PatsWin2002
12-02-2005, 10:28 AM
From DenverBroncos.com:
I like the first line ....comparing Chief fans to Raider fans.....that ought to get a few people riled up. :)
http://cbs4denver.com/broncos/local_story_336123408.html
Dec 2, 2005 10:34 am US/Mountain
Broncos Face Tough December Challenge At Arrowhead
by Andrew Mason, DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. Evidently, Oakland's Black Hole doesn't have the market cornered on fans who push the envelope of absurdity in their fanaticism for their beloved teams.
Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium -- a low-slung, 33-year-old concrete palace where fans always know how to dress and exactly when to yell in support of their hometown Chiefs -- has a few odd denizens of its own, some of whom can practically reach out and touch players thanks to one of the tiniest buffer zones between sidelines and stands in the NFL.
"I still remember a few years ago this one old lady cussed me out (at Arrowhead)," said Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith. "I was laughing so hard it was funny."
But what makes a difference in the game is the confining din that makes it seem as though the opposing offense is caught between the blades in a blender of noise.
"That's the loudest place that I can remember playing," fullback Kyle Johnson said. "The fans are emphatic and you've just got to be able to establish some form of ground game to have anything going on."
"You've got 80,000 people in red and they're booing you," Smith added. "That's the environment that you want. That's a playoff atmosphere. It's a playoff game."
And it's one where the Broncos likely will find their pre-snap routine obscured by the sonic boom descending from the grandstands.
"You know it is going to be a challenge all day long just to hear the snap count," quarterback Jake Plummer said.
Added Johnson: "You try to stay as poised as you can, (and) practice with noise -- which I think all teams in the NFL do -- and you just have to hope that you can see and help the quarterback, because if you have to make checks, you want to be able to see them so he doesn't always have to try to tell you, he can see for himself."
The raucous atmosphere seeps into the Chiefs' players.
"They just feel more comfortable on their own grass, (with) all that red around them," defensive end Trevor Pryce said. "I don't know how to explain it, but they are tough to beat in Arrowhead."
And the Broncos' record in games there less than stellar -- no matter what time of year it is.
In the past 15 years, the Broncos are just 4-11 at any point in the season inside the Chiefs' home confines, and only 2-8 in the last 10 seasons. But the 1-11 December mark in Arrowhead Stadium -- and 1-14 record in December games in Kansas City -- stands as the defining historical statistic heading into Sunday's game.
"They are as tough as they get this time of year at their place," Plummer said. "It is a tough place to play."
No AFC West stadium has been more problematic in the last decade for the Broncos than Arrowhead. Since 1995, the Broncos have gone 8-3 at Oakland's McAfee Coliseum, 5-5 at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium, and 5-3 in the Seattle Seahawks' various homes (4-3 when they were in the AFC West, 1-0 after the 'Hawks moved to the NFC West in 2002).
"I've lost in that place more than any place I've ever been," Smith said.
What the Broncos hope is that on this Sunday, it brings out their best.
"It raises up your game," Plummer said.
BRONCOS BYTES: Linebacker Keith Burns and offensive tackle Cornell Green each sat out Thursday's practice. The status for each on the injury report remained unchanged; Burns is listed as questionable with a knee injury while Green is doubtful with a shoulder injury ... Kansas City defensive end Carlos Hall practiced Thursday after sitting out Wednesday; he remains questionable ... The Chiefs added offensive tackle Jeremy Parquet to their injury report due to a knee problem; he did not practice Thursday ... The Broncos returned some of their allotted tickets for Sunday's game, making them available for public sale.
I like the first line ....comparing Chief fans to Raider fans.....that ought to get a few people riled up. :)
http://cbs4denver.com/broncos/local_story_336123408.html
Dec 2, 2005 10:34 am US/Mountain
Broncos Face Tough December Challenge At Arrowhead
by Andrew Mason, DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. Evidently, Oakland's Black Hole doesn't have the market cornered on fans who push the envelope of absurdity in their fanaticism for their beloved teams.
Kansas City's Arrowhead Stadium -- a low-slung, 33-year-old concrete palace where fans always know how to dress and exactly when to yell in support of their hometown Chiefs -- has a few odd denizens of its own, some of whom can practically reach out and touch players thanks to one of the tiniest buffer zones between sidelines and stands in the NFL.
"I still remember a few years ago this one old lady cussed me out (at Arrowhead)," said Broncos wide receiver Rod Smith. "I was laughing so hard it was funny."
But what makes a difference in the game is the confining din that makes it seem as though the opposing offense is caught between the blades in a blender of noise.
"That's the loudest place that I can remember playing," fullback Kyle Johnson said. "The fans are emphatic and you've just got to be able to establish some form of ground game to have anything going on."
"You've got 80,000 people in red and they're booing you," Smith added. "That's the environment that you want. That's a playoff atmosphere. It's a playoff game."
And it's one where the Broncos likely will find their pre-snap routine obscured by the sonic boom descending from the grandstands.
"You know it is going to be a challenge all day long just to hear the snap count," quarterback Jake Plummer said.
Added Johnson: "You try to stay as poised as you can, (and) practice with noise -- which I think all teams in the NFL do -- and you just have to hope that you can see and help the quarterback, because if you have to make checks, you want to be able to see them so he doesn't always have to try to tell you, he can see for himself."
The raucous atmosphere seeps into the Chiefs' players.
"They just feel more comfortable on their own grass, (with) all that red around them," defensive end Trevor Pryce said. "I don't know how to explain it, but they are tough to beat in Arrowhead."
And the Broncos' record in games there less than stellar -- no matter what time of year it is.
In the past 15 years, the Broncos are just 4-11 at any point in the season inside the Chiefs' home confines, and only 2-8 in the last 10 seasons. But the 1-11 December mark in Arrowhead Stadium -- and 1-14 record in December games in Kansas City -- stands as the defining historical statistic heading into Sunday's game.
"They are as tough as they get this time of year at their place," Plummer said. "It is a tough place to play."
No AFC West stadium has been more problematic in the last decade for the Broncos than Arrowhead. Since 1995, the Broncos have gone 8-3 at Oakland's McAfee Coliseum, 5-5 at San Diego's Qualcomm Stadium, and 5-3 in the Seattle Seahawks' various homes (4-3 when they were in the AFC West, 1-0 after the 'Hawks moved to the NFC West in 2002).
"I've lost in that place more than any place I've ever been," Smith said.
What the Broncos hope is that on this Sunday, it brings out their best.
"It raises up your game," Plummer said.
BRONCOS BYTES: Linebacker Keith Burns and offensive tackle Cornell Green each sat out Thursday's practice. The status for each on the injury report remained unchanged; Burns is listed as questionable with a knee injury while Green is doubtful with a shoulder injury ... Kansas City defensive end Carlos Hall practiced Thursday after sitting out Wednesday; he remains questionable ... The Chiefs added offensive tackle Jeremy Parquet to their injury report due to a knee problem; he did not practice Thursday ... The Broncos returned some of their allotted tickets for Sunday's game, making them available for public sale.