knowshon for hopefully many, many years to come. I digress..

Continued on What does it take to be a NFL Champion Team cont...?

Our 2009 Defense will be better. Guaranteed!

chopperpilot — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 21:15:40 -0000

Our Defense will be better this year then it was last year!. My goal is to not argue how much better each player will be than the ones we had last year, but to provide some intangibles that provide solid proof our defense will be better next year despite individual play which is toooo unpredictable. My reasons are as follows

1. Creating turnovers is one of the most important things a Defense can do to help their team win. And this year, creating turnovers won't just be something that the HC talks about to the media, but will be something that is physically beat into our defensive players bodies and minds. If anyone thinks McD. will settle for anything less, please let me know. Here is a quote from McD. during passing camp, "The pace is pretty frantic out there," he said. "(Practices) are going to have a lot of different things included in them and our players are going to be held accountable because if we don't do those things right in a game, we're not going to win. We've got to do a lot of things right in practice to carry them over to games." First off, this quote was from passing camp, not training camp or in-season practices. Second, does anyone remember Shanahan holding anyone accountable last year, to include himself? The "Boys Club at the Dove" NO LONGER EXISTS and I for one am very excited. It's Professional Football, it's a very violent game, you play like you practice and with our new Generals McD. and BDawk our D will be more focused and physical than last year, thus forcing more turnovers. Guaranteed! This is an easy one to predict considering we forced a league low 13 turnovers last year. There was only four other teams that had less than 20; San @ 18, Atl @ 18, Was @ 18, and Jac @ 17. I don't think it would be a stretch to say we double our total from last year to give us around 26 this year. BDawk and Goodman combined accounted for 13 turnovers last year and that's just two of new additions to our D. The extra turnovers will give our offense almost one more short field per game to hopefully convert into points, get our defense off the field, plus create a HUGE momentum boost for our entire team. And as we all know momentum is paramount in football at any level. Thus leading to more wins.

2. We will have career NFL starters at more positions on D then we did last year. I'm not going to argue how much better our new players are, but just that they are STARTERS and have been STARTERS in this league for some time. Pop quiz: What do John Engelberger, Marquand Manuel, Jamie Winborn, Marlon Mcree, Ebenezer Ekuban, Dwayne Robertson and Nate Webster have in common........ Not sure. Answer: They all started for Denver last year and are currently not on a team's roster. That means that more than half of last year's D isn't even good enough to compete for roster spots on the other 31 teams, but they started for us last year. Yikes! This year we will have BDawk and Hill (both career starters and would be on most rosters) to replace both MM's. We also have Davis (another career starter) to replace Webster. That solidifies eight solid starters on D compared to last year's 5, (Champ, Dre, Williams, Doom, Thomas). I include Dre because I believe he's good enough to start for several teams and be on the roster of most. Situational players or role players have their purpose in this league, but it's not starting the game or taking most snaps. The fact that almost 75% of our starters are career starters versus last year's 45% means our D will be better.

3. We will run the ball more consistently on offense. This could be the single most important factor of all. Last year we had the 5th fewest rushing attempts in the league, only 387 attempts. This compared to when we were 2nd in the league in 2005 with 542 attempts(surprise we went to the AFC Championship), ninth in the league in 2006 with 488 attempts, and 18th in the league in 2007 with 429 attempts. To me it is no surprise that 9 of the 12 twelve playoff teams last year were ranked 1-9 in rushing attempts in 2008. A direct correlation of the effect this has on the defense is that all 9 teams defenses were in the top 13 in fewest points allowed. Think about that..... Why is this? Because if you're consistently running the ball all game what is the other team not doing? Answer: playing offense, scoring points, getting turnovers off of interceptions or QB fumbles (which is approximately 2/3rds or more of a team's reason for coughing up the pigskin) , controlling the game, and ultimately winning the game. And if the opponents aren't doing those things what do you think your team will be doing.... Now, the reasons I am confident we will run a lot more this year are: NE under McD. as the OC were 6th, 9th and 4th in the league with 499, 451, and 513 rushing attempts respectively, 25% of our FA signing were RBs, our first draft pick was the top rated rusher in the draft and the only coaching staff retained from 2008 were the highly respected RB Coach and OL Coach. Surprise surprise!

4. My last point might be kind of a stretch, but I feel it is a fundamental difference from last year so I thought I would share it anyway. We do have some question marks on our D and I feel the front 3 and one OLB position will be fielded by non proven players. However, an improvement from last year is that our personnel question marks aren't underperforming former top draft picks with "potential" or career injury riddled talents or role players expected to be starters as in recent years . They are young , versatile, developing players that could become starters or role players that have everything to prove and nothing to lose. For example, on D-line we have Carlton Powell w/ 1 year of experience (not really, but one year of being in the NFL), Marcus Thomas (include him because we're not sure where he will play), Ryan McBean, Tim Crowder, and Nic Clemons w/ 2 years, and Darrell Reid , , and Ronald Fields with 4 years. Also, CUFA rookies Chris Baker, Rulon Davis, and Everette Pedescleaux round out the youthful D-line possibilities. At LB we have one OLB position that is a question mark. A "role player" Darrel Reid is taking the reps, but with the extremely talented Robert Ayers(Rookie) on his heels, Jarvis Moss (2 years experience), and Rulon Davis(Rookie) also applying pressure, I'm confident we will have an adequate fourth linebacker.

I have hopefully made my point clear. As to whether or not I have proven my point I will leave to you the MHR faithful and look forward to your comments. 13-3 BABY!!!!!!!!!!!

Does anybody know which players.......

chopperpilot — Sun, 05 Apr 2009 22:19:43 -0000

McD and X-Man have brought in for tryouts (college draftees) thus far? Also, does anyone know who IS scheduled for tryouts in the near future? Based off what I saw in FA, they (McD and X-Man) don't waste time on people they are not REALLY interested in.

If anyone knows the entire list or has a link where I could go to get this info I would greatly appreciate it.

GO BRONCOS!

09 Depth Chart

chopperpilot — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 22:35:41 -0000

Amidst all the distractions of the last few days, I believe that the 2009 Depth Chart is quickly forming whether we focus on it or not. I personally have not and will not involve myself in the soap opera. All I care about is Denver winning football games. Until a deal is done or a suspension has been given, I don't freaking care!

I have put together what I believe to be the current depth chart and where I think the draft picks will go. Unlike last year we have legitimate NFL starters at all of our Defensive positions except for one or two which we will fill through the draft. We will have good depth too. Our D is not only improved, but has the potential to be a top 9-12 Defense in the league. Paired with our already GREAT Offense, I can't quit smiling. Maybe I'm drinking to much Orange Kool-Aid, but I'm really excited.

Below the Depth Chart I put my "guesses" on who McD and X-Man will draft. I'm assuming we trade down with the Detroit Lions giving them our # 12 for their # 20 and # 33. It might be a dream, but for now that's all we can do, right?

I would love to hear what the rest of MHR thinks, so please let us know.

Regular Offense
POS	STARTER	2nd	3rd	4th
WR	Brandon Marshall	Brandon Stokley	David Anderson
TE	Daniel Graham	Tony Scheffler	Adam Bergen
LT	Ryan Clady	Tyler Polumbus
LG	Ben Hamilton	Kory Lichtensteiger
C	Casey Weigmann	Lonie Paxton
RG	Chris Kuper	Pat Murray
RT	Ryan Harris	Matt McChesney
WR	Eddie Royal	Jabar Gaffney
QB	Jay Cutler	*Draft Pick*
FB	Peyton Hillis
RB	Correll Buckhalter	Ryan Torain	Selvin Young	*Draft Pick*

Base 3-4 D
POS	STARTER	2nd	3rd	4th
LDE	Marcus Thomas	Tim Crowder
NT	Ronald Fields	*Draft Pick*	Carlton Powell
RDE	*Draft Pick*	Darrel Reid
LOLB	Elvis Dumervil	*Draft Pick*
LILB	D.J. Williams	Wesley Woodyard	Boss Bailey
RILB	Andra Davis	Spencer Larsen
ROLB	*Draft Pick*	Jarvis Moss
CB	Champ Bailey	Josh Bell	*Draft Pick*
SS	Brian Dawkins	Josh Barrett
FS	Renaldo Hill	*Draft Pick*
CB	Andre Goodman	Jack Williams

Special Teams
POS	STARTER	2nd	3rd	4th
PK	Matt Prater	*Draft Pick*
P	Brett Kern
H	QB Draft Pick
PR	Eddie Royal
KR	CB Draft Pick	RB Draft Pick
LS	Lonie Paxton

#1. Tyson Jackson DE LSU

#2a. Larry English OLB Norther Illinois

#2b. Ron Brace NT Virginia Tech

#3. Cody Brown OLB Connecticut

#4. Kevin Ellison S USC

#5a. Ian Johnson RB Boise State

#5b. Todd Boeckman QB Ohio State

#6. Colt David K LSU

#7. Brandon Hughes CB Oregan State