2009 Surprising Stars of the Denver Broncos

by JesseDForrer on Oct 29, 2009 8:29 AM MDT Comment 6 comments

Okay, at the beginning of the season the stars I expected to emerge were not the ones were seeing now. I am gonna break down a few individuals who have been surprisingly effective on this team.

Offense

Kyle “K.O.” Orton- I definitely thought Kyle Orton would be a managing QB this season. I thought he would be able to manage the game, but would need alot of help from the stars on this offense. 7 weeks into the season, he is affectionately called K.O. (knock out) Kyle by Denver fans as each week he has been able to engineer long 4th quarter drives which prevented opposing offenses the time to attempt a comeback. Orton is on pace for 3900 yards and 24 touchdowns. Orton’s best season in Chicago was only 2900 yards 18 touchdowns. While he is ranked 15th overall currently as a QB, he has something the rest of the QB's above him do not have, less interceptions. To date K.O.'s lone interception came on a hail mary to end a half and as time ran out, was virtually irrelevant.

Knowshon Moreno- I don’t know if "surprising" fits here since he was the first RB picked in the draft, however after the hold out, and the pre-season injury I was concerned it may be mid season before he became a contributor. He is on pace for over a thousand yards after a slow start and leads all rookie running backs. What is interesting is he is sharing time with Correll Buckhalter who is also on pace for a 1000 yard season. The Broncos could potentially have 2 different 1000 yd. rushers in the same season. Last season the leading rusher for Denver was Peyton Hillis with 343.

Brandon Marshall- After all the off season problems like many I wondered if he would be traded. He didn’t know the playbook, threw a hissy fit, and demanded a trade. After a nice Time Out by the coach, and a couple weeks watching from the sidelines he has embraced the offense and exploded into the Brandon Marshall we were hoping for. The McDaniels offense tends to spread the ball to many receivers but even with that, and limited playing time until week 3 Marshall is on pace for 80 catches and 900 yards. But look for a big game coming from him soon as he appears ready to break out.

DEFENSE
Elvis "DOOM" Dumervil - Dumervil has already been a good player for Denver, but it appears Mike Nolan’s 3-4 defense has fit him perfectly. He is the second fastest player in NFL history to reach 10 sacks in a season and leads the league. Even when he hasn't made the sack, he has put constant pressure on opposing Quarterbacks. In addition he has 1 assisted sack, 2 forced fumbles (one of which he recovered) and 23 tackles.

Denver Broncos Secondary- okay maybe lumping four 30 year old guys into one category is unfair, especially considering the talent, but each of these guys are spectacular, and the are even more spectacular as a unit. they have 6 interceptions, the defense as a whole have allowed only 11 points/game, and are a huge reason for Dumervil's success. Opposing quarterbacks have been unable to get a receiver open and therefore allow DOOM time to reach the QB.

There are many other players I could mention, such as Eddie Royal's recent emergence as a special teams star for this unit, or any of the other successful wide receivers but Eddie showed flashes of his special teams prowess and the Wide receiving core was expected to be one of the best in the league.

Until Next week, hopefully I will be telling you what the Broncos need to do to reach 8-0.

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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Apart from KO, are any others really surprise performers?

On my list of surprise performers would be Andre Davis, Fields, Reid and JMFW.

by keeperbearUK on Oct 29, 2009 10:51 AM MDT reply actions 0 recs

I agree keeperbear

Those 3 didn’t get a second glance by many.

Character may be manifested in the great moments but it is made in the small ones -- Philip Brooks

by KaptainKirk on Oct 29, 2009 12:43 PM MDT up reply actions 0 recs

I wasn't surprised with Elvis and it just goes to show you how poor coaching scheme can be exploited.

Dumervil is in a position now that he should of been all the time and even DJ playing once again in another spot. DJ has had some bright spots and some where he noticably is still learning his new role. We have a fresh player in Spencer Larson coming back and if Fields is unable to play, we may get a chance see Baker some time in the future.

by bfree2bronc on Oct 29, 2009 12:05 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs

Orton rated only 15th? He's better than that!

15th in yards, maybe. But he’s had a game off (bye). In yards/game he’s 11th. In QB rating, he’s 7th. And in those all-important INTs, as you noted, he’s No. 1.

Surprises to me are Goodman and Hill. Sure they’re good vets, but based on some of the hyped free agent DBs we’ve had in the last few years, I didn’t hold much hope for them, pre-season. I think Mr. Dawkins is raising everybody’s game.

And Jack WIlliams has sure improved! It’s like he’s channelling Darrent.

"Remember, it's only a game."

by robswenson on Oct 29, 2009 12:15 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs

I think this list is unfair.

McDaniels has been preaching TEAM from day 1. Sure, players like Doom and KO have benefited this season, but it is due to effort from the TEAM that this works. I’d say that every one of the broncos deserves to be on this list. Everyone has stepped up during different parts of the season.

If Taylor Swift were to try and tackle me, I'd let her.

by kentuckybronco on Oct 29, 2009 1:04 PM MDT reply actions 0 recs