Broncos pound Raiders and move to 3-0

The Broncos destruction of the Oakland Raiders on Sunday help improve Denver to 3-0 and it helped the Broncos quiet the many NFL critics and analysts that predicted a debacle in the Mile High city. Of course there is still plenty of work to do this season, but any Bronco fan must be thrilled with this team's start. Denver completely dominated the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball and pounded the Raiders on their way to a 23-3 win. The physicality in the run game on both offense and defense was surprising because Oakland has really been better up front against Denver the last few seasons. Also, Denver took care of business against a weaker opponent for the second week in a row and controlled the second half once again. Here are some of the points I take from this game......First, Denver's defense is playing fantastic. They are getting sacks, turnovers, and getting big stops at various moments of the first and second half. Ronnie Fields and Kenny Peterson have played great on run defense, and Elvis Dumervil has been a force on passing downs. Andra Davis has been solid in the run game, and DJ Williams has been good. Brain Dawkins is a difference maker in the secondary. Overall, the biggest difference is the tackling. The Broncos are simply better fundamentally this year. Next, the running game has been bruising this year. I can't believe how well Correll Buckhalter is running. The combo of Buckhalter and Knowshon Moreno is going to be fun to watch and effective this year. Third, Kyle Orton has been solid and mistake free. If he is going to have a defense play well and get help from the running game, he can be very successful in this offense. He has done his job, and he has done it well. Finally, Josh McDaniels has done a very good job coaching this team so far. I love how he attacked and exploited Oakland's pass defense underneath on Sunday. He took advantage of mismatches with the Raider linebackers all day long. He hasn't had to make too many big game management decisions yet, but he has been aggressive, and I feel safe with him at the controls. We know there is a long road ahead for the 2009 Denver Broncos, but we have to sit back and enjoy this start. Are the Broncos for real? Who knows, but I enjoy tuning in and watching this team defy the odds every week.