Broncos Collapse in Second Half, Fall to Raiders 31-10

LET THE EXCUSES FLOW!!! come on everybody. lets hear the Shanahan rhetoric for this debacle.

thats a nice title. “collapse in the second half” i think the collapse happened before the game.

thanks to the broncos i owe my friend 5 dollars and a free burger but other than that we gotta do a way better job next week to end all the teasing im going to get this week we must beat the jets go Broncos except are safety there just there cause we need 11 players on the field

san deigo must lose …. if we have any shot for the afc west.

Boo turnovers. Go Colts!

How in the world do we go to Atlanta, show heart, guts, and grit, and beat a very good team in their house. Then, we come home and one of the worst teams in the league hands our arses to us. Is a fumble and a couple missed field goals enough to make us lose our heart? Or was it just assumed that since this was the Raiders, just showing up was good enough?! And was it just me or was Jay under-throwing everything? Once again we have to count on the Chargers to lose. I am a fan and I will not give up, but this one is tough to take. On the bright side, playing a good team on the road mostly means we play pretty good. (except for the Patriots).

this is the most pathetic game the broncos have played since the early sixties.

I havent been more embarrased this year from a loss since the broncos lost to Kansas City. Hopefully the Colts can play well and beat the chargers.

so klye what happened to larsen?

The Broncos are simply overrated this year. They win close games that seem to go their way at the end (the horrible call against SD for Cutler, Roddy White’s dropped TD). They still seem very likely to make the playoffs, but they simply got dominated today. The Raiders beat them in every aspect of the game today, and no excuse will ease the blow of this loss. Russell showed his strong possible potential, and Both McFadden and Fargas had amazing days.

well thats Shanahan for you guys. always great at putting a mediocre team on the field. i could have swore everyone was praising Josh Barrett’s promotion saying he was gonna make such an impact today?? what happened with that?? oh no tackles for him.

come on everybody, i thought by now id be accused of needing therapy, and not being a true fan. where is everyone? did all of you drink a bottle of nyquil at halftime so you wouldnt have to sit through the squashing??

yeah i agree broncoboiseguy,no doubt seemed like he was missing some zip on his throws today.. the multiple roughing the passer penalties probably didnt help any. Jay sure didnt have his “A” game, thats for sure… or “B”.. or “C”.. but such is life sometimes.

Kerry.. seriously man, its funny how after we won last week you were nowhere to be found for a few hours, and quiet for the most part. Meanwhile the board was pretty busy with people HAPPY we won. Excited and encouraged on how the D shoed up, how the (shanny drafted) rookies looked, and so on. Yet in a purely embarrasing loss you have 3 of the first 10 posts, basically gloating. Like you root for the Broncos to lose just to say told ya so. Its bad enough i (and others im sure) have to go to work tomorrow, or school, or wherever people go, and take a week of ribbing from other football fans, but now when i want to come on a board with fellow bronco fans and hear a SENSIBLE discussion on what went wrong, look who’s post 1 and 2… good ol debbie downer. If i wanted ha ha’s and told ya so’s I’d go on the ESPN message board and put up with the moronic raider trolls.

Secondly nobody said barrett was “going to make such an impact” however, over and over people were posting that they were excited to see him get a chance. People are excited about 6’3 235lbs that runs a 4.35.. doesnt mean he’ll pan out, doesnt mean anybody thinks “he’s steve atwater”.. alot of people just want to see him get a chance on the field. Im sure at some point he’ll get more of a chance, and hopefully we’ll see him do well. At the same time i’d bet the vast majority of posters on here realize he’s a ROOKIE 7th round pick, and dont expect him to step in and contribute much right away.

Ugh.. com’on colts!

barrett started Shannah need to get the team ready for the jets to get there stain back

The first Defensive drive was good holding the Raiders to 3 and out, and then the Broncos first offensive drive. After that fumble, the balloon was popped and the Raiders had momentum. Go Colts!! Anything to help Denver. I just hope Denver can make it to the playoffs. My heart wants them to go on, but if they do make it, I feel that they would be eliminated during the first game. They may win their division but would definitely have to play Wildcard weekend.

kerry, the fact that you take enjoyment out of this makes me question you as a fan. And I’m being as objective as possible. You’re being less classy than my Raiders fan-friend who sent me a text rubbing a bit in my face. Stop feeding off this unearned attention. No one likes a “told you so.”

merc, good question. Larsen was actually taken out of the game, and LB Mario Haggan played quite a bit at middle linebacker, making five tackles. Don’t know why the hell they did that.

conbrio – It’s among the tops. Possibly the 2nd worst in the Shanahan era, next to the 96 playoff loss to the Jags. And that was early in his career. This was just plain ugly through and through. The Raiders converted on ALL seven third downs in the second half. They hadn’t scored an offensive touchdown in 15 quarters! And they go 7 for 7. Disgusting.

We needed Champ Bailey on Ashley Lelie tonight. We need him next week, bad. Get better 24!

yeah because i predicted this. Shanahan will always do his best to put a mediocre team on the field. 10 years of an average record of 9-7 and all of you still blindly follow Shanahan. there is no excuse for the lack of heart this team showed today. that is all on Shanahan for not getting his team ready to play. all of you wanna give him so much credit for the supposed “great job” e is doing this year. but now that the team went down in flames you Shanny lemmings wont step up and hold Shanahan accountable for the debacle at home. instead you wanna focus on me and my posts. well deal with it. i take a good ribbing for simply speaking the truth. but it doesnt bother me at all. and another thing is im not happy at all that the Broncos lost. i wanted them to win. i say what i say because i know all of you will come here and pass the blame and make excuses for this joke of a head coach. you all wanna give him credit for the good things but never wanna hold him accountable for the bad. instead its all “kerry you arent a true fan” or “Kerry why dont you become a chargers fan” way to divert the discussion about the REAL problem with the Broncos.

Man all I got to say is grrrrr…..There are usally four receivers out there on average and Jay can only see one! Stokely was open a lot for cryin out loud…

I was at the game this year out in KC. I was there in person and i stayed til the very end. I would rather relive that experience 10 more times then have to sit and watch the game today one more time. Im just sick.

And for the record, the fans in KC were actually really classy. Besides a few remarks in the parking lot at Kaufmann stadium, they were pretty good fans actually. I was expecting much worse. I only say that to give a little perspective on the kerry remarks. I mean really.. what have the Chiefs done in the last 35+ years?? Not much of anything, and they are waaaaay less pessemistic than you my friend.

kerry – Just post that comment in the first place, and you won’t come off the way you do. I totally respect the opinion of everyone on this site, including yours. But those comments weren’t even close to trying to have any sort of discussion about what ails the Broncos. They were “ha, I told you so” kind of comments.

There have been four BAD losses like this in the past two seasons now (SD, @DET, @NE, OAK), and each one chips away at my pro-Shanahan armor. I’m not hopping off the Shana-wagon yet, but he’s got to do a better job at getting this team prepared.

Sigh… 2nd quarter… Chargers 10, Colts 3…

lets talk how peyton manning driving the ball in to the chargers redzone

like i posted a week or so ago, we have to look no further than the chargers. They have a hall of fame calliber head coach, win the division and run him out of town. Whats it gotten them? We should learn from them.

And yeah kerry, in theory what you say sounds good, except thats not what your posts say.. all you ever do is post negative posts, and we’re in freakin FIRST PLACE! Whether you like shanny or not, there are plenty of positives on this team. Plenty to be excited about.. even in this awful loss

see i wasnt pessimistic at all this offseason until i saw that Shanahan let Michael Turner get away. then i saw that shanahan was gonna try and put bums in the backfield again this year. every scout said Torain was injury prone and shanahan drafted him and look what happened, right on cue Torain gets injured. Shanahan is not a good head coach. 10 years of mediocrity should be enough. why cant anyone else see that? 10 years! but this guy gets a pass because he won 2 SB’s with a team full of hall of famers that Shanahan didnt even draft or trade for? this debacle today further reinforces the fact that Shanahan has completely lost this team. Marshall cant catch the ball and doesnt even try anymore. Cutler pouts like a girl on the sidelines all the time, nobody can stay healthy, Jeremy Bates is a terrible play caller. now our playoff life depends on the Chargers losing. how is that a good team when we have to DEPEND on the other to lose.

If we can’t play ant better than this, I am hoping the Chargers win. We will get blown away in the first week of the playoffs if we make it.

kerry do got a point but as a fan u have to appreciate the good are team have done so far

You’re sadly mistaken if you think Shanahan is to blame for our collapse today. He doesn’t play corner. He doesn’t play safety. He didn’t throw the interceptions. He didn’t give up 100+ yards to Justin Fargas. This isn’t about the coach. Shanahan is one of the winningest coaches in the league. He drafts well (see Royal, Torrain, Cutler, Clady). But there’s a reason that only two teams make it to the Superbowl. Much of winning in the NFL comes down to luck. The player falls down. A close call (or noncall) from a Ref. If you suggest that we replace Shanahan, then I would ask you – Who out there would be a better coach? Do we want Norv Turner when he’s cut from the Chargers? What about Ryan from the Raiders? I hear that Danny Green is available. What about Jim Mora? Exactly, they ALL suck. Shanahan knows football. He’s won the division several times in his tenure, and he’s won 2 superbowls. Whether he drafted those people or not is irrelevant. He coached them to victory. What we need is to stand by our team, cheer when they cheer, and bleed when they bleed. The vast majority of our players play with heart 100% of the team. But there are days when the chemistry isn’t there, or when the timing is just off. Kerry, if you don’t like what we’re doing, fine. Speak your mind. But be careful what you wish for. You (and all of us) just might get it.

the good? what good? the only thing this team has been good at is being bad. there have been some good INDIVIDUAL performances. but as a team they are grossly inconsistant. the only consistancies on this team are the O-line and Eddie Royal. everybody else goes hot and cold every week. that is not the sign of a well rounded team. and definetly a sign of bad discipline.

and right on cue the typical Shanny apologist shows up and makes an appearance. there is the old excuse of “Oh Shanny didnt play Corner” or “Shanny didnt throw the INT” way to pass the blame onto everybody else but Shanahan himself. Shanny didnt prepare this team in the least. they were unmotivated and underprepared. but im sure thats somebody else’s fault right?? and you said he drafted well and listed Torain?? is there a different Torain then the one who got injured twice and ran for a whole 64 yards before his second injury?? no Shanahan doesnt draft well. Jarvis Moss, Tim Crowder, Willie Middlebrooks, Nick Eason, Darius Watts and so on and so on. and you say Shanahan drats well? HAHAHAHA. so tell me your excuse for the average 9-7 record over the last ten years. id love to hear who’s fault that is.

Whats Michael freaking Turner ever done?? Whats he ever won?? There was no real evidence that he was anything other than a good change of pace back. Yes he played well with the chargers when given the chance, and he showed flashes of being real good, but the notion that Michael Turner was some guaranteed game changer is a bit nuts. BEFORE the season you could probably make as many points against why he will be a star as you could for. Now obviously he’s played great this year, but for that to be your reason to be pessemistic for the rest of the year seems odd to me. Plus who’s to say he wouldnt come here and get injured just like the other 79 runningbacks we’ve used this year.

PS if torrain wasnt injury prone he wouldnt have been there in the 5th to take.. sometimes you take a chance on guys and it works, sometimes it doesnt, and its WAAAAAAY to early to say that this one didnt work.. for all we know he may never miss another game. Its not an exact science, its the NFL draft

and right on cue you skew the facts to try to prove your point.. “they’ve averaged 9-7 over the past decade” nonsense.. Yep, when you put it that way it doesnt sound great, at the same time its competetive, we win more than we lose.. but nothing spectacular obviously..

OR you can look at it like this, how many teams in that timeframe have won more games than us… 3..thats it… NE,IND,PIT.. all of them also play in the AFC.. AFC has been the better conference for much of the last decade, and its a murderers row come playoff time every year. Over that timeframe we’re something like 24 games OVER .500 — its all a matter of how you look at it, how you want to word a fact to make your arguement.

as ive said before, we are about halfway through making a pretty big overhaul to the team, the rest (should) be done this offseason with a defensive heavy draft, and if the draft picks turn out 1/2 as good as these have we will be well on our way to being a SB caliber team

why should i be pessimistic for the rest of the year? well lets see….Shanahan is still in charge. we have nobody in the backfield that can run well. the team has no focus, no fire, and no identity. we are on the downslope of the mountain. everybody here is praying for the Chargers to lose just to have some glimmer of hope for the playoffs. how absurd is that? having to depend on another team to lose just so we can back into the playoffs like we have everytime we went for the last ten years. i have no faith in this team while Shanahan is running the show. if Shanahan would give up being the GM/VP/ then this team could get back on track. we had a GM and a VP while Shanahan just coached and we won the SB. but shanahan is turning into Dan Reeves. having to control every facet of the team.

..didnt want to hit submit yet..

to finish my above point, now is not the time to can shanny. If after next season there’s nothing pointing to things getting better, then i think maybe the situation should be addressed then.. not halfway through the job

how is that nonsense? ITS THE TRUTH!! an average of 9-7 is not anything to be proud of. have those 9-7 averages won another SB title? or even a trip to the SB? no, not even close. you are skewing the facts. trying to put a silk hat on a pig with all this “oh we have been competitive” and “only such and such teams have won more games then us” and dont you get it that Shanahan cant draft a defensive player to save his life?? only DJ Williams is leftover from the 2001-2004 drafts and only Karl Paymah is leftover from the 05 draft. Shanahan doesnt know how to draft defense. he never has! thats why a true GM is needed! someone who knows how to build both sides. not just one.

Coach Shanarat has done nothing sice Elway left, nothing at all.

The donkeys are on the way down and the Raiders are on the way up.

This game is hard for me to swallow…i’m glad that I didn’t get to watch it. Why does this team show up and win big games against good teams, but when they play horrible teams they get stomped? I don’t.really know what happened since apparently southern Cali doesn’t get to watch AFC West games, but where was the heart of this team? Where was the determination to win? 3 losses in a row at home is ridiculous! Losses to the 1-9 Chiefs and 3-8 Raiders is inexcusable. I just don’t know what to expect week to week with the broncos. I never know which team is going to show up. At least they are young and have time to run, but they’re burning my ulcer.

EVERY team is inconsistent, Kerry. EVERY TEAM. That I’m aware of, as of today, there are no undefeated teams in the NFL. Take a look at the standings across the league, and you’re going to see a TON of inconsistency. Do you consider Tony Dungy a good head coach? His team is fighting for the lives at 6-4 (just like we were) against a team that is 4-6. What about Bellichek? Do you consider him a good coach? His team is 7-4 and in second place in their division after going 19-1 last season. What about Sean Peyton or Andy Reid? Both are excellent coaches with a ton of talent on their teams and both are sitting at 5-5. Don’t talk to me about inconsistency. Games come down to PLAYERS and EXECUTION. Coaches call plays and plan strategy, but the game is won on the gridiron. You’re a typical bandwagon fan, Kerry. You piss, cry, and moan when we are struggling, and you tell everyone that you told us so. But when we are winning, you’re the first guy shouting from the rooftops how much of a “Broncos” fan you are. Take a look around, Kerry. Some of the greatest coaches, and some of the greatest players, are on teams that are mediocre or worse. Maybe next time you can wear your “I hate Elway” tshirt with the word “hate” crossed out and replaced with the word “LOVE”, which you did when he finally won two superbowls.

Check out SD! They’re down 20-10 in the 4th quarter. Nobody wants to win the AFC West. Hilarious.

well put rob.. (also Holmgren in seattle to the list)

This is still a young team. Youg teams have a tendancy to have a lack of humililty and be overconfident. This team thought that all they had to do was show up. In the NFL any team cn beat you regardless of records. Growing pains of a team that is building.

I don’t think this is a team that can go very far in the playoffs so I am not putting a lot of hope in this season. I honestly hope that they are able to sta under 9-7 and get some decent draft position for 09. The Denver D is just way too bad on any given week. Denver must overhaul their entire secondary which will start with the Draft and need some playmakers on the Dline from FA.

Predictions:
@Jets L 6-6
KC W 7-6
@Carolina L 7-7
Buffalo L 7-8
@ San Diego L 7-9

Final record 7-9

yep another one to deflect the topic off the fact this team is terrible. must have took lessons from Shanahan in the whole “passing of the blame onto everybody else” subject.

well kerry that’s a valid point.. but then you can always go to the who was doing the drafting during that time arguement.. was it sundquist was it shanny?? and really i dont care to get into that one.. who really knows to be honest.
We’ll know after next year.. Shanny hit on some good picks this year, including a solid defensive player (larsen), and we’ll see what next year has in store. I honestly believe we’re on the right track.

I knew you wouldn’t have a response. My guess is that Kerry never actually played football (or any other sport for that matter). He’s got all kinds of bad things to say about the coaching, but no solutions. What are you going to do if they replace Shanahan and they don’t improve? Are you headed down to the flea market to buy your Raiders jersey, Kerry? They are pretty consistent. Maybe you can be a Chargers fan? At least they make it to the playoffs every now and then. Or maybe you can try to resurrect the XFL and create your perfect league where every team wins and no one loses. Sounds like lots of fun.

It’s sad to know that there are uneducated fans like you tainting the Broncos gene pool.

With all this talk of firing mike, I have to ask the same thing tom jackson asked the eagles fans who want Andy Reid fired…If we fire Shanahan, who do we hire? Bill Cowher? He is already going to another team next year. Who else out there has as many wins under their belt…Can we go out and find a better coach than Shanny? No doubt there are other coaches, but are they better coaches? I doubt it.

oh man dont you get tired of saying “oh lets see what happens next year?” who are we the Chicago Cubs? its been ten years. and every offseason all i hear from Shanny and his cult followers is how “we are on the right track” and ” we have made improvements” after ten years those “improvements” and being on the right path should have bore fruit by now. ten years of mediocrity. as loyal fans we have to demand a team that can challenge for a title. not just barely have a winning record every year. an average of 9-7 doesnt equal Lombardi Trophies. and thats the bottomline, winning the title.

Rob Bronco,

im the uneducated fan?? all you have is the ability to resort to talking about me and my opinions. when in fact you present no type of actual fact about the state of this football team and their inconsistancies of the past ten years. all you do is pass the blame and divert the attention of how bad this team is. nice try though. and you like all Shanny apologists come up with the argument of “oh well who would you replace him with” you can resort to your little petty insults because thats all you have. you clearly have showed you have no knowledge of the game but to say “oh who would you replace him with” HAHAHAHAHA. the typical shanny lemming response.

Maybe you need to read my responses a little more, kerry. You’re telling us that replacing Shanahan is the answer. Prove it. Tell us your plan, then. Tell us who you bring in. C’mon. Lots of people have asked you that question. But the truth is, you don’t have a response. And the reason you don’t have a response is because you don’t know what you’re talking about. If you did, you would have a response to the question. Call me (or us) a lemming all you want, but you still aren’t offering an answer to our question. And until you do, you’re just another fool who doesn’t understand the complexities of sports.

YES!! Chargers lose!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Adam Vinaterri (sp?)…you are my hero

wonderful playcall on 4th and inches..

Thank you Indianapolis for keeping our two-game lead and helping us make the playoffs, host you, and then quickly make our exit out of the January tournament. Thank you.

its pretty easy to see how phil savage got into his “email trouble”

=)

http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/11/20/savage-acknowledges-e-mail/

Haha Kyle. Seriously though I’m getting tired of rooting for a Charger loss every week. This inconsistency is killing me.

Thank you Indi! The way I see it we must win the next 4 games or hope Bolts lose at least to the Bucks.

Is it just me or the Broncos play up to the competition? We beat good teams and lose to bad ones.

Hey Kerry, I’m going to have to play a drinking game with your posts. I take a shot every time you say “pass the blame and divert attention” and chase. It with a beer every time you say “apologist”

You post the same comment over and over, and when other people make points as valid as the ones you make, you disrespect their opinion by mocking them. What makes you so special that your opinion deserves respect when you are so closed-minded that you don’t reciprocate?

The AFC championship team from 2005 was blown up guys. The ony member from that team on the offense is the center. The defense was also blown up with only 3 players that I can think of in DJ Williams, Bailey, Ekuban. No one expected this team to be fighting for the Divsion with 5 weeks left.

It takes 4-5 years to rebuild. I am happy to see tha the Offense has come a long way this year and in my opinion has a great new core.

Now it’s time to put the emphasis on the defense. Just look at the top teams this year. The Titans were taking a top 10 pick just a coupe of years ago and so were the Jets. Now they are both looking to host a Divisional round playoff game.

As far as Shanahan I don’t think that you have to call for his firing until we win under 4 games.

hope your off work tomorrow jchase.. gonna be a rough morning

: )

Why do the Broncos continually “mail” in home games! Last week they looked good and this week they played like a poor high school team. Broncos repeat after me, “WE SUCK”.

Kyle: We can’t let this site turn into this.

That’s 3 losses in a row at home. There is nothing I can say. I’m disgusted. I’m tired of this amount of inconsistency because it is outrageous.

Thanks AKscott, this has been the sh@ttiest week for me ever…a nice Kerry induced drunken stupor could do me some good…I have researched this Kerry fellow and this is what I came up with…fire this guy and go with my plan. Well what’s your plan? I have a plan. What is it? Follow my plan and all will be okay…he has a plan but won’t tell anyone what it is in a debate. He is…2004 democratic. Presidential nominee John Kerry

The chargers lost! I dont care how we get into the playoffs as long as we get in. Even if we go out in the first round what a great experience for these young guys. Lets not forget how young we are. This season is a great experience for these guys. Even one playoff game would do wonders for the future. Look how many rookies we have contributing and they could have a playoff game under their belt. We have half of our defensive starters on the sideline. Its not like we are full of verterans and we are running out of time. We are young and good. Give these youngsters and shanahan some time. No doubt this loss sucked. They always do. But this season will come in handy later on. We do need to fill some holes in next years draft but i dont mind having a young team earn their stripes. We have young talent. Thats good!

I am with you Matt. Its nice that the Chargers are practically forcing us into the playoffs. Cutler and our young guys will get to experience the playoffs and be better for it down the road. Realistically, I think we all need to accept that if the Broncos do make the playoffs, they will most likely be underdogs even in a home game.

This team has huge upside. At the beginning of the season i wanted two rookies to make an impact, cutler to progress and for us to make the post season. So far so good. This season has not been perfect but we have some of the best young talent in the league. Blue chip freshman are still freshman and they are going to make mistakes. We are good now but we will be great. Just be happy we didnt waste a draft pick on leinart or young. Cutler is a stud. He makes plays. Best franchise in the world. I loved that hillis did the salute. I love the mile high salute!

You know there is a part of me (a small part) that hopes we miss the playyoffs. Now, follow me through here.
1.We would get a higher draft pick that we may be able to parlay into draft picks.
2. It would hold Shanny accountable, which means
3. We may get an actual O and D coordinator. Not Al Davis-esque puppets that are currently employed in that role.
4. Sundquist. Maybe, just maybe he will get hired back. He ws a good balance for Shanny.

We are not that far from being the “IT” team in the NFL again. There were some signings that we missed that I thought we should have tried to make (e.g. Gibril Wilson, Jonathan Vilma). I am not signing off on this year, but a good offseason would make all the difference. Look at what it did for the Dolphins.

Look i think its fair if some think that shanahan should loosen his grip on all aspects of the organization. Im all for shanahan concentrating on more of the coaching aspects. But to hope the broncos dont make the playoffs? Why? I feel like some need to talk to a detroit lions fan or a fan of any other team that doesnt have a shot at making the playoffs. My buddy who is a raider fan called me to rub it in. But at the end he said “dude im just waiting for al davis to die so we can rebuild”. We have a chance to make the playoffs with a reallly young team. Why do other teams deserve a playoff berth over us? The AFC is full of up and down teams. Im all for making the playoffs and making a run. There is not one team in the NFL that the broncos couldnt beat on any given day. Im not ready to give up on the season for a slightly higher pick in next years draft. If we had 3 wins this year than i would be concentrating on next years draft.

im embarressed…i give up.

first round……RB!

I can’t afford $350 a seat to see a my broncos get embarrassed by one of the worst teams in the league…..what a waste!

wow that game was beyond terrible. When the only positive you can find is the return of the mile high salute then it just goes to show how bad it was.

I’m with kyle. Everyone’s to blame for this even us fans – how many stories, posts and comments were talking about playoff seeding or getting revenge on brett. Lets hope that the jets are as complacent against us as we were against the raiders.

(and c’mon people – just ignore kerry, he’ll get bored soon.)

disgusting. horrible. made me cry. YET the CHARGERS ARE LETTING US OFF THE HOOK AGAIN!!!!!!

Matt- you are right. I was pissed and bitter (I got it rubbed in my face too), don’t get me wrong, the playoffs would do a lot to build this young teams confidence. But-and this is a really big but- I think that should we make the playoffs Shanny may not be held accountable. He did much better as a coach when he onyl focused on being a head coach, not HC, OC, DC, GM. He is notorious for micro-managing. Most of theleague is structured with seperate people at those positions for a reason, it is simply too much work for one person, and it is high time Bowlen realizes that.

T-Money- Do I sense a little Dennis Green in you?

As a quick side note Al Davis is an embarrasment to the league, however, as long as he is there we can see the type of teams that will take the feild. I am not opposed to him living a few more years.

I know someone would get it

“The new can let’s in air for a smooth vent…”
“Hey, you want me to start venting without you!”

lol seen the ad?

THE CHARGERS LOST!!

Roy- I agree its too much for one person. I would not be opposed to him giving up some of his GM and DC duties. To be honest i thought Jim Bates was going to be the solution to part of this problem last year. Bringing in a GM could be a good start.

I doubt anyone scrolls down to see this but I have to get it off my chest…. Cutler has become a cry baby! I don’t even see Rivers pouting as much as Cutler. He is still young but someone has got to knock some sense in to him. He acts like Community Service is a chore. He isn’t good to fans on the street. But worse off, he bitches and complains every time a play doesn’t go our way.
I know our boy is talented and I like that. But I need a guy I can get behind and believe in. Someone needs to wake him up and let him know how lucky he is to be in Denver and to be as talented as he is to make millions as the QB of the best franchise in Denver.
As for the game…. I’m over it. Ashlie Lelie? That sickens me.

Hey OC – I scrolled down. I think you have some valid points. I just hope it is a case of a very young QB having troubles dealing with the spotlight, expectations, and the pressures that go with all that. Hopefully, he’ll get better with age. Let’s hope he does ok when the media is reporting what candy he gave out for Halloween.

the negativity is ridiculous, yeah, they lost…bad. theyre still 6-5 with a two game lead on the afc west. i don’t like seeing a loss as much as the next guy, but they happen. if anyone thought they were going to finish 12-4 or better, then they were wrong. just looks to me like theyre on pace to finish with a 10-6 record and a playoff berth. sucks, but oh well, theyre young…can’t go getting negative like this after every stinking loss.

Kerry you keep calling for Shanny’s head but who’s gonna take his place? I was wondering if any of you know where I can buy a tape of the game? My family was supposed to Tivo it and I wanna see if I made it on TV?

OC- I agree with you. I’m seeing Cutler act kind of like Lendale White did yesterday, throwing a little tantrum after the Titans lost their FIRST FRIGGIN’ GAME OF THE SEASON!!!

But I’d rather be one of Michael Vick’s former dogs than be a QB in Denver. I went through every one of Elway’s 16 years in Denver (while living in the Dakotas, of course) and the guy couldn’t sneeze without a member of the Denver media saying “bless you” because they and the public watched his every move.

Like Boise referred to the Halloween candy, I remember the SI story in ’89 when Elway claimed he was “about to suffocate” because the people of Denver wouldn’t let him breathe without watching him. Don’t get me wrong- Elway will always be my favorite Bronco of all time, but he had his tantrum moments, too.

My suggestion is that Cutler shut his mouth and play ball and the fans shut their mouths and let him play ball (even if he does suck on a regular basis). I’m guessing from 400 miles away that a bunch of crybaby fans who think Cutler should invite them to his house for a party think he’s a cocky a**hole who is too good for the general public. They can’t all be John Lynches, now can they? If he continues to not produce, he’ll be gone.

No QB is untouchable. Think Donovan McNabb will look good in Vikings purple?

Patrick- were you dressed as an empty blue seat? If so, I saw you in the second half about 50,000 times.

If we were talking Shanahan replacements I think Cowher would be at the top of the list. But I think it would be a bad move to yank Shanahan, Cutler and the offense have and will continue to benefit from having the same system year in and year out.

Maybe a reduction in power might work for Shanahan. What happens if a person can do whatever they want? Mistakes. Without someone to question his authority, he makes bad (and good) decisions. Whatever he does bad, bring someone better. I don’t want him to go, but I would like to see more of a team effort. From top to bottom.

Hey precisiontint- I would love to see a reduction in power for Shanahan. I’ve been standing behind him the whole time, but do you guys think it will happen if the last two draft classes (particularly this last one) actually pans out? Too soon to tell, but I don’t know a decent GM who would come to the Broncos right now.

Here’s an idea, whether coach or GM- GARY KUBIAK? He and Shanahan made a pretty good team in their day, and I don’t know how much longer they’ll keep him in Houston.

Any ideas?

Was Cutler affected a little by at least 3 roughing the Quarterback penalties ?Why was he off with his throws ? Nobody open———-?

Blame goes to offense, no question about it. Score the freeking ball!

Defense holds the whole first half. Beautiful goal line stand (almost another one later) Offense goes to sleep. If you expect your defense to carry you not just the first half, which they did, but the whole game, it doesn’t matter who you play, you will lose. Unless you’re the 77 Broncos, 85 Bears or 00 Ravens, you lose.

Culter continues to throw into coverage. Either he’s not finding the open man or no one is getting open. Plenty of both, I think. If no one is getting open, then it’s either poor effort, poor execution (same thing, really) or poor play calling/game planning.

Marshall gaves a pittifully sissy effort at catching a perfect pass out of fear of the safety coming over.
Sheffler stands there and watches a defender intercept the ball an arm’s reach in front of him and does NOTHING – does not lift a finger to try to protect possession of the ball. Sheffler then has not enough presense of mind or effort to get both feet in before touching out of bounds – what’s with putting the hand down??! You NEVER put a hand down on that catch. Afraid of the fall instead of securing the catch – how weak is that?

I’ve seem skinny stoner kids playing ultimate frisbee that have more determination to sell out and make a catch than Sheffler and Marshall did Sunday, to hell with the resulting fall or collision.

Field goals, schmield goals. Punt returns, schmunt returns. So that’s 13 points – how about the rest?

well lets see, first id replace Shanascam with a coach who can actually bring fire to the team. Bill Cowher would be one. he is a coach who can build the team from both sides of the ball. Mike Nolan woud be a good hire as the D-coordinator based on the fact he can build the 3-4 defense. (yes the same 3-4 defense that most of you have been screaming for since 05) but being that Shanahan is the “coach for life” of the Broncos, the only REAL solution i see happening is to fire Shanahan the GM and just have Shanahan the head coach. you know, like how it was when we actually won the SB. at the very least Shanahan needs to give up ALL front office duties and focus on coaching. but seriously Bill Cowher would bring fire and an identity to this team. Cowhers record since he took over in pittsburgh sice the year he retired has been one of the very best. with 2 SB appearances while winning one of them. Cowher coudl do the job and build a team from BOTH, not just one, sides of the ball. Shanascam can only draft offense. as most of us non-lemmings know. so now everybody dazzle me with your Shanny-lemming rhetoric about how Cowher would be such a bad choice.

you know the only problem with everyone suggesting bill cowher is that i dont think pat bowlen is a regualr visitor to this site

Not only is Bowlen probably not a visitor, but I doubt he woudl go for “The Chin.” Shannahan is a good coach. When he is only the coach. (Unlike “I-need-a-hug” kerry, I don’t hate him. Maybe Shanny rejected him at some level and he is bitter.) Bates was supposed to be part of the solution, but who is still calling the plays? Shanny. Who does not take his Scouts advice about d-players? Shanny. The point is, he is a great HC, but he needs some checks and balances put into place.
And Kerry? Why don’t you go “dazzle” Florio over at PFT with your anti-shanny views? I am sure both you will have a good time starting an anti-shanny orgy together. Little tip, if you want people to validate you ideas you probably should not present youself as such a condecending prick.

The loss to the Raiders really came down to three plays: 1) the return TD, 2) the Cutler pick deep in Denver territory, and 3) the Hillis fumble inside the 5. That’s a 21 point swing. Otherwise, we were marching up and down the field before we started calling consecutive Fly routes and draw plays. That killed the O-production…and killed the game.

I thing about this team this year is that the wins completely depend on the offensive production during the game. If the Broncos don’t put up 24+ points, they lose. That’s a lot of pressure to put on the offense. And since the offense is really just a passing offense right now, that’s a whole lot of pressure to put on young Cutler, Marshall, Royal, and Scheffler. They have to keep their cool when the stuff hits the fan. It’s really no mystery why our team is so completely inconsistent. Without a defensive backbone, we’re really stuck depending on (passing) offensive production.

That said, I’m still pretty impressed with the run defense the last two games. People are at least committing to stopping the run (although “wrapping up” is a very loosely held standard in Denver).

Im getting sick of even coming to this site, I used to love it, but that was before kerry showed up, It used to be a site were people would come and show both love and hate for the Broncos, people would through down the smack on shanny, or marshal or whoever and then we would debate it, but now I come one here and this A$% H#&e just bashes the people on this site, all of carp about drinking cool aid and whatever, dude i know you grew up and couldn’t be the bully at the school yard any more, but that don’t mean you gotta bring your garbage here, if you wanna logically slam the Broncos that’s fine, but enough of slamming the other fans, we all have our opinion and they are just as valid as yours, I have read your posts and trust me, you are not the NFL’s greatest mind, and neither am I or anyone else on this site, we all just come here to talk Broncos and have fun. If you can do that then by all means lets keep the convo rolin. but if you cant, then may i suggest the Denver Post or the Rocky Mountain News. cause the kind of hate that’s been flowin with you is really common play over there. I’m not telling you to piss off, but seriously if you cant come on here like a normal person and talk without slamin every person who tries to talk to you on this blog, then, well… piss off

AMEN AND I SECOND THE MOTION, BUCKY!!!

Finally…we can all agree on something (including you Mr. Kerry) Shanahan has got to relinquish some of his power. Will that happen? I am going to say there is a 5% chance he will give up his GM duties. He is a terrific coach, but he is not the know-all-end-all of NFL football. I am still proud of this team and what they have accomplished with everything that has gone against them.

This game still hurts! I agree linmoo this would of been a totally different game if Hillis didn’t fumble. But the fact is he did and we lost but it not as bad as it could of been if san diego would of won. Bucky I would have to totally agree with you and would be the first one to say I am at fault at barking back at kerry.Kerry we all have our opinions and havethe right to voice them,but to each their own.All I care about is the broncos winning games and would agree that Shanny needs to scale down his duties. I sure miss gary kubiak calling plays as soon as he left it hasn’t been the same.I don’t think we are too far away from having a really good team we need a good defense mind and give them some time to get the players they need in their system.Lets get back to some good debates about the broncos and stop this foolishness.

Socal Den Fan, I agree with you on the Gary Kubiak not being there. The moment I heard he had a head coaching job I was happy for him but disappointed for the broncos. With any luck the Texans will keep loosing and he will get fired so the Broncos can pick him back up.

Hey brothers and sisters- no one will probably scroll down this far, but I just saw that the Redskins are releasing Shaun Alexander to clear up roster space. Anyone out there think he’s worth signing for the rest of the year? Is he too beat up or is his price too high? Maybe this is wishful thinking, but he was pretty talented not too long ago.

I don’t think we would go after him. I think we are set with what we have in hillis pope and bell.

Shanahan wont give up his duties in the front office although it would be in the best interest for the team. Shanahan is becoming exactly like Dan Reeves was. he has to have all the control and power and Bowlen wont stop him. its ridiculous. a new GM/VP is needed and Shanahan needs to be sent straight out of the front office. otherwise this team will continue its long stretch of mediocrity. we are really lucky the Chargers suck so bad. a playoff appearance by default. yeah Shanahan really earned that one.