It’s hard to believe it only took until Week 2 for Broncos Country to hit the panic button! Just kidding. It’s not surprising at all. And I’ll be the first to admit being among them. Last week’s pretend football game was atrocious and I am officially a little worried.
But I’m not that worried because like our veteran Ultimate Fan, bill2975, points out: “They can’t be that bad two weeks in a row, can they?”
No, they can’t. Well, they better not be. And I don’t think they will. Last week’s wake-up call
to players and coaches, combined with playing in front of the Mile High crowd, should make for a much better Week 2!
Week 2: Broncos v. Jaguars
MHR – I hardly know where to start with last week’s game, but after several days and a few deep breaths, it seems ok to just ask, WTF happened?
bill2975: Here’s what I posted after the Monday night game, “Reality check! The Broncos played a terrible game, so let’s do better next week. Good thing it’s Game 1, so the coaches will certainly have the team’s attention now. What the hell, we weren’t threatening the 1972 Dolphins, anyway.”
MHR – Bo Nix didn’t look “bad” in my opinion but certainly looked rusty. Was it first-game-back-from-injury jitters? Was it prime-time in Week 1? Was it the O-line? Was it Arrowhead? Was it a new play-caller? Was it being a new dad and not having enough sleep? Are you concerned or do you believe it was just a one-off and he’ll be back on track this Sunday?
bill2975: I hope the team got a good wakeup call after being humbled by a team they should have beaten, even if it was in a terrible place to play (KC – good BBQ but insufferable fans, aka zealots). Hope the team focused on how to tackle this week; they apparently missed that session last week, and the coaching didn’t help much as they frequently seemed out of position. Oh, hopefully McGlinchey plays better this week,which shouldn’t be difficult.
MHR – Depending how you answered the previous question, what was going on with the offensive line on Monday Night? Nix seemed to be running away from trouble most of the game. How does our O-line protect Nix this week from a Jags’ D-line that got five sacks in week 1 (it was against the Browns, but still…)?
bill2975:I’m not a football expert, but I wonder if trying to use the middle of the field on passes would have helped a lot. Maybe we could try that THIS week?
MHR – Despite the promise of a better rushing attack, the Broncos once again failed “to establish the running game” (15 attempts for 61 yards, compared to 38 attempts by the Chiefs and 173 yards by KWIII alone!) Is this a failure of game planning or was it an issue with “taking what the defense gave us” and not having the right situation to run the ball? Or did we just get behind too early?
bill2975:I vote for game planning being much of the problem. And not very many runs. Maybe the first series or two they should run, run, run. Hell, try the single wing offense, if necessary. Show the Jags something they don’t know how to handle. Maybe try the Eagles Tush Push approach every play until they stop it.
MHR – Jaylen Waddle and Courtland Sutton – WR1 and 2 – combined for…wait for it…3 catches for 13 yards. It seems like such an absurd stat I don’t even know what question to ask other than…why?
bill2975:Wasn’t Nix running for his life much of the time? Try some quick, short passes over the middle after establishing the run game.
MHR – Moving to Denver’s defense where we usually ask fun questions about dominance, what in the living hell was that tackling on Monday Night? Or should I say, non-tackling? It’s the most fundamental part of playing defense and our guys looked like my grad-school flag football team. Do you expect them to be back on track this week?
bill2975:See my comments above. Maybe they planned a practice session on how to block and tackle, but didn’t get to the latter piece. Good thing we weren’t flying to Australia and back.
MHR – Trevor Lawrence has had his ups and downs, but he has hung in there at Jacksonville and last year proved he has staying power in this league. What concerns you the most about him on Sunday? Can Nik Bonitto and Que Robinson and/or Jonah Elliss rattle him enough to keep from getting quick scores?
bill2975:Disclaimer – I’ve always liked Trevor Lawrence, and I expect him to be really good on Sunday. Sure would be nice to see the edge rushers get close to him, though, and throw him off his game.
MHR – Like Denver, Jacksonville has a slew of decent running backs, but no superstar like KWIII (hopefully!) But Denver’s run defense is still a concern. How do they stop Tuten, Abdullah and Rodriquez – a trio that combined for 121 yards last week?
bill2975:Is John Franklin Myers available this week? Oh, you say he moved on? Well, crap…
MHR – Looking at the Jacksonville receivers, Parker Washington had a field day against the Browns with 83 receiving yards while Jakobi Meyers and Brian Thomas Jr. combined for another 80 yards. Will the defensive backs answer Pat Surtain’s call for better “intention” to tackle this weekend? How will our DBs stack up against their WRs?
bill2975:I’d be shocked if our DBs had a second bad game in a row on Sunday. Linebackers, though? Eh…
MHR – Our best player on Monday was Jeremy Crawshaw, the punter. Which one player/unit on both sides of the ball needs to have a great game this weekend to help the Broncos beat the Jags?
bill2975:Riley Moss and Ja’Quan McMillian. I don’t worry very much about Pat. And, Zach Allen’s friends on the DL have to try to make Trevor’s life miserable, too. (Hm.. that’s more than one!)
MHR – Aside from obviously coming away with a win, what would you most like to see from the team this week that would indicate progress and a promising season overall?
bill2975:Honestly, what I care about is seeing a well-played, well-fought, penalty-free game with several exciting plays. I’d like to see a win, particularly in Denver, but let’s turn things around and get going in the right direction.
Predictions
Stats for BO NIX? Enough to win the game.
Stats for each Broncos RB? How about 4+ YPC or better for each one, and enough run plays to matter.
Number of yards receiving/TDs for each of the receivers? I vote for at least 180 yards total.
How many points for Lutz this week? 3 PATs, 2 FGs.
Number of sacks to Trevor Lawrence? 3-4
Broncos player with the most tackles? Sigh, Singleton, preferably at the line of scrimmage. Maybe Murdock, if he’s playing.
Who gets the first sack of the game for the Broncos? Bonitto.
Who gets the most sacks? Bonitto, tie with Allen and Hufanga.
How many INTs/FF/FR for the Jaguars’ D? None
How many INTs/FF/FR for the Broncos’ D? More than None.
How many penalties between the two teams? Way too fricking many!
The Favorites
Favorite Broncos win ever? Demarius’ walkoff TD against Steelers
Favorite John Elway win outside of the Super Bowls? “The Drive” – 1987
Favorite Peyton Manning win? Broncos 49, Ravens 27; Peyton 7 TDs. Vinovich revenge…
Team you love to beat the most in the AFC West? Tie – Chefs, Faders, Charge-its
Coach you laugh at the most in the NFL? Mike McDaniel
Coach you most want to throat punch? Joshua Thomas McDaniels, or maybe Belicheat (this is my Emeritus pick)
Team you hate to lose to the most in the rest of the AFC? Cheatriots
NFC team you could cheer for in the Super Bowl? Buffalo Bills
NFC team you want to face more than any other in the Super Bowl? New Orleans Saints, with some good gumbo
Toughest game on the schedule? Seahawks
Favorite Broncos player on the current roster? Zach Allen
Favorite Broncos player of all time not named John Elway (unless it really is John Elway)? Otis Armstrong (Purdue with me), and Omar Moreno
Favorite new guy/rookie on the team? Almost new – Pat Bryant
Food/Snack you have to eat on game day? Popcorn
Favorite game analyst/commentator? Hard to tell with the sound turned off…
Give me one word/phrase/cliche to describe your hope for this season? Indomitable team
Who is on your Broncos’ Mount Rushmore? Floyd Little, John Elway, Von Miller, Champ Bailey (might be different if you were to ask me again)
How did you become a Broncos fan?
I’ve said this here before. I met my future wife in Denver at a USO Dance (while attending a Navy school) back in the dawn of time, and was already a fan of the Broncos (probably because of Floyd Little, who I watched play in college at Syracuse, which is also the college home of RBs Jim Brown and Ernie Davis). It was only after we married that she accused me of making false pretenses – I can’t dance worth a crap. It’s taken many years, but she’s come to accept that.
I went to college at Purdue with Otis Armstrong, so that helped me cheer for the Broncos, too. I am usually objective and rational, though sometimes referred to as a crotchety curmudgeon, according to wife. 😎 Biggest disappointment was losing to the Ravens in the playoffs in 2013, in spite of Trindon Hollidays’s TDs. I think that’s how my TV got broken…
I subscribe to NFL Gamepass each year to watch every Broncos game, plus any others
of interest, even though the NFL app and UI are pretty bad for something owned by zillionaires.
And another rant about the Chefs – do we really have to see all these shots of Taylor in the owner’s box? I do admire Mahomes (though not the KC fan base trolls), even if he does resemble Kermit the Frog. 😎
