There's alot to say about today's game, most of which I'll present in the coming days after I rewatch the game and figure out what the hell happened in the 2nd half. My initial reaction is the Broncos went into a bit of cruise control after missing that 3rd quarter field goal. Add that to the long TD, on-side kick and pick 6 and you get exactly what happened today, a huge near-miss again.
What I do know know is the Broncos are 2-0 and will likely sit all alone atop the AFC West. In the end that's all that matters. Until I give a further breakdown I welcome your opinions in the Diary Section, and provide the stats from today's game and the post-game quotes from the locker room.
And now, some comments from the coaches and players after today's big win --
Mike Shanahan --
"I really think my players don't like me and they're trying to kill me, to be honest with you [laughs]. Obviously, we had some adversity, some turnovers, we had control of the football game and we lost it. But we were able to fight back, and make the plays when we had to make them."
On How his Heart Can Handle Close Games like Today's --
"I'm not sure it could. But we had a chance with that touchdown. That first touchdown, when we couldn't get a touchdown because it was called back and we missed the field goal. They got the onsides kick and they got some momentum after the interception for a touchdown....I'm pleased with the composure our guys kept. The composure to make plays when we had to make them - that's a sign of a good football team."
On Calling the Timeout before the Raiders' Overtime Field Goal --
"I just told them [the officials] I was going to call a timeout before hand. I told them that as they were lining up I was going to call it. I had plenty of time - there were probably about two seconds before he did it [K Sebastian Janikowski kicked]."
On Whether There was "Divine Intervention" by late CB Darrent Williams and late RB Damien Nash --
"I'm sure they had a lot to do with it. I'm not sure which one Darrent had and which one Damien had, but obviously, they are doing some work upstairs, because the second one that hit the upright...we feel very fortunate. I'm trying to figure out who is the culprit: Darrent or Damien...probably both."
On the Timing of the Time Out --
"Well you want to get it down there when their kicker is focused and ready to kick. You want to do it soon enough so you know he is looking for and adjusting and not looking back at the holder. When he started to look up is when I called it."
On Whether Or Not He's Had a Game with a Lightning Delay --
"It happened in '82, playing Georgia Tech when I was at the University of Florida. It was a delay like that, probably for about an hour, for the safety of the fans. We were getting beat at that time, and we came back to beat them. I felt pretty lucky that it went the other way today."
On QB Jay Cutler --
"I think as a quarterback gets more snaps and gets more familiar with the offensive system or game plans, and more familiar with the supporting cast, he can play in more situations. We had situations today where he had that one interception, where he didn't see the linebacker, and that tipped pass at the end with the guy with the hands in his face. You have to go back and look back, and just keep on getting better. I was really pleased with his poise when the pressure was on. Last season, you take a drive against San Francisco, before he fumbled it, you know he takes it all the way downfield hitting TE Tony Scheffler inside the 10 yard line for a touchdown, that really makes a difference in the game. He shows a lot of poise when the pressure's on, and obviously he did it today."
On Playing Back-to-Back Close Games --
"I know I've never been in a game where the only time you led was when there were no seconds left on the clock [at Buffalo, Week 1]. I'm not sure how many times that's been done before, but that was a little bit different. We've had games like this before when you kick it in overtime, and you've got good field position and you decide to kick the field goal rather that go for the touchdown."
On Raiders Run Defense --
"The bottom line when you take a look at the end of the day, you're going to give up some of those yards, sometimes when you're playing seven-man fronts. You still want to play better, and I think we can keep an offense off balance with what we're doing. I don't know how many yards they had...we need to work on that."
On QB Jay Cutler's Mistakes --
"I didn't say anything to him. What can you do about that one tip? It was very unfortunate, and then we got the right coverage, and then he just didn't see that linebacker."
QB Jay Cutler --
"Yeah, I saw the official blowing it dead, and (Janikowski) drilled that one, didn't he? I mean that's Coach Shanahan, being in the league for a long time and knowing when to use timeouts and when not to. He used it at a great time and kind of iced him over, and he knocked it off the goal post. So it gave us an opportunity. "
On a tough day at the office --
"Kind of, you'd like to make it an easier day at the office, but we're having fun out there. We jumped out to an early lead and let them back in to the game with that pick, they took back for six. We've got to go back and look at the film and get better, but we are winning ball games and that is the most important part."
On efficiency in second half --
"We're still moving the ball up and down the field, it's just third downs and that turn over. There are positives out there, we just need to tune some stuff up and pick up first downs and third downs and avoid the turnovers. Then we will start to put up more points on the board."
On his reaction to turnovers --
"There is nothing you can do about them, you just need to move on and start looking forward to the next play. Obviously, we will get the photos and see what went wrong, but that pass deflection, there is nothing we can do about that."
On the pass play before the field goal --
"The play was a little broken down. (Brandon Marshall) barely got on the edge and he was kind of the last option there. Brandon busts his butt throughout the progression, he wants the ball in those situations. He was number three on the list and number one and two were covered up so we went to him and he broke another tackle like he always does. He put us in a position to win the game."