Moving Forward

[cdumler7]

My family always had this thought process that when something bad happens to you instead of dwelling on it to just work to move forward...So just some questions for us moving forward...

Who do you think replaces Nate Irving? Very good to hear today that his injury was not as bad as first thought and he will not be placed on IR, but our Linebacking core that was a question mark before the season is now getting thinner by the week. We now have Irving and Trevathan gone for a few weeks. Steven Johnson has missed the last 2 games (he was our best special teams player and 2nd on the MLB depth chart).

My thought is they move Marshall more to the MLB spot as he has the size and strength to hold up in the middle then have Corey Nelson play more the WLB spot where he actually has done well in spot duty. I could see on the run downs them bringing in Steven Johnson as he is a great down hill tackler and they are saying he should be good to go this week. Would love to see Lamin Barrow get some work as the coaching staff was so excited about him but doesn't look like he has quite shown enough for the coaches to trust him on the field.

Next question is about the run game...I know one subpar game by Hillman does not cause him to lose his starting duty but do you see the carries being divided up a little differently this week?

 

[TDs3nOut]

I'm not too sure about the LB question, but I think that the biggest problem with our run game is more of a team issue than it is only a problem with Hillman or any of the other RBs. Good running teams make a commitment to running the ball that I just don't see from the Broncos.

To me, the biggest challenge that we face in moving forward is to get tougher mentally when we face a good team on the road. We have now gone 0-3 in the last three of those types of games. In the game on Sunday and in the SB it just didn't look to me like the team was mentally up to the challenge of competing. I think that's a problem.

 

[cdumler7]

I agree the team has to learn to play tougher than they did. I also think though a loss like this right now will serve the team well. Last year we didn't have the advantage of the season continuing on and had to dwell on it for months. At least now the team gets a chance to redeem themselves and learn from how this feels.


Players just like us fans are probably pretty darn upset by this last game. Nobody likes to get embarrassed like that. Heck they were saying yesterday's practice ran longer than it has all year. The media waited I think an extra 45 minutes for Fox for his usual press time after practice so I think the team got the message that they actually have to show up to games. I honestly think the Broncos march into Oakland this week with something to prove and especially the OL and DL work to prove that they are tougher than the guys across from them. I'm just hoping that they don't forget about this loss come playoff time.


We shall see though. We shall see what this team is truly made of now. They have been met with some adversity. I will say looking at how they responded to losing to Seattle by a touchdown should show this team responds pretty well. We won our next 4-games outscoring our opponents 149-75 in those games. Hopefully we see the team once again respond in such a way.

 

[Broncosr0k]

I like the idea of moving Marshall in and having Nelson takeover at WLB. That fits with what he have done in the past with Woodyard and Trevathan.

As for the run game, I agree with TDs3nOut. I think the commitment to the run game is more important than who we have running. I think Manning or Gase are abandoning the run too quickly which plays right into a team trying to make us 1-dimensional. I also think the interior of the O-line needs work but that is not an easy fix. I would like to see more Thompson in running situations to help save some of Hillman's explosiveness as the games and season goes on.

 

[TDs3nOut]

I like the idea of moving Marshall in and having Nelson takeover at WLB. That fits with what he have done in the past with Woodyard and Trevathan.

As for the run game, I agree with TDs3nOut. I think the commitment to the run game is more important than who we have running. I think Manning or Gase are abandoning the run too quickly which plays right into a team trying to make us 1-dimensional. I also think the interior of the O-line needs work but that is not an easy fix. I would like to see more Thompson in running situations to help save some of Hillman's explosiveness as the games and season goes on.

Agreed. That obviously has to be addressed during the week, before game day. It then needs to be reinforced on game day by continuing to call running plays.

Seems to me that we did those things to some extent last year (e.g., in the game at NE and in the second SD game), so perhaps we can do that again if the coaching staff and players make it a priority.

 

[cdumler7]

It does seem that when we have a very pass heavy game that we lose that the coaches really do sit down and Peyton as well and decide they cannot do that again. I loved how this team played in the playoffs of really slowing things down a bit instead of the high octane offense we had all season and making sure to control the clock and keep our defense rested. They made a commitment that unfortunately in the Super Bowl they got away from. it does seem when the game plan gets smacked early on that they abandon the run but hopefully these kind of situations are exactly what this team needs to remember how important keeping that in is.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I had DEN winning that one but was always leery of the NE homefield advantage.

Running game...I don't think you can really take too much from this game...whatever the gameplan was going in was shot to shreds midway thru the 2Q...the score pretty much dictated that Manning was going to have to throw a ton to try and get back into it.

The part of this game that does need some attention imo was A gap blitzing...you know other teams will try to replicate that...while they were not sacking Manning much, but they moving him off his spot a lot, and sped up his delivery clock.

Result...while it tighten up the race in the DIV, DEN is still in control and should regroup and win the next game and get back on track...imo KC is the next strongest threat in the DIV...something I didn't expect, but they're playing good ball right now.

 

[Malibu]

The running game is just fine but the Broncos just don't stick to the running game as much as they should. The kicking situation has to be addressed as well. I hope J.D.R. realizes this may be his last shot. There is to much talent on this defense for games like that to happen. The secondary was confused and there was no pressure right up the middle at Brady. This has to change or J.D.R. can find another job. There is no reason this defense cant dominate games. Broncos once again were soft vs the Patriots and the conditions outside weren't bad at all so that's no excuse. I want to see a beat down in Oakland or I wont be happy one bit. Ware has been to quiet lately and Welker just may be finished. Just saying.

 

[randymon]

My family always had this thought process that when something bad happens to you instead of dwelling on it to just work to move forward...So just some questions for us moving forward...

Who do you think replaces Nate Irving? Very good to hear today that his injury was not as bad as first thought and he will not be placed on IR, but our Linebacking core that was a question mark before the season is now getting thinner by the week. We now have Irving and Trevathan gone for a few weeks. Steven Johnson has missed the last 2 games (he was our best special teams player and 2nd on the MLB depth chart).

My thought is they move Marshall more to the MLB spot as he has the size and strength to hold up in the middle then have Corey Nelson play more the WLB spot where he actually has done well in spot duty. I could see on the run downs them bringing in Steven Johnson as he is a great down hill tackler and they are saying he should be good to go this week. Would love to see Lamin Barrow get some work as the coaching staff was so excited about him but doesn't look like he has quite shown enough for the coaches to trust him on the field.

Next question is about the run game...I know one subpar game by Hillman does not cause him to lose his starting duty but do you see the carries being divided up a little differently this week?

Hey Cd. Pretty sure Barrow came in when Irving went down and if that`s true then it looks like he has gained some confidence from Del Rio or their just running out of options. Looks like unfortunetly their going to have to experiment a little untill Trev and Irving getback. As far as running gm goes, it really hard to assess the NE gm when you only rush about 14 times. I do see however CJ and Thompson getting more action going forward and possibly a Bibbs sighting soon.

 

[cdumler7]

I agree Randymon can't read too much into the run game as the OL and the RB's all had pretty mediocre games. For Hillman getting more snaps I was thinking more of his failed attempts at blocking more than anything. He failed to pick up the blitz like he had been and priority #1 in a Bronco RB is to make sure to block well for Peyton. I could see that getting him a bit in the dog house.

 

[randymon]

PS. I wouldn`t be dissapointed to see Del Rio go. I think he should simplify and let these guys go man to man and duke it out. He trys to get cute and mix things up ( esp on 3rd and 5 or longer and it fin doesn`t work. Like I`ve said a million times( finally some are seeing this) Denver has to be the worst team defensively in this category( third and long). Somebody ( Rio) is terrible on calling the right D. Its friggin mind blowing. Its amazing how Denvers D just shuts down the O on first and 2nd down and then just gives up the 3rd and longs. Geez, could it be the D cord?????? Don`t how much more I can watch that crap!!!

 

[Malibu]

PS. I wouldn`t be dissapointed to see Del Rio go. I think he should simplify and let these guys go man to man and duke it out. He trys to get cute and mix things up ( esp on 3rd and 5 or longer and it fin doesn`t work. Like I`ve said a million times( finally some are seeing this) Denver has to be the worst team defensively in this category( third and long). Somebody ( Rio) is terrible on calling the right D. Its friggin mind blowing. Its amazing how Denvers D just shuts down the O on first and 2nd down and then just gives up the 3rd and longs. Geez, could it be the D cord?????? Don`t how much more I can watch that crap!!!

More money spent on talent and yet the same shit happens. J.D.R. has just this year to get the defense to dominate games which they should do or else Elway should push him out the door. Just saying.

 

[cdumler7]

I was listening to some Bronco radio on my run this morning and they had some insiders that were in the locker room after the game and they said the biggest issue for the defense was communication. All the players were talking about was all the plays they didn't communicate well which lead to them giving up big plays in the passing game. I think the stacked WR combos really confused this defense for some reason. The players all said they practiced it all week but for some reason come game time they forgot all they had talked about. So hopefully this week this has been a huge emphasis among the players and coaches.


I have heard this week has been one of the tougher practices since the season started. The players and coaches are not messing around.


Now I will agree Del Rio has his issues but I will say one of his greatest attributes is his coaching up players to get the most out of them. That is hard to give up when we are seeing so many young players come in and grow with this team. We are also seeing so many FA cast offs that other teams could care less about become stars in our system so before everybody grabs the pitch forks and torches to run Del Rio out of the town I just wonder if we can find a coach who can help build up the young talent like he can.

 

[randymon]

What Denver needs more on D than a DC is a "Manning" back there. We need a Ray Lewis or old Bronco like Wilson that has the savy, tenacity and smarts to put guys in right position before the snap regardless of the DC call beforehand. If Denver had a LB like that, they would be prob be # 1 D all-around with all the rest of the talent they have. Trev is great but he doen`t have the know-how(yet) that it takes to be the field general on the team. Maybe someday though as he`s learning and very young still. I would love to see him morph into an all-pro hall of fameing stud no doubt.

 

[cdumler7]

Randymon I would say Trevathan would have been a big help yesterday compared to what we showed on the field. The team said communication was just horrible...well that starts with the guy calling the plays for the team. I like Marshall but not sure he is the guy I want making sure everybody is in perfect position. The other issue for Sunday was the linebacking core really showed what happens when we have such young guys on the field. They got sucked in by play action leaving the middle of the field wide open where NE did most of their damage with Gronk. These guys must improve in this area if we are going to compete with teams especially that have good TE's as play action is the best way to get those guys open.


Just a bad all-around game but as Manning has said it all depends on how they respond to this game. He said a loss can be a good thing if you respond the best way and from what I have heard they are responding in practice.

 

[randymon]

Randymon I would say Trevathan would have been a big help yesterday compared to what we showed on the field. The team said communication was just horrible...well that starts with the guy calling the plays for the team. I like Marshall but not sure he is the guy I want making sure everybody is in perfect position. The other issue for Sunday was the linebacking core really showed what happens when we have such young guys on the field. They got sucked in by play action leaving the middle of the field wide open where NE did most of their damage with Gronk. These guys must improve in this area if we are going to compete with teams especially that have good TE's as play action is the best way to get those guys open.


Just a bad all-around game but as Manning has said it all depends on how they respond to this game. He said a loss can be a good thing if you respond the best way and from what I have heard they are responding in practice.

Right cd, we certainly are missing his leadership and he is no doubt the best lb we have. Have a feeling Denver rebounds fine vs the Raiders but I`am very nervous about the up-coming games untill we get Irving and Trev back. You know teams will be focusing on that area when they look at game film prior to kickoff. Going to really need those guys to step up and limit the mistakes they`ve been making. I`am a hoping for sure

 

[cdumler7]

The young guys definitely have to step up here. We are a team with some great depth but the issue is we have a lot of young depth which is great for future seasons as we lose some of these guys but with injuries it does mean that talent has to rise up a little faster than you would hope. I do think Corey Nelson can step up and be a pretty darn good coverage linebacker. My question is can Barrow and Steven Johnson handle the middle like we will need them to.


I would also say it is time to really call out our safety play. Moore and Ward over the past few games just have not done well at all. They have let TE's just walk all over them. If they don't shape up we are in trouble come playoff time.

 

[randymon]

The young guys definitely have to step up here. We are a team with some great depth but the issue is we have a lot of young depth which is great for future seasons as we lose some of these guys but with injuries it does mean that talent has to rise up a little faster than you would hope. I do think Corey Nelson can step up and be a pretty darn good coverage linebacker. My question is can Barrow and Steven Johnson handle the middle like we will need them to.


I would also say it is time to really call out our safety play. Moore and Ward over the past few games just have not done well at all. They have let TE's just walk all over them. If they don't shape up we are in trouble come playoff time.

Agree 100% on the safety play. Very disappointed as of late esp with Holmes. Started out great ( like he has before) then gets complacent or lazy. I think Ward is still somewhat adjusting to new teammates, schemes, etc and he`ll be a force next yr. Always takes a guy a yr at least to acclimate with new surroundings and all that goes with it. Time for everybody to get serious and play balls out from now till Feb. Time to be MEN not boys and get physical and make us proud DAGNABIT!!