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View Full Version : A Salute to our "Forgottens"



artie_dale
12-17-2011, 09:16 AM
I just wanted to point out that with all the Tebow & Von Miller attention going on, that D.J. Williams, Brian Dawkins, Champ Bailey, and Andre Goodman have been playing some stellar defense. Please give props to anyone I left out.

I remember against Miami, Dawkins made some key TD saving tackles and was probably my game MVP that day.

catfish
12-17-2011, 09:18 AM
The whole team has been playing as a single unit...the key in any team sport IMO. They all deserve credit

artie_dale
12-17-2011, 09:31 AM
The whole team has been playing as a single unit...the key in any team sport IMO. They all deserve credit

no kidding?

I thought it'd be nice to reflect on key plays that other players contributed to. I agree with you 100%, but to hear about someone else gettig props would be a breath of fresh air.

catfish
12-17-2011, 09:38 AM
no kidding?

I thought it'd be nice to reflect on key plays that other players contributed to. I agree with you 100%, but to hear about someone else gettig props would be a breath of fresh air.

I was agreeing with you...props to the whole team...hope you didn't misunderstand

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:47 AM
colquitt and the entire punt coverage team have cured my ulcers.

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:48 AM
The Oline should see a revival of the old NIKE commercial thaqt had our guys jumping a wall to take on the bulls of pamplona

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:50 AM
willis mcgehhee, or "WILLY-MAC" as I like to cal;l him, is performing every gfame, burning up yards and minutes, making first downs, moving chains, keeping the opponent on the sidelines and giving the opposition something to worry about, besides you know who.

artie_dale
12-17-2011, 09:51 AM
colquitt and the entire punt coverage team have cured my ulcers.

Ah yes Zam, Colquit & Prater deserve big salutes.

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:52 AM
Prater, not unlike you know who, he has had some sub par moments in the middle of games but he has been CLUTCH when it counts! the ENTIRE FG teAM deserves recognition, long snapper, holder 9colquitt) and the guys that block up front.

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:54 AM
Our offernsive co-ordinator has made great ADJUSTEMENTS every week , not knowing how each opponent will play our style of offense, he must adjust as the game progresses.
THIS is the most rational rerason why we start slow and finish strong on offense.

BroncoNut
12-17-2011, 09:55 AM
I really like DJ Williams in the open field.

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:56 AM
MORENO is doing an outstanding job standing on the sidelines allowing our real RBs to make contributions.

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 09:58 AM
Ive always liked DJ since he was a rookie and felt he was always being mis-used with each new DC that showed up each new season.
I hope he gets a chance 1on 1 with gronk to show the world what he does best !

Nomad
12-17-2011, 11:27 AM
Sounds like a team effort to me......BRONCOS gelling together, stepping up when needed, something we haven't seen in a while. I hope they show up Sunday and prove my pessimism about beating the Patriots wrong.

BORDERLINE
12-17-2011, 11:28 AM
The Oline should see a revival of the old NIKE commercial thaqt had our guys jumping a wall to take on the bulls of pamplona

Thanks for reminding me of this. Had not seen it in forever what a great commercial.:salute:

Joel
12-17-2011, 11:54 AM
I just wanted to point out that with all the Tebow & Von Miller attention going on, that D.J. Williams, Brian Dawkins, Champ Bailey, and Andre Goodman have been playing some stellar defense. Please give props to anyone I left out.

I remember against Miami, Dawkins made some key TD saving tackles and was probably my game MVP that day.
Champ is still so scary good at 33 no QB in his right mind wants to go at him, so he's easy to forget. Yet he still rarely allows any teams best WR more than a couple catches a game, usually for short yardage, and remains a tackling demon whether against his man or coming off him to smack down someone elses guy. He may not be able to drop his man once the balls in the air, cross the field and get the pick like he did a few years ago, but when the worst thing you can say about a 33 year old starting CB going against HUGE WRs in a passers League is "he's no longer quite as superhuman," well, that's still pretty amazing. :salute:

Dawkins is also not as fast as years past, but that's to be expected when you've played safety longer than anyone in NFL history. He's still a devastating tackler in the running game and blitzing--all 210 lbs. of him. He and Champ bring a desperately needed high level of leadership to the secondary, and just being around two smart, experienced quick witted tackling machines like them should make our horde or rookie DBs a lot better long after we've lost the benefits of the perennial Pro Bowlers. :salute:

DJ... I couldn't say enough good things about this guy throughout his fine career (exclusively played in Denver,) and he's thrived since returning to his natural position. Last week he exceeded even the high standard set in his previous games this season, forcing Barber out of bounds at the end to save the game after already picking up as many sacks as Doom and Miller COMBINED. In between all he did was fly to the ball like he always does and wrap up the unfortunate individuals who encountered him. Amazing what playing the position you were born for instead of trying to be an undersized Sam or Mike can do (not to mention 3-4 ILB, though that's not such a stretch for him.) Having saved the best for last in this group, I can only say DJ has earned a Mile High Salute eight years running, leading the team in tackles as often as not despite playing 4 different positions under three coaches, but this year he's set a new standard of excellence for himself. :salute:

colquitt and the entire punt coverage team have cured my ulcers.
Mile High air certainly helps him and Prater, but they'd both be fine kickers at sea level. I particularly like the fact Colquitt doesn't just punt it deep, but gives the coverage team the hang time to make the tackle, down it or force a fair catch: Of Colquitts 82 punts this year, exactly half weren't returned at all, despite 26 of them going inside the 20. When they have been returned, teams are averaging about 4.7 yards, a tribute to both our punter and our coverage units (a welcome change for the latter, which had been very bad for a long time.) Meanwhile, he's averaging 47.7 yards per kick, all of which adds up for 41.5 yard net.

For those familiar with expected points, that means as long as we gain 8.5+ yards per drive we come out ahead punting. As long as we have Colquitt and Prater, it is LITERALLY true that any drive ending with a kick improves our chance of victory. The team site notes that

Until the final three drives of the game, the Broncos average starting field position was their own 45-yard line. They had five drives start on the Jets' side of the field.
They (rightly) give the D a lot of credit for that, but Colquitt and the coverage unit deserves a lot as well. :salute:

willis mcgehhee, or "WILLY-MAC" as I like to cal;l him, is performing every gfame, burning up yards and minutes, making first downs, moving chains, keeping the opponent on the sidelines and giving the opposition something to worry about, besides you know who.
I'll admit I was disappointed, even a bit dismayed, when I heard we'd signed McGahee, because he always seemed like a plodding power runner who moves piles, breaks tackles and converts short yardage but lacked the speed or elusiveness to make guys miss or be a break away threat. Seldom have I been as pleased to be so wrong; his 4 TDs may not be too impressive, but his 4.6 YPA is rather satisfying, and he showed plenty of breakaway speed as he left Raiders diving for air in a 60 yd TD run that helped seal the game. Despite Tebow rushing for 500 yards, McGahee has another 920 of his own, and if he doesn't go >1000 against NE he'll probably do it against Buffalo. All of that despite battling nagging injuries all year. Thanks for proving me wrong, Willis, and my humblest apologies for doubting you. :salute:

Chris Kuper is easily our best guard, despite being the lightest, which is probably why he was the only one beside Clady to survive McDumbass' purge line purge. Were Clady healthy and playing the same side we could flat run over a lot of teams and NO ONE would get to Tebow blitzing. Drafted as zone blockers and excelling at it from Day One, these two are nonetheless our best blockers in Foxs power running scheme (though it still looks a lot like zone at times.) The veteran Kuper's a team captain for a reason, and Clady's a Pro Bowler for a reason; the latter hasn't played as well this year, but he's also been battling a knee injury all season, which is crippling for a tackle forced to pivot outside to stop an opponents best blitzing end on every play. I look forward to seeing him healthy and dominating this year, but both these guys remain the class of Broncos blocking. :salute:

I like the little I've seen from Jeremiah Johnson, too; he wasn't too impressive against the Jets, but had a couple nice runs against Chicagos fine run D, and has averaged about 8 yards on 5 catches. Far more importantly, however, on an OT pass to (IIRC) Thomas, his cutting Brian Urlachers legs from beneath him was the ONLY reason Tebow threw a first down instead of eating a sack (in fact, Urlacher picked himself up off the ground and STILL got to Tebow right after the ball was released; that dude's scary and I'm glad we won't see him again this season.) If he can be a consistent running or passing threat, blocking like that is what I look for in an every down back who could help spell McGahee and maybe offer a change of pace with some speed and moves of his own. Meanwhile, he helped keep the game alive last week, and little known or regarded Broncos who've done that is the whole idea in this thread, right? Well done. :salute:

pikkiwoki
12-17-2011, 11:59 AM
No love for Chris Harris?

SoCalImport
12-17-2011, 12:23 PM
I'll give a shout out to Ryan McBean for playing solidly. How he wasn't cut at some point in the past I don't know. He used to look lost out there. This season he's got Bunkley next to him and between the two of them they are holding their gaps and giving the LBrs opportunities.

jhildebrand
12-17-2011, 12:38 PM
I just wanted to point out that with all the Tebow & Von Miller attention going on, that D.J. Williams, Brian Dawkins, Champ Bailey, and Andre Goodman have been playing some stellar defense. Please give props to anyone I left out.

I remember against Miami, Dawkins made some key TD saving tackles and was probably my game MVP that day.

This is a great thread. I am so tired of all these Von Miller fans who are only here because of Miller. :tsk:

artie_dale
12-17-2011, 12:39 PM
@ Joel - excellent post. I feel the same way about D.J. He's been absolutely money this year. I watched the last game again today (consolidated version) and D.J. was very effective in halting Chicago offense. I also noticed that Goodman has been tackling better, just like Champ. Good to see these guys learning eachothers techiques.

pnbronco
12-17-2011, 01:03 PM
Marcus Thomas has been doing a good job. He had a very serious injury at the beginning of the season and as he has healed I feel like he has gotten stronger and stronger.

A big shout out to Joe Mays. Man I would not want to be on the other end of one of those hits.

I think Dawkins really got into Rivers head in SD. It seemed like after he crushed him that one time whenever Dawks was close Rivers seemed to panic....made me smile big time.......:D

Also a shout out to Mario Haggan. Who has stayed strong on special teams and when called up did a great job. He is the textbook of team player.

DJ has been a tackling machine and come up with plays when we have needed him the most.

Woodyard has just done his job and has the most tackles or 2nd most on this team and never complains about anything. He also got the Walter Peyton award this last week for all the work he does in the community. Who BTW stripped the ball when the The Bears were in field goal range.

Goodman has come up with picks when we have just needed them the most. How can you not love that.

I just love Doom and all that he brings to our team. It's taken some time for him to heal and get back into his old form, but I've seen more and more of it each week.

Champ is still Champ....:salute:

Ravage!!!
12-17-2011, 01:09 PM
The Oline should see a revival of the old NIKE commercial thaqt had our guys jumping a wall to take on the bulls of pamplona

Man.. I loved that commercial! I forgot all about it

Ravage!!!
12-17-2011, 01:11 PM
@ Joel - excellent post. I feel the same way about D.J. He's been absolutely money this year. I watched the last game again today (consolidated version) and D.J. was very effective in halting Chicago offense. I also noticed that Goodman has been tackling better, just like Champ. Good to see these guys learning eachothers techiques.

Its funny. Its been in "vogue" to put DJ down and insult him on this message board. He's always been solid player. Great to see him get some sacks in Chicago.

Ravage!!!
12-17-2011, 01:14 PM
The Oline should see a revival of the old NIKE commercial thaqt had our guys jumping a wall to take on the bulls of pamplona

anyone know where to find this on youtube?

Nomad
12-17-2011, 01:17 PM
anyone know where to find this on youtube?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEiW-8KPC98

Joel
12-17-2011, 02:09 PM
No love for Chris Harris?
Actually, yeah, good catch; he's the one young guy from whom I'm hopeful of big things in our secondary.

This is a great thread. I am so tired of all these Von Miller fans who are only here because of Miller. :tsk:
Darned Aggies; insufferable, they are. If we draft Tannehill consider my account retired. ;)

Woodyard has just done his job and has the most tackles or 2nd most on this team and never complains about anything. He also got the Walter Peyton award this last week for all the work he does in the community. Who BTW stripped the ball when the The Bears were in field goal range.
Sometimes I can't tell if Woodyard is our backup Will, or more like our backup DJ. :lol: Might be worth hunting up a great NT and going back to a 3-4 just to find a way to get them both on the field at once. :tongue:

Chef Zambini
12-17-2011, 02:34 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEiW-8KPC98awesome! made my wekend...so far !

artie_dale
12-17-2011, 02:39 PM
This is a great thread. I am so tired of all these Von Miller fans who are only here because of Miller. :tsk:

Ha ha. I only mentioned Von because he too has been a hot topic. Not saying him or Tebow aren't worth talking about, but thought it a good idea to open something up for the rest of the team.

I will say, Von Miller is the only Bronco on my FFB team. I love'em and am glad we have'em.

spikerman
12-17-2011, 02:48 PM
I think Spencer Larsen has been doing a real nice job of opening holes for McGahee.

artie_dale
12-17-2011, 02:50 PM
Let's not forget that Brady Quinn did get the "Best Boyfriend Award" from his girlfriend. I'm so glad Kyle Orton is gone. Hopefully he stays healthy enought to play against Tebow in Week 17.

artie_dale
12-17-2011, 02:52 PM
I was agreeing with you...props to the whole team...hope you didn't misunderstand

I did (misunderstand), but that's my own fault. So no worries. ;)

camdisco24
12-17-2011, 06:52 PM
Dennis Allen.

Game preparation and great halftime adjustments have made this D a true force to be reckoned with.

I can't say enough about McGahee either. What a great surprise.

Also, I want D. Thomas to keep showing signs of being a WR stud. The drops last week were horrible, but I really think this kid can be something special if he can stay healthy.

artie_dale
12-18-2011, 02:17 AM
Dennis Allen.

Game preparation and great halftime adjustments have made this D a true force to be reckoned with.

I can't say enough about McGahee either. What a great surprise.

Also, I want D. Thomas to keep showing signs of being a WR stud. The drops last week were horrible, but I really think this kid can be something special if he can stay healthy.

Yes, the D as a whole has been my personal MVP. And D. Thomas has looked strong during some receptions, fighting for extra yards and what not. Reminded me of B. Marshall. I hope Thomas can stay healthy and doesn't turn into the head-case B. Marshall was/is.

pikkiwoki
12-19-2011, 09:47 AM
Shout out to Elvis.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O-xHeL27zL4/Tu9NJlwE80I/AAAAAAAAAC8/ZXp1dhE05lU/s1600/dumervil+brady.gif

Ouch! That's gonna leave a mark. :marchmellow:

catfish
12-19-2011, 09:47 AM
Shout out to Elvis.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-O-xHeL27zL4/Tu9NJlwE80I/AAAAAAAAAC8/ZXp1dhE05lU/s1600/dumervil+brady.gif

Ouch! That's gonna leave a mark. :marchmellow:

Damn straight! I was amazed Brady got up after that

Dzone
12-19-2011, 10:39 AM
I was thinking this was going to be a thread about the wounded vets from the Afghanistan /Iraq war. They are our societies "Forgottens":salute::salute::salute::salute:

Joel
12-19-2011, 10:47 AM
I was thinking this was going to be a thread about the wounded vets from the Afghanistan /Iraq war. They are our societies "Forgottens":salute::salute::salute::salute:
A valid point, but that wouldn't be in "Broncos Talk." ;)