This is always an awkward time of the year for Bronco Fans when the Broncos are not playing in the big game. This year is even more uncomfortable because some of us think that the Broncos should actually be playing this Sunday. Some of us feel we have to root for one team or the other and I think it's an interesting quandary that can get quite complicated. Our Broncos have had their fair share of trips to the Super Bowl, more than most teams and we are quite lucky in that respect. But like all teams, the Broncos are not in the big game as often or frequently as we'd like. So we are forced to make a decision.



Many of us don't have a "second favorite team" so we are forced to use other means to sway us toward one team or the other. Some of us are die hard AFC fans and always side with the AFC champs, some even if it's the Josh McDaniels and Bill Bellicheet lead Patriots. Some of us are only loyal to the AFC West so if none of those four teams are present, which has been the case since 2003, we could go with either Conference and feel alright with it. Sometimes Bronco fans will pull for the team that has an ex-Bronco player or coach on the team say like the Jets, Skins or Texans. Others may have a favorite college player on one of the two remaining teams so they will cheer for his team. Some go by uniform color or mascot. Maybe your ex-girlfriends brother-in law lives in the city of one of the teams represented? There's a lot of way to look at it.



And by the looks of this Super Bowl, there really isn't a whole lot for us Bronco fans to cheer for. We are in kind of a bad spot with both of these teams. A few of us will however feel better if the Ravens win because they are the team that "beat" the Broncos and the Broncos would have been beaten by the "best" team in the league that year. Others of us can not pull for the Ravens because we are still sore about how that team didn't so much beat us as they were the beneficiary of a completely unprepared Broncos team, the worst officiated game in playoff history and Rahim Moores worst single play in Broncos history.



But unfortunately the other team in SBXLVII is no friend to the Broncos either. The 49ers did completely embarrass the GOAT John Elway and the greatly inferior (thanks to Dan Reeves) Denver Broncos in New Orleans for SBXXIV. The 49ers and Joe Cool broke all sorts of SB records that awful night enroute to the worst butt kickin that Super Bowl has ever seen, so I doubt that there is any love loss for Bronco fans.



Some of us fans will "just pull for the underdog" whomever that may be in any given Super Bowl. The "underdog" rule really doesn't apply for this game however. The 49ers are the favorite in Vegas but they are starting a "rookie" QB and the Ravens are a battle tested bunch that boasts a starting QB that has been very successful "for one reason or another" in these and past playoff games. You could always go with Gil Brant and his "formula" if you don't feel like making a decision on your own. His "formula" has the 49ers winning by a TD but be careful as this is also the same formula that had the Pats beating the Birds by two scores and our Broncos beating Baltimore by not one, not two but three touchdowns. So goes the life of a football expert.



Both teams have been very successful over the long term and both teams have hoisted the Lombardi Trophy at least once. Both teams are undefeated on this big stage with the Ravens 1-0 and the 49ers 5-0. There might be those with a soft spot for the Steelers and would therefore not want the 49ers to win because they wouldn't want them to tie Pittsburg for most Super Bowl victories. You could play the brother card and pick Jim or John. If you're a big brother then you might side with the cool, calm and collected little big brother John. Or if you're a younger brother, you might pull for the demonstrative, loud mouthed, annoyingly intense, cry baby bigger little brother Jim.



You could be one of those fans that says he doesn't care as "long as it's a good game". If that is the case then you are probably in luck because the once one sided Super Bowl games have really become competitive and entertaining as of late and the current line is a tight 4.5 points. If you are like some, you will go the "fantasy" route and play the squares and or the props during the game to keep it interesting and keep your mind off of the fact that the Broncos should be playing in this once in a life time Super Bowl opportunity that would have been a Super Bowl game in Peyton Manning home town. Putting money on who will win the coin toss or who will score first or who will have the most TDs or who will score last in the first half can really make for a much more enjoyable and interesting evening. It's a heck of a lot better than sitting around trying to convince every non Bronco fan in the bar or at the party that the Broncos are the best team in the AFC based on seeding, record, offensive and defensive stats and personnel top to bottom... but that is not much fun and can be annoying after a while....so I'm told.



What do you think? "At the end of the day" "Bottom Line" will it be the "truly blessed" Baltimore Ravens for their second Super Bowl win or will it be the "brash" 49ers for their sixth world championship? And why? What do you Bronco fans do to decide which team to root for when the orange and blue is at home... watching..just...like...you?