Paxton Lynch To Start Sunday Vs. Oakland

This has been confirmed by more than just these three, who each cover the Broncos for different organizations.

Meanwhile, if you care to look up Mike Klis on Twitter, you’ll find him tweeting things like this.

I’m gonna say this one time, folks: It is possible for those who aren’t following the traditional journalism routine to develop sources of their own, too.

As for Mike Klis, I’ll give him this advice: Stop acting so territorial and/or apologetic to the Broncos that others are getting tipped off about things.

Time For The Broncos (And Fans) To Take A Step Back

As we know, the Denver Broncos are coming off one of their worst defeats in years, a 51-23 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. In some circles, panic has now set in, with people wanting to throw anybody and everybody under the bus for the Broncos’ struggles.

There were a couple of pieces written earlier this week that made me think about what’s really going on with the Broncos. Mike Tanier, in his Monday Morning Digest this week, called the Broncos an overrated team with bad quarterbacks. Chad Jensen of Mile High Huddle says the Broncos’ window of opportunity to reach a Super Bowl has been closed, mainly because the Broncos don’t have a good quarterback.

I do want to touch upon a few things each writer brought up, along with examining where things have really gone wrong for the Broncos in the past couple of seasons.
Continue reading Time For The Broncos (And Fans) To Take A Step Back

Gut Reaction: Broncos Fall Down, Can’t Get Up, Film At 11

Let’s get one thing out of the way first, Broncos fans. The Philadelphia Eagles are the best team in the NFC. They just might be the best team in the NFL. They, in some ways, remind me of the 2012 Denver Broncos, in that they have quality players at every position, good depth and few weaknesses.

That doesn’t excuse the poor play by the Broncos today, though.

On one hand, we knew that switching to Brock Osweiler wasn’t the solution by itself. On the other hand, the areas in which the Broncos have executed well this season were terrible.

If you were one of those believe that the defense was hinting that the offense needed a change at quarterback, well, they got it. Then the defense turned around and stunk up the joint. Thanks a lot, guys.

And while we knew that the Eagles were good at stopping the run, there was more than one occasion in which the Broncos run blocking was pathetic — and it seemed to always happen when the Broncos had terrible field position. It’s one thing if good Ds stop your backs from two-yard gains; it’s another when you let guys penetrate into the backfield, something the Broncos didn’t allow to happen against other teams with good run defenses.

Okay, so maybe I’m talking about too many negatives, right? Well, let’s get to a few positives first and then I’ll go into some other negatives.
Continue reading Gut Reaction: Broncos Fall Down, Can’t Get Up, Film At 11

What’s Really Going On With The Broncos O-Line?

Nick Kendall of Mile High Huddle wrote a good column about the Denver Broncos offensive line that is well worth reading. As he points out, the offensive line has its issues but isn’t as bad as people make it out to be.

There have been a few comments made that the Broncos are worse on the offensive line than they were last year. I imagine some of those were made in frustration after losses, but for people who really believe that, it’s not the case. I would ask you to read Kendall’s article first before reading the rest of my article, but I did want to add a few thoughts to what Kendall wrote.
Continue reading What’s Really Going On With The Broncos O-Line?

Midweek Musings: A Change Had To Be Made

As everyone knows by, the Denver Broncos have benched Trevor Siemian and will start Brock Osweiler this week against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Bronco fans are all too familiar with Osweiler, who played in eight games (seven starts) for the Broncos back in 2015. He was serviceable in those starts, throwing 10 touchdowns and six interceptions on 170-of-275 passing. He was also playing behind a less-than-ideal offensive line, in which guard Evan Mathis played reasonably well but most everyone else was mediocre at best.

While some fans had hopes that Osweiler could be the starter in 2016, he spurned a sizeable offer from the Broncos, reportedly as high as $15M APY over three years, to sign with the Houston Texans on a four-year, $72M deal. As everyone knows, Osweiler was awful, throwing 15 touchdowns with 16 interceptions on 301-of-510 passing. He was rated one of the worst QBs in Football Outsiders DYAR for 2016, with only Jared Goff rated worse than him.
Continue reading Midweek Musings: A Change Had To Be Made

Are Pending Free Agent QBs Really Options?

Earlier today, Nick examined the quarterback landscape and noted that the majority of the NFL teams are facing situations in which they either need a new starting QB or will likely need one in the future.

The Broncos made the list and, given the concerns regarding Trevor Siemian’s play and whether or not Paxton Lynch is the long-term answer, some thoughts are turning to next season and the potential free agent QBs.

As Nick noted, there could be other QBs that hit free agency, but a few are known to be eligible for unrestricted free agency if they aren’t extended, one will be a restricted free agent and one may very well hit free agency if he chooses to do that.

But it’s worth asking: Is it really guaranteed that the Broncos could land one of these quarterbacks?

Let’s examine the likelihood of certain QBs coming to the Broncos next season and what to keep in mind if they hit free agency. I’m only focusing on those who may become unrestricted or restricted free agents, not players who might get cut after the season.
Continue reading Are Pending Free Agent QBs Really Options?

Exploring A Possible Cordy Glenn Trade

(Note: I wrote this yesterday, but needed to verify figures at Over the Cap. Even though the Broncos lost today and most of you will be talking about that, it’s still worth sharing this, because regardless of what we think about the QB position, we know there are other areas on offense that need addressing.)

As we know, the offensive line remains a concern for the Denver Broncos; specifically, the positions of right tackle and left guard. And with recent injuries to three players who have played right tackle — regardless of their ability level — the Broncos find themselves thin on the line.

So the question as to whether or not the Broncos should trade for an offensive linemen. But with quality linemen in short supply, it may not be that easy to acquire a good player.

But then comes the rumor that the Broncos are talking to the Buffalo Bills, who happen to have an offensive lineman that they would like to trade, left tackle Cordy Glenn. It’s worth examining whether or not such a trade is a good idea.
Continue reading Exploring A Possible Cordy Glenn Trade

What The Broncos Need Is To Trust The Run Game

As we know this past Sunday – and from the past two games – the Broncos have struggled offensively, thanks in part (though not exclusively) to the struggles of Trevor Siemian.

Earlier this week, I shared with everyone a good article by Chad Jensen of Mile High Huddle, who wrote about how defenses have noted the issues with Siemian’s approach and, more importantly, that the Broncos abandoned the run in the two games they lost.

A quick check with Pro Football Reference shows that the Broncos had a balanced offense in terms of rushing attempts and passing attempts in their victories over the Chargers, Cowboys and Raiders. But in the losses to the Bills and Giants, the Broncos threw the ball far more times than they ran it.
Continue reading What The Broncos Need Is To Trust The Run Game

Gut Reaction: Denver, We Have A Problem

I know many of you folks here aren’t going to like what I’m here to tell you tonight.

But after watching the Broncos turn in a miserable performance against a Giants team that they were supposed to walk away with a victory over, it’s time to point out where the real problems are with the team.

No, it’s not that the defense has been proven to be a farce (though there were issues tonight). It’s not that the Broncos are snake bitten at the right tackle position (though it’s far from being solved). And it’s not that the Broncos don’t have an explosive playmaker at tight end (though they could use an upgrade — perhaps a healthy Jake Butt can be that guy?)

It starts with the real culprit for tonight’s struggles on offense and that’s the quarterback, Trevor Siemian.
Continue reading Gut Reaction: Denver, We Have A Problem

Midweek Musings: Evaluating After First Quarter of Season

Hello, Bronco fans! Four weeks have passed and now it’s becoming clearer where things stands with the Broncos (and other NFL teams, for that matter). The Broncos get a Week 5 bye, and while it stinks having an early bye, four weeks is still the time to evaluate where the Broncos are at, identifying what the strengths are and why they are strengths, and recognize what areas need improvement and who is really responsible.

Let’s start by looking at where the Broncos stack up in each aspect of the game (offense, defense, special teams) as measured by Football Outsiders, then get into each position and find out what’s really going on with particular players.
Continue reading Midweek Musings: Evaluating After First Quarter of Season