Welcome Back to Reality

[Popps]

Hey, I got caught up in the emotion, too. The notion of sealing up the division around mid-season sounded great.

But, c'mon... you knew this wouldn't go down without drama, right?

Remember preseason, when most people overreacted to the events, only to be proven wrong?

Then, remember 6-0, when most people overreacted to the start... and were talking about bye weeks and home field advantage?

Well, reality has returned. We should have won today. Orton stays in the game, and we win... easy. (imo) But, even so... we showed some flaws today and we'll continue to show flaws all season.

We didn't bring our best game today, and we lost. (And caught a bad break.)
We're better than Washington, but that's not good enough. The NFL is too even in talent to turn the ball over a couple of times and win games.

Going into the season, I think most of us would have been happy with a .500 team that played hard and improved as the season went on. Well, we're playing hard... and there's a lot of season left.

This is a work in progress, folks. You can't repair a flawed organizational structure in one offseason. We've made huge strides, but people are going to have to learn to be patient.

We need more talent. We have holes to fill and tough decisions to make this offseason. But, we've still got a half-season left, and the way we finish will determine a lot going forward.

I'm deflated after this loss, but you have to put it in perspective and not overreact. (In a big picture sense.)

The offense moved the ball well in the first half. Moreno had 100 yards rushing. (97) The defense made some big plays. (4th down stop.) We did some things well. We're just missing some pieces and we caught some bad breaks.

I'm proud of this team, even with the flaws. We've had chances to win these last two games. We're not quitting or getting blown out. We just have flaws and we're a "new" team.

Props to the staff and players for putting a competitive product on the field, and I look forward to seeing how we finish. I expect that we won't see this team lay down.

Stay tuned...

[Garcia Bronco]

We can still get it done. We just need to beat our division. We're still in position to do that.

[go_broncos]

Popps..Forget about wins and loses for a second..

There are tons of Positives i see in the first half of the season every year.

After that..the team(offense,defense and coaching) folds in the 2nd half of the season.

By the end of the year..we are back to square one..

No positives whatsoever.

I thought Mcd is different from Shanny and i am wrong.

[Schism]

I'm seriously pissed about today, but we're not done yet. I still feel we have a good enough team to give any team in the league a decent run for their money.

We had some close ones go our way early in the year, now they're going against us. We really, really need a win though, and soon. As in next Sunday soon.

Season rests on next week.

If Orton plays, we can beat San Diego.

[Popps]

Originally Posted by Garcia Bronco

We can still get it done. We just need to beat our division. We're still in position to do that.

A rough patch was to be expected.

We hit one against two very good teams, and then caught a bad break against a team that came ready to play today.


It's almost more brutal losing such close games, but you have to turn it around and realize... these last two games were winnable. Teams have to learn how to win these games. I absolutely expect that we will.

[BroncoBuff]

Seems like Shanahan on steroids ... start fast, then slide.

[Florida_Bronco]

Originally Posted by go_broncos

Popps..Forget about wins and loses for a second..

There are tons of Positives i see in the first half of the season every year.

After that..the team(offense,defense and coaching) folds in the 2nd half of the season.

By the end of the year..we are back to square one..

No positives whatsoever.

I thought Mcd is different from Shanny and i am wrong.

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

Seems like Shanahan on steroids ... start fast, then slide.

Both of you are insane.

[Broncomutt]

If we had come out and gone 3-3 to start I wouldn't be so mystified right now. It's not that I was expecting 14-2 and now I'm disappointed we lost.

It's not the record. It's not the players.

Why are we collapsing, again!!??

Obviously something was working early in the season and now it isn't anymore. I want to know what is. I don't want to just write this year off as "Oh well, we knew we'd suck anyway right?"

Something that was working...isn't anymore.

Tired of looking being a fraud every year.

[Beantown Bronco]

Why are people talking like the Broncos have already completed a second half slide when technically this is the first game of the second half of the season?

[BroncoBuff]

Originally Posted by Florida_Bronco

Both of you are insane.

I hope so ... but you can't deny there is a similarity.

A potentially even more pronounced dropoff, after an even more pronounced fast start.

[McDman]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

I hope so ... but you can't deny there is a similarity.

A potentially even more pronounced dropoff, after an even more pronounced fast start.

Shanny is way more tan than McD.

[go_broncos]

I want to see some improvement in this team and i don't see anything in this team.

It seems like we are going backwards and it sucks.

We won a game month back and its long time.
I don't want to suffer another off-season thinking about missed opportunities.

[Soul-Bronco]

6 - 3, omg we are so horrible its like why even live any more

some people need to get some of eddie royals smelling salt and get a grip

Mcd has had one offseason to try and make something work outta the crap shanny left over.

[go_broncos]

Originally Posted by Soul-Bronco

6 - 3, omg we are so horrible its like why even live any more

some people need to get some of eddie royals smelling salt and get a grip

Mcd has had one offseason to try and make something work outta the crap shanny left over.

As i said, I want to see improvement in the team and this team is going backwards after every game.

[24champ]

Reality is, we're getting blown out in the second half lately. In every statistical category. Time of play, rushing yds, points. We are getting beat and beat big time. This is not my definition of competitive football. This team needs to be competitive for 60 minutes, not 30.


Hopefully this gets corrected by next week vs the Chargers.

[Soul-Bronco]

Originally Posted by go_broncos

As i said, I want to see improvement in the team and this team is going backwards after every game.

So the starting QB goes down in the 2nd and you expect the team to improve? take 99% of the starting QB's out of the game and that team will lose PERIOD.

yea its McD's fault that simms throws a pick into double coverage when we were running the ball effectively, its McD's fault that the refs blew 3 HUGE calls to

[tnedator]

Originally Posted by 24champ

Reality is, we're getting blown out in the second half lately. In every statistical category. Time of play, rushing yds, points. We are getting beat and beat big time. This is not my definition of competitive football. This team needs to be competitive for 60 minutes, not 30.


Hopefully this gets corrected by next week vs the Chargers.

Denver averaging less than 10 minutes TOP in 2nd half of last three games --- DEN-8:51/WAS-21:09, PIT-22:19/Den-7:41, DEN-12:27/BAL-17:33

[go_broncos]

Originally Posted by Soul-Bronco

So the starting QB goes down in the 2nd and you expect the team to improve? take 99% of the starting QB's out of the game and that team will lose PERIOD.

yea its McD's fault that simms throws a pick into double coverage when we were running the ball effectively, its McD's fault that the refs blew 3 HUGE calls to

I am not talking about this game..I am talking about all the 3 games that we lost.

it is bad decision to play simms instead of Tom.

Also, i am not sure why Berger is still in the team

[broncos-rock]

Okay Mr. Dierdorf.......
We lost a game we should of won and won a game we should of lost in Cincinati. Way it works. I'll wait for the end of the season before I make a generalizing statement about this team. I want to see how they respond to adversity!

[NFLBRONCO]

We have done this for a decade but, expect new regime to fix everything in 1 yr. Denver needs big time talent added to key areas. Our O is decent but, far from explosive our problems aren't only Orton our skill players need more upgrading.

[Florida_Bronco]

Originally Posted by BroncoBuff

I hope so ... but you can't deny there is a similarity.

A potentially even more pronounced dropoff, after an even more pronounced fast start.

No, there's not.

[Popps]

Originally Posted by NFLBRONCO

We have done this for a decade but, expect new regime to fix everything in 1 yr. Denver needs big time talent added to key areas. Our O is decent but, far from explosive our problems aren't only Orton our skill players need more upgrading.

In recent past, we've tried to hide a lack of talent with smoke and mirrors. Now, I suspect we're going to work until that talent is firmly in place. What you get in the meanwhile, is a team like the 09 Broncos. A quality team that plays hard, but one that might be a few players away from being a real competitor.

Still, I'm proud of the product out there and I feel like we can win any game... including next week, provided Orton returns.

[Dagmar]

Buff is embarrassing himself again.

[Hulamau]

Originally Posted by go_broncos

Popps..Forget about wins and loses for a second..

There are tons of Positives i see in the first half of the season every year.

After that..the team(offense,defense and coaching) folds in the 2nd half of the season.

By the end of the year..we are back to square one..

No positives whatsoever.

I thought Mcd is different from Shanny and i am wrong.

Baloney, this is night and day different! But it doesn't mean Josh has a finished product yet. He is changing the entire culture and attitude on this team as well as personnel.

He and Nolan got more out of a lot of these guys in the first half of the year than they've likely ever produced. Some are playing way above their skill level and at some point that reality was going to set in.

Other team have a chance to figure out the weaknesses we all knew were there but Mcd and company have done a masterful job of getting the most out of what he had and combining a lot of enthusiasm with heart to lift this team to a 6-0 record .

That bye week when everyone left Dove Valley doing High Fives, it let a little air out of the balloon. A lot of these guys don't yet know how to really win long term. They got a little heady too with all the accolades and props in the press, from fans and from friends and family no doubt during their trip home.

Now they have to learn what it means to be a real warrior and overcome adversity and play for 60 minutes.

Some parts are coming together . The Oline looked better this week even against a stout front seven , Moreno look substantially better. We started opening up the passing game.

And right now everyone of us would be taking about 7-2 and bring on the Chargers if Kyle had not gotten hurt.

We lost the one player we could not afford to lose and still beat a team with a top ten defense. Take away their trick play and we were up 17-7 at half 17-10 at worst and no way Kyle throws that terrible INT in the end zone when we were driving fine into FG range at least early in the third.

We've had some tough breaks . We also have some weaknesses on both sides of the ball ... we arent likely to win and Super bowls this year and I hope we can make the playoffs... we'll see but I mainly want to see us rebound from this slide and start to play better. Get Kyle back and I think we can and will.

I would sign Kyle to a long term deal before end of the year too, if for no other reason than to lock him up as a excellent backup even if we wind up going with another QB long term. Tonight we saw what happens when your backup SUCKs big time.

[Dagmar]

People are actually putting him on ignore, wow.