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Broncos: A tale of good and bad

Jeff Sauer
Post Independent
Glenwood Springs, CO Colorado
Sports Geek
ALL |

The Broncos’ amazing comeback victory over the Dolphins on Sunday is somewhat overshadowed by quarterback Tim Tebow’s noticeable lack of development. I’m on his bandwagon – don’t get me wrong – but his mechanics and progression reads haven’t improved at all.

You can pin some of this on the coaching staff. If Carolina rookie Cam Newton can look like a Pro Bowl quarterback after seven games, you would think the Broncos organization could get more help for Tebow.

Former Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels was tarred and feathered on his way out of Denver after being fired during the 2010-2011 season, and most of his critics blasted his unpopular decisions to dispose of offensive weapons – Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Peyton Hillis – but he didn’t exactly leave the cupboard empty in the process.



McDaniels may have whiffed on Knowshon Moreno with his very first draft pick, but Tebow, Eric Decker, and Demaryius Thomas all have the potential to be studs for years to come.

And what about Cutler, Marshall and Hillis? They’re all malcontents – not exactly what this team needs going forward. It’s time to start embracing the next generation of Broncos through the good and the bad – both of which were on display this weekend.



Every single aspect of Sunday Night Football surpasses Monday Night Football.

Did you really prefer Hank Jr. over Faith Hill? Or how about Ron Jaworski over Cris Collinsworth?

I didn’t think so.

Collinsworth is proving to be the perfect sidekick to Al Michaels, with his likable personality and unique insight of the game. Honestly, my wife hasn’t asked me turn the TV volume down since John Madden retired.

There’s another football channel out there that gets me fired up. Their catch phrase reads: “The NFL RedZone, an out of body, all encompassing, died-and-woke-up-in-heaven football experience.” I must say, after watching several games come down to the wire simultaneously over the past few weeks, with fantasy implications on the line, this slogan is just a flat-out understatement.

Speaking of fantasy – let me guess – you’re either looking like a genius in first place of your fantasy football league because you drafted Ray Rice and Calvin Johnson in the first two rounds, or you’re the unlucky fool in last place because you took injured Andre Johnson and Jamaal Charles back to back. It can be a cruel game to play sometimes …

Introducing your 2011-2012 Colorado Avalanche, which haven’t won at home (0-2) and can’t lose on the road (6-0).

So far, you have to be very impressed.

The blue line is much bigger, averaging 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds, and the team plays an aggressive style early in games, often catching their opponents’ off guard.

The Avs lost the battle of puck possession far too often last year, especially in their own zone with smaller defensemen.

The late season trade last year for Eric Johnson was the turning point in their defensive makeover. He’s logging a ton of minutes and looks more like the player the scouts thought he would be when the Blues selected him No. 1 overall back in 2006.

Sometimes it just takes a few years and a change of scenery for things to pan out.

What could St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols possibly do for an encore in the World Series after his Game 3 heroics?

How about a game seven, series-ending, walk-off home run? It’s only happened once in the history of the game. Bill Mazeroski of the Pittsburgh Pirates did it back in 1960.

– Jeff Sauer is a longtime western Colorado resident and former Roaring Fork Valley resident. He can be reached at soprisjeff@yahoo.com.


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