Bucs vs. Broncos

by sancho8297 on Oct 4, 2008 8:49 AM MDT

Hello MHR,

Probably like most of you, we didn't see last week's game coming. Goes to show how nothing in the NFL is a sure thing. That being said, we noticed the Bikini thread is back up...

TB @ DEN

Our line: Denver by 7

This is somewhat of a peculiar matchup. One would think Tampa Bay would have plenty of good matchups against Denver to tell our system they can pull off the win on the road. Heck what offense doesn't have a good matchup against the Denver defense right now? Indeed there are plenty of mismatches available to the Bucs, but all of them are of middling strength and are frankly quite unreliable on the road. For all the opportunities Tampa has on offense, it is their defense we are questioning here. In both of their road games their defense has given up over 400 yards and their offense has turned the ball over a total of 5 times. We expect to see plenty of footballs flying through the air on Sunday, and for once we won't mind if Denver over uses its aerial attack. We think this matchup will come down to Griese on the road vs. Cutler at home, and we shouldn't have to tell you who will win that contest.

ITN Ranking:

- Tampa Bay #4

- Denver #8

This is a Fan-Created Comment on MileHighReport.com. The opinion here is not necessarily shared by the editorial staff of MHR

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Comments

GET UP EARLY !

  As usuall the broncos need to get to get a quick start and a big lead so they can hope to hold on for a win
    Same thing limit turnovers and flags on false starts and holding . In my mind thats what stopped them
    AT KC last week .

by broncosfaninphilly on Oct 4, 2008 9:55 AM MDT reply actions

Good prediction

of course we are very biased, but I think -7 is perfect. This game will go a long ways towards establishing that Denver will once again have a perennial +9 to +14 advantage at home compared to the road. The numbers themselves are inconclusive, but since coming to Inveso, most fans will tell you that they don’t feel we have the same advantage we used to, but in my opinion the stadium wasn’t the biggest factor in the home vs. road discrepancy that seems to be in the Bronco DNA.

Mountains, forest, sea: these render man fierce, but yet do not destroy the man.

by Jeremy Bolander on Oct 4, 2008 10:20 AM MDT reply actions

I also think

this is a pretty apt analysis. This may be one of the better teams in the league, but I actually don’t have the same dread in the pit of my gut that I had when we were going into KC.

It’s time for the D-line to step up. Dewayne Robertson’s full participation in practice this week is encouraging, and hopefully his play will make the rest of the line look better. We missed him bad last week, a below average line became poor. Marcus Thomas needs to man up in my opinion. I liked what I saw from him last year, but he has been given a starting job next to a good veteran tackle, and he’s been unseen so far this season, at least in the role of “creating havoc” at which he is supposed to excell. If Thomas (or Peterson or Clemons or Shaw or Ek) really steps up next to Robertson, I think that will do wonders for the line, and the rest of the DT rotation will be fine. But we need another DT to play well.

If the DTs play well, that frees up Doom to start playing a LOT more 1-on-1, and we all know that equals sacks and forced fumbles. If TB is running the ball well, leave the Security Blanket (Engelberger) out there if you must but I really would prefer to see a Crowder or Ekuban on the other end from Doom. Is Crowder really not playing well or do the coaches not trust him enough to stop the run yet?

It’s ALL about the D-line from here on out. This team is above average in every other part of the team, in my opinion, except the kick coverage. Punt coverage has been doing well but we’ve also punted the fewest times of any team in the league (that’s a GOOD thing). If the D-Line doesn’t improve, we’ve got to be worried. The good news is that I think the line can improve. Doom has his broken finger, as that fully heals he will be better. Crowder and Thomas are only in their second year, and Thomas was “first round talent” barring his behavior problems. Moss is basically a rookie. Besides them, a lot of faces are new, and hopefully they begin to grow comfortable with eachother.

Jason
The Hanging Curve

by poorboywilly on Oct 4, 2008 1:52 PM MDT reply actions

For sudden reasons that I will never explain (hint defense) (both the Buc's and our's) we will not win this game.

Their defense is headed by a guy that should be heading our defense—but isn’t. Funny thing last year—fire all—bring in complete change. Go from good defense with no offense—to no defense with a young offense. Gut feeling here. Cutler needs to be perfect—or we get beat up bad—maybe even slaughtered. We have great potential—but without a defense we are lost.

The best defense is a good offense!
I hope.

by Mike Clark on Oct 4, 2008 9:04 PM MDT reply actions

You guys have no idea how much I want this to be a bad forcast--I hope I'm wrong.

The best defense is a good offense!
I hope.

by Mike Clark on Oct 4, 2008 9:05 PM MDT up reply actions

A bad defense can wilt anyone's confidence, but...

We think you will be wrong. If it’s any help, last week we had Denver as 19 point favorites against the 0-3 Chiefs, but only were only 62% confident on that pick. Playing on the road can do some weird things to teams in odd games.

Despite playing a 3-1 team and Denver being only a 7 point favorite, we are giving Denver a 71% confidence rating. Teams shouldnt rely on home field advantage, but rather use it as a source of on the field energy, something we think this team and coaching staff understands. We’re sure the team is getting some confident rest tonight, and so should you.

Inside the Numbers LLC

'Making sense of sports statistics'

by sancho8297 on Oct 4, 2008 10:38 PM MDT up reply actions