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View Full Version : The Dust Has Settled, and the Sun has Set..



MasterShake
12-29-2008, 06:28 PM
Yes fellow Bronco fans, the dust has settled and the sun has set on the 2008 Denver Broncos. One could not help getting caught up in the hype after the teams fast start, and the orange colored glasses went on quickly through Broncos Country and beyond.

Then, in the bowels of Arrowhead stadium a foreshadowing of sorts came in like a swift kick to the groin. After a few early turnovers this talented team showed that it was also something else- very young. Seemingly surprised that they were no longer the invincible offensive powerhouse of the first 3 weeks, panic set in and more mistakes were made. Whereas a more veteran group would have circled the wagons and calmed down, Denver came out with the patience of a 5 year old child on Cola and Sugar on Christmas morning. The result of this cavalier play? A loss to what would turn out to be one of the worse teams in the league.

Ok, so maybe KC was just an illusion. Next up was Tampa Bay who had been eating QB's for lunch and feasting on turnovers. Jay Cutler would have to put the gun in the holster for this one, and he did. In one of the better performances of the year, the Broncos beat what was at the time a very hot Bucs team.

Then, injuries and expectations overshadowed this teams true potential. The next few weeks would see a home loss to the dismal Jaguars, a monday night melt-down in New England, and a surprising home loss after a bye week to the Wildcat happy Dolphins. The season was starting to spiral downward at the worst possible time just before a two game away stance.

But, out of the comfy confines of Invesco Field the Broncos seemed more at home. A gutsy come from behind win in Cleveland and the best showing of the year against Atlanta would puff up the chests of Broncos fans everywhere. With the rest of the division withering behind the Broncos were in the drivers seat to the playoffs. But then a speedbump came out of nowhere called the Oakland Raiders and knocked the Broncos back to Earth as commentators from around the country whispered, "any given sunday".

A road win against what in retrospect was a declining Jets team would be the last happy moments for Broncos fans. A combination of youth, injuries, and a spoiler happy Bills team (and a Chiefs team that could not finish a game to save its life) led to a worst case scenario against the Chargers.

The Broncos were not just defeated at Qualcomm stadium, they were put out of there misery. Looking back, this team had no business even getting to 8-8 but they did. Also, the Chargers proved that they should have been much better then their record indicated. I can't believe I just typed that, but they are a great team.

Despite all of this, I will go on record and say that Denver had a good year despite itself. The offense alone gave this team 3-4 wins more than it should have, and the defense needs but to be a mediocre one for us to have success in the future. The 2008 Denver Broncos are a team that outplayed its limitations, and to me that is the definition of success.

When San Diego beat us last night, they knocked my orange colored glasses off and made me realize this was not a good team by any means. A playoff birth would have been a playoff death against any team we played. Though I would have loved just one more week of my beloved Broncos, the quicker we can move to next season and get healthy the better.

New Years will be here soon, and I can't help but feel optimistic about 2009. Our schedule will surely test us and hopefully we will rise to the occasion. Until then fellow Broncomaniacs, remember that no matter how bad things get the sunset will always be orange, and the skies will always be blue. San Diego may have the moment, but I believe we have the future. May the AFC West rise again, and may the Broncos rise to the top once more. This is MasterShake (aka Chad) saying peace to all my fellow fans, and good luck to whoever has made the playoffs this season.

I love every minute of being a Broncos fan, even when the minutes seem like years. I will be back next September with dreams of a perfect season. So until my dreams are crushed or redeemed again, GO BRONCOS!

Dreadnought
12-29-2008, 07:09 PM
What Shake said - brilliantly, too if I may say so.

MasterShake
12-29-2008, 07:12 PM
What Shake said - brilliantly, too if I may say so.

Thanks Dread. I am pretty Brilliant. And modest. Painfully modest. :D

Dreadnought
12-29-2008, 07:15 PM
Thanks Dread. I am pretty Brilliant. And modest. Painfully modest. :D

Its funny - a guy who can be as Brilliant as you often are then gets downright delusional and pretty dim-witted at other times. Kind of like the Broncos. At any rate, you were brilliant this time. :beer:

MasterShake
12-29-2008, 07:17 PM
Its funny - a guy who can be as Brilliant as you often are then gets downright delusional and pretty dim-witted at other times. Kind of like the Broncos. At any rate, you were brilliant this time. :beer:

Hey, don't slight me because of who I voted for. :D

Dreadnought
12-29-2008, 07:20 PM
Hey, don't slight me because of who I voted for. :D

Now who brought Politics into this, Shake? I submit you can be dopey outside of Politics too! I know I can :lol:

MasterShake
12-29-2008, 07:54 PM
Now who brought Politics into this, Shake? I submit you can be dopey outside of Politics too! I know I can :lol:

Hey, you can't fault me for jumping to conclusions. Socialized Healthcare for everyone! :laugh:

honz
12-29-2008, 08:15 PM
Great post. I really don't think we choked the season away. We simply were never that good to begin with. I think we played over our heads a bit and were able to pull out some games that we probably shouldn't have won...mostly the SD, NO, and Browns games.

I think our first 4 wins were by 1,2,3,or 4 points. We kept finding ways to pull out close games simply because we had the ball last, but with a defense as bad as ours it was bound to catch up with us eventually. Without a consistent running game, our offense simply wasn't able to keep up with the amount of points our horrid D was giving up.

I think this team has a great core to build around on offense (actually the offense is already built IMO), but we have to find some way to stick at least a mediocre defense out there next season. We need to get a more consistent running game going next year as well, but I think that will take care of itself if we can just keep some RBs healthy next year. This team is still young and I think we are definitely on the rise...we should e quite a bit better next year if we can just address some (okay, a lot of) issues on defense.