Shanahan Fired as Denver Head Coach

December 30, 2008. The day that might live infamy for the Denver Broncos. As a Bronco fan, I never thought I would be watching ESPN and see "Broncos Fire Mike Shanahan." I always thought Shanny would retire from Denver with another Super Bowl Trophy under his arm and walk away a champion. That happened to John Elway but it didn't happen to Mike Shanahan. First, I will always be a Shanahan fan. The guy is the greatest coach in Denver history. He is one of the best coaches in the NFL right now, and I will always hope that he does well. I will miss him because he was really one of the faces of the Broncos Organization. It will be so weird to watch a game without him on the sideline. I think this is a mistake by Pat Bowlen. I think you needed to give Shanny more time to build this young team back up. There is no one out there that is proven that will come in and do the coaching job that Shanny has done. Second, I also understand why Bowlen did this. 10 years, 1 division title, and 1 playoff win will get a lot of coaches fired. The media and the fans have grown tired of the mediocre and under achieiving Broncos. Sometimes a coach and a message gets stale. The bottom line is that there are a lot of people in Denver who are happy with this move. Third, where does Denver go from here? I think Bowlen will and should hire a real General Manager. I would go after Scott Pioli. Then, I would hire a young assistant. The names would be down to three-Steve Spagnuolo, Jim Schwartz, and Josh McDaniels. It is time to restructure the Front Office and the organization. Lastly, on a personal note, I can't believe how hard this move has hit me. I was a Shanahan guy and I always defended him. He was the last link to the Broncos Super Bowl teams. Elway retired and he was followed by Terrell Davis, Shannon Sharpe, Ed McCaffrey, and Rod Smith. Brian Griese, Jake Plummer, Clinton Portis, Bill Romanowski, Steve Atwater, and Gary Zimmerman all came and went. The one constant was Shanahan. If you are building a Mt. Rushmore for the Broncos, Elway is first and Shanahan is second. I will always appreciate Shanny and what he did. I will always look fondly at that three year run from 1996 to 1998. Thanks for the memories, Mike. I will miss you, but it is a new era in Denver. The Broncos start over and look towards the future.

Collapse is Complete for Broncos in '08

The Broncos 2008 season ended in dissapointing fashion on Sunday Night. The Broncos got whipped by the San Diego Chargers 52-21 and finished 8-8 and out of the playoffs. Denver led the AFC West the whole season, only to see San Diego come back from a 4-8 record and win the division. It was the biggest collapse in Denver history, and in the annals of the NFL. The Broncos were 8-5 and SD was 5-8. All Denver needed was 1 win or 1 Charger loss and they would have clinched the West-it didn't happen and the Broncos will have a long offseason to think about it. My thoughts are wide ranging and obviously I am dissapointed but let take on some issues. First, as far as the game with SD goes, you could see this coming and it was no surprise that SD buried Denver. The defense couldn't stop the Charger offense and the game was never in doubt. The Chargers are better then the Broncos and Denver's defense cannot matchup with San Diego's offense-simple as that. Second, Mike Shanahan should not be let go as Head Coach. Who would replace him? You're not gonna get Bill Cowher. You don't want Holmgren or Mariucci. Why take a chance with the hot assistant (Spagnuolo, Jason Garrett, Josh McDaniels)? The hot assistant who has no HC experience has not worked out lately(Crennel, Mangini etc..). The bottom line is Shanny is a good coach (not Great anymore and certainly not the Mastermind) and if he has talent he can win. He needs help in the personnel department, and I'm not counting "Yes" men like the Goodmans and Brian Xanders. He needs a real personnel guy-Michael Lombardi or Bill Polian types come to mind. Shanny needs help in this area big time. Third, Bob Slowik must go. When you give up over 450 points and the worst total since 1963, you don't deserve to be the Defensive Coordinator. Denver blew a chance to bring in a big time DC last year and they are paying for it. Fuck it, bring back Greg Robinson. Next, we need to draft a defensive player with our first three picks. We need a legit MLB, a Safety, and a defensive tackle who can stuff the run. We need to get better fundamentally on defense, and we need to get personnel that flys to the ball and can create some turnovers. The bottom line is that our players on defense flat out stink (Excluding Champ Bailey). We need better personnel. The Broncos have to get better on defense and the only place to go from here is up. If they improve a little bit in 2 areas-Takeaways and 3rd downs- then their defense will improve in '09. Next, Prater must go. He is awful, and we need a new, reliable kicker. Finally, this season was disappointing and ended terribly. It is the first season that Denver literally drove me to drink every Sunday. It will be hard to get over this year, but there is some hope. We a good young QB, talented Wideouts, a very good O-Line ,and some options at RB. 2009 will be a huge year for the Denver organization. The preparation for 2009 starts today. It is always the darkest before the dawn.

Week 17 Picks!!!

I can't believe it is Week 17 of the NFL season. No sport goes faster then the NFL. Anyway, every year Week 17 can be tricky. Some teams have clinched and are resting players. A lot of teams are already eliminated from the playoff race and are playing out the string. Some teams have to win their game and get help from other teams to get in, and some teams are in the "Win and In" situation. A lot of times Week 17 looks easy to predict on paper, but some crazy upsets and shocking results take place. 2002 might have been one of the wildest. The Jets won the AFC East after the Pats knocked off Miami and Cleveland beat Atlanta. In 2003, the Vikings got beat by the last place Cardinals on the last play of the game. The loss gave Green Bay the division title. In 2006, Denver, Tennessee, Cincinnati, and Jacksonville all lost, paving the way for the Chiefs to sneak in. What do I see happening this year? I think it will play out this way:
NFC North:
Vikings will defeat the Giants and the Texans will beat the Bears (Vikings win division and the Bears are eliminated from the playoffs)
NFC South:
Carolina wins over the Saints and clinches the 2 seed
NFC Wild Card:
Dallas beats Philly to clinch the 6 seed
AFC EAST:
Jets beat Miami and New England beats Buffalo (NE wins the division)
AFC Wild Card:
Baltimore beats Jacksonville and eliminates the Jets and Miami
AFC West:
San Diego beats Denver and wins the divsion.

Last Week's Record: 6-10
Overall Record: 110-126-11
(HOME TEAM IN CAPS)

TAMPA BAY (-11) over Oakland
GREEN BAY (-9) over Detroit
Dallas (+1) over PHILADELPHIA
New York Giants (+7) over MINNESOTA
HOUSTON (-3) over Chicago
Carolina (-3) over NEW ORLEANS
ATLANTA (-12) over St. Louis
Kansas City (+3) over CINCINNATI
Jacksonville (+12) over BALTIMORE
INDIANAPOLIS (+3) over Tennessee
PITTSBURGH (-9) over Cleveland
NEW YORK JETS (-2) over Miami
BUFFALO (+6) over New England
ARIZONA (-6) over Seattle
SAN FRANCISCO (-3) over Washington
SAN DIEGO (-8) over Denver

Chargers-Broncos AFC West Title Match

Here we are at Week 17 and the Broncos and the Chargers will meet on Sunday Night Football for the AFC West Crown. It is a playoff game for these teams. Nothing else affects this game and it is a "Win and You're in, Lose and You're Done" game. The Broncos have led the AFC West the entire season. They were 8-5 and San Diego was 5-8 at one point less than a month ago. If the Broncos lose on Sunday, they would be the first team to lose a division with a three game lead and three games to go. The collapse would be the worst in franchise history. The Broncos loss to the Bills in Denver last week was one of the worst defeats ever in Bronco history. San Diego is favored by 9 points. The Chargers are red hot and Denver is in a downward spiral. Nothing looks good for Denver on Sunday Night. The game is in San Diego (The Whale's Vagina), the Chargers are on a roll, Philip Rivers is staking his claim to the MVP, LT is getting back on track, and the Charger defense is suddenly playing well. Every expert on ESPN or NFL Network is picking San Diego. The Chargers' message boards have posts like "Are you even nervous for this game?" and "I think we will beat Indy in the first round." Is this one of those classic "Everyone is picking one team and then they get shocked" games? The only way Denver stays competitive in this game is if they can force one turnover or get one big break in the first half. Denver will be able to move the ball on SD, and Rivers will certainly pick apart Denver's secondary, but who will get the turnovers and breaks in the game. Logic says San Diego, but if Denver can find a way to cause a turnover, then the Broncos will have a chance to pull the upset. Look at the games on the road against the Jets, Falcons, and Browns. The Broncos got big turnovers in those games and it helped them win all three. If the Broncos don't get a turnover, then they will get buried. The Charger offense will be too much for Denver's defense. The Broncos might have to score 4o to win this game and that won't happen. Look for a big day from Rivers, Vincent Jackson, and Darren Sproles(The Bronco Killer). The defense will frustrate Cutler into a back-breaking Interception and San Diego will partying with their AFC West hats and t-shirts on the sidelines. The aftermath will be interesting in Denver. Losing the division title to the once-dead Chargers at 8-8, might set the Bronco franchise back another number of years. The bottom line is that this is the Chargers' Division, and it was all year. Denver caught a break in the "Ed Hochuli Game" and San Diego lost some close games throughout the year. Denver's defense and turnover problems (Getting Takeaways on Defense and Giveaways on Offense) killed the Broncos all year. Will Bob Slowik get fired at the end? Will this be Shanahan's last game as Bronco Head Coach? How many defensive players get sent packing? We have all these questions to answer all off season. I would love to say that Denver will step up and pull the upset; however, this Denver team simply isn't good enough to do that. It will be a long night in San Diego on Sunday, and it will be a long, long Winter and off season in Denver.
FINAL SCORE: San Diego:41 Denver:20

Mile High Choke Job

Sunday's 30-23 loss to Buffalo was one of the most devastating losses I have ever endured as a Bronco fan. This one ranks up there with the three Super Bowls in the 80s, the 1993 Season Finale and Wild Card loss to the Raiders, the 1996 AFC Divisional loss to the Jaguars, the 2005 AFC Championship Game, and the 2006 season finale against the Niners. This game was brutal. Denver got off to a fantastic start. Up 13-0 and the defense was stuffing the shit out of the Bills. Normally, when a team playing out the string (Buffalo) gets down early like that, they fold up the tent and mail in the game. However, with a defense like Denver's, no lead or game is ever out of reach. The main turning point in this game was the sequence at the end of the half. With Denver up 13-3, the second quarter was winding down. With about two minutes to go, Shanahan ordered Matt Prater to try a 54 yard field goal on a cold and windy day. Considering the fact that Prater is awful from 40 to 49 yards, why would Shanny even contemplate this move. Well, he did and of course Prater missed and Buffalo had good field position. Of course they drove down and scored a touchdown. Thrown in the fact that Buffalo received the ball at the half, and this game was tied 13-13 before Denver even got the ball back again. The rest played out like a typical Bronco 2008 shootout. Jay Cutler's 4th down pass to Brandon Stokley hit him in the hands in the end zone, but it was broken up by Buffalo's Reggie Corner and that was it. I stared in disbelief as the Denver season looks like it hit the shits. I was about to cry for the first time since my senior year in high school after the '96 loss to the Jags. I was devastated. How could this happen? For the second time in three years, HOW THE FUCK COULD THEY CHOKE AGAIN? AT HOME!!!! I'm not going to start talking about what needs to be done for this team to make the playoffs in 2009(Quick Hint: Pack your bags, Slowik). I will wait until the 2008 season ends to do that(Quick Hint #2: This Sunday at SD). The bottom line is Denver's Defense is the Achilles Heel to this team and the season. All year they give up big play after big play. They can't get to the QB, and more importantly they don't force turnovers. I could care less about yards allowed. The real Defensive stats for me are: Points Allowed and Turnovers. Denver has 11 turnovers forced in 15 games. The Offense and Cutler always have pressure on them to score and when they don't score, the Defense never holds an opponent in a big spot. As for this week, maybe it is destiny to face off with San Diego in Week 17 in a rematch of the Ed Hochuli Bowl. I will talk about that game later in the week, but put it this way: Denver is done, finished and fried. There is no way San Diego is going to lose this game on Sunday Night (Thanks NBC). I'll have my preview of this game on Friday-along with the rest of my Week 17 picks. Here is my predictions for the playoffs based on my thoughts on the Week 17 games. Enjoy!

AFC
1-Tennessee (14-2)
2-Pittsburgh (12-4)
3-New England (11-5)
4-San Diego (8-8)
5-Indy (11-5)
6-Baltimore (11-5)

NFC
1-Giants (12-4)
2-Carolina (12-4)
3-Minnesota (10-6)
4-Arizona (9-7)
5-Atlanta (11-5)
6-Dallas (10-6)

Playoff Matchups:
Saturday 1/3/09
4:00pm-NBC- Atlanta @ Arizona
8:00pm-NBC- Indy @ San Diego

Sunday 1/4/09
1:00pm-CBS- Baltimore @ New England
4:00pm-FOX- Dallas @ Minnesota

NFL Week 16 Lines!

Last Week's Record: 7-6-3
Overall Record: 104-116-11
(HOME TEAM IN CAPS)

JACKSONVILLE (+6) over Indianapolis
DALLAS (-4) over Baltimore
TENNESSEE (+1) over Pittsburgh
Miami (-3) over KANSAS CITY
Arizona (+8) over NEW ENGLAND
CLEVELAND (-3) over Cincinnati
WASHINGTON (+5) over Philadelphia
San Francisco (-5) over ST. LOUIS
Atlanta (+3) over MINNESOTA
DETROIT (+7) over New Orleans
NEW YORK GIANTS (-3) over Carolina
New York Jets (-4) over SEATTLE
Houston (-7) over OAKLAND
DENVER (-6) over Buffalo (I know this line is way to high, but fuck it I'm taking Denver)
San Diego (+3) over TAMPA BAY
CHICAGO (-4) over Green Bay

2 for 1 Special for Broncos

The 2008 Denver Broncos have a chance to win the AFC West outright this Sunday at Invesco against the 6-8 Buffalo Bills. If I told you this in August, you would have signed for this in a heartbeat. The bottom line is that it comes down to this game. I'm not even gonna get into last Sunday's loss to Carolina 30-10. That was a classic "Mail It In On The Road" game. Throw in the fact that the entire Denver team was thinking that KC was on the verge of knocking off San Diego and clinching the West for the Broncos. After KC blew a 21-3 lead (Thanks Herm Edwards) San Diego still had life, and Denver basically said "There is no way we are beating Carolina, let's just get out of here and try to clinch the division against the struggling Bills next week." Look, we have been here before. In Week 17 of the 2006 season, Denver was 9-6 and hosting the hapless 6-9 49ers. We all know what happened-Denver blows a 13-0 lead and loses the game in OT, gets eliminated from playoff contention (KC snuck in ,Thanks Herm) and Darrent Williams was shot and killed that night. I still don't think the organization has recovered. This Sunday is a chance to erase the last two and half years of inconsistent, below average, and head-scratching Broncos football. This game is huge for Shanny and Pat Bowlen. This game could define the Cutler, Marshall, DJ, Champ, Dumerville Core. I don't even know how this game will play out. I could see Denver winning comfortably (317), really close (23-20) or getting blown out again at home (27-10). The bottom line is that this is one of the biggest games in Denver Broncos history. If Denver loses, there is no way they go to San Diego and beat the Chargers for the AFC West title. Every Bronco fan needs this. We need to win the West. We need to walk into San Diego in Week 17 with a the West wrapped up and big "FU" on our chest. We need to have some optimism put back into this organization. Elway wouldn't lose a game like this, so it is time Cutler made his first true mark. I want to be celebrating with a beer in my hand on Sunday night and ordering my 2008 AFC West Division Champs T-shirt online. At home, in Denver, in Mile High, with a chance to win the division......Finish the job, Put it away, Take care of business.......

NFL Week 15 Picks!

Last Week's Record: 8-8
Overall Record: 97-110-8

(HOME TEAM IN CAPS)

CHICAGO (-3) over New Orleans
JACKSONVILLE (+2) over Green Bay
INDIANAPOLIS (-17) over Detroit
Washington (-7) over CINCINNATI
Tampa Bay (+3) over ATLANTA
San Francisco (+7) over MIAMI
Seattle (-3) over ST. LOUIS
NEW YORK JETS (-7) over Buffalo
Tennessee (-3) over HOUSTON
Pittsburgh (+3) over BALTIMORE
CAROLINA (-7) over Denver
KANSAS CITY (+6) over San Diego
ARIZONA (-3) over Minnesota
New England (-7) over OAKLAND
New York Giants (+3) over DALLAS
PHILADELPHIA (-14) over Cleveland

Down the Stretch for the Broncos!

Denver's 24-17 win over Kansas City at Mile High on Sunday moved the Broncos one step closer to an AFC West Division Crown. After Jay Cutler throw a Pick Six, KC led 10-0 in the first quarter. Denver looked like they were headed for another disaster at home to a shit team. From that point on, Denver really took control of the game and got the win. Some good points about the game were that Cutler played great and Brandon Marshall was fantastic -including two touchdown catches. Also, the defense didn't allow a point in the second half, and they stopped KC when they needed to in the fourth quarter. The negative part of the game was the fact that Peyton Hillis was lost for the season with a hamstring injury. Denver lost their sixth tailback this season. Hillis was really running well for Denver in their one back set. He was physical, and he was constantly moving the chains. It will be a big time loss for the Broncos. Now we turn to Tatum Bell and hope that Selvin Young can come back this week. The problem is that both of them are basically the same type of back. This will play a role down the stretch for sure. As far as this week, Denver goes back on the road against a tough opponent. Carolina looked great against Tampa Bay on Monday Night, and the Panthers are just a physical team. Denver could be in trouble, but they have played well on the road against the Jets and Falcons, so maybe they have a little "Road Warrior" mentality going for them. As far as the playoff picture is concerned, Denver's magic number is at 1. Now that the Jets have come back to the pack, the Broncos can hopefully win the West and maybe even move up a seed to number 3. All that doesn't matter if they can't take care of business this week in Carolina.

Playoff Projections (After 13 games)
AFC
1-Tennessee (12-1)
2-Pittsburgh (10-3)
3-Denver or SD
4-Jets (8-5)
5-Indy (9-4)
6-Baltimore (9-4)

NFC
1-Giants (11-2)
2-Carolina (10-3)
3-Arizona (8-5)
4-Minnesota (8-5)
5-Tampa Bay (9-4)
6-Dallas (8-5)

Miracle in the Meadowlands and Week 14 Picks!

There hasn't been a more up and down Bronco team in my history of being a fan. All week long the Jets were being crowned the kings of the AFC. There was no way that Denver was going into the Meadowlands and beating the red-hot Jets. In fact, all of the newspapers in New York were proclaiming that it was going to be a party like atmosphere at Giants Stadium on Sunday. I guess the old saying is right: "That's why they play the games." Denver outgunned and dominated the Jets in a 34-17 victory. Is this the win that propels the Broncos? Denver is too inconsistent to say that, but this win-coupled with another San Diego meltdown- has the Broncos in line to win the AFC West. A few thoughts about the game. First, the weather completely affected the Jets more than it did Denver. Denver was able to execute its' gameplan and Brett Favre looked terrible in the wind and rain. Second, Denver got up early 7-0 on a Vernon Fox fumble return, and then they responded to the Jet touchdown with a Cutler to Royal 60 yard hookup. That was a huge play and put Denver up 14-7. The next big moment came when the Jets were driving deep inside of Denver territory following a Cutler pick in the Jet endzone. The Bronco defense forced a sack and made the Jets kick a field goal to make the score 27-17. The Jets were still two scores down. The final big play was when Denver stopped the Jets on fourth down early in the fourth quarter, and Cutler hit Brandon Stokley with a TD on 3rd down to put the dagger in the hearts of the Jets. Overall, it was a huge win for Denver, and they must keep this going. It doesn't matter who Denver plays-this week 2-10 KC comes rolling into Invesco- it just matters how they play in that game. If the offense doesn't make mistakes early in the game, and they get in rhythm, then Denver can play with anyone. Onto the picks:

Last Week's Record: 9-7
Overall Record: 89-102-8
(HOME TEAM IN CAPS)

Oakland (+10) over SAN DIEGO
INDIANAPOLIS (-13) over Cincinnati
Jacksonville (+6) over CHICAGO
Houston (+6) over GREEN BAY
TENNESSEE (-14) over Cleveland
DETROIT (+9) over Minnesota
Washington (+6) over BALTIMORE
NEW YORK GIANTS (-7) over Philadelphia
NEW ORLEANS (-3) over Atlanta
New York Jets (-4 ) over SAN FRANCISCO
BUFFALO (-1) over Miami
Kansas City (+9) over DENVER
St. Louis (+14) over ARIZONA
PITTSBURGH (-3) over Dallas
New England (-4) over SEATTLE
CAROLINA (-3) over Tampa Bay