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View Full Version : LINCICOME: Bad defense has become biggest offense by Broncos



ambiguous
09-24-2008, 01:44 PM
The simple solution to all football problems is to change the quarterback. Failing that, fire the coach.

If only . . .

Neither of those apply to the Broncos since Jay Cutler is the future and Mike Shanahan is the foundation. And maybe not even the problems part of the equation applies since it is impossible to improve on an undefeated record.

This should not be the dilemma it obviously is because no crisis caused by the defense has yet been unhandled by the offense.

The offense rolls the rock up the hill, the defense pushes it back down, the offense stops it and rolls it back up, smiling and saying we can keep this up as long as you can.

And maybe they can. The Indianapolis Colts won the Super Bowl with a defense made up of traffic cones and turnstiles, allowing 22.5 points a game, not quite the 28 the Broncos are giving up, but something to stoop for.

The Broncos themselves won a Super Bowl giving up nearly 20 a game, so all that may matter is if the whiz can keep up with bang.

In the general delight of Cutler confirming himself and Brandon Marshall working the other end of the tether, a renovated offensive line better than it has any right to be and the running game a meld of competence, it is painless to whistle past the rubble.

Oh, there are the usual declarations of awareness, that things must get better between scores, that time when the Broncos are giving up touchdowns and when the Broncos are getting some of their own.

But it is not heartfelt, rather like a bunch of heirs sitting around a sick bed assuring the patron they hope he gets better.

There is a dishonesty there, not so much conviction as unconcern, that the problem will be fixed sooner or later, and later is soon enough since sooner has worked out just swell.

In a strange way, the brilliance of the Broncos offense has not helped the defense because there has been no punishment for its flaws, no penalty for playing poorly.

Until the defense must take the blame and not just get a broad wink and a sneer, the urgency to do better will be less than it should be.

The simple answer may be that the players on defense just are not good enough. They still remain a hodgepodge of failures from elsewhere and homegrown disappointments.

The two players of any real pedigree are cornerback Champ Bailey and linebacker D.J. Williams, and that leaves a line that measures its success by the inability of the secondary to defend the pass, and somewhere in the middle linebackers asked to make of the deficiencies of both.

Still, there is a sense of immunity from what may happen next week or the week after, whenever it all catches up to the Broncos.

For now, they are playing with found money and until it is spent, why worry?

Until actual agony occurs, that is, a game is lost or several games, the theme is to make do, to let the bright light of acclaim for the offense keep the defense there in the shadows.

If it all works out, if at the end there is a Super Bowl or even a playoff win, at that time the defense may be asked to step out and take a bow. And the master of ceremonies can say, oh, I didn't see you back there.

Critical moments the defense has stood out - a fumble recovery here, a goal-line stand there, an interception stolen when the replay camera is off - only mask the deficiencies. Standing up to the moment is fine, but the moment would be unnecessary if the defense did its job in the first place.

And it really matters not because there is nearly nothing that can be done about it. It is nearly impossible to alter the nature of a defense on the fly. No one change, such as the quarterback, will shake things up. Promotions, demotions, schemes, all of it is just redecorating a shabby room.

The usual Broncos solution to this recurring dilemma is to fire the coordinator, always a face-saving gesture and always too late.

Bad defenses tend to remain bad defenses throughout a season. Good defenses can go bad - the Broncos are proof of that - but not the other way around.

So, this is pretty much how it will be, and no amount of tinkering will change it. Not only can't you make a silk purse out of a sow's ear, you can't make it play pass defense either.

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2008/sep/23/lincicome-bad-defense-has-become-biggest-offense/?partner=RSS