A "Successful" Broncos Season is what?

First, you have to separate what is defined as a great season and a “successful” season. In 1996 the Broncos were a 13-3 team, had home field throughout and then proceeded to lose to the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars. After this one was over I didn’t call that Broncos season a success at all. After this one no hard core Broncos fan and no one in the media called that season a success either. It was such an epic failure that there was talk after the game that the great Elway might retire.

I consider that loss the worst defeat in Broncos team history, #2 was the Washington Redskins Super Bowl loss, then at #3 the epic fail by Jake Plummer when he blew his wad in 2006. The SB losses to the NY Giants and San Francisco 49ers were devastating but both teams were better than the Broncos so it wasn’t a big shock when we came up on the short end.

I remember the Jaguars game like it was yesterday. The day before the game I bought a brand new 32 inch Hitachi Color TV. I invited about 10 friends over to watch the game. I was absolutely convinced the Broncos were going to win the whole thing that year because they had the best regular season record in the AFC and I believed at the time no one could stop them. That one hurt, hurt bad, it crushed Elway and the City of Denver. Did they win a lot of games that year and put up great stats? Oh yeah but to call that season successful is bad joke.

The same would be true of the Redskins loss in the Super Bowl. The Broncos got a second chance after losing to what was a far better team than them in the Giants the year before. The Broncos were the best team in the NFL during the regular season in 1988. The Redskins were lucky to be there.

They let the Bucs QB Doug Williams and RB Tim Smith have career days when both wouldn’t even be backups on most teams. For whatever reason a pretty good Broncos D up until that point unraveled, especially in the secondary that didn't help matters either. Tony Lilly, who can forget Lilly getting beat like a school boy on every pass play.

Then of course there’s 2006, a team as it turned out that was one player, a QB, away from a SB.

After the last Super Bowl win in 1998 Mike Shanahan would go onto have what some would call “successful” seasons. None of them translated into a Super Bowl win however and the memory of the last one has turned into a 13 year wait for another.

The game is played to win championships period. If the Broncos blow a chance here with home field advantage with Peyton Manning at the top of his game and the D playing as well as they have in years I wouldn’t call it a successful season.

THEY MUST WIN THE SUPER BOWL! GO BRONCOS!!

Tebow should not waste away in NYC

Tebow is wasting away with a horrible Jets team.

Tim Tebow says he wants to start or he wants to be traded or released from the Jets and who could blame him. In hindsight Tebow probably wishes he hadn’t went to New York. I’m sure Rex Ryan feels the same way. In all the years I’ve watched NFL games I’ve never seen a single worse performance in a game by a QB than Mark Sanchez in the Titans game.

He made some of the worst throws I’ve ever seen and you might go as far as saying it was the worst performance by any position player in any game in NFL history. Nothing can excuse the dreadful game he played. The irony is as bad as he played he still had a chance to redeem himself and win the game in 4th Q in the final minutes and then fumbled a snap, it wasn’t the best in the world for sure but one he should of handled it.

50 turnovers in 2 years aren’t going to promote job security. IMO his career in NYC is over and if the Jets don’t trade or outright release him at season’s end their making a big mistake. Frauds in the NFL can hide for only so long, The reason the Jets had a good team the last couple of years was because of a good D. When it crashed this season Sanchez was finally exposed.

That said Ryan made a huge mistake by not putting Tebow in the lineup at about Week 5 or 6 after it was apparent that Sanchez’s confidence was completely gone.

IMO Tebow today no matter what haters say about him is better start at QB even with all of his warts than Sanchez or say QB's like Blaine Gabbert, Jake Locker, Ryan Lindey, John Skeleton, Nick Foles, Chad Henne, Christian Ponder, Brandy Quinn, and Matt Cassel. I would argue he’s even a better start than guys like Carson Palmer or Ryan Tannehill.

You can bet your backside many of the teams listed here with these subpar starters at QB would have loved to have Tebow on their team and gladly given him a shot to start, learn and grow on their teams.

I’m convinced that Tebow’s story has yet to be written. Someone someday is going to give him a chance to be a starting QB in the NFL because he’s a winner, a warrior and a team guy through and through.

I’m happy to see the Broncos have what has turned into a great season but the Peyton Manning story has yet to really be written too. Peyton Manning MUST win a Super Bowl in Denver, it’s the only way I’m ever going to say it was the right move to sign him. The Tebow trade and the Manning signing are 2 separate stories but will always be connected and in my mind until Manning wins a Championship for the Broncos nothing is settled.

Good luck Tebow, I’d really like to see the day when you get an honest chance to show what you can do as a starter not just because you’re talented and could help a team win games but because you also earned the right to be one.

Media Frenzy not good for the Broncos

First let’s begin with this important point. I'm thrilled the Broncos clinched the AFC West. It's been an amazing season for Manning, the Broncos and the fans thus far.

Still... I don't like the media hype surrounding them right now; I think it could be a hex or a curse. Never count your chickens before they've hatched. The Broncos haven't won anything yet.

We've won the AFC West several times, we've won playoff games and we've won AFC Championship games. None of that is new right? Let’s say they advance that far is it good enough?

Personally, no it isn't enough. Winning it all is the only thing; it's the only way you can call the season a total success. Being a "good" team and falling short like the 29 others may be good for some teams and fans, even for some Broncos fans but not for me. We've been second best before and that stinks. 12 years is a long enough wait for an organization that should expect nothing less than a win in the final game.

The bar must be set high winning the whole thing has to be an obsessive hunger that the owner, the coaches, players and the fans have burning in their guts. We have 2 Super Bowl wins we must have another one nothing less will do.

The team I see still has a very tough road ahead to win that war. Without Willis McGahee I think the odds drop for the Broncos.

Moreno has shown signs of life but his past history as the lead RB has not been the answer. I don't see Knowshon Moreno running for a 100 yards against a good team like the Ravens even without their studs on D. He'll probably hit the wall this week and in the playoffs if he's our guy, the outlook diminishes considerably.

Maybe Manning and the improve D can carry the Broncos but without the legitimate threat of a running game and play action Manning's dink and dunk passing game becomes less effective.

This is far from being in the bag my friends. There are plenty of great teams that could kick the Broncos ass in a shoot out in the playoffs. A good balance of passing and ball control smash mouth football and great D wins Super Bowls. Ask Manning, he's been there twice, once with a great running game and once without. He's 1-1 after a long career and all the bulky stats, the yards, the completions and the TD passes.

So guys, be optimistic but realistic. We need to keep playing them one at a time and when the first playoff game comes we must expect the best in all 3 areas of the game to win and advance. Staying healthy and luck plays into but it to be the team that wins it all a team must create its own luck.

Worse offensive and defensive teams than the Broncos have won the SB. Let's hope it's our turn because we're the best, let’s not settle for second.

The 3rd ring is the thing.

Denver Broncos Defense: The Unsung Heroes

Von Miller INT seals the deal for the Broncos.

It was awesome to see the Broncos clinch the AFC West Title. Peyton Manning deserves credit but the pick 6 by Von Miller was the nail in the coffin. I didn't expect the Broncos to win this many games so I have to eat my words on the early predictions I made. The AFC West may be the weakest division in football but as much as the media wants to crown Manning as MVP of the league to many overlook how well the Broncos Defense has played this season.

Some of you may or may not have noticed I haven't doled out much praise for the Broncos the 2nd half of the season. Today they do deserve it, Manning deserves it, and the D most certainly deserves it. I still feel in my gut and in my heart that until Manning hoists the Lombardi over his head the signing can't be called a success despite his great regular season comeback.

Maybe to some that's asking too much but since Manning cost the Broncos so much in so many ways and since his window of opportunity is so small nothing else will do. Call my expectations to high but that's how this armchair QB sees it.

The Broncos have to get one of their RB's to produce because without the threat of a running game I don't see them going deep in the playoffs. Thomas has made a big jump as a WR and the rest of the Receivers have done a serviceable job but it won't be enough.

Clinching early is great too but no guarantee of a championship. Manning's Colt teams did it many times and he only has one ring to show for it so the Broncos must not get complacent or take any games off the rest of the season. If they finish strong they could be the second highest seed in the AFC and get all their playoff games at home except the AFC Championship Game if the Texans get that far. So the remaining games matter and they must continue to improve in all phases of the game.

Congrats enjoy the win today Broncos Fans but they still have work to do, like taking the Oakland Raiders to the Slaughter House on Thursday. GO BRONCOS!'

Good Times, Great Vacation in Mexico

Marlin Fishing in Mexico.

We had a great time in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The beaches were beautiful, the weather was fantastic and the food was superb. The best part was getting to know Paul and Beth Rodriguez and my dear friend Linda Sweet and her Husband Steve. We had a lot of laughs together.

Jenny caught a 20 pound Dorado that was the nicest fish we caught all day. Someday I will get a Marlin. I think the next time we go to Mexico we'll probably go to Cabo because I heard big game fishing is much better there.

I love the Mexican culture, and the people. They work hard, they play hard, and they have a pride and a dignity that some Mexican-Americans in the States just don't have nor can appreciate. I was impressed with their manners, demeanor and patience with us the whole time we were there. It was a great lesson in humility for me.

I have to say that I drank more beer in PV than I have total in the last 10 years of my life. It was very hot and humid so the beers went in the body and out the pores as soon as you drank one. I thought when I got on the plane to fly back to Oregon I was going to have to make a pit stop at a Rehab center before I went home.

The other cool thing that happened there was after putting it off for years and years I finally got some long overdue dental work done. The first Monday I was there I spent 8 hours in a dentist chair. I had a 4 tooth bridge made for my uppers, a 3 tooth partial for my lowers, a root canal and a crown made plus 6 cavities fixed. I also had my teeth whiten. Altogether I spent nearly 16 hours over a 3 day period getting my teeth fixed.

It was a grueling experience to say the least but the cost savings was unbelievable. The estimate I received from a Denist here in Astoria minus the teeth whitening was nearly $12,000. All the work I just mentioned came in under $2500 and that included the whitening. Not a bad savings is it? And both the bridge and the partial fit perfectly by the way. It seemed unreal to me that they could get both pieces made in the less than 3 days by a lab. It would have taken at least 2 to 3 weeks minimum in the States to get done what I got done in 3 days in Mexico.

So all in all Jenny and I had a great time and now it's back to the real world. When we landed in Portland Sunday night it was raining cats and dogs. When I looked at the forecast on the way home it called for rain for the next 7 days. The sunny days in Mexico may be gone but we'll have memories of it forever. Thanks Linda for giving us a gift of a lifetime.

One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest: On Stage in Astoria

Saturday night I went to see the stage production of One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest at the Astor Street Opry Company in Astoria with Jenny. It was our 3rd trip to the ASOC and again I was amazed by the quality and depth of the acting by the members of the cast.

After watching this stage version I found that it was a better story than the movie because in the play the supporting actors have bigger roles and add a different dimension that was missing from the movie. Don’t get me wrong the movie is one of the best ever but when it’s on stage, the acting and characters breathe a different light into it that you immediately notice and appreciate.

For instance the funny basketball game was abbreviated and played inside the common area of the institution. The fishing trip is omitted, and the World Series scene was completely different, brilliantly done and it gave the other actors in the cast more lines adding to the humor and scope of the scene.

One of the very cool and well done parts of the play is how McMurphy (Played by Steve Wood) deals with the idea of electroshock therapy and then what happens once he gets it. In the play he openly challenges Nurse Ratched (Played by Deborah McEuen) to give it to him. There’s a good piece of dialog that goes on in that particular scene that wasn’t in the movie.

Dr. Spivey (Played by Bob Goldberg) had an interesting part and dialog, adding humor and believability to the play. Again something that isn’t included in the movie version.

Another good piece of writing was how the whole suicide scene of Billy (Played by Eric Keto) is crafted. In the play you don’t see him after the fact as per the movie but instead it’s all happening off stage and I believe that sometimes what you don’t see is far more tragic and horrible than what you do see. When left to the imagination scary things become way more terrifying.

Personally for me the most memorable addition to the play that I really loved was the between scenes dialog of Chief Bromden (Played by Barry Sears.) The Chief has a very important role in the play and has far more conversational dialog. The last scene of the play with the Chief and Mr. Harding (Played by Dan Driscoll) was some of the best acting I’ve seen on stage in Astoria. Taking nothing away from Steve Wood’s performance as McMurphy, Barry Sears stole the show.

Markus Brown directed this production and I have to say he did an excellent job with a very tough play, many characters and quick difficult transitions. Markus is a carpenter by trade and the set he designed and built had a very professional look and feel to it. It really looked like a mental institution. The Lighting designed by Mick Alderman, another friend, was awesome and really added to the production and the drama of the play.

Since Markus is a friend and 2 others involved with the play were friends this will be the hardest part of my review but since I think Markus would want an honest opinion I’ll share what I considered some of the few weaknesses of the play.

I thought that Steve Wood (McMurphy) had a little trouble in the beginning getting his feet under him but as the play went on however he got much stronger and more confident. By the end he was amazing. The same could be said of Dan Driscoll who had some trouble with lines and I think tried to often in the beginning to be a little to deliberately witty. He too grew more confident as the ship got underway.

Deborah McEuen definitely had the hard nose and strong personality down pat as Nurse Ratched. In her portrayal she seemed angrier and clearly showed more emotion in her face, eyes, voice and demeanor than the actress from the movie version. In the movie Louise Fletcher plays it like ice, cold, unemotional, deadpan and with almost dead eyes. Deborah was excellent in the role she just played it from a different emotional prospective which I assume is what Markus wanted.

I thought Jason Hippert as Cheswick, Brian Allen as Martini and Eric Keto as Billy were all fantastic in their supporting roles as well.

Steve Wood was excellent as McMurphy and all the actors did a great job for Community Theater but I thought Barry Sears as the Chief will be the character I’ll always remember. Maybe it was because I had no idea he had so many lines in the play but he was truly amazing.

Overall it was an excellent and entertaining evening and I completely respect and admire the cast and crew of the play. I highly recommend you go see it this weekend if tickets are still available. Markus my hat is off to you, good work my friend.

Broncos Comeback One for the Ages

This ranks as one of the all-time choke jobs.

I thought when Eric Decker did his little somersault and then soon after when Peyton Manning threw the pick six it was all over. The Decker blunder is headed for the bloopers Hall of Shame. I admit it, I couldn't stop rewinding the play and laughing at him. Thankfully he redeemed himself with the nice catch and TD run in the second half.

The meltdown by Philip Rivers was epic. The 5 turnovers in the second half were unbelievable. I just wonder how Rivers and the Chargers can recover from this devastating loss.

I'm trying to remember any game recently where a comeback was so swift and so completely mind numbingly catastrophic. It's been a long time and it’s about time a game like this went in the Broncos favor.

What a game! The Broncos D rose up; Manning rose up and pulled the Bolts down from the sky like dead ducks.

Wow! I still haven't caught my breath. It just does not get any better than this. Hopefully this win gives the Broncos some strong momentum going into the second half of the season.

GO BRONCOS!!!

The D is the Key, Manning is not...

Matt Schaub torched the Broncos D for 290 yards and 4 TD's.

I guess I'm not really shocked to see so many Broncos Fans go after the S's after the loss to the Houston Texans but don't leave out the CB's, the LB's and the DL too. I said before they signed Manning that the D wasn't going to be good enough and complained over and over that they needed help at Safety, Linebacker and DL position.

The only quality player we have on D as of Week 4 is Von Miller and all the rest should be subjected to sever criticism including Elvis Dumervil and Champ Bailey. Mike Adams and Rahim Moore won't get the job done for sure but neither will Justin Bannon and Kevin Vickerson who've not been a factor thus far. Since no pass rush exists it really exposes the weakness we have in the backfield and that includes Champ. This D is far from being good enough to be a playoff caliber team as it stands today. The tackling in the last 2 games reminds me of how the Broncos played early last year, it's beyond horrible.

I've noticed in the pointed attacks against the rest of the team that Peyton Manning is completely absolved of any blame for the Broncos last 2 losses when in fact he has just as much responsibility for them as the rest of the team. Blaming the play calling is BS; Manning is not playing well period. He's had a hard time throwing the deep ball with any consistently and in his excitement to run the hurry up offense, his expertise supposedly, he's not making the right calls at the line of scrimmage which he is responsible for in the hurry up. IMO it may be time to rethink the whole idea of running the hurry up and slow the game down because he and his minions are not executing it well enough to be a threat.

That said Manning has thrown horrible passes and into double coverage far too many times. Frankly he's very lucky he doesn't have more than the 3 INT's he's already put up. He's been sacked 8 times already and he's not getting rid of the ball quickly enough in the pocket. When he's been on target then the set of Receivers he's throwing to can't seem to catch a cold. Stokley seems to be the only player who doesn't drop many but he's no deep threat and can't stretch the field.

I don't want to be right in fact I hate it but thus far everything I predicted about the Manning signing and how the Broncos would perform has come to pass in the early going. Manning can't rescue a team who has a below average D and very small selection of skilled players on O to help him win.

The idea that Manning was going to the last piece of the puzzle for the Broncos to win a Super Bowl was ridiculous homeristic thinking. Hell, the Oakland Raiders are favored by 6.5 points and we're playing them at home for God Sakes. It's a little early to hit the panic button but to say this Raiders game is a must win for the Broncos might be dramatic but it is a must win. It doesn't get any easier with the New England Patriots on deck and the rest of schedule is no easier. I hope they can turn it around this week because if they lose the early hole they've dug for themselves may be too much from them to dig out of.

Windfall: An Independent Film about Wind Energy

I watched this on Netflix last night, it’s a free streamer by the way if you have their service. It’s an independent film made about wind energy in Meredith, NY which is in Delaware County. I highly recommend that people who think they actually have a grasp of what modern wind energy is and think they really know what it looks like and what its benefits are should watch this documentary.

One thing that should be noted upfront is that supporters of alternative energy who have the courage to watch this film will solely blame the big evil greedy corporations for wind’s shortcomings in their rush to make profits and it’s totally misplaced.

In this case the blame rests completely on the federal governments rush to come up with green energy solutions without regard to their environmental impact, cost or benefits. It set up these wind companies with huge tax breaks to build them. The wind generators cost around $3 million each to build, the feds give a $1 million tax break and the State of New York gives a $1 million tax break to build them. The other million had to be raised by Wall Street investment firms.

First and foremost the blame has to be laid at the feet of the ignorant local officials on the town council and the town planning commission that got duped into agreeing to a wind farm by not really doing enough research on the impact of what 430 foot wind generators would have on their community. The City as a matter of course didn’t see any positive financial impact to their coffers as a result of the project but investors made millions on this governmental con.

Once the process of building these wind generators began most of the citizens of the county were in the dark about what the impacts were. So as they started being built and realized what impact they’d have the outrage grew and the story of their fight to stop them began.

One of the leading people on the town council was a big land owner in Delaware County. He wanted the wind generators and sold part of his land to build some of them. Another member of the town council was an attorney who tried to dictate policy about the wind generators and obviously was totally out of her league about the consequences once construction and implantation of the wind generators began.

I looked for movies reviews on Yahoo’s movie site and found one. Why? Because the truth slams Greenies smack in the face about wind’s problems and they can’t deny or explain it away after watching this film. If you’re the kind of person who wants to be informed about important issues that impact all of us I encourage you to watch this film and spread the word about its message.

2016 Obama's America: Movie Review

I was so amazed this movie actually made it to Astoria given the political climate that exists here. My guess is because it's a very well made documentary and it’s been making money. It opened in theaters worldwide on the weekend of Aug. 24. The film ranked seventh in U.S. box office revenue for the weekend of Aug. 24-26, gathering cumulative revenue of more than $9 million from 1,091 locations.

The film premiered July 13 on one screen in Houston and slowly expanded over the past month to 1,091 theaters in such cities as Baton Rouge; Nashville, Tenn.; Denver; Phoenix; Wichita, Kan.; and Washington, D.C. The film expanded to about 1,800 theaters last Friday.

It collected $6.2 million last Friday, Saturday and Sunday for a per-screen average of $5,940, the best of any film in wide release. It added another $1.2 million at the box office Monday.

The reason it's making money is because it's not a hit piece. It's a fact based biography of Obama's political roots. Unfortunately too many didn't know what they were getting when they voted for Obama in 2008.

In great depth it deals with his early childhood, college years and the tremendous influence his Mother, Dad, friends, college professors and mentors have had him emotionally and psychologically. Once the filmmaker puts together the story of his whole life his political ideology becomes blatantly clear and easy to understand.

It also makes the best argument I've seen yet for the reasons why so many people did vote for him. This part of the movie alone makes it well worth watching no matter what your political stripe.

I counted 45 people (a big crowd for any movie theater in Astoria) at the matinee and the manager of the theater said the movie was doing a great business. I only hope that more people go see this movie, especially voters under the age of 30. Although people over 30 should see it too I don't have much faith that harden Democrats of any age will give it a chance. It's too bad because they'd become enlightened.

One of the things that frustrates me personally about politics on either side is the unwillingness to entertain the idea that maybe just maybe there's another way to look at an issue and bend on it.

Regardless, whether you're a Democrat or Republican you should see this movie before the election. Maybe it won't change how you vote but it'll certainly give you some information you're probably unaware of to think about before you do.

Manning Cruises Over the 49ers

With great protection Manning didn't break a sweat against the 49ers.

This was Peyton Manning’s best preseason showing to date with the Broncos. Manning scored against the first team D for the 49ers and made it look easy. Eric Decker had a nice game and should have had 3 TD’s catches instead of 2. I hope Decker can minimize the drops when they count. All of the first string WR’s, TE’s and backups had drops yesterday, too many drops. Last year, the drops by Decker and Thomas were so numerous and costly. Decker must catch the ones like he dropped for that sure TD.

During the Manning series’ the Broncos OL did an excellent job in pass protection. Manning only got hit big once. They did a good job for Willis McGahee too. At 30 years old he can still run down hill with as much power as any RB in the league if he gets an opening. If McGahee can stay on the field all season the combination of his running and Manning’s passing should produce big yards and scores.

The Broncos first team D played well against the 49ers first team offense. I was very impressed how they shut down their running game. The pass rush was not as good, especially with the backups in. As a whole they didn’t get the kind of consistent pass pressure they’re going to need against better passing teams. Too many missed tackles by all 3 lines of Defense in this one too and the backup Safeties and Corners for the Broncos need a lot of work. I have real concerns about the Broncos D going into the regular season, the DB’s must improve their cover and tackling skills. The DL must improve their pass pressure in the 3-4, the 4-3 and even in the 5-2 which they lined up in several times in the game but didn’t achieve much.

It’ll be interesting to see which DB’s and DLinemen the Broncos stay with come the final cut down day. The only true standouts on D whose starting jobs are secure IMO are Miller, Dumervil and Champ at this point.

Personally I felt like the 9ers D and the team as a whole was overrated last year especially on D. They played in the weakest conference in the NFC last year and had an easy schedule. Since they had a 13-3 record last year their schedule will be much more difficult out of their division just like the Broncos this season. On offense last season 49ers kicked more FG’s for scores for points than TD’s last year so offensively they were ranked near the bottom.

You have to really take these preseason games with a grain of salt. I’m hopeful about the Broncos O being better under Manning but the Broncos D still needs a lot of work.

Seahawks Expose Weaknesses

Manning can still run a good hurry up.

I just watched the DVR version of the Seahawks/Broncos game. The most impressive part of it was the hurry up offense Peyton Manning got going at the end of the first half. Manning can still move the ball quickly when he has too. Too bad that drive had to end with a dropped TD pass in the end zone, my Mom could of caught that one.

Willis McGahee looked good in limited action but this was no thing of beauty for the offense as a whole. Manning had the 2 picks and was under pressure to many times. I was glad to see him get up after the one good hit that he took. His game while good is still not up to the level it needs to be yet and neither is the OL and the Receivers.

As good as the Broncos D tackled in the first game against the Bears they were horrible in this one. The pass rush was ineffective and when the Seahawks QB and RB's broke through the first level the Broncos missed far too many tackles on the second.

In summary I'd say Manning is on the comeback trail but he's not 100% in sync and the Broncos D still has a lot of work to do to get better. Thankfully these games don't count but when they do we have expect much better.

Good Preseason Tackling Beats the Bears

Jack Del Rio should help improve the Broncos D.

I just zipped through the Broncos game tonight on the DVR. The thing that most sticks out about the game was the tackling by the Broncos D. They didn't miss any that I remember seeing and that's amazing considering it was the 1st preseason game with backups and Rookies getting most of the playing time. Even on special teams they didn't miss any tackles. The Bears didn't have any big plays in the game at all.

Granted Matt Forte and Jay Cutler didn't play but the Broncos were very aggressive throughout. Most of the game they played a 4-3 D, many times they lined up 5 on the defense line.

They totally shut down the run game and were constantly putting pressure on all the Bears QB's in passing situations.

With Fox and new DC Jack Del Rio one would expect more aggressive defensive schemes but to be a successful D you have to be able to tackle consistently. So I'm certain Fox and Del Rio have to be pleased with this effort.

On offense the running game looked good. Willis McGahee, Jeremiah Johnson, Lance Ball and even Knowshon Moreno had some nice carries.

As for the Receivers Eric Decker and Matt Willis had some nice catches.

Manning's one series wasn't enough to see if his game is dead on yet. He threw some balls into good coverage that maybe he shouldn't have. The Brandon Stokley defection that got intercepted wasn't a great pass. But Manning looked comfortable in the pocket and the Broncos OL did protect very well for him and the backups.

Julius Peppers and Brian Urlacher didn't play so it's hard to tell this early if they'll be able to pass protect against stud D's.

I was impressed with Brock Osweiler's limited playing time. He does have a strong arm, mobility and threw a nice throw for TD pass. He's got the physical tools and if he gets the head for the game he could be a good QB in the NFL.

My main concern going in was how well would all of the new players on the DL and in the backfield would play. Since the Bears didn't produce anything on the ground and the pass pressure was so good by the DL and LB's the Corners and Safety's didn't really get challenged.

It was a good start for the Broncos. Now it's on the Seahawks next week, hopefully the confidence will roll over and they can improve game by game until they count.

Smog, Climate Change and Energy are 3 Seperate Issues

I got into a debate with a Global Warming Alarmist from LA today on a message board and thought I’d share this rant. No sense wasting it on one person. If you have a few minutes, watch all or part of this video for some background.

The Global Warming Swindle

LA does have some smog and it does need to be dealt with but one EPA sized rule does not fit all. Remember living in the bubble of LA is different than living in the fly over states. Air quality needs to be addressed in big cities but even with the smog it's NOT causing global warming. Smog and global warming are not connected and never have been. The facts don't fit the argument and today the smog is not as big a problem as it was because cars are burning cleaner fuel and are not admitting as bad of emissions as 20 years ago.

Even if the air quality in LA still needs improvement we shouldn’t destroy the entire nation’s economy by spending billions on energy systems than have a huge deficit on cost and delivery. Especially if it can only be counted on to meet less than 10% of our energy needs right now. It’s a real fairy tale to believe that solar, wind and bio-fuels are going to heat and cool every house in the US or power every car, ship, truck or train that moves food and every other essential consumer products we need.

I’ll give one truly ironic and moronic thing I love about California greenies that drives me crazy in this fantasy that is global warming. Some think electric cars are the answer. Really? First where does the electric power come from? Power plants. What do they use as an energy source to fuel power plants? Coal and natural gas. When I lived in Sacramento 10 years ago (another city with smog problems) the people of California didn’t want any more power plants built because they burned coal or natural gas.

Well Gee… how the hell are you going to power electric cars if the power grid in cities like LA and Sacramento are maxed out already? Electric energy is not an invisible source of energy. I’m amazed how stupid people are in just this one case alone. Then the other issue is the manufacture and the disposal of the car batteries if millions are put into production and used. The chemical waste created by batteries would be far more harmful to the environment that any diesel or gas burning vehicle.

Just like power plants some don’t want solar farms either in California. It’s the same moronic thinking that is getting us all nowhere. Why are we letting California control the narrative on the whole climate change and energy debate? They don’t have a clue. They want Solar Energy but not at the sake of Turtles. Click on the link below to read to see firsthand the madness of  it all.

Mojave Solar Project Killing Threatened Desert Tortoises

Bio-fuels have proven to be a disaster. First you must use energy to plant the corn, then energy to harvest the corn, and then use energy to transport the corn to a processing facility, and then use energy to process the corn into fuel, and then use energy to transport the fuel to dispensing facilities. Wow, very efficient system there isn’t it? More energy is wasted in making the energy than any benefit of using it thus it’s a negative outcome not just from an energy standpoint but from an economic outcome. Not only that but the corn used to make the fuel is causing worldwide food shortages and driving up the price of foods that use corn additives.

The farmers planting the corn for bio-fuels love it because they’re receiving massive government subsidies to grow and plant corn for bio-fuel. We shouldn’t have to subsidize another grand and stupendous failure like this one period when oil, natural gas and coal are in abundance.

Wind and solar are a joke too, because they cannot and will not work in certain areas of the US because of weather conditions. I live in NW Oregon wind and solar is impossible here just as it is many parts of the country. It’s total nonsense that the people of LA or any of the other big cities can dictate what energy policy and air quality policy is going to be when nothing compares to their problems.

Nuclear power plants is one of solutions I support, but it’s the same thing, waste is created in the process so Greenies don’t want them. In France they’ve been safely using them for years.

One thing is certain we can’t let people who believe in global warming destroy our free society by letting a few cites with some smog problems dictate energy and economic policy to the rest of us. Oil, natural gas and coal in combination with the other useful alternative energy sources can and should be used but this straw man called global warming needs to be burned at the stake because man isn’t causing climate change. 

God Bless America, The Movie

Until last night when I found this on amazon.com Jenny or I had never heard of this movie. What a great find. Without a doubt this movie is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. The social commentary it makes about TV and Pop Culture may offend some but is dead on and mirrors how I feel about it. I warn you it does have some violence and some profanity but the violence isn’t gratuitous.

Without giving to much a way it attacks reality shows in general, a noted broadcaster and a famous radio personally. Every single one of them in my opinion is worthy of it especially American Idol.

The wife and I are part of very small group who despite and loath American Idol, Survivor and all of the other reality shows. Neither one of us has watched a single episode of either of these shows and never will. The main character in the movie in a speech he gives at his office after the first 10 minutes of the movie describes it in a way far better than I ever could why we hate reality TV.

That speech only makes this movie well worth watching. It is brilliantly written and you totally sympathize and like the man who gets caught up in this dark, funny and hard hitting honest movie.

The only 2 things I didn’t like about it was that they gave the Tea Party an unfair wrap and they don’t mention Obama in the movie which didn’t really surprised me necessarily but I thought they would since it was so spot on about all the other subjects it spotlights. I highly recommend this movie despite these 2 flaws and I hope after you’ve watched it you’ll get back to me and let me know what you thought of it. We both loved it. Here's the IMDb link to the info and trailer of the movie.

God Bless America 

The San Bernardino Bankruptcy

This rant was edited and published in The Daily Astorian on July 13, 2012. Click on the link below:

Prepare for Big Fall 

 

It seems to me there is this intentional blinding apathy about anything political significant that is currently happening today by too many that scares the hell out of me.

Unfortunately most people don't won't to know and think that as long as it has no direct effect on them it doesn't matter. This couldn't be farther from the truth; eventually it WILL directly affect you and all of us. It's an attitude we can no longer afford.

Case in point, the bankruptcy of the City of San Bernardino:

First Stockton, then Mammoth Falls now San Bernardino is filing for bankruptcy, does this concern you? It should, even if you're in Key West, FL.

This story is an example of how the walls of Rome, in this case cities in California, are falling because of the unbelievable pension benefits they're paying to public employee unions. Granted these cities have spent millions on other wasteful programs but these unions not only have a huge stranglehold on cities but on the State and Federal level as well. It has to end NOW!

California is a big indicator of what the rest of the economy nationwide could be in for, an epic fall. The days of make work jobs and massive do nothing city, state and federal agencies providing gold plated benefits has to be drastically altered very soon or a total collapse of the national economy is imminent.

Some will ask what can I do? First you need to educate yourself about the local, state and national economic issues. Then support candidates who you most agree with and then VOTE. Write and call you representatives as well, if enough do it they will be forced to listen.

The 2 party system is extremely flawed and what we're stuck with right now. Hopefully one day that'll change but until then we must elect candidates who are not going to keep maintaining the status quo by kicking the fiscal can down the road to the gates of hell.

More taxes, more government, more laws that undermine our freedoms, more needless regulation, more government interference in trying inject itself into the economy, more money being printed by the Federal Reserve, more social welfare programs, more EPA and United Nations controlled energy policy, more federal disregard for protecting our borders and more climate change nuts controlling the narrative that adversely affect the national economy clearly hasn't worked and isn't the answer.

Worse still and more importantly are citizens who are willfully ignorant, or so selfish and apathetic they don't give a damn as long someone doesn't dig into their own rice bowl or enter their little halo of a world. Is that the kind of American you want to be, really?

Make no mistake it WILL affect you, maybe not today, tomorrow, a week, a month or year from now but eventually it WILL. We must take a hard fiscal right hand turn before it's too late. If you don't care about it personally just think of the world we'll leave for our children and grandchildren.

Ignore the main stream media who daily make this election cycle about social issues. It's the oldest tactic in the world. They run interference to get voters on both sides emotional charged and lead you away from the dreadful financial straits we're in.

One must believe that a job, a roof over your head and food on the table is more important than any social issue. You can be assured that people without these 3 necessities could care less about the social world order. And more likely than not without it cause disorder as a result.

In a perfect world we'd live in a perfect social society but it'll never happen especially if people don't have jobs or are under the thumb of an oppressive centralized government who believes it can be all things to all people. I sincerely hope that this offends you if you're one of the many who don't care about politics. If it does and it motivates you to act then, all the better.

Supreme Court Rules on Obamacare, American Taxpayers Lose

I pay almost $400 a month to cover myself with health insurance which I feel is my own responsibility. Now I'll have the great honor to be taxed some more for people who could and should be paying for their own. I understand helping kids, seniors, the disabled and veterans but paying a single cent for some able bodied person insurance’s is nothing but robbery.

Our federal government is quickly leading us down the path of economic suicide and taking our freedoms away from us one by one in the process. Now the main stream media who fully support Obama will use this victory as vindication for Obama and his Presidency. I don’t even have to turn on the news, I’m sure they’ve all but assured him a win. Romney needed this Supreme Court decision just as bad as we did. He’s in a horrible spot now and Obama will be able to say in every speech or debate that “Romneycare” was the model used for Obamacare.

After today’s final beat down on Romney, the GOP and hardworking taxpayers everywhere I hope a 3rd Party candidate runs for President. I’ve had it with the GOP. Romney’s chances of winning are slim and I’d rather vote for a candidate who’s a real Conservative. And NO it isn’t Ron Paul either. Paul is a moron. Maybe someone will step forward who I can vote for and feel as though I voted for real change but I have no idea who that person is because these politicians have no courage to stand up and fight for what they know in their heart is really right. At least I could say I did voice my opinion with my vote even though it’ll be in vain.

It’s a sad day, I pray for my country and my kids because our country is going right straight to hell and doing it in record time. And I personally feel totally hopeless and powerless to anything to help stop it.

Hero and Mentor Rick Gutierrez dies at 56

Rick is the guy in the middle of the front row with the tie. 

I had a conversation with my Mother who lives in Powell, WY today and found out that a very dear friend died. Rick Gutierrez died on May 30, 2012 at the age of 56 at St. Vincent’s in Billings, MT.

I owe Rick an extreme debt of gratitude. In 1986 when I lived in Worland, WY Rick was President of the Worland Jaycees. After months and months of his badgering phone calls he convinced me and several others to join the Worland chapter in January of that year. In the beginning of my Jaycee career Rick was right there encouraging and supporting me every step of the way.

Joining the Jaycees was a real turning point in my life. I learned so many things in the Jaycees that sent me on a totally different life path. I learned how to be a better public speaker, how to manage projects and gain a ton of self confidence that translated to my personal and professional life. I could write an entire book on the tremendous impact the JC’s have had on so many areas of my life.

Rick with his Granddaughter. 

Less than 5 weeks ago I was in Powell to see my Mother who was ill and run into Rick at one of the local grocery stores. He looked great, I shook his hand when I saw him and thanked him for being so a good friend and being the man who led me to the Jaycees. He invited me for a get together while I was there but I told him since my Mom’s situation was so bad I couldn’t commit to seeing him. I told him the next time I came to Powell we’d get together and have a beer. And so it goes…

It came as a real shocker to hear this news today. Rick was only 56, way too young to be taken at such an early age. Rick was very well liked by many and was a real community service oriented person his whole life.

My thoughts and prayers go out to Laura his wife of 31 years and his children Chad, Mandy and Ryan. He’ll be missed; he was a fine man and good friend. God speed Rick and thank you so much for what you gave me, I’ll never forget it.

Sturgeon Fishing on the Columbia River

It's no fishing story, I caught the biggest Sturgeon of the day.

 Without a doubt this was one of best fishing days of my entire life. The weather was windy and cold but the fishing was amazing. We caught over 30 Sturgeon in the Columbia River.

Billy Davis of Gale Force Guides based in Warrenton, OR was the fishing Charter we used and he was an expert at helping us catch them. If you want the best Sturgeon Charter in NW Oregon book your trip with Gale Force Guides.

It was fun fishing with my Wife Jenny Jacques, my Step-Son Kane Charlson, my Brother David Jacques and our 2 dear friends Ryan Taggart and Trevor Taggart.

It’s a fact: The worst day of fishing is better than the best day at work.

The Dreessen and Tamme Reality

Gronkowski won't reproduce monster numbers again this season.

Fans must first understand that Joel Dreessen and Jacob Tamme were back up TE’s and neither IMO can be considered to be in the elite just yet. Dreessen has just 13 career TD’s in his 7 year career for 1352 yards. Tamme has a measly 5 career TD’s and for 885 yards and was signed for the league minimum. Tamme is a small TE at 236 pounds so he won’t start many games because he doesn’t have enough bulk to be an effective blocker. Blocking isn’t as sexy as yards or TD's but if a TE can’t block his role will be limited.

Yes, hopefully since Peyton Manning throws to TE’s in his offense they’ll see more balls but calling them a great one two punch without any games yet being played would be laughable to any objective 3rd party but a Broncos Fan homer.      

The inconsistent amount of times even a good TE contributes from game to game from season to season is even rarer still. The Patriots TE’s Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez are talented Receivers and both had a great season last year in part because Brady’s only other weapon at WR was Wes Welker. So many times since they couldn’t run the ball effectively Brady was forced to check down to the TE. Gronkowski had monster stats last year but if I’m a betting man he won’t reproduce those numbers this year and the Defensive Coordinators he'll face will be targeting him in their game plans.

Many times a team that relies heavily on a TE is weak at WR and at RB like the Patriots. Brady won games with these guys but didn’t have a run game nor any consistent WR’s other than Welker. Since the Patriots were a weak team defensively with no run game they couldn’t win the final game.

For years Tony Gonzales and Shannon Sharpe put up great stats because their team was not deep with good WR’s. Comparing Dreessen and Tamme to Sharpe is a bad one to make; he was the best who ever played the game. Not only was he a clutch receiving TE he was a good blocker. Gonzales was even better at being a blocking TE.

The good TE’s in the league must be able to block, putting up stats is important and helps the team win games but it’s just as important that they can block in the running game and pass protect. Tamme and Dreessen as of yet have not proved to be consistent in all 3 phases of the game or they wouldn’t have been on the bench.

The Broncos should be better at TE than what we had last season but predicting this early that they’ll be big contributions is premature even in Manning’s offense. Taking the optimistic view is great but throughout the NFL there historically have been only a hand full that end up being major contributors to winning games or championships.

Brock Osweiler: The Elway 2.0 Project

Brock Osweiler's great arm and quick release isn't enough.

Instead of posting this as a reply to some of the debate I’ve been in the last 3 days about him, I’ve decided to cram it into a blog. Most probably won’t get through the first paragraph of this rant but I’m going to write it and post it anyway because it’s still bugging the holy hell out of me.

The stuff I read said he made questionable decisions in games and didn't always play smart. The trouble is he doesn’t have a large body of work to even judge if he is football smart. I think the Mark Sanchez example is the perfect one; he only played one college season. He played on a good team in a horrible defensive conference and by draft day he was projected to go in the 1st round then eventually the Hall of Fame.

It took a while but his ass and his game have finally showed itself in living color. He couldn’t beat the lowly Broncos team last year could he? Then what happens… irony of ironies the Jets trade for Tim Tebow, go figure? What does that say about an unproven college QB with a very small sample size of a record? And Sanchez’s resume at first glance makes Osweiler’s look like a chump. I know he’s not a chump I’m just saying.

All the arm strength in the world, all the pretty long balls in the world, all the quick release throws in the world don’t mean squat if that guy isn’t a winner. In clutch time I’d rather have a warrior who wins games ugly than a strong armed QB who loses pretty. The fact is losing is never pretty, it’s always about winning. So it’s extremely infuriating and nonsensical that we traded away a “Project” for another even more unproven “Project” and call that a brilliant personnel move or still dumber building for the “future.”

In this case Elway’s ego took over. He forgot why he signed Peyton Manning apparently. As I’ve said about a dozen times in the last 3 days as I understood it we signed him, paid him the big bucks and gave up cap room money so Manning could come in and win a championship NOW. Manning wasn’t hired to help rebuild the Broncos, it was to win NOW.

The better move in this draft was to sign a player who could contribute immediately with the 2nd round pick for that reason. If Elway thought that Caleb Hanie wasn’t going to cut it I don’t understand why he wasted the time, money and the roster spot when he wasn’t sold on him. Even so the Broncos would have been better off by signing some other cheap experienced free agent QB rather than wasting a pick grooming a 3 year “Project.” Hanie could carry the team for the short term if the worse thing happens to Manning. He isn’t going to be the next big thing we all know that but even he could have carried on for a half season if Manning got hurt. Then the following year the Broncos could have focused solely on getting a replacement either through free agency or the draft.

By the way fans, had we not drafted Osweiler guess what? They’ll be more QB’s available in the draft and free agency next year. Osweiler is not the first nor will he be the last great young “Project” in the history of the game

Regardless, the whole ffing strategy behind signing Manning was to win NOW. Not to sign a guy who’ll set on the bench for 3 years. Yes we need a back up for Manning but we also need every good player we can get that can tackle, cover, block, catch a pass or run well with the ball today not tomorrow. Osweiler does none of that, he detracts from it in fact and in this bid to win a championship NOW if that’s what we want we have to have players on the field that can help us do that NOW!