Broncos vs. Seahawks Super Bowl Rematch

Super Bowl Rematch

Denver Broncos- Erik Lars Bakke

Well everyone the game Broncos fans have been waiting for is finally here.  The Denver Broncos will get the opportunity to show that the super bowl was just a culmination of unfortunate plays, and they will look to prove that they can play with the best in the NFL.  This game is the biggest measuring stick of the season for the Broncos.  If they can travel to Seattle and beat the Seahawks at home that will go a long way towards proving they can win the Super Bowl this season.  So can they do it? The short answer is yes, but they will have to play a great team game to beat the Seahawks especially when the game is being played in Seattle.

How do they do it? 

If Denver hopes to beat Seattle they will need to play near perfect football which they have been unable to do so far this season.  They cannot have turnovers in this game like they did in the Super Bowl, the Seahawks feed off of takeaways and we all saw what happened in the Super Bowl when Denver turned the ball over.  So far this season the Broncos have done a great job of protecting the football with just one fumble (which they recovered).  They will have to continue to take care of the football to challenge Seattle.

One thing that the Broncos have to improve on from the first two weeks of the season is penalties.  Not only have the Broncos had far to many penalties but they have come at the most inopportune times.  Just last week the Broncos defense had two third down stops thwarted because they jumped offsides.  The Broncos will not be able to win this week if they continue to make mental mistakes and shoot themselves in the foot.

Another key for the Broncos will be third down.  So far third down has been a major problem for both the offense and the defense.  Last week against the Chiefs the defense allowed the Chiefs to convert on eleven of sixteen third down tries.  On the first drive of the third quarter, the Broncos allowed the Chiefs to convert a 3rd & 16, a 3 & 13, and a 3 & 9.  The defense must do a better job of stopping the opponent on third down if they hope to win.  The offense must also be better on third down so they can sustain drives and give their defense a breather on the sideline.  This has been something they have struggled with so far especially in the 2nd half.

Denver Broncos- Erik Lars Bakke

The offensive line also has to do a good job of keeping Peyton upright in this game.  In the Super Bowl Peyton was under constant pressure and never really looked comfortable in the pocket.  If the line can give Peyton just enough time I think the Broncos will look to take a page from the San Diego Chargers playbook.  In their win over Seattle last week, San Diego looked to throw short routes underneath which allowed the receivers to make plays after the catch.  The return of Wes Welker could be a huge factor in this game as Peyton will get his security blanket back.  Welker should help alleviate some of the problems the offense has faced so far on third down.

Denver Broncos- Gabriel Christus

The Chargers also exploited the coverage of the Seahawks linebackers by throwing three touchdowns to tight end Antonio Gates.  After watching the film on the game it was clear that the Seahawks did not have an answer for Gates.    It looks like their should be plenty of opportunities for Julius Thomas to make some big time plays in this game.  Look for Julius Thomas to be a huge part of the game plan this weekend.

Why they won't win

I hate to say it but I just can't see the Broncos winning this game.  I think if this game was being played in Denver it would be a different story and I would like their chances, but playing in Seattle is really hard and the Seahawks are 18-1 at home in their last 19 games.  The defense feeds off of the crowd noise and all that noise allows the defensive line to get a great jump against the offense.  Running a no huddle offense will be very difficult in Seattle even with "the general" running the show.  I also do not think this team has improved enough to beat this Seahawks team.

Denver Broncos- Erik Lars Bakke

Hopefully by the end of the season the Broncos will be gelling by the end of the season, but right now they do not look like a team who can go to Seattle and win.  If they can take care of the football and eliminate mental mistakes I think they can keep it close, but at this point I just don't know if the defense is good enough for the Broncos to win.  If the defense can get after Russell Wilson and make him uncomfortable they have a chance in this game, but so far this season the Broncos defense has not shown a consistent pass rush.  I will be watching to see how Von Miller does in this game after being fairly quiet in the first two weeks.  The defense also has to stop Seattle on third down and get off of the field.  If they can do all of that I think they stand a chance, and they should be able to at least make this game competitive.

Final Score- Denver 27, Seattle 21

I know I know I said that the Broncos would not win this game but I just couldn't pick against the Broncos and I do think they will be motivated to win this game.  I think one way or another this will be a good close game.  Hopefully the Broncos can catch a couple of breaks and get a few turnovers.  If the ball bounces their way look for them to pull of the upset on the road.  Go Broncos!

Week 2 Preview: Broncos vs. Chiefs

Week 2 Preview

It's time for football again, as week two is already here and the Broncos are getting ready to take on the Kansas City Chiefs.  The Chiefs will be looking for a win after a disappointing 26-10 loss in week one to the Tennessee Titans.  The Broncos will be looking for win number two, although they hope to have a good performance for the full 60 minutes this weekend.  The Broncos looked dominant for the 1st half in week one but struggled to close out their opponent.  I think the Broncos will look to score early and never look back.  They need to do a better job of playing for a full 60 minutes.

What to watch for

One thing that bears watching in this game will be how the Chiefs respond after losing two defensive starters during week one.  I think the loss of Derrick Johnson is going to be a crushing blow for the Chiefs.  He is the heart and soul of that defense, and one of the best middle linebackers in the NFL.  His loss leaves a huge hole in the middle of the Chiefs defense.  The Broncos should look to take advantage of the weakened Chiefs defense and run the ball early and often.  This game should be a great opportunity for the Broncos to get their run game on track.

Last week it appeared that the running game was struggling to get things moving, and I think a big reason for that was Montee Ball missing most of the preseason.  It just seemed like he was a step behind and it appeared he was not in sync with the offensive line.  Once they get more game action together he should get his timing down better and the running game should greatly improve.  People have been to quick to panic about the running game in week one but really it isn't anything to worry about.  I have heard some people saying that the Broncos made a bad decision in getting rid of Knowshon Moreno.  I will admit that he looked very good last week for the Dolphins but the notion that he is better than Montee Ball is just not right.  People forget that in the last six weeks of the season last year Montee Ball had the second best yards per carry in the NFL.  He is a far superior runner and as the season goes on we should see huge improvement from the ground game.

Players to watch

Earlier today I was going to focus on Wes Welker but it appears that he will not be playing this Sunday after the NFL council drug their feet on approving the new drug deal, which is ridiculous.  So on offense I think the player to watch this week will be Demaryius Thomas.  After struggling last week with three drops and only 48 yards receiving I think that DT will be in for a big week.  He has always had big games against the Chiefs and this week shouldn't be any different.  They have a pretty pedestrian secondary and after losing two starters I expect the Broncos to move the ball easily against the Chiefs defense.

Defensively, I will be watching to see how Chris Harris Jr. plays.  It appeared last week that he was back to full speed and he played well when he was in the game but it looked like his conditioning needed a lot of work as he was not on the field very often.  He is a huge player for this defense, and he is one of the most underrated cover corners in the NFL.  The Broncos will need him at full strength this season if they want to be successful.  It will also be interesting to watch Von Miller and see how he does this week and in the weeks that follow.  The recovery of these two players is essential to the success of the Broncos defense this season, and without them the Broncos defense could struggle just like they did last season.  Hopefully both of these players will continue to improve each and every week.  If they do I think that the Broncos defense could be one of the top units in the NFL.


Game Prediction

I think this game is going to be a bit of a blowout as long as the Broncos take it seriously and come out ready to play.  If they play like they did in the first half last week for the entire game they should be able to take down the Chiefs with no problem.  The chiefs offense has not looked good and the injuries and inexperience along their offensive line should mean Alex Smith is uncomfortable all night.  I look for the Broncos to bring pressure early and often to keep him off balance.  I would not be surprised if he ended the night with a turnover or two.  On the other side of the ball the Broncos offense should have no problem moving the ball against a Chiefs defense that is missing two starters.  Peyton Manning has had no problem with the Chiefs since joining the Broncos and tomorrow afternoon should be no different for him.  Expect the Broncos to score plenty of points, and win this one easily.

Final Score- Broncos 38, Chiefs 14

Broncos, Colts Game 1 Recap and Analysis

Well everyone week one is in the books and the Broncos find themselves atop the AFC West at 1-0.  The game was a little too close for comfort at the end but as they say a win is a win and nowhere is that more true than in the NFL.  Getting a win against a quality opponent in the opener always makes you feel good and this win should get the season started off right.  The game ended up being much closer than it should have been because the Broncos offense struggled to gain traction in the second half.

Reasons for Optimism 

Denver Broncos-Ben Hays

One of the biggest reasons for optimism on the offensive side of the ball had to be the play of Julius Thomas.  The colts had absolutely no answer for the big tight end.  They tried several different coverages on him, and they simply could not stop him.  The three first half touchdowns showed just how good Thomas could be this year.  Another offensive player that really stood out was Emmanuel Sanders.  He was a player that I thought might have a big time impact this season and I think that is going to be the case.  He showed the ability to beat people deep down the field and he also showed that he can make people miss in space.  I think Sanders should be in for a huge year and by the end of the season most Broncos fans will probably forget all about Eric Decker.  The re-tooled offensive line also seemed to be in sync and seemed to be better than last years unit.  For most of the night Manning had plenty of time, aside from one missed blitz pickup the unit performed very well.  I think overall the offense should be every bit as good as last year.  There were a few reasons for concern but I will delve into that more later.

Denver Broncos-Ben Hays

Another reason to be excited about this years team is the play of the Denver defense last night.  I know the defense gave up 24 points and Andrew Luck did throw for almost 400 yards, however these stats are slightly overblown due to the fact that the colts were throwing almost the entire second half.  The defense completely dominated the Colts in the first half and set the tone with physical play and great man coverage.  As I stated previously the second half was a little bit more of a struggle, but I believe that a big reason for that was the struggles of the offense.  The Denver offense was unable to move the ball and the defense was stuck on the field for a good part of the second half.  They were also put in bad situations with short fields.  The real positive for the defense though was the ability to make big stops when they needed to.  On two second half drives the Colts made it inside the Denver 10 and managed to score a measly three points.  The fourth and goal stuff of Andrew Luck was a huge play in the game.  The Broncos were also able to do a great job in man to man coverage down the field.  On two different occasions Denver defenders were able to knock the ball away and Rahim (the Dream) Moore was able to come away with an interception.  I thought the secondary looked very good in man to man coverages.  One area where they did struggle a bit was covering a tight end or running back that was coming out of the backfield but I am sure that Jack Del Rio will shore that up very quickly.

Denver Broncos- Eric Las Bakkes

One defensive player that played tremendous was Bradley Roby.  The rookie was forced into a very tough situation and he thrived in his first NFL game.  With the loss of Kayvon Webster to illness, Roby was thrown to the wolves and he more than met expectations.  For much of the game Roby was asked to cover Reggie Wayne in the slot, one of the toughest assignments in football.  The rookie showed the ability to play tight man to man coverage and he made one of the biggest plays of the game on the Colts last possession when he was able to knock the ball from Wayne on a fourth and six that would have kept the drive alive, had Wayne made the catch.  With Chris Harris working his way back from a torn ACL having someone like Roby will be invaluable for the Broncos.  His production in the game shows once again that John Elway and the Broncos have the ability to make impact picks even late in the 1st round.

Reasons For Concern

Denver Broncos- Gabriel Christus

Now for the negatives from the game. I thought this game did provide a few reasons for concern.  The biggest problem for me in this game was the offense in the second half.  They struggled to gain traction and were unable to stay on the field which put the defense in a bad position.  I think one reason for the struggles could be attributed to the play-calling.  On first down the Broncos called 11 pass plays that gained an average of 11.8 yards and provided several big passing plays down the field.  They also called 18 runs which gained an average of just over three yards per carry.  The run-pass balance was not terrible for the game overall but in the second half things got much worse.  In the second half there were only four first down passes.  Two resulted in a completion for nine yards and twenty six yards, another drew a five yard defensive holding and the fourth was an incompletion.  There were ten running plays on first down in the second half that gained an average of only 2.3 yards.  This kind of play-calling is way too conservative and it allowed the Colts to put the Broncos offense in bad down and distance situations.  I know a lot of people are down on the running game after the game but I think the running game will be fine, and I am a big believer in Montee Ball.  I think that Adam Gase needs to do a better job of play-calling in the second half to keep the defense off balance, and give the offense an opportunity to maintain the rhythm they enjoyed in the first half.  I think the offense will shore up the problems that arose in the second half and they should be just fine for the rest of the season.

Denver Broncos- Erik Lars Bakke

A bigger concern that I had as the game went along was the lack of a consistent pass rush.  I know they were able to get three sacks in the game, but on two of the sacks Luck was forced to hold the ball for a significant amount of time.  I was also a little bit concerned that Von Miller did not make any significant plays, he just did not look like the player that had 18.5 sacks in 2012.  I know that he is coming off an ACL injury but the Broncos really need him to have a more significant impact than he did last night.  Hopefully it was more of a conditioning issue and not a problem with the ACL. One player along the defensive line that really impressed me was Malik Jackson.  He made several plays in the backfield and he forced Andrew Luck to make several hurried throws.  I do think that the Broncos need to find a way to generate more pressure on the quarterback throughout the game or they could give up a lot of big plays.


Look Ahead

Let's take a look ahead to next week when the Broncos will face off against the Kansas City Chiefs at Sports Authority field.  The Chiefs offense looked anemic in their opener against the Tennessee Titans and I think they could be in for a long game against the Denver defense.  I think Alex Smith will struggle to find open receivers and could have a few turnovers again this week.  Once again the Broncos defense will get to face an offensive line that is facing serious questions and struggled to protect Smith in the opener.  It will also be interesting to see how the Chiefs defense fairs after losing two starters (Derrickk Johnson and Mike DeVito) to season ending achilles tendon tears.  Later in the week I will go into more detail on this matchup and what I think the outcome will be.

Final Thought

This is a little bit off topic from the rest of the article but as I was typing this up the Ravens announced that Ray Rice's deal was terminated and the NFL followed suit and suspended him indefinitely.  These moves were well overdue and it really makes you wonder why it did not happen sooner.  I know the video came out today and it was graphic to say the least, but really what did the NFL think happened when he knocked his fiancé unconscious?  They should not have had to see the video to come to this decision.  It really makes me question the decision makers of the NFL when a guy like Matt Prater gets suspended four games for drinking a beer and Ray Rice gets two games for knocking a woman unconscious.  I hope the NFL gets this right in the future.  They can start by suspending Greg Hardy, who was involved in a physical altercation with his girlfriend in which he threatened to kill her.  Hopefully the NFL does the right thing and does its best to eliminate domestic violence.

It's Finally back!

Football season is finally upon us again.  I have been meaning to start a sports blog for a long time now but to be honest I didn't really care about anything until football season got started again.  I figured it was appropriate to make my very first post on the eve of the first Broncos game of the season.  This night for me is like Christmas eve for a six year old child.  Speaking of children my wife and I recently welcomed our first child and he is already a big time Broncos fan (or at least I like to think so).

Anyway football is back and I could not be more excited about it.  The Broncos will take on the Indianapolis Colts tomorrow night at 6:30 p.m. mountain time.  This game could not have come any quicker for the Broncos and their fans.  Putting the Super Bowl loss behind them is something the Broncos have wanted to do since they walked off the field 43-8 losers.  Tomorrow night will offer them the opportunity to start anew and begin the journey to return to the Super Bowl.





Many people believe that the Broncos have made significant improvements to the team, and more specifically to the defense that struggled for much of the season last year.  The additions of DeMarcus Ware, Aqib Talib, and T.J. Ward should make the Broncos a much better unit than they were a year ago, and perhaps return them to a dominant unit (or at least as dominant as you can be in the NFL).  Another thing to remember is that the Broncos are going to get back several starters that were missing last year.  The return of Rahim (the dream) Moore, Derek Wolfe, and Von Miller should make a big time impact for the defense.  The Broncos also added rookie Bradley Roby to the secondary, and Quinton Carter looks poised to make an impact after several lost seasons due to injury.

One player that is not getting as much chatter is Quanterus Smith.  I think that he could be a very surprising and productive player for the Broncos this year.  He has looked very good in the preseason and has gotten rave reviews from the coaching staff.  Smith is one of the players that could really benefit from the return of Von Miller, and the addition of DeMarcus Ware.  With those two coming after the passer it is likely that others along the defensive line are going to see a lot of opportunities to get to the quarterback.  I think Smith could have a very good season and become a key contributor for the Broncos defensive line.

Speaking of the broncos defensive line I think that the unit has a chance to be very special this year.  The defensive line has tremendous depth as evidenced by the recent release of Kevin Vickerson, who this time last year was a starter for the Broncos.  The defensive line has the big boys to clog up the middle and stuff the run, as well as pass rushers who can wreak havoc coming off the edge.  All in all the defense should be much improved this year and could be very fun to watch when they get after the passer.

Enough about the defense, the NFL is all about scoring and the Denver Broncos will not disappoint this season.  The loss of Eric Decker is something that has been talked about a lot but it should not slow down the Broncos record breaking offense.  Now we can hardly expect 55 TD's from Peyton again or 606 points.  Last season was something special and something that we may not see again for a long time.  Does that mean that the Broncos offense will take a step backwards in 2014? Absolutely not, in fact the offense could be even more talented than it was last year.  Replacing Knowshon Moreno with Montee Ball could end up being great for this offense.  No offense to Knowshon but he is not nearly as good as Ball when it comes to running the ball, and with Ball's improvement in the passing game he could be poised for a huge year.  The really exciting new member of the offense has got to be Emmanuel Sanders.  He looked amazing in the preseason game against the Texans and should be another big time weapon for Peyton Manning.  He is another dynamic playmaker who can make people miss in space.  He should also help take the sting out of the loss of Wes Welker for the first four games.  His ability to play in the slot as well as on the outside makes him a very big part of the offense this season.

Game Prediction 
I think that the Broncos are going to get the season started off on the right foot.  The Colts are a good team no doubt but they do not have the talent across the board like the Broncos do.  I know Andrew Luck is an amazing young quarterback but he will struggle to stay upright tomorrow night.  The Colts offensive line has been decimated by injuries and will struggle to provide Luck with the time he needs to get the ball down the field.  He also won't get much help from Trent Richardson and the running game. They struggled for much of last year to run the ball consistently and with the injuries and inexperience along the offensive line they will still struggle this year as well.  I do think Luck will put together a few nice drives and move the ball but I think for the most part the Denver defense will be able to slow down the Colts.  The Broncos offense on the other hand should have no problem moving the ball against the Colts defense.  The loss of Robert Mathis to a suspension should create a big problem for the Colts.  Without Mathis in the lineup the Colts will struggle to get pressure on Manning, and when Peyton has time it's bad news for the defense.  The offense will get the run game rolling early and often and Peyton will do his thing, and I think the Broncos end up winning this one pretty easily.

Final Score- Broncos 31 Colts 17