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!

Week 11: Broncos vs. San Diego Monday Night Football Preview

Last Sunday was a great day for the Broncos as they put a whooping on the Kansas City Chiefs in Denver with a 49-29 win. The Broncos now face another division rival, the Chargerettes in San Diego... on Monday Night Football. If this isn't a big game, I don't know what is. Denver has a lot on the line, several key players are still out with injuries including a new one & we're up against a team that has caused us big problems in the past. As much as I HATE Philip Rivers, he somehow manages to get the job done. That's as nice as I'll be about him. Here we go.

Offense:

Kyle Orton & Philip Rivers meet for the third time this coming Monday in a AFC West showdown. The two QBs are also the top 2 passers in the league right now with Orton (unfortunately) taking second to Rivers. Bleh. Monday's game will be a deciding game with the season on the line for both teams. It will be a heated, emotional, high-energy, crazy, wild & nasty game. ahaha, I can't wait. So Mr. Crybaby himself is just 138 passing yards ahead of Orton, a 3.3% better completion rate, 3 more overall TDs & INTs and a 6.5% better overall QB rating.

Clearly, these two are not that far apart in stats which means this could very easily be more of a close game rather than a blowout by one. I hope to see another strong presence by our defense when going up against Rivers. Denver's D hassled Matt Cassel all day and it helped out our cause. We need to put 10 times the pressure on Rivers cause he will see through us or find a way around our stand to get the win. This is the one game of this 2nd half of the season we HAVE to win.

Our running attack was actually an attack for once this season against the Chiefs, who oddly enough have (should say had, haha) the #1 run game in the league. Not no mo. lol This Monday night we will have obstacles to face & overcome in every aspect a football team can have. While SD's #1 go-to RB Darren Sproles hasn't had a rushing TD all season, they have 2 other RBs that have bested him, Mike Tolbert & Ryan Matthews. Tolbert has 87 rushing attempts for 395 yds and 7 TDs and Matthews is 87 rushing attempts for 382 yds & 2 touchdowns.

Catch is San Diego along with a lot of other teams have the option of using multiple RBs while we have to rely on one because Moreno is solely the best we got when it comes to putting together a run game. Our 30th ranked rush defense has got to hold down San Diego's entire run game otherwise we'll get run over by a bulldozer... that might be a better idea than me having to watch this team get stomped on.

Knowshon Moreno had his best game of the year & his 2 years in the NFL landing his first 100-yard rushing game. And since we'll be facing the league's 4th best rush defense, 3rd ranked pass defense & 2nd best defense in yards allowed... we got our hands full.

A little bad news for Denver but also good news for us regarding Antonio Gates. While neither one is confirmed yet, both Denver's Eddie Royal and San Diego's Antonio Gates are injured with both players facing the likely possibility of not playing in Monday night's game. Even though that would be a big hit to SD, Rivers still has plenty of options to look to for their passing game. Denver has been strong in receivers with Brandon Lloyd finally finding his place in the NFL along with Jabar Gaffney and rookie Demaryius Thomas getting plenty of reps.

Interesting note: Both Lloyd & Gaffney have caught 48 passes and Royal has 43. Very possible with Royal out, Thomas will get some more action on offense. And with the possibility of Gates out for SD, Rivers will have to rely on Patrick Crayton, Malcolm Floyd, Buster Davis & Jacob Hester to test out Denver's secondary. Also, the best thing this offense can do in this game is get out to another early lead.

Defense:

Even with Cromartie out of the picture in San Diego, their defense has proven to be one of the best in the league right now yet they stand at 4-5, third place in the AFC West. Our Oline will need to be in top shape again for 3 particular players in Shaun Phillips (7 sacks), Kevin Burnett (5 sacks) and William Garay (4 sacks). Orton has been sacked 21 times this season (Rivers 22) and we need to cake on the pressure on Rivers while our Oline does their job at giving Orton all the time in the world in the pocket, when needed.

Denver's defense seemed to rectify themselves against KC with a stellar performance stopping them at the goal line at least twice that I remember including one goal line stand that just blew me away. My heart was pounding like a washing machine in the 3rd quarter, its 42-10 Denver when the Chiefs got down to the goal line and Denver stopped them again & again, making remarkable goal line stand. Truly amazing to see them do that. I would love nothing more than for our defense do the same to Rivers.

Time for Denver's defense to take another stand and make their division run. Fight for it boys. I'll be looking for Champ to have a good game and get his 2nd INT of the season. Mario Haggan (3 total sacks) was on fire against KC, sacking Cassel & forcing a fumble in the same play to get Denver's first defensive TD of the year. A truly awesome performance by Haggan (and to Jason Hunter for picking up that ball and taking it 72 yards for the TD). Well done men. Keep the momentum and for the sake of this season, carry that into this Monday night's game and rip Rivers apart... I'm begging!! Take him down... bury him alive 6 ft under... bury him some more and make him cry... grrrrrrr. Yeah, I think I'm ready for Monday night. :D

Special Teams:

If there's one area we can get a handle on San Diego it could be special teams. Their punter Mike Scifries has had 4 blocked punts this season and their go-to guy for returns, Darren Sproles has yet to be able to take one back for a TD. In fact, their opponents have 2 kick returns touchdowns and 1 punt returned for a TD. Its unfortunate that we could be without Royal but it could and should give rookie Syd'Quan Thompson a fair chance to take on return duty in this game. And with that in mind, its very likely he could have a big return.

We won't know until he's given the chance. C'mon McD, play the rookie on returns and let him stomp on the Chargerettes. Our ST has slowly been getting on track... what better way to make it explode onto the scene than have a rookie take it all the way back?? Give him a shot and leave Thomas on the field with our offense. We'll need him there more than on ST.

As for San Diego, both Sproles and Patrick Crayton haven't had much success on punt returns with both of them having 13 yard returns as their biggest gain. Sproles has 24 catches on kick returns (longest gain 39 yds). Not much to say about it other than we gotta keep a tight rope on Sproles. He could break free at any moment in a game, don't give him that chance. Kick it out of the park. lol


Injuries:

Not likely to return just yet but LB Robert Ayers was back on the practice field this week after dealing with a foot injury; also back at practice was Safety Darcel McBath (ankle). CB Andre Goodman (hip) is still not ready to practice, don't count on his return anytime soon but also don't count him completely out for the season. New to the Broncos' injury list is WR Eddie Royal (hamstring). Didn't practice on Friday, don't expect him to play on Monday night.

Denver could get lucky again with the possibility of San Diego's TE Antonio Gates (toe) and RB Ryan Matthews (ankle) missing the game. Both have not practiced lately. This could be a big break for us but we still have to stay alert and not let Rivers pick us apart. Safety Steve Gregory (shoulder) is also listed as did not practice. WR Malcolm Floyd (hammy), DE Travis Johnson (shoulder), WR Legedu Naanee (hammy) and TE Kris Wilson (back) were all limited in practice.

I think we have a legitimate chance at winning this game. Never an easy task going onto someone else's turf to get a win but this is where we need to shine and take over. We need to let the division & NFL know we mean business and that when we win games, it isn't just a fluke. We won the KC game fair & square (a few questionable calls, like the replay was inoperable for KC's first challenge??) but we came out fighting in that game and we didn't let our guard down till the 4th quarter.

We should've kept putting on the points and if a similar situation happens with San Diego, they won't give us room to let our guard down. We have to put up points left & right to secure this win. Rivers will play till that clock says 0:00 which is the way it should be done. Defense stayed strong and kept a 20 point lead but Rivers & Co., won't be so generous. They will find a way to take us down if we let them. Go into San Diego and let them know we mean business. Go get 'em boys... 28-20 Broncos. Show no mercy on that no-good punk Rivers. I want to see him mad as..... well, ya know.

Broncos-Chargers on Monday Night Football Preview

Trivia Time: Use Google or something to find the answer to #3, you'll need it! lol

1) Against what team did wide receiver Rod Smith post his lone 100-yard receiving effort in 2003?

2) What Broncos' player was selected as the AFC squad's "need player" for the Pro Bowl following the 2003 season

3) Against what team did the Broncos record the lone 50-point game in franchise history in 1963?

More highlights from Denver's big week 10 win over KC:

Awesome catch by Lloyd

Haggan Sacks Cassel Numero Uno

Haggan Sacks Cassel: Part 2

Tebow’s First NFL Passing TD

Broncos-Chiefs Highlights 

By BroncoPrincess7