I am going to think about the McCree signing this way, John Lynch is coming back and I believe that he will more than likely have to miss time because of injury. That likely yields Hamza Abdullah and Nick Ferguson as the starting safeties. Abdullah is young, and he did very well last season when he got playing time. Ferguson is a solid vet and Denver should be able to count on quality play from him. But after that, its down to a group of young and inexpereinced guys like Steve Cargile, and given a choice between one of that bunch and McCree, I'd take McCree any day given that he has been around for a while, has played for several teams so he has experienced playing against a number of different players, is used to winning, and now has playoff experience. Think of him as a faster John Lynch with better cover skills, and I bet the refs are less trigger happy with big hits for McCree. With that signing the Broncos have depth in the safety spot (4 players capable of starting), which might free Lynch to become a nickel back on passing downs and blitz like a madman, which he loves to do, and he definitely has a knack for causing fumbles that way.
But not every situation is perfect. I have premonitions about McCree and the effect playing on the chargers had on him. Once he arrives in Denver, he better get the memo quickly that egocentric players who celebrate too much have no place on this team. With Mike Shanahan at the helm and the respectability and professionalism of the franchise, I think it will soon become clear to McCree how things are done in Denver. Three particulars come to mind: 1. Consistent solid tackling is preferred over big hits, and I hope he will be able to decipher between the two, because not every play calls for a big hit, again, this is an issue that arises from signing a former charger. 2. Blatant helmet to helmet contact and head hunting in general is unacceptable. There better not be anything remotely close to the hit he put on Donald Driver this past season. 3. Make the intelligent decision, which brings me back to the Divisional Playoff game against the Patriots 2 years ago, when his fumble of an interception turned the game around and cost the chargers a spot in the AFC Title Game.
Overall, I'm confident that once McCree becomes acclimated with the Bronco culture he will prove a valuable asset to the team.
Showing posts with label Denver Broncos. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Denver Broncos. Show all posts
Monday, March 10, 2008
Monday, November 19, 2007
Denver Broncos Week In Review (WIRe): Week 10
Anytime a team accomplishes something meaningful for the first time in 5 years, it results in a huge morale boost. Denver's first win in Kansas City since 2002 could not have come at a better time, as the Broncos were in need of some momentum after a 44-7 thumping at the hands of Detroit last week. This win stands out for Denver because it was one in which they played a complete game from start to finish on both sides of the ball.
Offensively, the Broncos got into rhythm early, with an opening drive highlighted by Selvin Young's 34 yard run. Young did not slow up the rest of the game, finishing with 109 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown. The passing game also performed well, as Cutler had a steady day with 192 yards and a mostly mistake-free game. Their success is reflected by the overall efficiency of Denver's offense, only had 2 3-and-outs on 11 drives. The Broncos capitalized on opportunities, scoring 2 quick touchdowns off Kansas City turnovers early in the second half. For an offense that has been unpredictable week to week this year, a 27 point performance on the road against the Chiefs may be that start of something good.
Defensively, the Broncos looked like they did in 2005, bringing back the bend, don't break style of play. Kansas City had 4 drives of over 50 yards on Sunday, but every time they advanced deep into Denver territory, the Broncos held up, keeping the Chiefs out of the endzone all game. Part of the reason for this was the dominance of the run defense, which held Priest Holmes to 65 yards on 20 carries. They also pressured Damon Huard and Brodie Croyle throughout the day, resulting in 4 sacks and 4 turnovers. Denver's defense came into the game in the bottom quarter of the league, and came out of the game with a stellar performance and renewed confidence.
Something worth mentioning about this game is what happened to Brandon Marshall at the end of the first half. After a short completion from Cutler, Marshall was going to stretch out for extra yardage when Kansas City's Tyron Brackenridge made his hand into a fist, swung at, and connected with Marshall's groin. For the skeptical people out there, find tape of the play, and watch it. There is no doubt that the shot was intentional. Denver had to take a timeout because of this, and it ended up killing the drive. It was one of the most bush league plays in recent memory, and it is a sad reflection on the Chiefs and on the league if they do not take action against Brackenridge.
On a positive note, this quote from Selvin Young was a memorable one. He poured his heart and soul out to the press when he said, "Before the game, if you got a close up of me, I had tears coming out of my eyes. I mean, just, so long, so much dreaming, wishing, working hard... I've got my mindset on trying to help a football team win, and take it to the next level, and I'm getting an opportunity to live my dream, so I'm really enjoying it." Here's a humble guy who loves the game of football and is a team player. Players like Selvin Young are the reason why the NFL is as great as it is.
Offensively, the Broncos got into rhythm early, with an opening drive highlighted by Selvin Young's 34 yard run. Young did not slow up the rest of the game, finishing with 109 yards on 20 carries and a touchdown. The passing game also performed well, as Cutler had a steady day with 192 yards and a mostly mistake-free game. Their success is reflected by the overall efficiency of Denver's offense, only had 2 3-and-outs on 11 drives. The Broncos capitalized on opportunities, scoring 2 quick touchdowns off Kansas City turnovers early in the second half. For an offense that has been unpredictable week to week this year, a 27 point performance on the road against the Chiefs may be that start of something good.
Defensively, the Broncos looked like they did in 2005, bringing back the bend, don't break style of play. Kansas City had 4 drives of over 50 yards on Sunday, but every time they advanced deep into Denver territory, the Broncos held up, keeping the Chiefs out of the endzone all game. Part of the reason for this was the dominance of the run defense, which held Priest Holmes to 65 yards on 20 carries. They also pressured Damon Huard and Brodie Croyle throughout the day, resulting in 4 sacks and 4 turnovers. Denver's defense came into the game in the bottom quarter of the league, and came out of the game with a stellar performance and renewed confidence.
Something worth mentioning about this game is what happened to Brandon Marshall at the end of the first half. After a short completion from Cutler, Marshall was going to stretch out for extra yardage when Kansas City's Tyron Brackenridge made his hand into a fist, swung at, and connected with Marshall's groin. For the skeptical people out there, find tape of the play, and watch it. There is no doubt that the shot was intentional. Denver had to take a timeout because of this, and it ended up killing the drive. It was one of the most bush league plays in recent memory, and it is a sad reflection on the Chiefs and on the league if they do not take action against Brackenridge.
On a positive note, this quote from Selvin Young was a memorable one. He poured his heart and soul out to the press when he said, "Before the game, if you got a close up of me, I had tears coming out of my eyes. I mean, just, so long, so much dreaming, wishing, working hard... I've got my mindset on trying to help a football team win, and take it to the next level, and I'm getting an opportunity to live my dream, so I'm really enjoying it." Here's a humble guy who loves the game of football and is a team player. Players like Selvin Young are the reason why the NFL is as great as it is.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Gene Wojciechowski Does Not Know the Broncos
I would like to start by saying that this should have been posted after the Steelers game, but I did not get around to it. Nothing in the events that have transpired in the last few weeks influenced how I wrote this article. I will work harder next time to get my work up within the week it pertains to.
NOTE: Before you read the latest installment of my world famous rants, please read Gene Wojciechowski's article on espn.com about the Broncos. This rant is a response to what he wrote, and it will make much more sense if you read his article first. The URL is: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=wojciechowski_gene&id=3073788&sportCat=nfl
Traffic cones? Is that what the Broncos look like in those uniforms? Standard traffic cones are orange with an orange or black base, while the Broncos' uniforms are blue with some orange, so the two have a different color scheme. Compared side by side, the only similar quality they have is the presence of the color orange, other than that, they are polar opposites. While this description may seem unnecessary, apparently the appearance of a traffic cone is not common knowledge, at least not to Gene Wojciechowski. Maybe the traffic cones in his hometown of Salina, Kansas are blue with orange stripes on either side. No matter how he came to this conclusion, upon further review it proves to be a ludicrous attempt at a comedic hook for his article. The statement was not amusing at all, and it paved the way for one of the worst sports columns ever written.
Wojciechowski follows this up by calling the Pittsburgh Steelers a sluggish football team. Coming into this game, the Steelers were 4-1, winning every game by at least 21 points. Sure, they lost to Arizona on the road, but it was only a one score loss and the Cardinals have quite a methodical offense with Kurt Warner at the helm. That game came down to the Steelers making a few careless turnovers and committing too many penalties, two flaws rarely seen in Pittsburgh. On the other side of the ball, the Cardinals played mistake-free, and this gameplan contributed greatly to their victory. Nonetheless, it proved a blip on the radar for Pittsburgh, as they came out strong against the Seahawks the following week and lost to a Broncos team that played a better game, but they certainly cannot be described as sluggish. The Steelers are one of the elite NFL teams at this point in the season. Wojciechowski and many other sportswriters utilize irrelevant attacks like these on good football teams to justify them losing to Denver. The bottom line is that few of these columnists give the Broncos any respect for playing a good game against a good team nowadays, and it is time to give this team credit where credit is due.
After mislabeling the Steelers, Wojciechowski then took a shot at Dre Bly for postgame comments he made to reporters. He mentions a puncture in Bly’s arm from a pain-killing shot in order to… well… affirm his bias against the Broncos; otherwise it had no purpose in the article. This marks two personal attacks on the Broncos thus far. To Bly’s statement “Nobody was giving us any shot to win this game,” Wojciechowski responded with “maybe that’s because [Denver] had not earned the benefit of the doubt.” It does not matter whether they earned the benefit of the doubt or not prior to the game, Denver still won with a solid performance. What Bly said proves absolutely true, and who is Wojciechowski to blame him after all the media abuse Denver has undergone in recent years? The audacity that Bly displayed is long overdue, and it is a positive for a new addition like him to speak out for the team.
So Wojciechowski is bold enough to go after Dre Bly, but going after Jason Elam like he did is absolutely ridiculous. Yes, Elam has made late and last second field goals in all of Denver’s wins, because that is his job. In no way can Denver be criticized for relying on their kicker, because close victories often times make or break a season. Apparently the NFL is now on the Patriot standard, which means that if any given team does not win by at least 3 scores every game, they cannot be considered a good team. After scrutinizing Denver for their particular brand of winning, Wojciechowski goes on to misinterpret, yet again, comments made by Elam. The statement “We'll take it if we can get it. If we can get 20 of 21, we will take it” somehow contains a tone of certainty from Elam, at least to Wojciechowski it does. Elam is simply grateful that Denver has been able to win games in that dramatic fashion, and says that they will gladly take any kind of win on any given Sunday. He did not say anything to indicate that he believes for sure that the Broncos will have a winning streak of the Rockies’ magnitude. Clearly, Elam is not “oxygen-deprived” or “mildly nuts,” he is in fact one of the most composed and logical players the NFL has ever seen. Wojciechowski should do his homework before he goes out on a limb and makes assumptions like that, his third personal attack.
Wojciechowski even misinterpreted the statistics from Sunday night’s contest. Jay Cutler went 22 of 29 for 248 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 INTs, or as Wojciechowski sees it, just 2 INTs. Again, we see the NFL on the Patriot standard; Cutler made 2 mistakes, therefore he is not a good player. That comment about the photoshoot proves quite unnecessary, as Cutler simply made a bad decision by throwing into double coverage. Roethlisberger also threw a questionable pass into double coverage that Dre Bly intercepted earlier in the game, so its not as if Cutler is the only one with flaws at quarterback. The only difference is that Wojciechowski put Cutler’s interception up on a pedestal with a glittering generality, the most basic form of propaganda. Keep in mind that Cutler is still a sophomore quarterback and has not yet started an entire NFL season. In fact, Cutler may have played his best career game on Sunday, as he put up great numbers against a great defense and came away with a quality win. Even more impressive is that Cutler did not have the support of a typically dynamic rushing offense. Denver backs racked up a mere 55 yards on 20 carries, while Cutler ran for 41 yards, including a 31 yard scramble in the second, at the end of which Troy Polamalu grabbed him by the head and threw him down. That kind of courage does not show up on the stat sheet, but maybe it ought to, because it seems that an over 75% completion rate, roughly 300 yards of total offense, and 3 touchdowns for one player are not good enough to impress Wojciechowski.
The one point of hope for a positive spin in this article came when Wojciechowski began listing the various Broncos with injuries: Champ Bailey, Simeon Rice, Tom Nalen, and Rod Smith. However, he did not elaborate on how the absence of these players gravely impacts the team. Including this paragraph proved largely a waste, as it had little connection to the rest of the article.
Once more, Wojciechowski preceded his opinion of a player with a personal attack (#4), calling Travis Henry “Father of the Year” in the NFL. This refers to Henry’s poor decisions in his personal life, which have resulted in him fathering 9 children. While these choices are a topic of interest, and certainly provide insight into Henry’s moral fiber, the article is no place to discuss this aspect of his life. It would have served Wojciechowski better to solely mention the possible drug suspension, which is the current issue affecting Henry’s playing time.
After the inactive player listing, Wojciechowski again criticized the optimism of a Bronco, and this time he targeted Brandon Stokely, calling him Mr. Sunshine (attack #5). What Stokely said is true, as it is still early in the year, the Broncos have a very talented team, and the sky is the limit for Denver. Contrary to Wojciechowski’s comments, the AFC West is anyone’s division for the taking right now, and given the inconsistency of its 4 teams, will probably remain that way through week 17, so Denver has more than an outside shot of winning it. Perhaps one of the few concepts that Wojciechowski has a grasp of is the separation between New England and Indianapolis, and the rest of the league. Therefore it is farfetched to believe that as of right now Denver can defeat either of those teams, especially given that they have already been handled by Indianapolis this year. On a positive note, the Broncos have taken 4 of 5 from the Patriots, a streak mostly owed to the coaching genius of Mike Shanahan.
As if there were not enough irrational comments to this point, Wojciechowski added another with the statement about Denver’s “postseason irrelevancy” since the 2005 loss to Pittsburgh. Since that time, a whopping one year has passed, in which time the Broncos came within one win of the playoffs, despite a quarterback controversy and multiple injuries to the secondary, as well as emotional leader Al Wilson. Last year hit Denver like a ton of bricks, as they did not expect to lose Wilson, and the run defense suffered severely without his presence. Given that, it is time to give Wojciechowski credit, as the Broncos have lost their mojo and the home field advantage they once had. Still, they are a playoff caliber team, as D.J. Williams asserts, they are just not playing up to their potential right now. Once this unit gets settled in and all the new players develop the necessary team chemistry, Denver will be a contender once more. Until then, however, they have much work to do as a team, while Gene Wojciechowski has much work to do as a sportswriter, especially if he thinks the Rockies will ever overtake the Broncos as the premier team in Colorado.
Here is a suggestion for Wojciechowski, given his writing style: attack the Cincinnati Bengals. He would have no problem citing the various times players on this team have broken the law in the past year. It would certainly help Wojciechowski write a better article, because even he, in spite of his distorted perceptions, should be able to see that the Bengals’ uniforms actually look like traffic cones.
NOTE: Before you read the latest installment of my world famous rants, please read Gene Wojciechowski's article on espn.com about the Broncos. This rant is a response to what he wrote, and it will make much more sense if you read his article first. The URL is: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=wojciechowski_gene&id=3073788&sportCat=nfl
Traffic cones? Is that what the Broncos look like in those uniforms? Standard traffic cones are orange with an orange or black base, while the Broncos' uniforms are blue with some orange, so the two have a different color scheme. Compared side by side, the only similar quality they have is the presence of the color orange, other than that, they are polar opposites. While this description may seem unnecessary, apparently the appearance of a traffic cone is not common knowledge, at least not to Gene Wojciechowski. Maybe the traffic cones in his hometown of Salina, Kansas are blue with orange stripes on either side. No matter how he came to this conclusion, upon further review it proves to be a ludicrous attempt at a comedic hook for his article. The statement was not amusing at all, and it paved the way for one of the worst sports columns ever written.
Wojciechowski follows this up by calling the Pittsburgh Steelers a sluggish football team. Coming into this game, the Steelers were 4-1, winning every game by at least 21 points. Sure, they lost to Arizona on the road, but it was only a one score loss and the Cardinals have quite a methodical offense with Kurt Warner at the helm. That game came down to the Steelers making a few careless turnovers and committing too many penalties, two flaws rarely seen in Pittsburgh. On the other side of the ball, the Cardinals played mistake-free, and this gameplan contributed greatly to their victory. Nonetheless, it proved a blip on the radar for Pittsburgh, as they came out strong against the Seahawks the following week and lost to a Broncos team that played a better game, but they certainly cannot be described as sluggish. The Steelers are one of the elite NFL teams at this point in the season. Wojciechowski and many other sportswriters utilize irrelevant attacks like these on good football teams to justify them losing to Denver. The bottom line is that few of these columnists give the Broncos any respect for playing a good game against a good team nowadays, and it is time to give this team credit where credit is due.
After mislabeling the Steelers, Wojciechowski then took a shot at Dre Bly for postgame comments he made to reporters. He mentions a puncture in Bly’s arm from a pain-killing shot in order to… well… affirm his bias against the Broncos; otherwise it had no purpose in the article. This marks two personal attacks on the Broncos thus far. To Bly’s statement “Nobody was giving us any shot to win this game,” Wojciechowski responded with “maybe that’s because [Denver] had not earned the benefit of the doubt.” It does not matter whether they earned the benefit of the doubt or not prior to the game, Denver still won with a solid performance. What Bly said proves absolutely true, and who is Wojciechowski to blame him after all the media abuse Denver has undergone in recent years? The audacity that Bly displayed is long overdue, and it is a positive for a new addition like him to speak out for the team.
So Wojciechowski is bold enough to go after Dre Bly, but going after Jason Elam like he did is absolutely ridiculous. Yes, Elam has made late and last second field goals in all of Denver’s wins, because that is his job. In no way can Denver be criticized for relying on their kicker, because close victories often times make or break a season. Apparently the NFL is now on the Patriot standard, which means that if any given team does not win by at least 3 scores every game, they cannot be considered a good team. After scrutinizing Denver for their particular brand of winning, Wojciechowski goes on to misinterpret, yet again, comments made by Elam. The statement “We'll take it if we can get it. If we can get 20 of 21, we will take it” somehow contains a tone of certainty from Elam, at least to Wojciechowski it does. Elam is simply grateful that Denver has been able to win games in that dramatic fashion, and says that they will gladly take any kind of win on any given Sunday. He did not say anything to indicate that he believes for sure that the Broncos will have a winning streak of the Rockies’ magnitude. Clearly, Elam is not “oxygen-deprived” or “mildly nuts,” he is in fact one of the most composed and logical players the NFL has ever seen. Wojciechowski should do his homework before he goes out on a limb and makes assumptions like that, his third personal attack.
Wojciechowski even misinterpreted the statistics from Sunday night’s contest. Jay Cutler went 22 of 29 for 248 yards, 3 TDs, and 2 INTs, or as Wojciechowski sees it, just 2 INTs. Again, we see the NFL on the Patriot standard; Cutler made 2 mistakes, therefore he is not a good player. That comment about the photoshoot proves quite unnecessary, as Cutler simply made a bad decision by throwing into double coverage. Roethlisberger also threw a questionable pass into double coverage that Dre Bly intercepted earlier in the game, so its not as if Cutler is the only one with flaws at quarterback. The only difference is that Wojciechowski put Cutler’s interception up on a pedestal with a glittering generality, the most basic form of propaganda. Keep in mind that Cutler is still a sophomore quarterback and has not yet started an entire NFL season. In fact, Cutler may have played his best career game on Sunday, as he put up great numbers against a great defense and came away with a quality win. Even more impressive is that Cutler did not have the support of a typically dynamic rushing offense. Denver backs racked up a mere 55 yards on 20 carries, while Cutler ran for 41 yards, including a 31 yard scramble in the second, at the end of which Troy Polamalu grabbed him by the head and threw him down. That kind of courage does not show up on the stat sheet, but maybe it ought to, because it seems that an over 75% completion rate, roughly 300 yards of total offense, and 3 touchdowns for one player are not good enough to impress Wojciechowski.
The one point of hope for a positive spin in this article came when Wojciechowski began listing the various Broncos with injuries: Champ Bailey, Simeon Rice, Tom Nalen, and Rod Smith. However, he did not elaborate on how the absence of these players gravely impacts the team. Including this paragraph proved largely a waste, as it had little connection to the rest of the article.
Once more, Wojciechowski preceded his opinion of a player with a personal attack (#4), calling Travis Henry “Father of the Year” in the NFL. This refers to Henry’s poor decisions in his personal life, which have resulted in him fathering 9 children. While these choices are a topic of interest, and certainly provide insight into Henry’s moral fiber, the article is no place to discuss this aspect of his life. It would have served Wojciechowski better to solely mention the possible drug suspension, which is the current issue affecting Henry’s playing time.
After the inactive player listing, Wojciechowski again criticized the optimism of a Bronco, and this time he targeted Brandon Stokely, calling him Mr. Sunshine (attack #5). What Stokely said is true, as it is still early in the year, the Broncos have a very talented team, and the sky is the limit for Denver. Contrary to Wojciechowski’s comments, the AFC West is anyone’s division for the taking right now, and given the inconsistency of its 4 teams, will probably remain that way through week 17, so Denver has more than an outside shot of winning it. Perhaps one of the few concepts that Wojciechowski has a grasp of is the separation between New England and Indianapolis, and the rest of the league. Therefore it is farfetched to believe that as of right now Denver can defeat either of those teams, especially given that they have already been handled by Indianapolis this year. On a positive note, the Broncos have taken 4 of 5 from the Patriots, a streak mostly owed to the coaching genius of Mike Shanahan.
As if there were not enough irrational comments to this point, Wojciechowski added another with the statement about Denver’s “postseason irrelevancy” since the 2005 loss to Pittsburgh. Since that time, a whopping one year has passed, in which time the Broncos came within one win of the playoffs, despite a quarterback controversy and multiple injuries to the secondary, as well as emotional leader Al Wilson. Last year hit Denver like a ton of bricks, as they did not expect to lose Wilson, and the run defense suffered severely without his presence. Given that, it is time to give Wojciechowski credit, as the Broncos have lost their mojo and the home field advantage they once had. Still, they are a playoff caliber team, as D.J. Williams asserts, they are just not playing up to their potential right now. Once this unit gets settled in and all the new players develop the necessary team chemistry, Denver will be a contender once more. Until then, however, they have much work to do as a team, while Gene Wojciechowski has much work to do as a sportswriter, especially if he thinks the Rockies will ever overtake the Broncos as the premier team in Colorado.
Here is a suggestion for Wojciechowski, given his writing style: attack the Cincinnati Bengals. He would have no problem citing the various times players on this team have broken the law in the past year. It would certainly help Wojciechowski write a better article, because even he, in spite of his distorted perceptions, should be able to see that the Bengals’ uniforms actually look like traffic cones.
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