Broncos Vs Chiefs II - Post Game

Well guys it was another tough lose and this was one of the hardest loses to stomach as we were in this late but we threw the game away. But I have to give my Broncos credit because they showed me what I wanted to see and did what I asked. In the preview for this game I stated that I wanted to see our boys fight tooth and nail to the end and be in this game. Which they did, both teams were fired up and really went at it. Did you see Richardson on the sideline? You could see there was pressure in this game, both coaches wanted this one. The other thing I wanted to see was hope, some glimmer that there is something there for the future. And there was, Decker, Moreno, Champ, young DBs, the offensive line, these are some things that we can take away from this game and look forward to. I also think this game helped McD keep his job for next year, he had his guys prepared and they fought hard, they just struggled to execute it. The biggest plus was that they didn’t get blown out. Also did you see McD’s father? Could he be with us next year?

Lets review what some players did in the game:

Offensive line – Was really good in opening holes for the run game and really helped out Moreno. The offensive line wasn’t great in the pass though, let in 4 sacks, two of which came from a defensive back, who I believed came through unblocked on an overload blitz. The other two sacks were by Hali, who is an underrated pass rusher. His second sack he beat Clady with a good move. Then made a great play on the ball off the ground after sacking Orton.

Orton – He was flat out terrible today and that happens, everyone has that bad game once and awhile and Orton had his today. He finished with a stat line of 9/28 for 117 yards. He regularly under threw the ball which ended up hitting the ground and missed timed a number of other throws. He could have been picked off a number of times too. He was off today and had a slow release but that happens. I also do understand the call of McD to put the ball in Orton’s hands late in the game then call runs and hand it off to Moreno. The head coach is meant to trust in his quarterback and trusts his QB to get the win for him. Orton just was terrible in the clutch, not making any throws. This lack of success may play in McD’s mind, may not trust Orton as much anymore and may throw in the Tebow? More on that later.

Receivers - did nothing today and all finished with terrible stats, but this is due in large part because Orton was ineffective. Decker looks good though, gets out of his breaks quick and slows surprising speed, plus he has great hands, hope to see more of him in the future.

Moreno – flat out balling. Dude was on fire today, finished with 23 carries and 161 yards, didn’t get a TD as we could not convert and Orton wasn’t helping him get the ball close to the redzone. This is the Moreno I remember seeing from his college highlights. I talked about it last year, Moreno looked slow and out of shape. He lacked game conditioning and was slowed by injuries. But this year he has over come the hammy problems and may finely be healthy and it shows. He has shown impressive speed out of his cuts and makes a number of guys miss. This is the player we wanted week in and week out when we drafted him. Moreno looks good going ahead. He carried the load today but maybe needs a quick change of pace back to help him out in the future. Also something interesting I came across, check out the comparisons between Moreno and TD, did Bobby Turner have some influence with this pick?

Royal – Dude you got to catch that sh#t, good thing Cox was there to cover it. Maybe Royal gets pulled from return duties for the next game and Cox gets a chance or Squid?

Defense – They played really well today. They weren’t great, but made a number of key stops. But they allowed the Chiefs to get over 150 rushing yards on them. They did managed to get a little pressure on Cassel.

Champ – flat out balling. This is why we should resign this guy, is still the top CB in the league. He said it today that the last game they played against the Chiefs that he was distracted and Bowe had a field day then. Today Champ came to play and flat out dominated Bowe, who did not get a single catch all game. Cox loves Champ and would like to see him stay. And I believe Champ hasn’t lost anything and still got more than enough speed to play the game. So resign him but work out a good deal with him. Maybe less money at the back end with a lot of performance boosters in it if he does change to safety.

I was impressed with Cox, he was solid, made a lot of open field tackles. Saw some of Squid too, like to get these guys more involved. Bruton was good too, but made a bad read on the Chiefs TD pass, bit on the run when he could have gotten the sack.

DJ Williams – He really impressed me today with his tackles, hit hard and showed great technique. I really like DJ, just needs to be more of a leader or needs someone to complement him more.

Joe Mays - hit Moeaki hard again, love some of that, and shows our team has some toughness. But the thing holding him back is his coverage, still struggles in coverage.

D-line - Hasn’t been too bad lately, they do play much better when Vickerson and Jamal are in there. Bannan played well today and is steady, doesn’t always play with a low pad level though. But there is something there to build off, but will need to draft DEFENSE in next years draft.

Referees – Need to comment on these guys as I think they made some bad calls. There was a lot of holding, saw it a lot on our defensive line, probably was the same for their guys. I don’t mind they didn’t call it, lets the game play out, and it was a physical game. I thought the call on DJ was incorrect, I think DJ didn’t have enough time or space to be able to pull out of the tackle and was committed and hit the guy fairly. If he hit the huge TE Pope instead of McCluster the penalty probably isn’t called. I think DJ made the right decision and because the ball was right there. Was the right thing to do, bad call. The other bad call was the shovel pass that Orton did to Moreno that was called down. Orton was still standing up when the ball was released, and Moreno would have gotten the first down. Was a really bad call and changed the game. If it is a correct call the Broncos get the first, are in better fielded position and could have changed the overall result of the game. What I don’t understand was that there wasn’t a challenge? Could McD have challenged the bad call and instead of playing the ball at the sack 7 yards back and a loss of downs, have a replay of the play back at the previous down, I am unsure of the ruling? But these two calls really were bad and changed the game.

Well guys with that loss it effectively knocks the Broncos out of the playoffs, if we won out the rest of the season we would only get a record of 7-9, the Chiefs (who lead at the moment) record is 8-4. So we can’t finish first, therefore I think it is time to start playing for next year. Get an extra 4 weeks working towards next year. This means getting the younger guys involved. The young DBs, WRs (Decker, Thomas (when healthy)) and of course Tebow. Yes I think it is Tebow time and I think it is now. Orton has shown he can’t lead late and is not good in the clutch. It is time to see what Tebow has and let him build some chemistry with guys like Decker and Thomas. Let him make mistake now instead of next year.

For those that are hesitate or don’t want Tebow here is a few points that you may find interesting. With Orton at the helm I think the Broncos struggle the rest of the year, we saw it today, Orton holds onto the ball to long and struggles under any form of pressure. Even with Moreno carrying the offense he still struggled. I think we have seen the best of Orton and won’t see much more from him.

Another point that is made: Tebow may struggle and his confidence will be wrecked or his mental state will be affected if he gets sacked too much aka Joey Harrington, lots of potential but never could do it. To this I say that Harrington was on a terrible team, not like the Broncos who have some talent. And Harrington didn’t have the support Tebow has here, the McD brothers. Plus it is Tebow, I can see him struggling, I can see him starting all the remaining games and losing every single one. But then comes out next year and dominates it. Why? He is Tim Tebow, this isn’t a guy that you can affect his confidence, he isn’t a confidence player. He is a guy that completely believes in himself and his ability, and if he does struggle he works harder, tries to get better, to raise himself above. I think playing Tebow now could be the best thing, he will struggle, train and practice harder for next year and flat out dominate it next season, that is my prediction.

Oh and McD and Haley hugged after the game and bit of a love tap on the head by Haley haha.

That's it from me ~ Aussie Out!

Pictures from NFL.com and DenverBroncos.com

Broncos Vs Chiefs II - Preview

What up peeps? What doing? Well guys with the lovely Princess out of town I am filling in. So lets hop to it then. The Denver Broncos are coming off two straight loses, but showed some fight last week coming back late against the Rams. This week the Broncos take on the Kansas City Chiefs in round two of the divisional show down. In the last 10 years of the divisional rivalry, the season series has been split by the Broncos and Chiefs seven times. In round one of this division bout, three weeks ago the Broncos came out fast and dropped the hammer on the Chiefs, scoring 35 unanswered points. It was a beautiful game to watch as the Broncos put together all 3 phases of the game. Moreno got his first 100 yard game, Orton was good, Lloyd was good and Tebow threw his first TD pass. The defense also played well, Haggan got 3 sacks and the defense scored its first touchdown of the year. That is before the Chiefs got a ton of garbage yards late in the game. And then there was the McHandShakeGate or whatever we are calling that. Which has fired up both teams, though McD tired to down play it, saying how much he respected their organisation. But I know both coaches will have their teams fired up. I think this game will really show what our team is made of and if we have something. Both teams will fight tooth and nail for this one, if the Broncos are still in this battle late and fighting tough there is real hope for this team and McD. As he would have fired up our boys to play hard and battle it out with a good team, which we haven't done recently. But if we get blown out by the Chiefs then I think we are in serious trouble. This game may make or break McD, and I don't think Tebow will be involved, much.

For the Chiefs, since their last match, they have won two straight games by a combined score of 73-37. Jamaal Charles has racked up 261 rushing yards in the process, while Matt Cassel has thrown six touchdowns, five of which have gone to Dwayne Bowe. Meanwhile, the defense has accumulated four sacks and two interceptions while holding the Arizona Cardinals and Seattle Seahawks to an average of 60 yards on the ground.

To help prepare of the game McD has said the team will work with noise elements in practice this week to prepare for playing at the New Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday.

Offense

For the Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton leads the league with 3,370 passing yards, he now has 8 more than Rivers. The Broncos receivers are lead by Brandon Lloyd who has a touchdown in four consecutive games. Lloyd continues to make his case, on the field at least, to represent the Broncos in the Pro Bowl at Hawaii. He leads the NFL in receiving yards with 1,122 and is tied for third in receiving touchdowns with nine and is increasingly the top target for Orton. Also Royal and Moreno have been putting some good games together quietly. The key to this game will be the play of the offense line. If they can keep Orton up right and open holes for Moreno it will go along way for the Broncos to win this game.

For the Chiefs though Cassel has led the NFL with 12 touchdown passes in the month of November. And his top target has been Dwayne Bowe has a franchise record 14 touchdown catches so far this year. With 5 games left Bowe is set to finish off the year in a big way, it will be up to Champ to shut him down. Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones are also big threats on the ground if the Broncos struggle to shutdown the run.

Defense

On Defense the Broncos will need to bring their A game to stop the impressive offense of the Chiefs. The secondary has to be on their game. Cox and Bailey need to play well and Dawkins needs to make tackles. The linebackers need to bring the pass rush in this game to put off Cassel. Ayers and DJ will need to be on top of their game to hold up in the run and cover the TE. The D-Line needs to be dominate and beat the Chiefs O-line at the point of attack, like they did in the previous meeting.

The Chiefs defense also has been playing well and will be a tough task to beat in this game. They have a secondary that has had some injuries recently but they are young and getting better. The Chiefs linebackers have been impressive, as have their D-line who are finally maturing into fine players

Special Teams
The Broncos special teams unit will need to be on song in this game as the Chiefs have good returners. Plus they will most likely have Dexter McCluster for this game which we did not see in the previous game. McCluster is a dynamic player and will be tough to contain.

Injuries

Three of the four players held out of practice were defensive backs: safeties Brian Dawkins and Darcel McBath and cornerback Andre Goodman. Receiver Demaryius Thomas also was out with an ankle injury. Those players are not expected to travel to Kansas City.

For the Chiefs, cornerback Jackie Bates (knee) did not practice. Cornerback Brandon Flowers (hamstring), safety Kendrick Lewis and guard Ryan Lilja (foot) were limited in practice. Safety Jon McGraw (head) fully participated in the workout.

What to play for

The Broncos have to take a look in the mirror and know what they are playing for as the playoffs are pretty much out of the picture. Each player needs to make up a decision about what they are playing for. They can play for pride or passion, they could play for the love of the game. But professionalism is the main thing the Broncos players should know. The players must know they are paid to play and they have a job to do. And some of them should realize that they are playing for positions next year as some will be let go. So go out there be professional and do your job.

Trivia Time

1) Of the eight original founding AFL teams, who were the two teams that have not moved from their original city?

2) Who from the Denver Broncos was briefly engaged to future United States Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice?

3) In 1984, the Broncos started their Ring of Fame honoring former Denver Bronco greats. Who were the first four inductees?

Just for laughs

Check out this video of Tebow is a little funny haha, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7xFznOSmvY

Thats it from me ~ Aussie Out!

Orton Vs Tebow - The Debate

Kyle Orton at a glance

6ft 4in and 225 lbs, age: 28 years.

A sixth-year quarterback whose .604 career winning percentage (29-19) as a starter with Denver (2009) and Chicago (2005-08) is the eighth-best figure in the NFL among active players and includes a .792 mark (19-5) at home that ranks third in the league among current players.

Owns a 39-to-3 career touchdown-to-interception ratio (13.0) in the red zone for his career that ranks fifth in the league among active players.

Set personal bests in nearly every statistical category with the Broncos in 2009, totaling the most passing yards by a player in his first year with the club in team history with a career-high 3,802 yards that ranked sixth among all players in franchise annals.

Registered 10 games with a passer rating of at least 90.0 with Denver in 2009, tying a club single-season record (T-5th in NFL for the year), while being intercepted on just 2.2 percent (12-of-541) of his passes for the third-lowest rate in team history (6th in NFL for the year).

Opened his Broncos career in 2009 by leading the team to six consecutive wins, which tied for the second-longest streak by a quarterback in his first year with a new team to begin a season since the 1970 NFL merger.

Tim Tebow at a glance

6ft 3in and 245lbs, age: 23 years.

A quarterback who became one of the most decorated players in college football history at the University of Florida, where he was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy for three consecutive years (won the award in 2007) and was part of two national championship teams (2006, ‘08).

Set an NCAA record with a 170.8 career passing efficiency (661-995, 9,285 yds., 88 TDs, 16 INTs) and led the Gators to a 35-6 record as a starter while three times earning first-team All-SEC honors.

Set SEC career records for total offense (12,232 yds.), rushing touchdowns (57) and touchdown responsibility (145) in addition to becoming just the second player in college football history to win consecutive Maxwell Awards (2007-08) as the nation’s best player.

Became the first player in NCAA history to pass and rush for at least 20 touchdowns in a season as the first-ever sophomore winner of the Heisman Trophy in 2007.

Set several state career records, including passing yards (9,940) and touchdowns (159), and was a Parade All-American at Nease High School in Jacksonville, Fla.

Selected by the Broncos in the first round (25th overall) of the 2010 NFL Draft.

2010 Season
Over the first 11 games of the season Orton has amassed impressive statistics, they are below.

Season	Team	Games			Passing								Sacks		Rushing
		GP	GS	W-L	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/Att	TD	INT	Rating	#	Yds	Att	Yds	Avg	TD
2010	Denver Broncos	11	11	3-8	265	429	61.8	3,370	7.9	20	6	96.0	29	202	20	93	4.6	0

Orton is having a great season so far statistically, though we haven't been able to get many wins. It is interesting to note that Orton has been sacked 29 times through 11 games, Orton was sacked only 29 times all last year.

Tebow over the first 11 games has been used sparingly and mostly in goal line situations. His stats are below:

Season	Team	Games			Passing								Sacks		Rushing				Fumbles
		GP	GS	W-L	Comp	Att	Pct	Yds	Y/Att	TD	INT	Rating	#	Yds	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	FUM	Lost
2010	Denver Broncos	5	0	0-0	1	1	100.0	3	3.0	1	0	118.8	0	0	12	28	2.3	3	0	0

Tebow has been effective in goal line situations but has not done much else where on the field.

The Record 

The record so far for the Broncos isn't good. They have only won 3 games this year and lost 8 and are pretty much assured not to make the playoffs. That being said is it Tebow time? Time for something new? Lets take I look at some of the reasons for and against the swap.

The reasons for the (Tebow) change:

• Brings a spark (a change of coach sometimes does, why not a QB?
• He is the (meant to be) future
• 3rd downs - against the Rams we were 1-10 (i think) on first downs. With Tebow we know he will do everything to get that first down, even using his legs.
• Tebow needs to get experience in the system, a year in the system did wonders for Orton.
• Tebow needs to take his licks now (experience the game) so he is prepared for next season and doesn't make those rookie mistakes next year.
• We may win more games.
• We need to know if he has something. Or if McD made (another) mistake.

The reasons against:

• Tebow suffers a career injury (or mentally, you know gets sacked to much and never recovers)
• We could lose the rest of the games with Tebow at the helm.
• Orton has been offered a fat (8 mil) contract for next year.
• Orton has been playing well, he has to start winning soon.
• Orton has the locker room and is the guy.
• Orton has the chemistry with the receivers.

 Well that is what I have been thinking so far, let the debate rain and lets hear your views ~ Aussie Out!

Week 12: Broncos-Rams Post Game

Well, I got plenty to say but if I do I will be writing one of my famous novels... this time its not a good thing.

The Broncos got off to a great start turning their first drive into an immediate touchdown and then getting 3 more points later on. From there, it was like deja vu to the Monday night game they played in San Diego. Rookie Sam Bradford and the Rams took over giving our defense no break for at least 2 1/2 straight quarters. Then of course, Denver decides last minute to try and do something productive.

Their attempt at a fourth quarter comeback, which was almost had, was pretty sweet to watch. They were really fighting to at least tie the game and go into OT. Knowshon Moreno had some good runs that got us downfield and we were looking like we could tie it. But too much had already gone wrong in this game and it doesn't help that you wait till the 4th quarter to try and make up for lost time.

It's looking very likely that we could end up worse than 8-8 this season... hey, at least we'd break the dead end streak we've had going for a few years now. This season has just been nothing but chaos and turmoil for this team ever since Elvis Dumervil got his season-ending injury in training camp. I'll be glad to have this season over and will look ahead to having Doom back on track for next season (if there is one, God willing).

It's been more bad & ugly, than good the entire season. Head coach McDaniels hasn't done much at all to make improvements from last year to now and its very, very tiresome. He has definitely lost his job security and depending on how we end this season, we could see him out the door which right now is looking like the best option for this team. We need someone who is going to ready our future QB Tim Tebow and not let him warm up the bench. He's got too much talent and potential to be sitting on the sidelines. The man wants to play football, so get it through your egotistical head McD... LET THE MAN PLAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's been Tebow Time for weeks now. Orton had a good season last year, he's had his shining moments this year but stop grooming him to be something he's not - our future!! You're eggin' him on and wasting precious time not letting Tebow play and its driving me nuts.

I'm beginning to wonder why McD even drafted Tebow if he won't get him out on the field to do make something of this horrific season. Week after week, we've seen little to no improvement and its time to make changes. Our inconsistency started years ago, I believe, and its only gotten worse. 5 different defensive coaches in 5 years... no wonder our defense is and has been so shaky. The front office & HC, whoever he is, can't make up their freakin' minds. Its common sense that we've been off the rails on defense because we keep getting new D coaches with new systems, new way of doing things and new ways to make THEIR system work with OUR variety of players.

Its complete insanity. Honestly, it didn't hit me how crazy all this is till our commentators (one of them being John Lynch, boy do we need him out there now) said something about our defensive situation. Cut the crap already and get this team back on track - talkin' to you big man, Mr. Bowlen. Beginning to think he's another old fart that needs to go, he is the one that brought McD into the picture to begin with. Take the blame for a mistake Mr. B and do something about it.

*****

Now back to today's game. Very few shining moments for the team and that's about all I'll cover cause I'm about ready to blow a gasket with as heated as I am right now.

Orton is fading fast but he still managed to complete 24 passes out of 41 for 347 yards and 3 touchdowns. His game is going to hell, and fast. We all know he's isn't going to be in Denver forever but McDaniels isn't showing any sign of letting him go either.

McD makes his biggest mistake ever trading Peyton Hillis for no good QB Brady Quinn earlier in the year and then spends his 2nd 1st round draft pick wisely on Tim Tebow but he has done very little to groom the rookie for a starting role, let alone getting him more involved in this season. Its time to set Orton aside and let Bronco Country get a taste of the main dish.

Tebow has the makings to be a real prize but it ain't gonna happen with him on the sidelines. We have nothing much to lose on this season, its PAST time to get Tebow in the games. The rookie is hungry to play, hungry to get this team on track, hungry to revive this team and all McDaniels is doing is depriving him of those chances. It is without a doubt, long overdue... TEBOW TIME!!!!! Helloooooo??? Anybody listening???


Mystery person: "Knock, knock"
McDaniels: "Who's there?"
Mystery person: "Tim Tebow"
McDaniels: "Tim Tebow who??"
Mystery person (Tebow), "The rookie you drafted in April 2010. I'm sick of warming up your bench... screw you, I'm going in the game anyway and I'm gonna play and I'm gonna win. By the way, I duct taped your boy Orton to a chair in the locker room. You won't miss him once I'm done on the field."

Knowshon Moreno had one of his best games this season with 12 carries for 56 yards and 1 touchdown. He looked pretty good out there. Brandon Lloyd had 4 receptions for 76 yards and 2 touchdowns. He had a great catch-turned-TD in the 4th quarter... holy cow!!! That was awesome.

But even though it was real quiet for Denver, the man of the game for me was Eddie Royal. Something put a spark in him and BAM... he was back on the map with 3 consecutive catches which led to another TD late in the game during our attempt for a comeback. He was on fire in the 4th quarter and certainly made up for losing the ball earlier in the first half on a kick return. Way to go your Royal Highness!! haha

Royal had 6 receptions for 74 yards and late touchdown. I'd like to see more of him, among others on a long list.


That's as exciting as it gets for Denver. Things are just not happening, more like falling apart whenever it can. I don't know what its gonna take to get this mess cleaned up but something's gotta give sooner or later. I prefer sooner. Like a few hours ago when we almost tied the stupid game!!! grrrr Can you tell I'm mad?

I better shut up before I seriously write a book here but I needed to vent.

Message to "McDoh!" - Take a que from these guys below... his name is Tim Tebow, I'll spell that out for you. T-I-M. T-E-B-O-W. #15. Let. Him. Play.


Amen to that boys.... A MEN!!!

Week 12: Broncos vs. Rams Preview

I'll save us all more heartache by refraining to go over the details of Monday nights travesty too much by this very, very troubled Broncos team. I think something's in the air to where this team just cannot function on a consistent basis to save it's life. Its very disheartening and sad. Baffles me how they can just give up. Anyway, its time to move on (as hard it may be). We will now be facing the St. Louis Rams before at home before we have to endure 3... yeah 3 AWAY games in a row. At this point, I have no clue how they will pull it off. My brain has become mush thinking about it... just swimming this ideas and scenarios as to how they'll do anything productive. Would it kill them to at least try? By the way they've been playing, that seems to be the case. Here it goes.

Offense:

As of now unless McD gets burst of smarts, Orton will be our quarterback on Sunday. After the way he played on MNF, I'm not so sure I want him to be. Yeah, yeah I'll be the first to say everyone has their bad days but that was beyond bad. The way we played it was a team collapse but Orton fell off the horse after our first drive of the game ending in a touchdown.

Our Oline was as solid as they come when we played the Chiefs but completely fell apart in San Diego. Again, my mind is just swimming over that. We LET the Chargers be a great team on Monday night. There is absolutely no reason why we couldn't or shouldn't have won that game.

San Diego's defense picked us apart stopping us on every chance we had to catch up. The fake punt did no help to our cause either. That was just brutal to watch... made me sick. Bleh.. What can I say? Our Oline has got to protect Orton with their lives - heck, IT'S THEIR JOB!!! Wish I could yell some sense into those players. Man, I would make them scared to miss a block or tackle. Let me have a word with them and I'll get them straightened out. Then again, I'd have Tebow behind center in no time. haha Anyhoo...... lol, just do your jobs men & all will be well.

For the Rams, they will have rookie Sam Bradford behind center. Bradford has been having an okay rookie season but at least he's been able to play games rather than warm the bench with his tooshie. We have several advantages over the Rams' offense but that never stopped another mediocre team from coming onto our field and upstaging us. If our defense lets their guard down then we'll be having another one of "those" games where everything goes downhill. St. Louis is 28th in offensive points, 27th in yards, 24th in passing yards and 18th in rush yards. Knowshon Moreno has been building momentum on his run game since the bye week and this is the best our running game has looked all season long. Sad but at least that part is going uphill. lol

Our defense is 31st in stopping the run... for once I'd like to see them actually do that. Their main target will be Steven Jackson with 203 rush attempts for 811 yards (avg. 4 yds a carry) and 3 touchdowns. The Rams also have Kenneth Darby & Keith Toston as RBs our defense needs to look out for. As previously mentioned, Moreno has been getting on track with his own run game after reaching his first 100-yard game against KC. He is basically our only option for running the ball - he needs better backups in case of more injuries.


Our receivers were covered very well in San Diego, hence why we had no passing game like what we've been used to having. We had dropped passes left and right, they stopped our run game causing us to have more 3 & outs then I think I've ever seen in one game. As an offense, we had no chance after our first drive of the game. I expect to see better performances from Lloyd, Royal & Gaffney on Sunday. I also hope to see Spencer Larsen get more receptions. He's a beast when he gets the ball. More power to him!! And since our top draft pick of this year is now injured, I'm hoping our other rookie, Eric Decker, will be given a fair shot with our offense. He has yet to catch a pass this season. What better time than now?

For St. Louis, Danny Amendola is their top go-to receiver with 60 reception for 493 yards (avg. 8.2) and 3 touchdowns. Our 20th ranked pass defense will have 6 more WRs to cover who all have reached 100 yards this season.
**Brandon Gibson (31-342 & 2 TDs)
**Steven Jackson (28-243)
**Mark Clayton (23-306 & 2 TDs)
**Daniel Fells (23-210 & 2 TDs)
**Laurent Robinson (19-154 & 1 TD)
**Michael Hoomanawanui (12-110 & 2 TDs)

Defense:

Well, my score prediction for the SD game was way off but I did get one thing right... Champ got his 2nd INT of the season. See, my prediction talent isn't that bad. haha And what an awesome INT is was. Just too bad it wasn't turned into points. That interception and Justin Bannan's sack on Rivers were about the only 2 highlights from our defense on Monday night. Currently our defense is ranked 30th in points allowed, 26th in yards allowed, 20th pass defense and 31st in stopping the run. Not lookin' too hot.

The Rams, however, look like they could take us down. We'll just have to wait and see. Orton & Co., will up against the Rams defense who's ranked 9th in points allowed, 15th in yards allowed, 19th pass defense & 10th in stopping the run. At least it will be an interesting game to see how we handle all this. On the other hand, our Oline has got to step up and protect their quarterback. End of freakin' story!! A few guys they will be pressured by include James Hall who has 7.5 sacks & 4.4 forced fumbles this season, Chris Long with 5.5 sacks & 2 FFs, James Laurinaitis & C.J. Ah You both with 3 sacks and Larry Grant with 2 sacks & 2 FFs.

I hope to see another good game from Mario Haggan like when we played KC. Pressure Bradford and we will have a much better game. It also helps to not miss tackles *cough* Dawkins *cough*. Not cool dude and totally uncharacteristic for him. I know Champ & Dawkins are up there in age but they need to at least finish this season on a good note - for everyone's sake! So far Haggan (3 sacks), D.J. Williams (3.5 sacks) & Jason Hunter (3 sacks) have multiple sacks on the season. It will also be a big difference maker when we get Ayers back on the field. Would be sweet if that would be on Sunday. We need so badly back out there. Get it done defense, no matter what!

Special Teams:

So much for San Diego not having very good ST this year. They killed the game for us starting with a fake punt. Drove me crazy watching that and nobody tried to bat down the pass. Decker was in the middle of it but was probably more confused than anything. From there, the game was over for us. I can't say it enough... LET SQUID TAKE RETURNS!!!! He's only been given 1 chance at a punt return and we're missing out on what he could do. At this point, we don't really have anything else to lose other than the integrity of this team. Let the rookies play!! C'mon McD, stop being an arrogant jacka** and let this team play football. Don't make me come out there!

For the Rams, Danny Amendola has been taking punt returns and is their top choice on kick returns with 23 returns for 454 yards. Mardy Gilyard is also a threat on kick returns for the Rams with 16 returns for 356 yards.

Injuries:

S Darcel McBath (quadricep) and rookie WR Demaryius Thomas (ankle) have both been ruled out for Sunday's game against St. Louis and CB Andre Goodman (hip) is still out and has not practiced much at all since he left the San Francisco game early in London. LB D.J. Williams (concussion) has been limited in practice and is questionable for the game. LB Robert Ayers (foot) has had full participation in practice since his injury in week 5 against Baltimore. He is listed as probable to play on Sunday.

WR Danario Alexander (knee) has been limited in practice all week and is questionable for Sunday's game. P Donnie Jones (left calf) has been limited in practice; WR Laurent Robinson (toe) and T Rodger Saffold (shoulder) fully participated in practice this week but all three are listed as probable.

So I don't know what else to say to this team to get them to do their jobs. What will it take for them to draw the line and say, "hey, we've had enough of losing. We want to win and we're gonna fight for it". When will they quit giving up on plays and games? There is just so much wrong with this picture, I honestly do not know where to begin. I just want to see them fight for the win and be consistent with that. I know for a fact that's not too much to ask of this team. Like Nike always says, "Just do it".

Broncos vs. Rams Preview

Trivia Time:

1) Who was the Broncos' leading receiver in their first Super Bowl winning season in 1997?

2) Name the 3 Broncos backs who rushed for touchdowns in a 42-17 rout of the Jaguars in the wild-card round of the 1997 playoffs.

3) What Broncos' player posted multiple-sack outings in back-to-back games against Oakland & Jacksonville in 2007?

Go get 'em boys!!! GO BRONCOS!!!!

Monday Night Madness

Hey guys and gal, thought I should post this up as it is funny. The cartoon is done by our good friend Drew Litton. Check out his website for more of his great work.

Also if you didn't know, this post right here is post number 200 for Broncos Blog! Thanks to everyone that has been involved and I hope you continue to read and enjoy the website. ~ Aussie Out!