Broncos stumble into a black hole

Santa parachuted into Invesco before the game.

There was a moment of cheering for the Barrel Man just before kickoff. It was very appropriate considering the man and his legacy at Broncos games. The Barrel Man was well known for starting the wave at games and despite that most fans these days are reluctant to do that anymore, the crowd got into it


Santa's little helper?

Nutty Raider fan...

Hut hut!

Trying to strip the ball.

B-Marsh!

This shot pretty much sums up the game.

Broncos did a lot of kicking for 3 points. Too much in fact.


Bernie, the Avs mascot playing halftime games.

IN - COM - PLETE!

Don't worry buddy, the Broncos made your QB's look pretty good.

Again, no worries Raider fan, the new crowd isn't nearly as unforgiving as the old days.

Ya know, what to say about this game? The Broncos can't beat a team that has benched their starting QB, then late in the game the backup gets hurt and the aforementioned starter has to come off the bench and save the day. And he does! The Broncos made JaMarcus Russell look like the first rounder he is instead of the flop he has been 90% of the time.

If this is the team that hits the road in the playoffs, I don't need to tell you that the next trip will be home. For good.

-From the Point

Hello, NFL? Yes, I want to make a suggestion...

A good Avs fan I follow on Twitter mentioned today that football seems slow compared to hockey.
Yes my friend, I agree.

I have been thinking that the game of football has been getting slower every year. But has the game slowed that much or is it that I, like said Avs fan, have gotten so into hockey that football seems slow?

Certainly football has a different rhythm. It's got plenty of speed and hitting in between the 42 different replay angles of every single play!


I have a few ideas about speeding it up between snaps and some general complaints:


The biggest problem is replay. There is NOTHING "instant" about it.

Remember when the NFL said the refs had to get the review done in a minute, or was it 90 seconds? Anyway, now the network just plans on taking a commercial break while the refs review, wait...OH!!! I get it. Ok. Well this will never change, I now see that I must accept this for what it is. Catering to the sponsors.


But seriously...


The NFL needs to study the NHL and completely change the review process. How is it that the the NHL that is so poor does it right and the NFL that is so rich does it so poorly? The "mission control" that the NHL has in Toronto is a revolutionary idea and one the NFL should adopt. I can only imagine that that idea has been tossed around some NFL boardroom only to be tabled at the thought of admitting (however tangentially) that the #5 sport in the nation has outdone the #1 sport.


Another idea: limit the Ref's "explanation" of their calls to a "Twitter length" of 140 characters. I'm very tired of these MIT-dissertation length ramblings after a 240 second review. We all know that you need two feet in, I don't want to hear about the "third foot". Who in the NFL has three feet?


Also, teams should only be able to "freeze" the kicker once per game. It's a largely stupid tactic that only means I have to sit there and listen to more rambling baloney, thankfully Madden retired. He could talk forever about nothing.


Ok, here's a rule that drives me nuts. I don't really understand the concept that on a touchdown the ball only has to "break the plane" of the goal line. There is no other place in the game that something is so easy. Receivers have the toughest job of all. Both feet in, control of the ball, no more force-out rule. If catching the ball was like a touchdown it would mean all the guy had to do was go up and touch the ball with one hand and they would call it a catch! It's crazy! If you get a TD you should have to get your whole body into the endzone. If you break the plane but your knees hit the turf on the 6 inch line...then the ball is spotted on the 6 inch line. That's the way it is on the other 100 yards of the field. It's like some kind of voodoo part of the game where all you really have to do is just wave the ball in the general location of the endzone to get 6 points.

I mean just look at this cheater Raider! I bet the Raiders came up with the voodoo "break the plane" rule.


Next is the overtime. OT is a hot topic in hockey as well, but that is a post for another time. The NFL's OT needs an overhaul and everyone knows it. It came up today, the announcers aren't even afraid to talk about it openly so you know what that means. I have the solution to make it more fair and add a LOT of strategy to the overtime. Hang with me here, it's a little out of left field.

I call it Sudden Touchdown Death

First team to get a TD wins. However, there is still value in getting a field goal. Why? Because if neither team gets a TD, the game is still over after one quarter, but it isn't a tie unless the score is still tied. So if team A gets to the 30 and the drive stalls, they can kick a field goal to collect 3 points.
Game continues, it only ends on a TD. This will often mean that team B gets a chance to get their offense on the field, something sorely lacking in the current system.

It also adds strategy because Team A could decide to go for it on 4th down instead of the 3 points. Convert the 4th down, continue the drive and score a TD and the game is over. Fail and turn over the ball without collecting any points.

So if the entire quarter passes without a TD, the team with the highest score, essentially the team the gets the most field goals, wins!

I think this would give the team that doesn't win the toss a better chance of getting at least one shot at the ball. It allows teams to play to their strengths, if you have a great defense but win the toss, go for a field goal and let your D keep them out of the endzone.



-From the Point

Denver spanks the Raiders

So just one week after the Denver Broncos organization put Shannon Sharpe into the ring of fame at Invesco Field, Sharpe picks the Broncos to LOSE against the Oakland Raiders. Thanks Shannon, couldn’t you at least lie to us? After you stood on the field in front of 70,000 cheering fans, CRYING, telling us how much that meant to you…and you can’t at least pick the Broncos to beat our most hated rival? It’s not like the Raiders are any good. I mean, if it was the Giants or the Steelers, fine everyone would accuse you of being a homer. But the Raiders? Jerk!
It’s a little difficult to hear the audio, but he says that the Raiders will be leading the division after the game.

Let’s do a little game recap. That first goal line attempt to score was like watching Dan Reeves call the plays. Good grief, give it a break McDaniels. The lucky INT was a chance for the Broncos to make up for it, fortunately, they did.
Brandon Marshall was in the game early. Good to see that, and ultimately that Orton was spreading the ball around quite a bit. That is usually going to result in positive results.
Speaking of positive results, Knowshon Moreno is looking pretty good. He doesn’t stop the legs despite the fact that guys are hanging off of him. He will keep pushing, twisting and turning, anything he can to keep going.
Interesting fact from the CBS crew, the Raiders lead the Broncos in the series, 55-40-2. Wow, as bad as the Raiders have been, the Broncos were worse back in the day, or at least worse, longer.
Second half: Correll Buckhalter is really finding the holes in the line and getting some good yards. Equally, the O-line is looking great after that disappointing opening fail. Marshall seemed to disappear in the second half until a great 24 yd gain for a first down in the 3rd quarter. Well, it’s halfway through the fourth and the Raider faithful are few and the empty seats are many. From here on out it’s just a matter of wrapping things up. And the Broncos had better enjoy the fact that they finished this game as early as they did. That is not likely to happen on the road ahead.

-From the Point