Broncos win another squeaker

Jay Cutler (AP Photo)

On a hot summer afternoon, the Denver Broncos hosted the New Orleans Saints, and as many predicted, it was a high scoring affair for both sides. Denver started the game well, quickly taking the game to 21-3 and looking to have a comfortable lead. But sudden poor play from Cutler and the Saints finding weaknesses in the Denver defense led to that lead evaporating. And though Denver never trailed, with the defense suddenly suspect, there was a strong sense that the game was really on the line if the offense couldn’t keep it together.

Cutler threw a few extraordinarily bad passes today, and didn’t quite look himself after the first quarter. He threw a few misses that just didn’t make a lot of sense, and camera closeups showed the frustration on his face. Even so, Cutler ended the game 21 for 34 with 2 TDs and an int, and the Broncos scored 34 points (albeit 7 of them on defense) to make 3 straight games with 30+ points. This is a sharp contrast to the offense of the previous few seasons which figured to have a high scoring game if the offense got above 20 points. After watching this offense for 3 games, scoring 24 points would be disappointing.

Special teams showed significant improvement, giving up 30 yards on punts and 60 yards on kicks, and gaining 22 yards on punts and 97 yards on kicks. Nothing terribly exciting happened on returns for either team, which is definitely better than having a kick or two give up big yardage and giving the opposing offense a short field. Wesley Woodyard was named special teams captain for this game, and I don’t know if that had anything to do with the unit’s improvement, I am all for anything that gives Woodyard playing time.

The defense gave up over 500 yards, 421 of them in the air, and let the Saints have 4 touchdowns. With all that, the defense managed to strip the ball and run it back for a TD and put up two crucial goal line stops which bailed the offense out when it failed to stay on the field and score points. Add two missed field goals by Grammatica and there’s a definite feeling that the Broncos squeaked by with this one. At the end of the game, despite the defense being the reason the Broncos might lose the game, the defense ended up being the reason the Broncos won the game. Despite giving up two turnovers on offense, the defense held when they needed it most and kept the Saints from taking advantage of a Tony Scheffler fumble.

But squeaker or not, it’s a win and the Broncos advance to 3-0. With the Chiefs unable to beat any team not from St. Louis, the Raiders only able to beat teams from St Louis and Kansas City, and the Chargers yet to play, at worst the Broncos have a two game lead in the division, no matter what the Chargers do tomorrow.

Ironically, if the Chargers find a way to lose tomorrow, the Raiders will be second in the division.

What did I see in this game? Jay Cutler had a bad game, the team gave up two turnovers and forced none, and still put up 34 points. Brandon Marshall put up 155 yards and leads the league for the week in receiving yards, discounting the two prime time games. Eddie Royal has come back down to earth in stats, but he is still putting up important receptions, and Stokely is still completely capable of making that key 3rd down catch to move the chains. Even with two turnovers, the offense is a scoring machine.

The defense is a work in progress that will probably never look like a truly solid defense. I’ve been saying since the offseason, though, that I never expected the defense to become anything more than average. Currently it’s a little below average, but things are always a little different when you’re playing with a lead, especially when your opposing quarterback is a pro bowler. We have serious problems in pass coverage; sure, Brees didn’t challenge Bailey much but the team spent a lot of time in zone and Brees can pick a zone apart without pressure.

And we did get to Brees but not often enough nor quickly enough. We need a complement to Dumervil. Thomas was looking good some of the time, but not enough. I expected a little more from Robertson; but he was nearly invisible in this game. We need to get our d-line into the backfield more and cause havoc. We can’t expect the nickel corner to cover as well as Champ Bailey.

On the other hand, DJ Williams had 14 tackles and 2 assists. He was everywhere on the field; a total monster. Webster is playing had but he is merely average. Boss Bailey seems to be doing okay back there, but perhaps isn’t having the effect we hoped for. It seems like the defense still has communication problems, and the Saints were able to make big pickups when we had guys out of position.

In the preseason, I had the Broncos as a wild card team. Now we might win the division. I think we’re in a good position to go deep in the playoffs, but with this defense we’re not yet a Superbowl team. Still, the Colts had a defense worse than this and they managed to shore it up by the end of the season and did solid in the playoffs. We are not without hope. And during camp, I wasn’t even thinking of the team as true contenders. Now, there is a glimmer, a bare possibility that a high powered offense can carry the team long enough for the defense to figure out what it needs to work on.

At the end of the day, a win is a win, and the team is undefeated. The defense needs work, but it shut down the Saints when it had to. The potential is there. As fans, I think we have to be patient. The most important thing is that this is a young team, with a lot of talent. This team can build on anything it accomplishes this season and has the potential to become a dynasty team.

Think about it. A Broncos dynasty would be something, wouldn’t it?