Pick your balls up of the floor and move on
 

One bad game does not make a bad season regardless of whether it's a playoff loss to an inferior team or not.

Manning, Bailey, Dumervil, Miller etc played lights out for the majority of the regular season and although I was very angry during the game (and still am) I'm not blaming individuals for this loss, players can have bad games, good coaches can get outcoached/out thought and individuals can make very costly errors.

The mirror images between this loss and the one to the Jags in 96 are unreal (13-4) season, beaten by a team not expected to go close and turning up for a game after a bye week looking completely unprepared and undisciplined.

All this fire Fox crap, move Bailey to safety crap, Tebow is better than Manning crap is just what it is, an over-reaction to a game we lost to a team we were expected to hammer.

I know everyone is hurting right now just like I am, so pick your chin up, dont forget about the season (just the game) and dont lose faith in your team because if anyone knows John Elway he'll make damn sure that this team has all the tools to bounce back like they did in 1997.

I love this franchise.

The fact that we don't play another meaningful down for 8 months is going to be agony. The more I reflect on it, the more amazed I am by that game... I couldn't script a more painful loss.

But yeah, go Broncos.

Let's get it done next year.

:Broncos:

It is what it is. It's one of the inherent conundrums of following sports, that we make a bigger deal about it than its really worth, so we can celebrate that much harder when things go right. When it goes wrong, its so easy to lose rational perspective. Just imagine if the Broncos did in 96 what all these fans are calling for now. We'd be following a franchise with no Super Bowl titles.

Next year needs to be our year. We have a lot of young player$ who's contracts are running out after it.

I agree with the OP, except that Bailey needs to go to safety. He does. I'm sad we couldn't get a ring for him this year. I don't feel as bad as the Jacksonville loss. I don't know why, maybe because I'm older, maybe because I know the possibilities for next year. Very reminiscent of the Jacksonville loss though. Heavily favored, lossing to a lesser team, everything we hadn't done wrong for so long we did. And then the next year.....I can wait.

Great thread Eddie Mac. We all love this team and spend an unusual amount of time obsessing over it, but it's almost unreal the amount of destructive angst going on in these forums right now.

As a fan, you may or may not have tremendous faith in Manning right now, but hopefully there is another gunslinger that you will trust to overcome this - Our beloved John Elway. He has taken us from the second worst franchise in the league to the number one seed in the AFC in just a couple short years. No one knows how much this hurts more than him.

I'm still a huge Manning fan and still think that he wins a SB for us. This is a work in progress and I am still proud of what we accomplished this season.

In Elway I trust.

we could have used tracy porter tonight

I love this team too. I fly out to Denver once a year at least for a game, I watch every single game each week. But I disagree with you. The point of the regular season is to get into the playoffs and hopefully have home field. Once the playoffs start the regular season is completely meaningless. We could go 16-0 next year and we would be playing the same exact game we played yesterday. Season was a disappointment.

I'm already looking ahead to next season. No more mistakes. Play hard every snap and curb stomp the **** out of every mfer that gets in our way.

If the Pats can go 18-1 or whatever and get mocked for it, claiming the regular season victory is anything but meaningless is just borderline pathetic. You don't get an award for crapping your pants on the biggest stage, sorry.

The team lost yesterday because of mistakes. Not because of talent but because of mistakes. That means their heads weren't in the right place. Never again will I feel sorry for Champ not having a ring. It was the job of him and every vet on that team to make sure the players showed up to play and, from what I saw, it was an across the board crapfest. This loss just shows how mentally unprepared the coaches and players were and that's not the kind of thing that changes in an offseason.

After the Jax loss I was inconsoleable. This loss sux but the Jax was worse. I hope this team handles this loss like that 96 team handeled the Jax loss. Back to back SB wins. Great season......looking for a better one next.year.

Give me a running back Elway, a MLB, and a pass rushing INTERIOR lineman!

I agree with OP - mistakes were made and Baltimore wanted it more than Denver did. Fuel for next year's fire. Go Broncos!

MHM might come in and say this is a failure of a season. He might have some truth to this when we can't win at least the divisional game. I will look as this is the step to the Super Bowl and everyone should realize how hard it is to get to the Super Bowl regardless of your record. Playoffs is a 2nd season and we **** the bed.

Bumping this for all the whiny b****made "fans" creating the worst threads ever.

Actually, I think the loss I took the hardest was in '78 against the Cowboys in the SB. I thought we were the team of destiny that year. It was a shock. Then, there was the Montana ass-kicking in SB XXIV. I went to a SB party in California and was the only one out of about thirty people wearing the orange. Not a good day. Then there was the Jags loss. Again, I thought we were the team of destiny. Turns out, we were. ;D

This loss didn't hurt so bad because frankly, I didn't feel really confident going in. There was a fringe of doubt that kept nagging me.

I disagree about Bailey, though. He's 34. Time to hang it up.

Ya, because there aren't any effective defensive backs at that age in this league. Good call.

Champ got repeatedly torched by a second round pick who had 49 receptions for 855 yards in the second round of the playoffs, at home. Writing on the wall.

I don't disagree entirely. But come on-Woodson, Barber, Winfield, etc.

and trade Bailey and get another CB

Bull**** statement. He has stayed with this team through thick and thin and to get better, you want to just trade him? **** that. He either retires or plays some more. He had a bad game. I can point fingers at a few guys on this team and no one is calling for their head. He still has talent and has showed it this season.