Tebow Hasn't "Progressed" Enough for Doubters

I believe in Tebow.

If you read the media reports or listen to the talking heads on TV they say, “Tebow isn't far enough along yet and should be progressing quicker." Really?

So far his NFL career spans 2 seasons and 14 games, which is not even a full NFL season. If the doubters and haters out there would give him a break, technically he has 2 more games to go to have 16 starts; all of this done with a new coaching staffs this year and no extended reps in training camp. In my opinion that still classifies him as a Rookie.

So what has he done in 14 games?

He was 1-2 last year as a starter, 7-4 this year for an overall record of 8-6. Hmmm… not progressing enough for you?

Okay… So after taking over as starter for a 1-4 team and about as down as you can possibly get, he led the team to a 7-4 record. Not good enough, he should have won more games as a starter right?

He has 6 4th Quarter come from behind wins. Still not enough for all you QB experts?

During one stretch this year he led the Broncos to 3 straight wins over divisional opponents all on the road. Whatever…That doesn’t matter either.

Alright then, he led his team to a playoff berth something that hasn’t happened in 6 years. Yea but the Broncos lost their last 3 games.

Even though the Broncos backed into the playoffs with some bad football the last 3 weeks of the season, “Hey, it’s a whole new season anything can happen right?” Who cares, we’re going to get creamed by the Steelers because Tebow has not “progressed” enough as a passing QB by my standards yet. We need to dump this guy and move on.

It’s amazing how all the talking heads and know-it-all QB experts who wildly supported and defended a certifiable Bum like Orton at the start of the season would then condemn a “Rookie” to the NFL gallows after taking one of the worst teams in the NFL from a year ago even though it wasn’t a thing of beauty to a playoff berth. If he were any other QB, in any other city he’d be one of the biggest stories in the NFL this year. Instead of getting pats on the back all he gets is kicks in the ass in part because he’s a devoted Christian. This just can’t be denied.

All I know is we’re in the playoffs. I know it doesn’t look good against a strong Steelers defensive team. But Hey that’s why you just keep playing hard and maybe the Steelers have a few breakdowns and we could pull off an upset. It is possible right? Wouldn’t that be amazing? If you throw out all the negative aspects of Tebow’s game which there are many and which have been very well documented repeatedly I’m going to ignore it all and just be a fan this week.

I don’t have any idea if Tebow gets any better or “progresses” as an NFL QB. I have no idea if he’s the QBOF, that well be decided later. All I know is TODAY he led my team to a worthy playoff spot and I hope that we beat the Steelers. This Sunday my Fan Faith will be in full force because it’s GAME ON. GO BRONCOS!!!

Broncos Stumble into the Playoffs

McGahee's 145 yards wasn't enough.

It’s sad that the Broncos didn’t close out the season by beating the Chiefs.  Still, despite backing into the playoffs with Tebow playing his worst football game so far THEY DID make it to the playoffs and by the way THEY DID earn it based on a better common record. Tebow was a big part of why they made the playoffs with the help of a much improved D. Despite losing their last 3 games they had a remarkable season with basically the same group of players (with the exception of Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil) that they had last year and doubled their win total.

I had my doubts about the game yesterday. IMO it was more about the Broncos D going in than Tebow but I still liked the Broncos chances to win the game because the Chiefs are crappy football team. I can’t explain the win they had over the Packers. Maybe it was just an off day for a coasting Packers team who had nothing to play for and a Chiefs team playing their collective butts off for a new HC so maybe they could retain jobs next season. I just didn’t believe that this win was a paradigm shift that was going to launch the Chiefs into a new millennium of winning football.

So this was why I thought the Broncos would win yesterday despite how horrible Tebow had played, how awful the D and Special Teams has played and how predictable the offensive game plans have been over the previous 2 weeks.

I said before the game with the Chiefs that if the Broncos could play better D, tackle, cover and get pressure on Orton they would win the game. They did that and more held the lousy Orton led offense to 7 points. I also said the Broncos had to be less predictable on offense and throw the ball on 1st and 2nd down. They did that too. The dinged up Willis McGahee deserves some kudos for being a warrior and banging out 145 yards yesterday but even that wasn’t enough.

So what happened?

Tebow had an absolutely horrible game; I believe the worst of his young career. He threw ball to short, he threw them to long, he held onto the ball too long, he should have made a quicker decisions to throw the ball away rather than take sacks.  He threw the ball into good coverage too many times and had an INT; he also had a critical fumble. He had time on several passing plays but either couldn’t find an open Receiver or just didn’t have the confidence enough in his arm to attempt to thread the needle and make tight throws. I noticed on several passing plays he didn’t have his feet in a good position to make throws, he was off balance and leaving his feet when he threw balls on the run.

Tebow’s game clearly showed that he has a very long way to go when it comes to the passing game in many areas.

So you can look at it several different ways. I choose to look at this season as a big improvement and something to build unlike many fans that week to week are on and off the Broncos bandwagon.

So what happens next season?

I think the Broncos have to give Tebow at least the chance at one more season. They’ll need to draft QB in the later rounds or pick up one of the free agents that'll be available. Brady Quinn isn’t going to get it done and should be traded or released. If Tebow still hasn’t improved by mid-season of next year then by all means there will have to be some consideration in having him removed but he certainly has played well enough this season to deserve that much.

The Broncos need DB’s, LB’s, RB’s, WR’s, DL’s and now maybe another Guard since Kuper got hurt. Taking a QB in the first round isn’t going to make the Broncos a playoff team next year so I’d wait until 2013 to consider drafting a QB early if Tebow fails to improve next year.

I’ll be rooting for the Broncos to pull off a big upset next week but I don’t believe they can pull it out beat against the Steelers. Their D will overwhelm Tebow and shut down the running game.  It’s a bonus that the Steelers RB Rashard Mendenhall will be out of the game but Ben Roethlisberger

will still be in and he has the skills and experience at QB, with the help of his talented Receivers can beat a team even without a running game. Please…let me be wrong about this, I’d love to be wrong. GO BRONCOS!!

Broncos D is key to Victory Over the Chiefs

McCoy's Offensive is Vanilla 101.

So it’s down to one game, win you’re in lose you’re out. The Broncos Fans should rejoice at the opportunity to even be in a position to earn a playoff spot. No one predicted they’d get this far and certainly no one including me thought after they started with a 1-4  record that they would be in this position. Therefore this season is a total bonus and a gift far too many fans don't seemed to really appreciate. Win or lose this Broncos team has been one of the biggest group of overachievers in franchise history.

The Broncos Defense has been one of the worst in the NFL since 2005 and at the start of season the only significant change to the D was going to be that Elvis Dumervil would be coming back from injury and Von Miller would be starting at LB. So John Fox took a group that was basically the same team as last year and turned them into a better overall unit. During the winning streak the Broncos were hustling, tackling, covering, creating turnovers and pass rushing as well as any D in the league. In the last 2 games that’s not been the case and that’ll have to change even if they’re playing a terrible Chiefs offensive team.

There’s no question that the Broncos got creamed by the Bills last week in all 3 phases of the game, O, D and Special Teams. But the collapse of the D was the most glaring. I just kept waiting for the Broncos to get out of the 3 man fronts and put pressure on Ryan Fitzpatrick but it never happened. It was a mirror of the Patriots game the week before where Fox did the same and went into a zone D playing way to deep and allowing big passing plays to start short or down the middle of the field. Granted the Broncos had an injury to Brian Dawkins, 2 Rookies were forced into service in the backfield and Miller was playing with only one hand but they gave way to much respect to the Patriots and Bills Receivers.

Fox seemed to forget what helped win games and that was playing an aggressive D by blitzing and putting pressure on QB’s. It didn’t matter if they lined up in 3 or 4 man fronts they were not getting any QB pressure whatsoever. The other noticeable and ugly part of the game that’s eluded the Broncos D the last 2 games is good tackling by the front 7. Mays and Woodyard hustled and tackled very well during the win streak but in the last 2 weeks they’ve all but disappeared. They and the rest of the team let the Bills run wild with a back up RB playing against them. Since the Broncos DL is really the biggest weakness of the D all season the LB’s and DB’s must tackle at the point of attack again if they hope to stop the Chiefs. I just pray that Fox pulls out all the stops this week and gambles on D because this team can’t win if he doesn’t. 

You could say the same about the Broncos O in the last 2 weeks as well. The conservative approach by Mike McCoy via Fox on O has been an utter disaster the last 2 games. Fox is playing the kind of small ball that only Dan Reeves could be proud of. The only problem is Tebow doesn’t have the experience or skills yet to bring a team from behind like Elway could in the passing game.

At some point he has to let Tebow have some chances to throw on first down early in the game. The run on 1st, run on 2nd and pass on 3rd and long then punt it away on 4th didn’t work against the Pats or the Bills and it won’t against the Chiefs either. There has to be some balance in their strategy because the Broncos are not really fooling anyone and if the running game gets stopped early the Broncos should attempt to air it out.

No one can deny that Tebow had a horrible game last week but the truth is he was put in 3rd and long way to many times and since he as an average to a below average set of Receivers who can’t consistently get separation and have often dropped balls he isn’t going to succeed if he isn’t allowed to have more passing attempts.

That’s the key here… Everyone says Tebow can’t be a passing QB in the NFL but he hasn’t had many attempts to do so and when he has the opposing D’s know it and brought the heat on him. Waiting until the team is down by 2 or 3 TD’s then letting him air it out isn’t going to win many games with this group of WR’s so McCoy must let him throw on 1st and 2nd down in this do or die game.

I know the media has focus on the Kyle Orton angle this week but I think it’s irrelevant to how the game will be played out. Orton isn’t going to be the deciding factor in this one, it’ll be the Broncos D controlling the game, the Broncos O playing with same balance and minimizing turnovers and playing the game to win it not to lose it by Fox that’ll be the difference.

This is a one the Broncos can and should win and I believe they will but if they don’t they have no business being in the playoffs. No matter what the outcome it’s been an amazing season and as a Fan the games on Sunday were fun and exciting to watch again. Next year looks to be much better too. 

All in with Tebow, it's just One Game

I just don't know how Tebow and the team could have played any worse today against the Lions. Tebow was awful, short throws, long throws and that weird throwing motion of his didn't help him at all today. The OL couldn't pass protect. No running game at all. And the Defense was atrocious, no pass rush, couldn't cover, bad tackling. From top to bottom one of the worst games I've seen. That's saying a lot too considering where we came from with Orton. That said we'll only get better from here.

As bad as Tebow played today I'm all in with Tebow the rest of the season. No way do we back up and put Orton in as starter. We sink or swim with Tebow until the end of the season to see if he can get better and if he doesn't I'm not opposed to making a change for next year if that's what it takes. The haters will come out in force today and say I told you so but it's just one game there's still 9 games to go. Tebow's played 5 games, he didn't play well today nobody can deny it but he deserves at the very least to call this team his own until the last day of the season.

I'll leave the wrecking balls to the haters out there I can't do it. I don't have the heart to say much more about the game this week. We just have to rebound and come back, play better and beat the Raiders next week. That's football, that's life, pick yourself up and live to fight another day.

No Quit In Tebow In Miami

I must get this out of the way first before I go into the amazing game we Broncos Fans saw in Miami today because it’s the one football play that mattered least. It was the kick by Matt Prater in OT that gave the Broncos a win.

To say this kick won the game is true but not true, the win had more to do with great defensive play throughout by the Broncos D to keep the game close, a big play by the DJ Williams to force a turnover, a special teams miracle in the final minutes of the 4th Q and the grind it out guts of the no quit Tim Tebow.

It you’ve followed anything I’ve written over the years about football you know that I have an intense hatred of Kickers. I won’t go into the reasons here again only to say that in this game our Kicker made what should have been a much easier victory that much more difficult by missing 2 FG’s. So give him a tiny butt slap for kicking the 52 yarder to gave us more points at the end of the game but that’s all he deserves. Kickers get paid to do one thing make Kicks and there can be no excuse for the 2 misses, none. I’m done here.

Fox doesn’t Coach like a Sly Fox

It was clear early on that Fox was going to play a very conservative game. He ran the ball on 1st and 2nd down and had Tebow try to pass it on 3rd in the first half on almost every series with little success. Willis MaGahee did put up some yards in the 1st half but they mattered little because they didn’t contribute to any points.

Fox played not to lose this game instead of win it and nearly lost it because of that philosophy. Instead of attempting to at the very least get some respect from the Corners of the Dolphins he should have let Tebow throw it more on first down and deep a time or two also.

The Dolphins were stacking the line on 1st and 2nd down with 6 to 8 guys on every Broncos offensive series looking for the run and since the Broncos obliged the O could not sustain any drives. The Dolphins D didn’t have to think it the first half because the game so was predictable anyone could have stopped the Broncos O.

Fox has to turn Tebow loose more often and let him go deep, even if he doesn’t complete a pass. It’ll put the D on their heels and give the Broncos better opportunities in the running game as well as the passing game.

Tebow wins Ugly but Wins

I’m sure many who will write about Tebow today will point to his poor play in the first half. I counted at least 5 different times that he missed wide open Receivers down the field. He wasn’t looking for a 2nd or 3rd option when he was under pressure. A few times he probably shouldn’t have taken off on a run and a few times he’d of been better just to get rid of the ball safely than take a sack.

Given these bad choices as earlier noted since Fox was hell bent on running the ball on 1st and 2nd down it was all Tebow could do to make a play down field because the Dolphins brought the house after him since they knew he would have to throw on 3rd.

I don’t know about you guys but every time they cut away to Urban Meyer on the sidelines I said to myself damn, I wish he were the Head Coach of the Broncos instead of Fox. With him at the helm he would put Tebow’s strengths to maximum use as he did in Gainesville. Since that’s very wishful thinking I hope that Fox has learned after this game that it’s better to rethink how to use Tebow and build an offensive scheme around his talents, instead of forcing him to comply with a more tradition conservative one.

Given Fox’s and McCoy’s conservative game plan Tebow found a way to gut out a ugly win but ugly or not I’ll take a win every time. This is the last time you’ll hear me mention Orton’s name this season. In the same situation with the game on the line does anyone really believe he could have engineered a come from behind win like this?

I said last week that people needed to be patient with Tebow, he’s going to make mistakes but the undeniable truth about him is his unwillingness to quit and his supreme belief in himself to bring a team back despite the odds or the score. You can’t Coach that Guys, it’s either in your DNA or it’s not. I believe that this is just as valuable if not more valuable as a QB gifted with supreme talent. And remember that with more playing time Tebow WILL get better, play by play and game by game.

One thing that probably won’t be writing about as much today is Tebow taking a knee and the end of the game and giving thanks to God. And I doubt many talking heads will mention the first comment out of mouth his when interviewed after the game. Do you remember it? He said, “First of all I give thanks and praise to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Some don’t believe in a Higher Power, I do, so I admire his willingness to honor God and his unapologetic attitude about his believes in him. I thank God for Tebow and I cannot wait for his next game. Fox and the team must be starting to believe, the Fans surely believe and I believe that the Broncos have picked themselves up dusted themselves off from the gallows were they lurked and now will begin a whole new era of winning football. GO BRONCOS!

Brandon Llyod and DJ Williams Trade Spin

Brandon Lloyd should be traded I have no problem with it.  He's way overrated and was a scrub on the NFL scrap heap before Orton singled him out as his only WR last year. He piled up yards and receptions as a result, not because he's some extraordinary talent. For all those yards he wasn't a clutch red zone WR. The Broncos can do much better from a talent and a salary standpoint.

His mouthy defense of Orton since the start of the season probably didn't help his cause with teammates or management either. It's a lock he'll never repeat the numbers he did last year whether he stays or gets traded to another team, even a good passing team.

We still have other serviceable WR’s on the team. If Royal and Thomas can get healthy that’s a start. Decker’s game has gradually improved and Willis while undersized and not that speedy seems to catch whatever is thrown to him.

See ya Lloyd, don't let the door hit ya on the way out.

As for DJ Williams trade rumors I 'll say he was a great LB for the Broncos but he's seen better days and injuries have slowed him down. The Broncos LB's have not played well against the run thus far. Von Miller while proving he's a great pass rusher has yet to impress in the running game.

Mays, Haggen, Irving and Woodyard’s play has not advanced in the running game either. It’s hard to say if any one of them play with the Broncos next year. We need help at LB. the tackling in the Chargers game was horrendous not just by the LB’s but by the DL and the DB’s. We lack a tough run stopping LB and Williams who in his youth and free of injury was one of the best for us but has lost a step so I understand wanting to trade or unload him and his salary for a youthful pick in next year’s draft if that's the plan.

Finally...The Tebow Era Begins

No matter what detractors of Tim Tebow had to say about him becoming the starter before the Chargers game Kyle Orton had an overall record with the Broncos coming in of 12-21, 12-22 after today. Another in your face stat is that Orton NEVER has won a game for the Broncos when the team trailed by 3 or more points at halftime.

So why didn’t Fox let Tebow become the starter on opening day? The reasons given were that Orton had more experience and gave the Broncos a better chance to win, really? Of course it wasn’t, the real answer was driven more by $’s and not how great Orton executed X’s and O’s. Orton couldn’t be traded prior to the start of the season and the Broncos are set to pay him a whooping $9 million dollars (Thank you very much Josh McDaniels) in this his last and one would think after today the final year of his contract. The sad truth is today Pro Football is a business first and a game second and that my friends was the primary reason Orton kept the job.

In today’s dollars this may seem to be a fair wage to pay a starting QB in the NFL. Man, I just don’t see it even in today’s dollars; he didn't even come close to earning that much money. The League minimum is $340,000 it could be argued he wasn’t even worth that given his results on the field.

If you’re still not convinced that Orton was an overpaid stiff keep this in mind. In 1983 John Elway was signed by the Broncos to a 6-year contract worth $12.7 million. In those 6 years he gave us 3 AFC Championships and 3 Super Bowl appearances. Not bad for $12.7 mill huh?

What has Orton produced? Zippo!! He came from a great Defensive team in the Bears who had a lot more to with the wins he has on his resume than he did with his skilled play at QB. As the Broncos starter without a solid D to back him up his bogus game has been proven a fraud for all to see over and over.

So with this as a the backdrop going into today’s game I was all set to watch another dark and dull horror show against the Chargers this week. Orton in his usually style came out and played horrible to start the game while the Boo-Birds came out early and often. 3 and outs, incompletions, an interception, underthrown and overthrown balls the same game we’ve all seen from game 7 of 2008 season until today. He was 6 for 14 for 32 yards and 1 INT in the first half. The Broncos had a whooping total of 126 yards of total offense at the half with Willis MaGahee being the only man who was generating anything. MaGahee had a 125 yard rushing day the first Broncos RB to go over a 100 since 2006. Tebow got a token 2 yard QB draw call in the first half that was completely obvious to the Chargers D and everyone in the stadium and that was it for offense.

The only play of note in the first half was made by CB Cassius Vaughn who had Interception return for a TD which was a great play but was negated by the 42 yard TD reception he gave up to Malcolm Floyd right at the end of the second half. He giveth and he taketh away. The Broncos CB’s stink but that’s for another time. The tackling in the first half by the Broncos was some of the worst I’ve seen this season.

After wading through another cesspool in the first half I was sure Orton would come out and start the second half and secure a another win for the Chargers, but NO!! To my surprise #15 trotted out onto the field and suddenly my heart started beating a little faster I sat up in my chair and just like that I was brought back from the dead. Did you notice the transformation of the fans at the stadium when he came in? They were on their feet and screaming. Believe or not for the first time in a year and half I was even screaming and excited.

After Tebow had two 3 and outs the game dramatically tuned. With the Chargers up 26-10 with 13:35 left in the 4th Quarter Tebow led the offense to one score then another off the Rivers fumble. And if not for a dropped pass and a catchable 2 point conversion by Brandon Lloyd the game would have been tied!! Kudos to Lloyd though, he did make a couple of circus catches to keep drives going.

Even after the Chargers kicked another FG to go up 29-24 Tebow was within one play of winning the game with just 24 seconds left in the 4Q.

Did you see the immediate impact the energy of Tebow translated to his teammates on O and even on D? It was dramatic and electric, something we just haven’t seen since Jay Cutler played in Denver. Tebow in just one half proved he’s a warrior, a great runner and scrambler. He also proved he could make the throws when he needed to get the Broncos back in game. To all the critics of his mechanics I say “So what”, if he gets the ball off and makes completions and the team scores in the red zone what more could you ask for? A game that was over at half time with Orton came down to the last play with Tebow.

We finally have seen the end of the Orton Era and the beginning of the Tebow Era and thank God almighty for us long suffering Broncos Fans it was sooner rather than later. Fox would be completely out of his mind to bring Orton back after the bye week. Its Tebow job to lose from now on and I don't see that happening, Orton is done.

I can hardly wait to see how well Tebow plays in his first start at Miami 2 weeks from today. GO TEBOW!!! GO BRONCOS!!!

Kyle Orton lacks, "Controlled Desperation or Sense of Urgency"

Orton may be smiling but he's about to lose his job.

First and foremost I understand football is a team game, I get it. I understand it’ll take time for Fox’s Offensive and Defensive philosophy to gel. Got it, thank you.

 I see and understand how the Broncos D has already improved (Von Miller is awesome) and will continue to improve, how the Broncos Corners must improve, how the young OL still is not playing well in the running game or pass blocking, how the Broncos don’t have a young speedy or even a powerful RB on the roster, how they don’t really have a solid (Sorry, Lloyd isn’t it) go to WR and how they don’t have much depth at many positions. Understood, got it. Lastly, no matter how many fans want to avoid it or deny it, our starting QB is one of the worst in league and isn’t going to improve. So...DEAL WITH IT!!

That is where I choose to focus my attention because it’s the most important leadership position on the field. A good QB can make an enormous difference for a struggling team despite these problems and help the team win tough games. Orton is never going to be the guy, it’s pure stupidly to believe he’s going to shed his skin and turn into Brady.

Speaking of Brady, just remove him from the Patriots, or Manning from the Colts as we’re already seen and what do you have left? About the same sort of talent the Broncos have on both sides of the ball right now. So this ridiculous notion that a staring QB doesn’t matter in the big scheme of things is a big load of bunk and the lamest excuse ever to defend Orton.  

One of the things I’ve noticed is that the fans who support the idea of starting Tebow have less hate and discontent directed at them than by Orton supporters (Of the few who still do) than during our last big QB controversy. Tell me if I’m wrong here? We’re only at week 4 of the NFL season and the rats are jumping the Orton ship much quicker than the same fans that defended Plummer over Cutler in 2007.  

During the Plummer/Cutler nuclear war in Broncos Country back then at the very least you could say that if you loved Plummer or hated him he did play well enough to get the Broncos to within one game of a Super Bowl.

As much as I hated the overrated Plummer and was overjoyed that he finally lost his job at least he had a few more tools to win a game or make a comeback in the 4 Q at times. Though he lacked talent in consistently delivering a long ball, many times the short pass, threw to many INT’s, lost to many fumbles, telegraphed his throws and missed wide open WR’s (Sounds a lot like Orton) Plummer at least had a second chance to make a play with his feet. The other worthy intangible you could hang on Plummer was the guy was a warrior with some heart and passion and played the game that way even in failure. His feet and his passion made his game.

Orton has all the flaws that Plummer had and absolutely zero chance of making a play with his feet. On the field Orton never seems to have that “controlled desperation or sense of urgency” to be a leader when the chips are down and the game is on the line. Orton looks like a zombie who took 3 bottles of Xanax before game time. Being calm, cool and collected is alright if you had a team like Montana had in front of him but when you don’t being a benign disinterested stiff on a team struggling to win at crunch time doesn’t get it either. I’ll take some fire over ice; Orton isn’t ice he’s just frozen solid.

Given all of the flaws in Orton’s game, I just don’t see how the argument can be made that he gives the Broncos a better chance to win than Tebow. Tebow has 2 great intangibles that Orton doesn’t. He’s a big strong young man and is capable of either running or throwing for a TD in the red zone.

The only intangible that Orton can claim is NFL experience. If it were good experienced none of this would even be debated, his job would be secure. But as Woody Paige noted this week, “His overall record as the Broncos' starter is 12-19. The team has won four of Orton's last 20 — a winning percent of 20. He is 0.00 percent when the team trails by three or more at halftime.”

I’m a Diehard Broncos Fan but I’m not a homer, I’m a realist, the Broncos will get slaughtered by the Packers this week. It’s just a question of how wide of a margin it is. So after he leads the team to yet another uninspiring performance I have to believe that Elway and Fox would say uncle.

Like Tebow or not he absolutely cannot play any worse than Orton has over the last 2 seasons. He must be the starter for the Chargers game so we can see if he’s capable of salvaging what’s left of this season. If he stinks, fine, at least we’ll know and then the Broncos can figure out what to do with him next year. He’ll win some and lose some with Orton we could lose all. If nothing else with Tebow in there watching the Broncos won’t be like putting needles in our eyes, throwing rocks at the TV or falling asleep from 3 ½ hours of mind numbing boredom.

Denver Broncos Suffer a Titanic Loss

I’m sitting here trying to find a silver lining in the Broncos immediate future and not finding one. They blew another game yesterday in Tennessee in the same redundant fashion they have over the last 5 years.

The D did a great job of keeping the game close and holding Chris Johnson in check. That’s an amazing accomplishment because for the last 2 years the Broncos have been dead last or near the bottom of the league in rush defense. Still near the end of the game when they needed stops in the 4 Q they didn’t materialize. As always it has to be said football is a team game, the OL didn’t play well in the running game and McGahee who was effective some last week couldn’t break out. The mouthy Lloyd was invisible and couldn’t get any separation and he’s supposed to be our best WR (Decker will soon take over that role) on the team.

The big moment in the game was when the Broncos had the ball inside the 5 yard line of the Titans and ran 4 unimaginative plays resulting in zero points and that was the turning point in the game. It was horrible play calling to be sure and in hindsight the FG would have been the right decision but I understand why Fox wanted to score 6. With first and ten and 4 chances to score a TD inside the 5 an average offense can usually find a way to get it into the end zone but not this team and not with this QB as the starter.

This hard headed and brutal fact says it all. Orton sucks in the red zone. You have to score TD's to win games. Maybe some of the haters on Tebow hate him because they believe he's not ready to be a starter because he isn't experienced enough but believe he can help score 6 points near the goal line.

So I 'm totally confused. How then, is Orton’s experience a bigger plus than Tebow’s when he can’t help the team put points on the board? So then the next question would be why should Orton be allowed to continue to start if can’t help the team scores TD’s? In 2 ½ seasons of football he’s been mostly ineffective, if Tebow can score why shouldn’t he be put in during those situations or better yet give him the starting job altogether?

It can’t be explained away; Orton can complete a short pass when he has 5 minutes of protection and can stand like a frozen statue in the pocket to complete maybe one or two short dump off throws between the 20’s. And most of the time he doesn’t move the ball between the 20’s, more often than not it’s a 3 and out or a 6 and out and never comes close to the opponents 20. On the far too rare occasions he does get the ball inside the 20 he rarely leads the O to a score. Since Orton is so one dimensional and predictable in the red zone and the passing game of the Broncos or the threat of a rushing TD is greatly diminished why in the hell would he continue to keep his job?

Here’s the bigger question, is a lot of bad experience better than a young player with no experience? If Tebow comes into a game and throws 3 INT’s and scores 2 TD’s on a rush or a TD pass and the Broncos win the game isn’t that the goal? Tebow may be ugly in there at times during a game and win ugly but that’s far better than playing ugly and losing ugly which is what Orton has been and will continue to do for the Broncos.

Next week it’s the Packers my friends and the Broncos will find themselves at 1-3. I’m not sure I’m even going to watch this game live because this one is going to be a slaughter of mind bending proportions. I’ll probably do what I did this week and flip between the better games playing on the Sunday ticket such as the Loins and Vikings or the Bills or Pats and that Texans/Saints game which was a hell of a ball game too and watch the Broncos on the DVR later.

It’s cool to see teams like the Bills and Loins get things turned around, I love it when underdogs win but in all honesty even though the Broncos are underdogs they don’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of beating a team of the Packers caliber. As I said last week, we’re in for a long, painful and very boring season of discontent especially if Fox lets Orton keep his job.

Orton Has Lost the Team and the Fans

11 long years of waiting and my patience is gone. First I have to evoke the, “Elway has nothing to do with the comparisons when it comes to our current group of QB’s” misnomer. I know it’s a team game, so let’s leave that out of it for now and just talk about the QB position alone. Simply put Orton is a Bum and comparing him, Quinn or Tebow to Elway is insane, so let’s get that obvious statement out of the way as well.

For 11 years we’ve had only one playoff win which was is in 2006. That year I remember very well. Jake Plummer was the QB of the team that lost big to the Steelers in the AFC Championship Game. For the most part Plummer crumbled under the pressure and choked big time in that one and it cost the Broncos what should have been their 3rd Super Bowl ring. They should have beat that Steelers team, they had talent enough on both sides of the ball to do so and would have kicked the Seahawks butt all over the field had they gone to the Super Bowl.

That year the Broncos had a better overall team than both the Steelers and the Seahawks. The Broncos had a great running game and serviceable WR’s. The only thing lacking was a better than average QB which Jake the Fake proved he wasn’t. Had the Broncos had such a QB the Broncos would own another Lombardi trophy.

Then a few years later, we traded the only good QB the Broncos had on the roster over that 11 year span which was Jay Cutler. For all of his warts and his immature ways he’s 10 times better from a skill set level than Orton, Quinn or Tebow. We can thank McDaniels for that move and the one that sent Peyton Hillis to the Browns. Not to mention the horrible draft picks he made his 2 years in Denver.

After the Broncos won a Super Bowl at least from my prospective nothing less than a playoff appearance is a worthy expectation with the hope of another Super Bowl bid and a win. This is what the hard core fan should expect nothing less. I for one am sick to death of watching a crappy football team week in and week out and lose just as often. Orton has had 3 years with the Broncos now and has not progressed one iota in fact he’s digressed. He telegraphs his throws, he can't move in the pocket, he has trouble completing not just the long throw but the short throw as well. He can’t seem to make a play in the red zone and score. But worse of all he doesn’t have one single intangible characteristic to make up for all of his other physical weaknesses, none.

That’s were Tebow comes in, he doesn’t have the experience but he won’t get any by setting on the bench. He has the intangibles that Orton does not. He can scramble, he’s a big strong kid who can pick up yards on running plays but most important of all he has a burning will to win. He plays inspired football, he plays to win and he’s not the kind of guy to give up on a game no matter what the score.

This can’t be said about Orton. Orton looks like he just woke up from a 3 hour nap when he’s out there. Being calm is one thing but being a stiff who doesn’t have that burning desire in his gut to get back in the game to redeem himself is something I just can’t take anymore. The Raiders were ripe for the taking Monday Night and Orton with his bumbling play blew a game the Broncos should have easily won despite all the other problems the Broncos have as a team. Orton just doesn’t have the leadership skills to pick up a team that’s down and bring them back; he’s shown that over and over in painful detail.

Basically Orton has pulled off a big con, he’s laughing all the way to the bank thanks to McD. He knows had the Broncos not traded for him and signed him to a big bucks deal he most likely would have gone to another team as a back up or cut from the league all together.

There can be no more lame excuses for Orton he’s a failure and it’s time the Broncos moved on. He’s lost the team except for Brandon Lloyd who Orton made a millionaire because he was the only WR he would throw a ball to last year. Lloyd is another phony, he’s a career bench scrub who can claim one good year as a Pro (last year) and will never repeat it. Lloyd is Orton's only friend on the team. Orton has lost the team, all but Lloyd for the reasons I’ve mentioned. He’s lost the confidence of the Fans and finally most of the morons in the media who claimed he was the best thing going for the Broncos before this game. I’m sure he’s lost the confidence of Bowlen, Elway and Fox but none of them can or will come out and admit it. Why? There are 8.4 million reasons why they won’t. Benching an 8 million dollar Bum isn’t in the cards yet I guess. They’ll probably wait until the Broncos have no shot at a playoff berth then remove him. It’s not a good situation to say the least and if so much money wasn’t involved Orton would have been benched this week after the god awful performance he made everyone suffer through Monday Night.

It’s Tebow time, we need to see if he’s going to be our QB of the future or not. At least if he gets some extended playing time now the Broncos can make an educated decision about whether to start him next year or trade him and look for someone else.

You can thank my good friend Darold for this rant he got me going with a comment he made on facebook. Damn straight my patience is gone Buddy and rightly so. TEBOW!! TEBOW!! TEBOW!!!

Denver Broncos Unworthy of New Analysis

I posted this on the Orange Mane (It’s a Broncos Fans Chat Board) this morning. Instead of writing a blog about the disaster last night I’ll just let my past statements before the game speak for itself.
Instead…I’m just going to do one long gloat about Orton. After that I’m done, Orton’s uninspired play last night spoke for itself. This was my first post on the OM for the 2011 season on 8-20-2011. The rest of the posts were comments made before last nights’ game.

8-20-11:  Hi Guys, it’s been a long time. I had to get on and rant a little. I’m just sick and tired of not having a solid QB on our beloved Broncos. We’re now in our 12th year of QB controversies with no end in sight. 1 playoff win since the last ring and other than 2006 we’ve been in a swirling vortex spinning in a downward spiral. My opinion on the latest QB controversy?

Orton sucked yesterday, he will tonight and will tomorrow. Yes, he has more “experience” than Tebow or Quinn but that is his only qualifier

I can't say Tebow at this point is a better option either nor Quinn.

I’m still cursing McD for signing Orton to 2 year deal. Had he signed him to a one year contract instead, Orton would be gone and setting on the bench of some perennial loser as a back up or maybe out the NFL altogether. If Orton is the best we can do we’re in for another long, painful and intensely boring season. There said it, I’m done.

I'm trying to be upbeat and positive but I just don't see a dramatic turn around this season on O. I think the only thing we can hope for is that the Broncos can finally play some better D than they did last year. I think that will happen but on O? Doubtful… Someone give me some good karma, I’m just not feeling it.

8-25-11:  (About one fan who said Moreno will rush for 1400 yards this season.) I admire your optimism but Moreno has yet to prove he’s even close to putting up those kinds of yards. I’m not sure the OL will be as good against better D’s. They're still very young and inexperienced. As for Orton’s red zone predictions, I’m not sure that I’d agree with that assessment either. He was terrible inside the 20 completing passes last year.

8-25-11: The only reason and I mean the only reason Orton is still in Denver is because he’s set to make $8.4 million and no team was moronic enough to trade for him. We can thank the genius McD for that move too. I’m positive had the money not been an issue Orton would have been down the road and it would have been a unanimous decision by Bowlen, Elway and Fox to (trade) do so.

The Broncos win a meaningless preseason game against the Bills one of the worst teams in all of football and suddenly Orton is a solid starter? COME ON!!!

I can’t wait to see these haters eat their words by mid-season when Tebow is starting and Orton is sitting on the bench sulking because the Broncos are 2-6.

8-21-11:  If my memory serves me right Orton played liked a Bum last year. People have short memories and live in the NOW I guess. It’s laughable that in one game the Mighty Quinn would vault over Tebow when this guy has nothing to indicate from past starting performances that he in any way will be a starting NFL QB, none.

So just chill out let the preseason play out the next 2 weeks. On opening day we could see a whole different scenario. Orton or Quinn could be on another team. I hope its Orton because once they count we can expect the same guy we saw last year to show up. Quinn? Please…

8-21-11:  I think it’s way too soon write off Tebow. All this talk reminds of Elway's rookie year. We all know Elway had way better mechanics and a throwing arm than Tebow does. But Elway early on was very mistake prone, forcing balls in, under throwing then over throwing the ball, not looking for other receivers, impatience in the pocket. Sound familiar?

The national sports media, the writers at the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News all dog piled on Elway early. They were unmerciful have you guys forgotten that? Many wanted to see him fail and flame out just as bad as Tebow.

I love how these geek draft-nicks think that next year’s draft will always produce another great QB. Quality talented players like Tebow are not available year to year and some just need more time to get their head in the game, that’s all this is. Remember how rough Favre was around the edges? Early in his career he’d throw 4 TD’s one game then 4 INT’s the next. The same could be said of Elway.

Tebow stays IMO and should learn the system. He’s a winner, a warrior and the thing I like best about him doesn’t quit on a play. Once he learns the game in the NFL he’ll be one of the best red zone threats the Broncos have ever had. It amazes how day to day people live and think like there’s not going to be a tomorrow. On Monday Tebow be back in practice and my guess getting playing time in the next 2 preseason games.

My prediction: By mid-season Tebow will be the starter for the Broncos.

8-20-11:  The truth is Orton had far more offensive weapons on his team 2 years ago than he does today. Moreno hasn’t impressed, the free agent RB’s have proven zip, no proven #2 or #3 WR as of yet and the same at the TE position. The OL is coming along and the running game just can’t nose dive any lower than last year so what have you got? Good Ol’ #8 out there to save the day? Looking for Lloyd on every pass down will fool somebody this year? Quinn? You really believe those 2 are going to transform the Broncos back to a winning franchise? Carry this team on their backs?

Tebow hating aside, the QB position is the least of the problems. The D gets better under Fox we agree but this O could be equal to or worse than last year very easily.

5-11 is ceiling. 3-13 the basement. 8-8 would be a very successful season for the Broncos; I wish I believed it could happen. If the Broncos can play some better D which they should this year they could go 8-8. I think too many have heaped large expectations on the young OL. I'm not convinced they'll be able to run or pass against better defensive teams.

He (Orton) stinks like a dead animal pit, like maggots on a gut wagon.

Old quote by Woody Paige: "Orton has lost eight of nine, 14 of 17 and 17 of his past 22 starts."

9-13-11:  New quote by Jeff Jacques: "Orton has lost nine of ten, 15 of 18 and 18 of his past 25 starts."

NFL Lockout is History, New Season, New Attitude...

I haven’t written about football since the NFC Championship Game last year. I didn’t even write a story about the Super Bowl Game last year for the first time since I began this blog 6 years ago.

I was so disgusted with how the Broncos season ended. I was even more disgusted with Josh McDaniels and Kyle Orton. The last 2 years of Broncos Football have been the worst in all the years I’ve followed them.

Now that the lockout is over and there will be a new football season with a new Head Coach, a new Defensive Coordinator and a new QB my attitude feels renewed.

I’m so happy that the first story that broke once the lockout was over is that Orton is on the trading block. I was certain after last year’s performance and with John Elway as the new member of the management that Orton was history. All the BS speculation about him staying and even starting was a ploy to up his trade value. It isn’t going to matter because Orton’s trade value is bunk and my guess is they’ll end up on the short end of  it when he goes because he just isn’t valuable enough to merit a significant trade.

Honestly I don’t care if the Broncos don’t get anything for him. He’s got to go regardless; he’s the last remnant of a failed era that has to be erased from our memories.

So now the free agents can be chased. Everyone agrees the Broncos need help at NT but they need depth at other positions like RB, WR and DB.

I’m not sold on Knowshon Moreno, in the games I’ve watched him in he lacks speed, power, moves and worst of all can’t break a tackle for extra yards. The OL hasn’t done him many favors over the last 2 years and they must improve but even when he had the opportunities to make a big play he just wasn’t capable. I hope they can find a quality free agent RB because I think Moreno is on the way to being a first round bust for the Broncos.

At WR Brandon Lloyd had a fine season with receiving yards but he didn’t get in the end zone so all those yards mean little if the Broncos didn’t put points on the board.  Lloyd at best is #2 and most likely #3 WR on any other team so that tells just how bad the depth is for the Broncos at WR.

These would be the first 3 areas I’d address in free agency.

The defensive side of coin is big question mark in all 3 areas DL, LB and DB. Even with a big commitment in the draft to D we just don’t know how the Rookies will shore up what was arguably the worst D the Broncos every put on the field a year ago.

That and you add a new DC and defensive scheme and it looks as though the Broncos won’t come out of the gate as a power on D.

All the analysis aside the thing that excites me most is Tim Tebow. He’s going to get his chance. He may be rough around the edges but what he lacks in experience he makes up for in grit, determination and a proven warrior heart. The kid doesn’t have any quit in him and I think he’ll win games for the Broncos. It may not be pretty in the beginning but be patient as he gains more and more NFL experience his game will elevate to the next level.

I’m not overly optimistic about the Broncos being a good team right away. With all the changes in every part of the team, it’s going to take time for everyone to get on the same page offensively and defensively. If the Broncos finish with a .500 record that'd be a big surprise but an attainable goal. So they you have it Broncos fans my first blog of 2011 season. It sure is nice to be writing about football instead of politics which I’ve been drowning in lately.

Then of course there is Fantasy Football, God help me how I love it. If you played in the Yahoo Leagues with me last year they’ve all been renewed so get signed up.