Good news for the Broncos on this front, as this means they will get the maximum amount of time possible to heal up, at almost exactly 14 days. All three of the Broncos’ potential opponents, meanwhile, will play on Saturday, January 9. Should the Steelers defeat the Bengals, they will face Denver next–if not, the Broncos will take on the winner of the Chiefs/Texans game.
Of the Texans, Chiefs, and Steelers, who would you like to face?
A note on why the Broncos decided to make the switch at QB:
There is a certain phrase that gets thrown around when teams decide to make a crucial but difficult change. This is typically called a cliche because it is one of those phrases that is used more often than it should. But, in cases like this, this saying holds a delicate truth, that many players, coaches, and fans can take the wrong way. Especially when it is heard by someone who is in the unfavorable position of being benched:
Continue reading Observation: “He gave us the best chance to win the game.” SD vs DEN (27-20)
The Broncos are going to be in decent shape regarding injuries on Sunday, while the Chargers will be quite depleted.
On Denver’s side, the only less-than-probables are Brandon Marshall and TJ Ward. It’s easy to wonder whether both will have reduced snap counts if they’re healthy, especially if the Broncos get off to a good start. Should the Broncos get a first round bye by winning, Marshall and Ward will get two weeks of rest, and potentially three if they are inactive or have reduced playing time.
Injury woes have been a season long theme for the Chargers, and for their last game they once again start with the offensive line. Old friend Orlando Franklin is out with a concussion, making this his sixth missed game in 2015. Left tackle King Dunlap is doubtful with an ankle injury, and his backup Chris Hairston is questionable on his abdomen. Center Trevor Robinson is questionable with both a shoulder injury and a concussion. The opportunity is there for the Broncos’ front seven to feast once again.
Other notable Chargers questionables include Jason Verrett, Manti Te’o, and Stevie Johnson. And their injury report also doesn’t account for a bunch of other key players they placed on injured reserve Monday:
Chargers placed safeties Eric Weddle (groin) and Darrell Stuckey (knee), TE Ladarius Green (ankle), NT Sean Lissemore (shoulder) on IR.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 28, 2015
So here we are, the final week of the NFL regular season. We know the Broncos will be heading to the playoffs, the fifth straight year the Broncos have done this, and a win against San Diego will mean the fifth straight AFC West title for the Broncos. It’s been amazing to watch what has happened since John Elway stepped into the Broncos’ front office.
Of course, it hasn’t been a perfect ride and Elway has made his share of mistakes, but what front office person hasn’t done that? Even the best personnel evaluators make mistakes. Just look at the track records of people like Bill Polian, Bill Parcells, Bill Walsh and Bill Parcells (how is it that so many people named Bill seem to be good at drafting players?), which are filled with mistakes from drafting and free agency, but the majority were very good.
So far, that’s been the case with Elway, too. There are those draft picks and free agents we can debate as to whether they were good or not, with some picks that really belong under “the jury is still out” and some free agents who you could go either way with an assessment.
Continue reading Midweek Musings: Evaluating Elway As Personnel Evaluator
The first half was another pathetic display where I honestly thought this game was going to continue what we saw in the second half against the Steelers. I was pleasantly surprised that we went to a no-huddle format in the second half and started a majority of plays in shotgun and pistol formations. This allowed Brock just a second or two more to throw, because our offensive line was getting manhandled the entire game.
Continue reading Bengals at Broncos: The 10 Things I Liked and the 10 Things I Didn’t
As I’m sure most of you know, Football Outsiders rates DYAR for quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends. Earlier this season, when I discussed the possibility of the Denver Broncos reaching the Super Bowl, I reviewed the DYAR for the Broncos who play those positions.
I figured it was a good time to revisit where those players are at since the end of November. Let’s examine the players who are currently starting or contributing and how they have fared.
Continue reading Football Outsiders DYAR: How Are Bronco Players Doing Now?
Time to roll out another set of Not So Scientific Rankings. Links to the rankings used are below.
Pro Football Focus Power Rankings
Pro Football Reference Simple Ranking System
Five Thirty Eight ELO Playoff Probability Rankings
Football Outsiders DVOA Rankings
Unfortunately, Andrew Mason has not posted his power rankings as of this morning, so I am moving forward without them.
Continue reading Not So Scientific Rankings, Week 16
When Anchorman first graced theaters in 2004, the famous line in this thread’s title has long been a reliable one for fans of the Broncos, Chiefs, and Raiders to use when the Chargers are the next team up on the schedule. (It’s also been handy to use the “You stay classy, San Diego” line ironically when the Chargers pull dubious stunts like this.) But the utilization of Ron Burgundy to twist tails may only last 11 years, as a decision on what the NFL will do with Los Angeles is looming immediately after the end of the regular season. When the Broncos play Week 17, they may be playing against the San Diego Chargers for the last time ever. So I thought this would be a perfect time to lay out some detailed thoughts on the NFL’s plans for returning to Los Angeles.
Continue reading “Go Fuck Yourself, San Diego!”: For The Last Time?
Broncos to sign guard Robert Myers off Ravens practice squad https://t.co/wAoj8cra1Q via @9News #9news #9sports
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) December 30, 2015
The Broncos have not yet officially announced the signing, but Klis’ story indicates Myers will report to Dove Valley Wednesday.
The Broncos have already released S Shaun Prater. Although T.J. Ward did not play much of the second half, he had no setbacks with his ankle injury and Gary Kubiak was limiting his snaps. The same applied to Darian Stewart. Both Ward and Stewart are expected to play against San Diego.
Also, the Broncos expect Omar Bolden to return to the lineup soon. It remains to be seen if he’ll play against San Diego, but it does appear he’ll be ready to go for the playoffs.