Manning "Manned Up" as Broncos secure Playoff Spot

With a game time temperature of 18 degrees in Denver yesterday the big question going in was could Peyton Manning break the huge chunk of ice frozen around him regarding his past performances in cold weather games. Instead of using an ice pick to chip away at that criticism he used a massive sledge hammer. He shattered that ice into tiny shards and in the process with the help of his teammates secured a playoff spot.

Matt Prater kicked a 64 FG in the cold to set a new NFL Record.

Unfortunately I didn’t get to see the first 2 ½ quarters of the game yesterday but when I did drop in during the 3^rd quarter it was very clear that Manning was in complete control of his game. He didn’t look anything like that cold, unconfident and sometimes weak armed old QB in New England a few weeks ago.     

He was in total command, his passes were crisp, on time, he was never sacked and the OL gave him plenty of time to dissect the Titans D. Manning was sensational; he was a remarkable 39 out of 59, for 397 yards, and 4 TDs. After a slow start in the 1^st half he came out in the 2^nd and played as well as he has in any game for the Broncos. Each of the his stud WR’s Demaryius Thomas, Wes Welker, Erick Decker and TE Julius Thomas caught a TD pass. The combination of Knowshon Moreno and Montee Ball had 155 yards on the ground and both of them scored a TD. It was a well executed and balanced approach by the O.

In short “Manning Manned Up” and proved he can be a real warrior in tough weather conditions and he deserves every bit of praise for this win.

That said, I hate to be a broken record again but Manning has been in this position many times in his career. He’s got to be considered maybe the best regular season QB to ever play the game but in the playoffs he still has one of the worst records there is when you stack him up against other NFL QB greats.

They still have to play them one at time and beat the Chargers this week and work towards the next step which is to secure home field throughout the playoffs. The final step will be taking the Broncos to and winning the Super Bowl. When he, with the help of his teammates, can accomplished that feat his legacy will have been a truly amazing one.

Much will depend on how well they play D down the stretch. The Broncos will have to improve defensively, especially in the secondary. As of this week of the 32 teams in the NFL they’re giving up 274.3 passing yards per game which is 29^th in the league. They’re 26^th in the league in points allowed with 26.5 and they’re giving up a total of 374.2 yards per game which 25^th in the league. Their best ranking is against the run, they’re ranked 7^th giving up just 99.8 yards per game. That stat should be taken with a grain of salt because in most games teams have had to play from behind and air it out to keep up with Manning’s O.

Giving up 28 points to a below average team like the Titans at home is not what John Fox had in my mind when he returned to sidelines this week. He more than anyone understands that won’t be good enough come playoff time. At times it's like they relax a little bit because they know Manning is on the bench and they know he can rack up a score in a hurry if they need it. In the NFL you can't take plays off.

The D did have some injuries this week to Rahim Moore, Derek Wolfe, and Kevin Vickerson. Duke Ihenacho, Champ Bailey and Wesley Woodyard (still hurting from his neck injury) played banged up but that’s no excuse. Every team this late in the season has injuries to deal with on both sides of ball and the good team’s find ways to win with their bench.

The next step to a Championship is to beat the Chargers this and move closer to home field throughout. It’s been an amazing season but there’s still work to be done.

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!