Monday, January 10, 2005
Stoopid Broncos!
All week long I’ve been hearing Mike Shanahan talk about how focused the Broncos have been in practice and they were ready to go against the Colts. And the idiot DB’s have been saying that the Colts’ receivers are soft and don’t like to get hit. That’s a lot of trash talking for a team that beat Indy’s practice squad last week but got KILLED in Indy last year in the playoffs. Then, right before kick-off, Bonnie Bernstein does a little sideline interview with Shanahan and asks him how they plan on stopping Peyton Manning. He tries to dodge the question, but Bernstein, being the great professional that she is (HAHA!), asks the same question again in a different way. Mike says something to the effect that they would try to bring pressure and show Manning confusing coverage and blitz packages. Let’s break down the Broncos’ strategy.
Offense: In my mind, they should have done nothing but run the football. This offensive line coupled with Tatum Bell and Reuben Droughns have been effective all year long. The Colts’ defense is not great against the run, so this would have been a great way to control the clock. Plus, if they are running, they can spend time in the huddle and bring the play clock down to 2-3 seconds before snapping the ball. That’s the only way to keep Manning off the field and control the clock. So, what do they do? They come out passing! Sure, the first play was a nice 20-yard pass, but then they went 3 and out after one run and 2 incomplete passes. I don’t think Tatum Bell saw the football until late in the 2nd quarter when the game was already over.
Defense: The only thing soft in this game was the Broncos secondary. Bring in the secret weapon – Roc Alexander! The rookie cornerback got burnt like a bad piece of bacon all day long! This guy hasn’t played on anything other than special teams until the big playoff game, and he had no clue about trying to stop Reggie Wayne or any other Colt receiver! What is he even doing in the game? And suddenly, Kelly Herndon is afraid to tackle. He was trying to grab shoulder, jerseys, do anything but make a solid, high-school taught tackle. Maybe he just had a manicure and didn’t want to mess up his pretty nails, like my mother trying to get her car keys out of her purse! The idea implemented to confuse Manning was to send some DB’s to blitz while defensive ends (yep, 300 pound linemen) dropped back to cover running backs and tight ends. Needless to say, this didn’t even come close to working. Are you trying to tell me that the Mastermind thinks Reggie Hayward can keep up with Dallas Drake? Well he can’t and he didn’t! The Broncos looked more confused about their pass coverage than anyone else. Manning recognized everything and audibled his way to an absolute thrashing of the Broncos. If it weren’t for a lucky tipped ball that the Broncos intercepted in the end zone, the Colts would have scored 42 in the first half!
The Broncos promised the fans that we wouldn’t have a repeat of last year’s 41-10 debacle. However, we SHOULD have been talking a 42-3 game at halftime. That’s not an improvement by any means. Why did they not watch tape of what Jacksonville did when they won in Indy earlier this year? And what do we do with this team now? Should we blow up and rebuild? I say sort of! How about a few ideas?
QB – Sorry Jake, but it’s over. You should be a back up and the Broncos need to do everything they can to bring in Drew Brees. Think about it – the Chargers already have another high-paid QB of the future on the bench, and Brees is a free agent now. Jake can back him up, and Mauck can remain as the 3rd string while Van Pelt continues to develop on the practice squad. Eventually, I think Van Pelt would be a great spark as a 2nd stringer if Brees goes down or is having an off day. Kind of like the days of Weese for Morton.
RB – we’re cool. Two RB’s went down with injuries for the year and we still managed to have an effective running game.
OL – is still good as well – maybe use a draft pick or two on some developmental players.
WR – Smith and Lelie looked great this year, and I’m seriously thinking Nate Jackson is our current best bet for the 3rd receiver. Darius Watts better work extra hard in the off-season if he thinks he’ll be the 3.
TE – Again, we’re cool. Hape and Putzier can handle the load, while the rest can do whatever – they are of no consequence.
DL – OK, the Broncos need to find someone that can pressure the QB. They let Berry go, and he led the AFC in sacks. Dumb. Granted having Pryce out all year hurt, but they still needed someone that could step up and nobody did.
LB – I’m not convinced that this is a problem area. Wilson and Williams are excellent, and Chukwura looks good when he’s healthy.
DB – Again, what can you do? Lynch and Bailey were fine this year, but there may be a depth issue on nickel and dime packages. I’m sure we can pick up some talent in the draft.
Coaching – What the hell do you do here? Seriously, I’m thinking Shanahan can no longer coach this team. He needs to go. And Kubiak is NOT his replacement. The offense needs a fresh idea, and someone has to replace our latest defensive coordinator. Maybe Wade Phillips? Who knows? The defense has been unprepared since the DB coach was replaced. Here’s where we need to start fresh and get this team back on track.
As I listened to the fallout on the morning talk shows, all I heard were complaints about the talent level on this team. That’s only a small part of it. I think the big issues are the leaders, coaches, instructors – they are not getting the team motivated and can’t seem to game plan anymore.
Offense: In my mind, they should have done nothing but run the football. This offensive line coupled with Tatum Bell and Reuben Droughns have been effective all year long. The Colts’ defense is not great against the run, so this would have been a great way to control the clock. Plus, if they are running, they can spend time in the huddle and bring the play clock down to 2-3 seconds before snapping the ball. That’s the only way to keep Manning off the field and control the clock. So, what do they do? They come out passing! Sure, the first play was a nice 20-yard pass, but then they went 3 and out after one run and 2 incomplete passes. I don’t think Tatum Bell saw the football until late in the 2nd quarter when the game was already over.
Defense: The only thing soft in this game was the Broncos secondary. Bring in the secret weapon – Roc Alexander! The rookie cornerback got burnt like a bad piece of bacon all day long! This guy hasn’t played on anything other than special teams until the big playoff game, and he had no clue about trying to stop Reggie Wayne or any other Colt receiver! What is he even doing in the game? And suddenly, Kelly Herndon is afraid to tackle. He was trying to grab shoulder, jerseys, do anything but make a solid, high-school taught tackle. Maybe he just had a manicure and didn’t want to mess up his pretty nails, like my mother trying to get her car keys out of her purse! The idea implemented to confuse Manning was to send some DB’s to blitz while defensive ends (yep, 300 pound linemen) dropped back to cover running backs and tight ends. Needless to say, this didn’t even come close to working. Are you trying to tell me that the Mastermind thinks Reggie Hayward can keep up with Dallas Drake? Well he can’t and he didn’t! The Broncos looked more confused about their pass coverage than anyone else. Manning recognized everything and audibled his way to an absolute thrashing of the Broncos. If it weren’t for a lucky tipped ball that the Broncos intercepted in the end zone, the Colts would have scored 42 in the first half!
The Broncos promised the fans that we wouldn’t have a repeat of last year’s 41-10 debacle. However, we SHOULD have been talking a 42-3 game at halftime. That’s not an improvement by any means. Why did they not watch tape of what Jacksonville did when they won in Indy earlier this year? And what do we do with this team now? Should we blow up and rebuild? I say sort of! How about a few ideas?
QB – Sorry Jake, but it’s over. You should be a back up and the Broncos need to do everything they can to bring in Drew Brees. Think about it – the Chargers already have another high-paid QB of the future on the bench, and Brees is a free agent now. Jake can back him up, and Mauck can remain as the 3rd string while Van Pelt continues to develop on the practice squad. Eventually, I think Van Pelt would be a great spark as a 2nd stringer if Brees goes down or is having an off day. Kind of like the days of Weese for Morton.
RB – we’re cool. Two RB’s went down with injuries for the year and we still managed to have an effective running game.
OL – is still good as well – maybe use a draft pick or two on some developmental players.
WR – Smith and Lelie looked great this year, and I’m seriously thinking Nate Jackson is our current best bet for the 3rd receiver. Darius Watts better work extra hard in the off-season if he thinks he’ll be the 3.
TE – Again, we’re cool. Hape and Putzier can handle the load, while the rest can do whatever – they are of no consequence.
DL – OK, the Broncos need to find someone that can pressure the QB. They let Berry go, and he led the AFC in sacks. Dumb. Granted having Pryce out all year hurt, but they still needed someone that could step up and nobody did.
LB – I’m not convinced that this is a problem area. Wilson and Williams are excellent, and Chukwura looks good when he’s healthy.
DB – Again, what can you do? Lynch and Bailey were fine this year, but there may be a depth issue on nickel and dime packages. I’m sure we can pick up some talent in the draft.
Coaching – What the hell do you do here? Seriously, I’m thinking Shanahan can no longer coach this team. He needs to go. And Kubiak is NOT his replacement. The offense needs a fresh idea, and someone has to replace our latest defensive coordinator. Maybe Wade Phillips? Who knows? The defense has been unprepared since the DB coach was replaced. Here’s where we need to start fresh and get this team back on track.
As I listened to the fallout on the morning talk shows, all I heard were complaints about the talent level on this team. That’s only a small part of it. I think the big issues are the leaders, coaches, instructors – they are not getting the team motivated and can’t seem to game plan anymore.
posted by Pat Angello, 1:53 PM