Man, that Bears game was tough to watch!
by nealjamb on Aug 31, 2009 7:01 AM MDT
54 comments
Maybe some of you La-La Landers saw something to rave about. I cannot maintain that optimism. Obviouslly we were all intently watching the latest chapter in the Cutler saga unfold - and it was a tough pill to swallow.
I saw a sloppy, undisciplined offense that lacks the explosiveness we have come to love. The bubble-screens are not going to be our bread and butter are they? Yikes!
I was feeling optimistic about the defense for a while there....and then Jay led his team 98 yards for a quick 6 as I deflated in my chair.....that was an impressive drive, and more followed it!
I am sorry, call me what you want, but I am less than impressed with McD and the new look Broncos. My team has me feeling like I never have before. For as long as I can remember, I was always stoked for the season to begin - even in the Wade Phillips days - I was always excited to see what the Bronocs had in store.
Now all of the sudden, I am grimmacing and scared for our poor team to start the season. It looks like we are going to get smeared all over the field from what I have seen so far.
I tried this poll back in April, let's see what you guys are thinking now that we have seen this new-look team in action.
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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Defense
Did you not see our defense. Doom was in the backfield almost every play, he even set the edge and stopped the run. Forte averaged 2 yards per carry. He also should have had a safety but the ref didn’t call it. On offense, the o-line was terrible with all the penalties. They negated several good plays. If it wasn’t for those penalties, I’m pretty sure your outlook would be different.
That's a big IF
The flags were thrown and the plays were negated…period. Offense looks unexplosive.
There was some optimism about the D and then they open the gates….
McD and the new look Broncos have me singing the Preseason Blues!
Blaming the Refs...
Is the battle cry of the Loser. You are a Bronco Fan, not a Charger fan, have some self respect.
That wasn’t a safety, Cutler got the ball to the back. The O-Line was terrible, they were sloppy and out of position. The penalties were a result of lack of preparation, poor discipline and a scheme that doesn’t appear to understand the concept that Linemen have to play on the line rather than 20 yards down field.
Dumerville looked good. Hillis looked good, though I can’t for the life of me understand why he isn’t the starting TB. Stop waiting for Moreno and let the best players play. Dawkins will be a monster in the secondary, but they still need better pressure from the DL or they will get eaten alive.
I will let milehighnation speak for himself
but he said “On offense, the o-line was terrible with all the panalties.” This suggests to me that he is blaming the 0-line, not the refs. He does blame the refs on the safety, but that hardly warrants a comparison between him and a Charger fan.
Yeah...and he also said
“He also should have had a safety but the ref didn’t call it”
that is what I was referring to. Sound an awful lot like the…“Hochulie messed up the fumble call” to me.
I don’t mean to be an a$$ here, but blaming the refs is just silly and pointless.
I thought that should have been called a safety as well.
Not because of grounding but because the offensive lineman held in the end zone. Doesn’t really matter. The refs are in preseason too.
Honestly though, the 98 yard drive was not as impressive as it looked. If Gooden holds onto that interception inside the ten the whole game looks different. Cutler got away with his big mistake and we didn’t get away with many of ours. The defense is getting close. The offense is a work in progress. A lot depends on how quickly thinks come together and the team develops chemistry. To be honest, I wouldn’t be surprised with 6-10 or 10-6 from this team.
yeah
I wasn’t really blaming the refs. I was just pointing out that Doom would have had a sack if not for Pace. I was just annoyed by how many holding calls we got yet that one was not called. I just really wanted that one for doom—it would have been a lot of momentum.
by milehighnation on Aug 31, 2009 10:58 AM MDT up reply actions
Holding can be called on any given play...
It happens all the time and that is just a fact of NFL life. The refs have to judge degrees of severity and how obvious it is. The threshold is going to be pretty high in the endzone because it is an automatic 2 points. I would bet that ultimately, we come out even between the holds not called in the EZ on the other team and the holds not called on us.
Also, a guy like Orlando Pace is gonna get the benefit of the doubt because of who he is. Thems just facts of the game.
Also, Cutler escaped Dumerville every other time last night, Even if he doesn’t get held…that isn’t an automatic sack.
In the end, the final score 17-3 (I only count the first half) seemed about right. I really don’t care that much about the 17 because I agree that the D is improving and the whole Cutler thing is over. I have seen nothing from our O except for inconsistency, sloppiness and REALLY short passes.
I am still thinking that Simms is our best choice at QB right now. Anyone know what happened to Major Applewhite? Lets give him a shot!
True Enough...
Ya got me on that one…though there were times last night where I might have seriously considered it.
;-)
I agree
That the first string defense did look good, but the 2nd and 3rd string defense looked terrible. And we are going to have to rely on those players as substitutes for the 1st string and we go through 4 quarters. If our offense continues to go 0-6 in the 1st half on 3rd down conversions, our defense is going to get tired, and get slower and slower
To not be excited for the first time ever? That is interesting. Perhaps it is too much change at once?
Overwhelming, yes, but for the last three years, I would get excited, and about halfway through the season, I would realize how ultimately weak our past teams have been. Shanahan as coach was the proverbial carrot on a stick. One which we would never get. It got old knowing we had no chance to even win a playoff game before the season begins.
As for me, I am more excited than I have been for a long long time. I see change, I see motion…momentum of an overhaul that was badly needed. To think that watching a preseason game, or even the first two regular season games and not assume that the players and staff will continue to develop and get better really seems to miss the point.
This change was needed, and this change was good.
The Change...
If their preseason performance was more impressive….that would make all the difference in the world. If I could see that the change was leading to possitive results – I could be more optimistic. That is just not the case, for me anyway.
I guess I just need to get used to the idea of rebuilding our squad. This will take some time…….
McD and the new look Broncos have me singing the Preseason Blues!
If...
If we had used our entire offensive playbook, I would be more worried. Since Orton is throwing downfield for 75 yard touchdown passes in practice, this is part of the offense in the regular season.
If Moreno had played, I would be more worried. He is very explosive, and I cannot wait to see what problems he creates for defenses in the regular season.
If Gaffney had played, I would be more worried. We would have had three legitimate starting WRs to run the crisp routes we saw against Seattle.
If Marshall had played, I would be more worried. Who knows whether he will ever grow up an play.
If we had not killed ourselves with penalties, I would be more worried. The penalties are very troubling, don’t get me wrong, but they are fixable problems that have nothing to do with scheme or talent.
I was not thrilled with last night, but I am not ready to say anything more than we a lost preseason game that we played like a preseason game. No doubt we have concerns to address.
by phondonkey on Aug 31, 2009 8:41 AM MDT reply actions 1 recs
Also
I agree with milehighnation that if the D were not looking any better than last year, I would be more worried becaues the pressure on the offense would eventually reach the breaking point. So far, I am optomistic about the D, and this makes me more optomistic about the offense.
We pulled out the double reverse...
How much more of the playbook do you want?
Even McD has told us that there is no playbook. He customizes it from week to week depending on the team that they are playing. What you saw last night is what you will get in the regular season.
We have seen Moreno run the ball 3 times. He looked okay. He is still an unproven rookie. My bigger concern is that Hillis is hands down the best RB in the stable and he is still being used as a 3rd stringer, FB and now Punt Fodder. WTF is McDaniels trying to do here?
Gaffney is the #3 or #4 receiver and he has a broken thumb. Seems to be fairly replaceable. Not a legit excuse for last night.
Marshall may or may not play. After what I saw last night, I am not sure it would make much difference.
Penalties are a problem related to preparation and focus. The Broncos didn’t appear to have ether. The OL was sloppy and out of position, which led to the penalties. McD better look at the rule book again on this WR screens and figure out where to put them.
Some parts of the D looked good. Dumerville, Dawkins, Possibly DJ.
It's highly unlikely miner...
That Mcd customized this gp for the Bears for 3 reasons.
1) Since it’s preseason he’s ar more interested in seeing which players can execute which plays in what situations
2) Since it’s preseason he wouldn’t have mcuh current material to scheme from or for.
3) did I mention that it’s preseason
Additionally Hillis is not being used as a third stringer. He is in a rotation however. 2 straight carries at the goal line tells me what I need to know about how Mcd values Hillis.
Pretty much agree with the rest of your post though.
"as in football so in life"
I don't know...he seemed pretty pissed last night.
I think McD was taking this game REALLY seriously.
Did you notice that the man who normally answers questions with “I won’t go into that” took a shot a Cutler..the whole “seemed like more than a 6 out of 10” thing was an apoplectic fit for McD.
He has also said that there is no playbook…many times. He may not have the kind of information that he will go off of in the regular season, but I think the process was exactly the same and he hand picked the plays just as he will later.
Hillis needs more carries. Period. Not just on the goal line. He also should NOT be throwing his body at Linebackers as a FB and he really shouldn’t be playing the Meatgrinder of Kick returner. He will do all of those things because he is a fracking stud, but a coach should recognize his best offensive weapon and protect him as such.
okay, i like hillis as much as the next guy, but when everyone else is healthy hillis is not our best weapon. he’s a beast of a man, and a crowd favorite for his brutal running style, but i think he was very effective returning kicks AND at the FB position.
I disagree.
IMHO, there is not a RB on the roster with as much upside as Hillis. He is every bit as fast and strong as Jordan, Buckhalter or walker. He is certainly a stronger runner. He is the ONLY active back on the squad who has 1000 yard season potential. Im sorry, but I would hate to waste that sacrificing his body to linebackers and wedge busters.
Moreno still has a LOT to prove. Just because he was a #1 doesn’t meant he gets the starting nod. Lets get the kid into a game for more than 3 plays before we anoint him.
Pessimism is not a substitute for factual support
How on earth do you know this is what we will see in the regular season as far as game planning…because they ran a reverse? Really. Moreno could change the dynamic of the offense. Time will tell, but I see no reason to assume he won’t just to be down on my team. Gaffney was great in Seattle, so I’m not sure what your point is. Marshall, who knows, but I don’t blame his antics on the team. Penalties are related to preparation, so it is a concern just as I said, but it is a fixable concern unrelated to scheme and talent. My point remains unaddressed. Were you here singing McDaniels’ praises after the first two games with few penalties? I thought not.
The Fact is......
I am concerned about the potential, or lack thereof, of this team
McD and the new look Broncos have me singing the Preseason Blues!
Moreno might not be there
Just speculation, but a sprained MCL is really bad news for a RB that has no injury history. Given the inability of our staff to keep anyone healthy, I wouldn’t count on his signature bruising style in his rookie year.
by legendarywalton on Aug 31, 2009 12:25 PM MDT up reply actions
Does anyone realize we were down almost 50% of our offensive starters?
I know this is not an excuse, but we were without Moreno, Gaffney, Marshall, Kuper (that one scares me most) and Orton (out in 2nd quarter). I mean honestly . . . what would you expect from this offense when a good portion of it is using backups?
As for the Oline issues . . . isn’t the QB’s responsibility to call out the blocking schemes? I thought I read that somewhere (and that is why Cassel struggled at the beginning of last season). Does anyone know if this is fact?
"The men who have done big things are those who are not afraid to attempt big things, who were not afraid to risk failure in order to gain success."
- B.C Forbes
QB calling blocking?
Really? If that is true, I am more scared than I was before. Linemen typically do that for themselves. Usually the Center.
Did I miss the part where the Offense looked good?
You said that we didn’t use the entire playbook. How do YOU know what we will see in the regular season as far as game planning.
I am taking Josh’s word for it when he says that he Game Plans every week for every individual game. He looked at the Chicago defense from this season and last year and picked out the plays that he thought would be effective. This is what he says, not me.
In the Scrimmage, the O was awful (except for the 27 checkdown dumps)
In game 1, the O was awful.
In game 2, the starting O looked passable. Nothing more.
In game 3, the O was sloppy and inneffective.
I assume nothing about Moreno. He is an untested rookie. The year that TD came out and won the starting job, there were 2 or 3 RB’s drafted ahead of him that were never heard of again. We have no idea what he is capable of on this level. Given his injury and lack of practice, he probably wouldn’t be ready to start until at least week 4 anyway. No matter what Moreno does, I don’t see him as a noticeable improvement over Hillis, who should be our #1.
My point about Gaffney is that he is a role playing WR. Nothing more. I am more concerned about who is going to throw him the ball. What I have seen in 3 of 4 performances, are passes delivered to the wrong location entirely or thrown behind open receivers.
I am not blaming the team for Marshall, but even a great receiver needs someone to get him the ball. YAC will go down if there is no threat of the Long ball. We don’t even have to throw them very often, but you have to have that option in your arsenal to keep the D honest. Right now they can put 10 guys safely within 8 yards of the LOS and still keep virtually all of the catches in front of them.
The Broncos had a long week and a game that they REALLY wanted to win. At some point, we are going to run out of “its only the preseason” crutches. McDaniels doesn’t strike me as the kind of coach that would accept that excuse from his players, so I don’t see why everyone is so willing to attribute it to them.
What I saw was an owner and a coach that admitted that this was a big game and a good test for the team, and I saw a team that had its collective head up its butt, with a few exceptions (Dumerville, Hillis, Dawkins, the kickers/punters).
Winning football games is not just X’s ad O’s and the Broncos were not ready to play.
We will run out of the preseason crutches
when the preseason ends, how about that for a rather obvious point at which to draw the line. And I suppose the reason I think he has not used the entire playbook is what I said above, which is not original with me—Orton has thrown the ball downfield rather consistently in practice, so that is the in the playbook and has not been used. This seems like fairly strong prima facie evidence in favor of the point. Your evidence is that McDaniels said that he not have the same play package in for Seattle as for Chicago…this means he must have the full playbook in for every preseason game?
Look, arguing about it appears to be pointless. You hate McDaniels and I want to give him a chance in a real game. You may turn out to be correct in hindsight. I have no crystal ball. As a fan, however, I don’t see the point of making blind inferences in favor of pessimism instead of optimism. Enjoy your view. Time will tell
Actually, I am saying THERE IS NO PLAYBOOK.
That is what McDaniels has said over and over again. someone asked him just the other day if Marshall had to turn in his playbook, McD responded that there is no playbook, that he gameplans individually for every game. His playbook changes from week to week based on the defense that he is facing. What you see in these games are the plays that he handpicked to work best against the opposing defense. I honestly don’t believe that there is a whole stack of good plays sitting out there that he has been saving. If that makes me a pessimist, then so be it.
Just because Orton throws the ball deep in practice and not in the game is not evidence that we aren’t seeing the whole playbook. On any given pass play, there is usually a receiver that runs a deep post or a go…just in case the defense falls down on itself. usually that guy is #3 or 4 on the checkdown list. Maybe Orton tosses a few of those up in practice, but I have yet to see a decent pass longer than 10 yards in a game situation. That being said, I don’t get to go see practice, so I don’t know what he does there.
I don’t “Hate” anybody. I was excited when he was hired. I was really excited to see what this “offensive genius” could do with an already good offense. His actions over the past 8 months are what have me worried for my team.
Things I like:
The Nolan hire – The defense at least appears to try to get pressure on the QB.
The 3-4 defense – I like the flexibility. Good choice.
Dawkins – The guy is a monster. nuff said.
Dumerville at OLB – a natural fit for him. should have a great year.
The 3 tight-end set – nice change of pace. Good quality at TE position.
Things I don’t like:
The Personnel attitude – It is okay to say no player is matters more than the team. My impression is that McD is not willing to admit mistakes and is out to prove that no player matters more than the coach. Big Difference.
System First – A good system is one thing, but you still need 22 quality players to implement that system. Some parts are NOT interchangeable.
Secretive Belichick style with the media – Belichick earned that over MANY winning seasons. McD expects it from day 1. Go out and win something first coach.
Apparent lack of emphasis on OL/DL – Weakest position on Broncos last season…DL. No significant signings in FA or Draft. Some UFA splashes. Waiting pattern on running game until Knowshon is ready. Dance with the ones who brought ya.
Lack of gametime preparation – Aside from one drive in game 2, the offense has looked sloppy. Poor substitution, TO management. Only starters getting significant reps in practice, will cause problems when injuries occur and with evaluating talent.
2010 1st rounder to Seattle – Given strength of schedule and “rebuilding” expectations, the wise thing to have done was to save our #1 for a likely top 10 next year. While Alphonso may turn into a player, he was not worth a high #1 pick.
these are all things that I have seen during this offseason that scare the crap out of me. I am not some rabid hater that is pissed that Shanny was fired or even that Cutler was let go. These are not blind inferences, I have genuine beefs with how he is running the team…and so do most of the “haters” that are so quickly dismissed.
If I am wrong and we somehow manage to win 8 games, I will eat my words and nominate McD for coach of the friggin year. We have been here before and I gave them the benefit of the doubt. that was 10 years ago and we haven’t won a playoff game since. maybe I am disgruntled, but I don’t like the fact that my football team is being used in McDaniels’ experiment.
No recs for this?
Shocker! Just kidding koolaiders. The D looks better. The O looks as dull as I’ve ever seen in Denver. Still waiting to see anything, and I mean ANYTHING, “revolutionary.” Orton completed one pass over 8 yards down the field. He was 1 for 4 on 3rd down with zero 3rd down conversions. With Cutler, you figured the team had a shot on 3rd and long. With Orton, no chance in hell.
Hopefully Moreno can make a difference. And if Marshall decides to grow up fast he could as well. Honestly, I’ve never seen a more boring, unimaginative, lackluster offense in all of my 40 years of watching Bronco football. Not sure how you can put lipstick on this pig?
Our 2009-2010 Avs: The towel has been thrown into the rink.
EXACTLY!
And all of the optimism pouring out of the “koolaiders” is not as apparent when you look at the numbers in the poll above…..at this point, 73% of the fans believe we will be no better than .500….ouch! This KoolAid is not as sweet as I thought!
McD and the new look Broncos have me singing the Preseason Blues!
Well Bob,
I actually thought our O in the last 3 games of the season was much worse. Playoffs on the line a cough cough … probowl QB and WR in the game and not a clue what to do. You don’t really want to see the “revolutionary” stuff in the preseason right, I mean what kind of a coach would show his hand that early?
"as in football so in life"
What part of the riveting
0 for 6 on third downs, 3 first downs total, only one pass completed over 8 yards down the field, and a little over one yard per carry rushing, during Orton’s first half was better than those last 3 games by our offense last season, per chance? I know it is only preseason. But I’m just looking for a sign of life here. Maybe Brandstater is that sign of life? Who knows?
So far everything one of my best friends, a long-time Bear fan from Chicago, has told me about Orton is true. Weak arm. Can’t accurately and get the ball down the field with any velocity whatsoever. Can’t make big plays on his own. Defenses will stack the box. Running game will suffer. All true last night.
Our 2009-2010 Avs: The towel has been thrown into the rink.
by Bob in Boulder on Aug 31, 2009 10:39 AM MDT up reply actions 1 recs
How did anything your freiends said come true ?
we havent seen Orton arm strength on display because we havent really called any deep passing . the Bears didnt stack the box they faked stacking the box and dropped back in to zone repeatedly because they knew we were not going to commit to running the ball.
How does the running game suffer when we only attempt it 7 times in the first half and several runs in which we did have success were called back because of penalties
Sorry Bob but this seems tp be more of a case of you taking what your friend told you and just applying it to the game even though in this case it had very little to do with Ortons actual play .
he doesnt call his own plays
he cant control injuries
he didnt turn it over
he didnt cause the penalties
with Cutler against good defenses he had no chance in hell either as well which is why we were 8-8 .
No QB can over come 1st or 2nd and 15+ on the teams first 4 drives . Thats hurting yourself and as Orton himself said it plays directly into the Bears defensive game plan . Force the opponent into long passing downs and create turnovers.
The lack of zone...
Notice how we could run the ball against the second and third team Bears D? We ran pitches and outside zone blocking read plays. Our offensive line is not built for power football, and McD seems to have grossly overcalculated this line’s ability to play his style of running football. He doesn’t even understand the speed of our OL, because they keep getting to far out on the screens, causing them to be illegal.
by legendarywalton on Aug 31, 2009 12:26 PM MDT up reply actions
That touchdown drive was against the Bears starters.
Briggs, Urlacher and all the dline were in that entire drive. That was 1’s on 1’s (except Brandstater). I think they showed they can run power football. I just don’t think McDaniels has committed to it this preseason. Hopefully he will during the regular season.
"The men who have done big things are those who are not afraid to attempt big things, who were not afraid to risk failure in order to gain success."
- B.C Forbes
Don't forget, the Patriots went
0-4 in the preseason before going 16-0 in the regular season. I’m not saying we will go 16-0 but I have seen more progress and more to be excited about from this team than I have from our Broncos in the recent past, namely:
We are generating a pass rush
We are playing with intensity and fire on Defense that we have lacked. Did you see the swarms of orange jerseys around the ball all game long? When has that happened the last couple years? And holding Chicago to 3 points for almost 1 half of football even with “savior” jay cutler? fantastic. If not for the return by Hester then they may not have gotten that momentum to score.
We are doing a good job of stopping the run.
We are making good drives down the field (your 2nd ranked offense in yards isn’t getting hurt too much because we are still great between the 20’s).
Special Teams is looking much improved.
Our Quarterbacks are making good reads just need some more time to build chemistry.
McD is a good coach who actually coaches (no knock on Shanny cause I love the guy but even players said that he got stale). Hey just look at the improvement of Brandstater from last week to this (and even against some first string D-fence) and tell me McD didn’t do a good job of helping him improve on his game.
Yes there were some negatives but I believe they are fixable. We would have had a pick if Goodman would have been more ready for that hard Cutler throw. 2nd teamers looked a little lost on D and got beat but they are 2nd team for that reason and they will improve with more playing time alongside veterans. Penalties are fixable. Lets not forget that those players play virtually mistake free football. This won’t become a consistent issue. I am highly optimistic and I think we will continue to improve as the season progresses. I wouldn’t be surprised if we lost a couple of the first few easy games and then hit our stride and rythym and won a lot of the hard ones. Here is to a season I am stoked about. Sorry for the rant.
GO BRONCOS!!!!
by BroncoMath101 on Aug 31, 2009 9:32 AM MDT reply actions 1 recs
The defense better be prepared...
To be on the field most of the game.
by legendarywalton on Aug 31, 2009 12:27 PM MDT up reply actions
What are you watching?
The first team offense moved nowhere last night! The longest drive was 31 yards. This offense is not potent, or effective, and believing it will magically change once the season starts is dangerous dreaming.
You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say will be misquoted and then used against you.
3rd and long
Boulder, we shouldn’t be in 3rd and long and wouldn’t have been most of the night but for the dumb penalties. The majority of teams out there won’t convert on most 3rd downs if they are consistently in 3rd and 10, 12, 15 all night. Is Jay a better long game player? Yes. But he must not have been that awesome in the short game because our Red Zone offense last year was 16th in the league. Besides, in the ultimate team sport relying on one guy isn’t the way to win either. See the lack of playoffs the last 2 years with Cutler and losing a 3 game lead at the end of the season. If relying on the QB alone was the way to go then in theory we should have won those games or at least been competitive in them
Cofirmed...?
I guess I am not alone in how I feel…based on the pole so far. Most of us do not believe the Broncos will break .500 this year – I was just curious considering the amount of La-La exposure here on MHR – Hey, not even one of you voted for the “13-3 baby” This community is more realist than it sounds!
McD and the new look Broncos have me singing the Preseason Blues!
LOL
Sweeeet! You’re right, on the bright side, at least we won’t suck while the AFC West is on the up and up.
McD and the new look Broncos have me singing the Preseason Blues!
I think if we go 8-8, its a great season.
Even 7-9 would be good. Realistically, with all these changes, a defense that has been COMPLETELY neglected the last five years, as well as the neglect of the special teams, it will take a season or two to get back to the playoffs.
I am not as doom and gloom as some of you in here, but I am also not a Kool-Aid drinker. I honestly like the direction this team is going.
"The men who have done big things are those who are not afraid to attempt big things, who were not afraid to risk failure in order to gain success."
- B.C Forbes
Wow...I'm surprised.
I’m more surprised at the anti-Kool aid drinkers. This is pre-season. The Lions were 4-0 last year in pre-season.
But do you honestly think that this is the offense we are going to play in the regular season? I’m not talking about the dink and dunk. I’m talking about the shear volume of these bubble screens and lack of much running. I doubt it. Which plays require more effort in execution, a straight ahead run, a 15 yard out pattern, or these little bubble screens? I find it hard to believe that McDaniels plans to abandon the run. I find it hard to believe that we won’t do longer passes. So perhaps we are working on the things that need the most work and finding out what works and what doesn’t. Or maybe I’m deluding myself. We’ll just have to wait and see. I, for one, am not hanging my hat on a single pre-season game; I think they are meaningless.
+1
They are meaningless, and I’m sure they’re emphasizing practicing bubble-screens. They take practice at game speeds to get right.
The defense is attacking and should be better (probably average), but I’m having serious doubts about the offense. Think it’ll probably slip to an average offense as well. With the schedule the Broncos have, and average offense and an average defense will probably only get them 3-6 wins. Hope I’m wrong.
by MTBroncoFan on Aug 31, 2009 11:31 AM MDT up reply actions
How do we grade preseason?
I have always watched preseason games and the only score that ever mattered to me were from the first stringers. For example, Bears 17 Broncos 3 at the half. During the 49ers 3 Broncos 0 and that was with maybe 4 drives at the most. Seattle 14 Denver 10 and that was well into the end of the first half.
Like many of you, I’m trying to find some consistency in what the new regime is looking to do. I’ve read the many analysis regarding last year’s shortcomings. I’ve also read about our .500 ball the last 3 seasons. Somehow, I think if Denver can manage last year’s result many of us would be pleased.
Dumervil is really coming into his own as he continues to learn, develop and make plays at OLB. Hillis is by far the best RB we have right now and maybe well suited to be named the starter. Not impressed with the way our OL is being utilized but I’ll remain objective as new play schemes are ironed out.
The next two preseason games won’t show case much of anything as players trying to make the roster cut will be fighting it out. So if Brandstater does well, sadly its against players that maybe out of a career before its started. No need to discredit anything he does well just that he has that ceiling and time to improve.
Say hello to my fast...
Score for first-stringers
I do that also…pay attention to the starting offense/defense against the opponents starting offense/defense. Except I take it with a grain of salt. If you just looked at the score you really don’t get the whole picture. In the Seattle game, do you really think in a game situation we would run once and pass three times on first and goal from the two, including on 4th down, when it’s still the first quarter? Or would we run more? Would we kick the field goal? Could it be that what is being looked at is potential pass plays on goal to go to figure out what might work? I just don’t think we are seeing the whole offensive scheme, or at least I hope we aren’t.
Well, I can't say I don't disagree with most of the points
But I think that this year is going to be rough no matter how you cut it. What I did like generally was that Hillis again looks great, hopefully he will be starting by the time the season rolls around. The defense obviously played well in spurts, but giving up a 98 yard drive at the end of the half brought me back to last year. Our psecial teams again looked average and coverage was poor. And as I figured would happen, Alphonso Smith was smoked when he was forced to play man to man and cover a guy deep. What concrened me though was the offensive line looked very sloppy, which I don’t get, since that should be a strength of the team. Hopefully it was a one game thing.
I generally try not to put too much stock in the preseason, but with McDaniels putting together actual game plans for games and us having this poor a showing, the signs are not that encouraging.
"Me fail english, that unpossible" - Ralph Wiggum
"Duffman is thrusting in the direction of the problem" - Duffman
"Good, bad, I'm the guy with the gun" - Ash from Army of Darkness
"H.I., you're young and you got your health, what you want with a job?" - Evelle from Raising Arizona
"It happens sometimes. People just explode. Natural causes." - Agent Rogersz from Repoman
OH HAI GUYZ. THE BEARS ARE SUPPOSED TO HAVE A DEFENSE REMEMBER
and we are missing a bunch of offensive starters
kthx
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