RunYouOver
09-09-2009, 05:37 PM
With the latest twist in the Marshall story (now we're talking about keeping him here long term), I was curious to ask; who's totally confused?
Things that have happened:
--Going into our game against Buffalo last year, we all knew we would be in the playoffs, Shanny had redone the offense, and although it was underachieving, we all knew how explosive it could be. The playoffs could be very fun, we could lose to anyone, but at the same time, we could beat anyone.
--I don't know if this was ever confirmed, but I think Jay Cutler is now on the Bears, and Shanny's out playing golf.
--Things were not looking good, until Marshall cheered us up by telling us he was unhappy with his contract, and soon after, that he wanted to be traded. Between that and the fact that Kyle Orton was now our QB, we expected the worst.
--We lose our first 3 preseason games, and fans are ready to call this the worst season ever.
--Marshall does a 360, talks to Rod Smith, works hard in practice, and now we could be looking to extend him.
Things to consider:
--Are we REALLY not talking to the Jets anymore about a deal?
--Could the Marshall contract be a precursor to a Marshall trade?
--Is he really that much better, or are we making him appear better to up his trade value
--If he IS that much better, how long until he starts trouble again? 1 game? 8 games? Next year? Never again?
--What if this finally knocked sense into him, and he becomes a positive team figure?
Things that happened with Orton
--Everyone knows he went 21-12 for Chicago
--Most people know he had below-average targets at WR
--Most people believe that the defense was the entire reason he had a winning record at all, and that could very well be true. But the defense WAS getting a little older, still above league average though.
--Not nearly as many people know that his offensive line was horrendous last year, and many of his "accuracy issues" were due in large part to having no time to make a decision.
Things to consider with Orton
--Josh McDaniels turned Cassel into a great QB, and is well known as a great QB coach.
--Kyle Orton has many above average targets to pass to including Marshall, Royal and Scheffler. The rest aren't far behind what Chicago had as #1 and #2 receivers last year.
--Kyle Orton has one of the better offensive lines in football.
--If he has time, targets and a great coach, and a defense that is certainly improved, AND he had a winning record with Chicago, why can't he enjoy at the LEAST similar success here?
What could we possibly expect at this point?
--Well that's the thing...as much as BigBroncosFanBob, and GoBroncos33 will try and argue that there's no point in watching any football this year, and JohnElwayismyHero7 says we could really surprise people and could actually make a playoff run--we really don't know. At all.
None of us have seen McDaniels coach a game that mattered for this team yet. None of us know what will wind up happening with Marshall. None of us know how Orton will play. None of us know if the defense is improved up to the 20th best or up to the 10th (or somewhere in between). Even though our schedule looks tough, no one knows if all the teams we play will play up to what the "experts" (who, mind you, change their mind after every week when a different team plays exceptionally well) expect them to, and NOBODY has any idea how injuries will play out for our team as well as the rest of the league.
If Rivers and LT get hurt, there's no way San Diego is winning anything, if our entire team stays healthy, there's no way we're losing everything.
Nobody knows.
And that's why it's perfectly OK to be confused at this point. We don't know how we got here, and we don't know what will happen, but there's a reason people don't just go to Vegas and come away with millions every time. Things never play out exactly as they're supposed to.
Personally, I think this team will get better as the season goes on, as McD gets comfortable and things start to work out. Someone made the argument already, we ARE a more balanced team. I'm strangely optimistic about the '09 Broncos. Not in the sense that we'll be a superbowl contender by any stretch, but we could be a 9-7 team that surprises everyone and looks really good heading into next year.
For now, the NFL season starts tomorrow, and I think we'd all be better off just watching the games and seeing how things play out rather than pretending we know exactly what is going to happen.
Things that have happened:
--Going into our game against Buffalo last year, we all knew we would be in the playoffs, Shanny had redone the offense, and although it was underachieving, we all knew how explosive it could be. The playoffs could be very fun, we could lose to anyone, but at the same time, we could beat anyone.
--I don't know if this was ever confirmed, but I think Jay Cutler is now on the Bears, and Shanny's out playing golf.
--Things were not looking good, until Marshall cheered us up by telling us he was unhappy with his contract, and soon after, that he wanted to be traded. Between that and the fact that Kyle Orton was now our QB, we expected the worst.
--We lose our first 3 preseason games, and fans are ready to call this the worst season ever.
--Marshall does a 360, talks to Rod Smith, works hard in practice, and now we could be looking to extend him.
Things to consider:
--Are we REALLY not talking to the Jets anymore about a deal?
--Could the Marshall contract be a precursor to a Marshall trade?
--Is he really that much better, or are we making him appear better to up his trade value
--If he IS that much better, how long until he starts trouble again? 1 game? 8 games? Next year? Never again?
--What if this finally knocked sense into him, and he becomes a positive team figure?
Things that happened with Orton
--Everyone knows he went 21-12 for Chicago
--Most people know he had below-average targets at WR
--Most people believe that the defense was the entire reason he had a winning record at all, and that could very well be true. But the defense WAS getting a little older, still above league average though.
--Not nearly as many people know that his offensive line was horrendous last year, and many of his "accuracy issues" were due in large part to having no time to make a decision.
Things to consider with Orton
--Josh McDaniels turned Cassel into a great QB, and is well known as a great QB coach.
--Kyle Orton has many above average targets to pass to including Marshall, Royal and Scheffler. The rest aren't far behind what Chicago had as #1 and #2 receivers last year.
--Kyle Orton has one of the better offensive lines in football.
--If he has time, targets and a great coach, and a defense that is certainly improved, AND he had a winning record with Chicago, why can't he enjoy at the LEAST similar success here?
What could we possibly expect at this point?
--Well that's the thing...as much as BigBroncosFanBob, and GoBroncos33 will try and argue that there's no point in watching any football this year, and JohnElwayismyHero7 says we could really surprise people and could actually make a playoff run--we really don't know. At all.
None of us have seen McDaniels coach a game that mattered for this team yet. None of us know what will wind up happening with Marshall. None of us know how Orton will play. None of us know if the defense is improved up to the 20th best or up to the 10th (or somewhere in between). Even though our schedule looks tough, no one knows if all the teams we play will play up to what the "experts" (who, mind you, change their mind after every week when a different team plays exceptionally well) expect them to, and NOBODY has any idea how injuries will play out for our team as well as the rest of the league.
If Rivers and LT get hurt, there's no way San Diego is winning anything, if our entire team stays healthy, there's no way we're losing everything.
Nobody knows.
And that's why it's perfectly OK to be confused at this point. We don't know how we got here, and we don't know what will happen, but there's a reason people don't just go to Vegas and come away with millions every time. Things never play out exactly as they're supposed to.
Personally, I think this team will get better as the season goes on, as McD gets comfortable and things start to work out. Someone made the argument already, we ARE a more balanced team. I'm strangely optimistic about the '09 Broncos. Not in the sense that we'll be a superbowl contender by any stretch, but we could be a 9-7 team that surprises everyone and looks really good heading into next year.
For now, the NFL season starts tomorrow, and I think we'd all be better off just watching the games and seeing how things play out rather than pretending we know exactly what is going to happen.