• Kyle Orton and Brian Dawkins just don’t know what it means to play in Oaktown.  [DenverBroncos.com]
• But the Broncos see the tape – this Raiders team is tough.  [Colorado Springs Gazette]
• Broncos aren’t buying into the 2-0 hype.  “It’s two games,” Dawkins said.  “If we don’t come out to play this week, we’ll be 2-1.”  [CSG]
• Brandon Marshall says he’s happy, knows the playbook, and ready to ball.  [Associated Press]
• Some more love for Orton in Denver.  [Denver Post]

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

My power rankings are fittingly named the ‘Tentative Ten’ because every week it’s subject to check, and erratically at that.

1. New York Giants

What a defensive line. Chris Canty is injured too. Losing Justin Tuck for the game definitely hurt them but he’ll be back.  The secondary is much better than I thought it would be at four picks so far, Cory Webster is doing great especially while Aaron Ross is hurt. Safety Kenny Phillips is really blossoming as well. Their Blitzing will kill them at times causing them to give up big plays. Their defense is such an anomaly, stout at times but they tend to give up the big play allowing 6.7 yards a rush.

Eli Manning is looking like his brother with the help of the young Mario Manningham and the emerging Steve Smith. They’re passing attack should be even more dangerous when Hakeem Nicks returns. The running game is still there, Brandon Jacobs will eat your family and Ahmad Bradshaw is a great change of pace back. The offense rules that clock averaging 35:28 minutes for T.O.P. The key to this Giants team is let the other team shoot itself in the thigh foot instead of your own. Manning is consistent and the defense has already scored two defensive touchdowns.

Glaring Stat: Everyone was questioning the Giant’s passing personnel while hailing the running game at beginning of the season. Now they average 8.7 yards a pass and only 3.5 yards a rush.

2. New Orleans Saints Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Denver Broncos' Knowshon Moreno (27) and Correll Buckhalter (28) celebrate Buckhalter's fourth-quarter touchdown against the Cleveland Browns during an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 20, 2009, in Denver. Denver beat Cleveland 27-6. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey )

HEAD COACH JOSH McDANIELS

On his first Broncos-Raiders game

“It is our first division game. We are excited about starting that process here. Against the Raiders, there certainly have been a lot of great games over the course of the years. I have watched them from afar, but it will be great to be a part of that. (Oakland) is a great atmosphere to play in. I have played there a few times in my career here in the NFL. The fans are phenomenal there—loud—and they make life tough. It will be fun. It will be a fun challenge. It is an exciting place to play. It certainly is a challenge to go there and win against a good football team. We will be hard at work at it this week.”

On the Broncos-Raiders rivalry

“It means a lot to us. They are our—if you want to call them archrival or what you want to categorize them as—but we get to play them twice a year. I think there are a lot of players on our team that are very familiar with their players. Sure, that is the same on their sideline and then their coaching staff. We have got a guy or two from that organization here now. It is special when you get to play these division games early in the year on the road against a team that historically, you are no supposed to like. We know that, and they know it. It will be exciting for us to go there and meet the challenge.”

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Kyle Orton throws a pass vs. Cleveland. (REUTERS/Mark Leffingwell)

The Denver Broncos offense and Kyle Orton have been much-maligned through two weeks of the season, but some interesting stats suggest things aren’t quite so bad. Consider:

• Orton is the only quarterback in the NFL with at least 50 attempts and no interceptions.
• In fact, the Broncos offense is the only unit in the league yet to commit a turnover.
• Thinking Orton is the master of the dink-and-dunk? Think again. Orton ranks second in the NFL in 25+ yard completions (ahead of scoreboard blazer Drew Brees and division rival Philip Rivers).
• As we pointed out in the DL, Orton’s Week 2 performance puts him 6th in DYAR, a better measurement of the value of each throw based on down and distance.
• Broncos offense ranks 8th in the league in yards. If Matt Prater doesn’t miss two windy field goals Sunday, the scoring offense ranks 11th.

Are things perfect? Of course not — scoring 26 points in seven quarters of football certainly indicates there are problems. But the offense doesn’t quite reflect the gloomy picture some fans are painting.

Need more convincing? Enjoy these fantastic Week 2 highlights, after the jump. Click here to read the rest of this entry »

• Audio above: Josh McDaniels appears on the Myers and Hartman Show.  [KXPS 1010]
• Through two weeks, the Broncos rank 7th in DVOA.  The rest of the AFC West is in the 20’s.  [Football Outsiders]
• Kyle Orton‘s week 2 performance ranked him 6th in DYAR, again tops in the division.  [FO]
• Broncos play dodgeball at the Boys and Girls Club.  I don’t know if I’d be thrilled or terrified at the thought of 325-lb. Ryan Clady taking out his aggression on me.  [DenverBroncos.com]
• Just as big a change as moving to the 3-4 scheme is the attitude and cultural adjustment that’s come with it. [Denver Post]

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

JaMarcus Russell (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

Today we bring you a second-hand scouting report on the Oakland Raiders, and the key to defeating Tom Cable‘s group of go-getters. Mighty wisdom from Yahoo’s MJD.

A word of advice to teams playing the Raiders: Pressure JaMarcus Russell, but try to avoid hitting JaMarcus Russell. If you must do so, do so gingerly, as if you had to tackle your grandmother.

Do not go low on him. Do not go at the head, and do not go at the knees. Do everything you can to keep JaMarcus Russell upright and in the game. He is your key to victory. He was hobbled late in the game against the Chargers, and I feared that Bruce Gradkowski would come in and improve the offense by about 75%. He was hobbled late in the Chiefs game, and I had similar thoughts.

His irrational clinging to JaMarcus Russell as a starter is the one thing that Tom Cable (or, perhaps, some crazy old man who’s telling Tom Cable what to do) is doing wrong in Oakland. Exploit it, and keep JaMarcus healthy.

So in other words, keep all the bacon cheeseburgers away from the heavy machinery. Got it.

Filling your A Gap – Remnants from Week 2 [Shutdown Corner]

Good evening Broncos Nation, how does it feel to be in sole possession of first place in the AFC West? It’s been two days. Hows it feel? Feels great! Makes it easy to breathe this morning! Feels like a song!

Makes me want to open up every window in the apartment! Feels good! Feels maybe too good to be true.

Our supposed “hard as hell” schedule starts week four after Oakland. A schedule that includes the 1-1 Cowboys, the 1-1 Patriots, the 1-1 Chargers and the 1-1 Steelers. I’m not saying what you think I’m saying, all I’m saying is they’ve each lost a game. They are beatable. Something to remember, especially on this day, a day when the undefeated Denver Broncos lead the division.

We too are beatable. It feels good now, to say “HA!” to all the naysayers, to shove it in John Clayton’s 3-13 predicting face, and that’s always enjoyable isn’t? Shoving stuff in other peoples faces? So, let’s enjoy it. Just not too much. Because, as my good friends –
Jeff: “They might be the worst run organization in the NFL, including the Raiders”. He wants you to read this.
Tom: “They’re despicable”.
JD: “They might go 0-16”.
– said of their beloved Brownies, they stink. Click on it! Click here to read the rest of this entry »

When the Broncos win, the BT Staffers give out game balls! When they lose we weep our pitiful lives away… No weeping this week after a 27-6 thumping of the Browns. Take it away fellas!

Game Ball: Elvis Dumervil. FOUR SACKS. That man has truly been helped by his transition to OLB. He was unstoppable and if he can keep this up he can have a killer sack total this season. And while the whole defense deserves game balls aplenty, he really stood out as a force today. – E. Halsey Miles

Game Ball: Ryan Clady. He did a tremendous job in pass protection as well as being the springboard for a myriad of runs by Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter that ended up positively for the Broncos. There is no doubt he is one of the best position players in all of football. – Christopher D. Hart

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

San Diego Chargers head coach Norv Turner speaks at a July news conference. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

San Diego Chargers Head Coach Norv Turner and I have never really seen eye-to-eye. I can’t quite put my finger on why, but perhaps it has something to do with him coaching two of my least favorite franchises in all of sports in this decade.

Let’s let bygones be bygones. After all, his comments on Monday make it clear that Norvy and I are finally on the same page:

“I don’t think right now we (the Chargers) are as good as you that cover us think or expect us to be; I don’t think we’re as good as what our fans want us to be,” Turner said Monday at the start of his weekly news conference. “But I believe we can get there. We’ve got a lot of work to get there.”

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

DrewLitton.com

• Must-watch video of Shannon Sharpe‘s emotional induction into the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame Sunday.  [DenverBroncos.com]
• Gotta love the big win to go with it.  [DrewLitton.com]
• A look beyond the surface at Brian Dawkins, both spiritual and fierce.  [Colorado Springs Gazette]
• Let’s not get ahead of ourselves… after all, this is the third season in a row where the Broncos have started 2-0. [Denver Post]
• Well, this guy’s certainly not buying in. [Latest Word]
• But a lot fans are. [DPO]
• New super-upgraded comments on BroncoTalk!  More information, enjoy!  [BroncoTalk]

Click here to read the rest of this entry »