Sportscasters Weigh In With Broncos Predictions!

[Cugel]

Here are a bunch of sportscasters giving their predictions for the Broncos season record. I've already posted a thread for posters to make their own predictions. It's interesting to see the opinions of all these sports writers. Feel free to comment whether you agree with them or not. Balance of opinion on Broncos playoff chances seems to be "no."


SCHLERETH AND EVANS | M-F | 6A-9A

Mark Schlereth
Broncos Record: 8-8
The Broncos lack the requisite depth and playmakers on offense to truly take advantage of a really talented defense.

Mike Evans
Broncos Record: 7-9
The season proves once and for all that the problem in recent years has been John Elway’s draft failings and not just coaching.

***

ORLANDO AND SANDY | M-F | 9A-12P

Orlando Franklin
Broncos Record: 9-7
Joe Flacco provides better quarterback play than we’ve seen in the past few years. The offensive line should be better, as well. Vic Fangio provides an aggressive coaching style that drives the team.

Sandy Clough
Broncos Record: 7-9
The Broncos offense isn’t good enough to consistently put points on the board. The defense is good, but they can only do so much.

***

STOKLEY AND ZACH | M-F | 12P-3P

Brandon Stokley
Broncos Record: 6-10
With so much change happening – head coach, offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator – it’s hard to win in the NFL. The bad drafts leading up to the last couple of years are still going to cost them. They’re heading in the right direction, especially with the last two drafts, but it’s not going to happen this year.

Zach Bye
Broncos Record: 8-8
Not good enough to be good, but not bad enough to be really bad.

***

THE DRIVE | M-F | 3P-7P

DMac
Broncos Record: 8-8
It’s a better team on offense and defense that will win some close games and likely lose a couple they shou’ve won. Most importantly, they will be in every game and keep things exciting to the end. They will build toward a better season next year.

Tom Nalen
Broncos Record: 10-6
Flacco is Flacco. He’s not a sexy fantasy player, but he wins with excellent defense and easy throws to Phillip Lindsay and Noah Fant.

***

THE CECIL LAMMEY SHOW | M-F | 7P-9P

Cecil Lammey
Broncos Record: 8-8
This team is too average on offense to get more than eight wins. Their defense is elite and should be near the league leaders in turnovers and sacks, but they can’t do everything. The offensive line has to keep Joe Flacco from getting banged up like he has in each of the last two years. With the current state of the O-line, that might be difficult.

***

THE FAN LATE NIGHT | M-F | 9P-12A

Shawn Drotar
Broncos Record: 7-9
A recharged defense under new head coach Vic Fangio will keep the Broncos in plenty of games. They will steal a couple of games that no one expects, but it won’t be enough to return them to the playoffs.

***

1043THEFAN.COM

Nick Ferguson
Broncos Record: 12-4
No matter how much we build up these so-called elite QBs, there’s only one card that trumps everything else – defensive edge pressure. That’s Cloak and Dagger (Von Miller and Bradley Chubb). Any questions?

Johnny Hart
Broncos Record: 8-8
Vic Fangio and Ed Donatell will have Denver ranking among the top defenses in the NFL and Joe Flacco is certainly an upgrade over Case Keenum. But the Broncos need to prove they’re head and shoulders better than the 2018 and 2017 squads before I can feel comfortable putting them above .500.

James Merilatt
Broncos Record: 10-6
Vic Fangio is an upgrade over Vance Joseph and Joe Flacco is an improvement from Case Keenum. That alone turns four close losses in 2018 into wins this season. It won’t always be pretty, but the results will be better.

Kendall Valenzuela
Broncos Record: 9-7
A rejuvenated defense under Vic Fangio will propel the Broncos this season, even if the offense has some growing pains with a new veteran quarterback in Joe Flacco. The Broncos will win a few coin-flip games and finally give Broncos Country something to cheer for after a painful past couple seasons

I more or less agree with Cecil Lammey, except that I have the record as 7-9 rather than 8-8, but it could easily go either way.

[Northman]

8-8 is what i predicted.

[Canmore]

Heart says 9-7. Gun to my head 7-9.

[Poet]

Ten wins.

[Simple Jaded]

If this team goes 7-9 to 9-7 Fangio should be fired.

[UnderArmour]

At least 9 wins. This team showed last year that there is plenty of talent on the roster. If a team had Bradley Chubb as their top pass rusher, they would think they were doing well at the position. This team has Chubb AND Miller.

Before VJ, this franchise avoided back to back losing seasons and I don't see why this year would be any different.

[Davii]

If this team goes 7-9 to 9-7 Fangio should be fired.

:pound: no

[Shazam!]

If this team goes 7-9 to 9-7 Fangio should be fired.

:pound: no

I get his frustration. We wanna see an improvement from VJ's BS seasons fresh in our minds. 6x10 7x9 is just unacceptable with this talent level barring catastrophic injuries.

[Davii]

I get his frustration. We wanna see an improvement from VJ's BS seasons fresh in our minds. 6x10 7x9 is just unacceptable with this talent level barring catastrophic injuries.

I agree, but if we go 7-9 you don't fire Fangio after one season. That's some ridiculous Browns/ Raiders bullshit.

[Simple Jaded]

How many .500-ish seasons then? 7-9 to 9-7 is purgatory, the Broncos current regime would never escape it. They don’t draft well enough nor recruit well enough, they think like an ordinary, everyday Also-ran. If the coaching staff can’t win with the scrubs this organization prefers then they need to be replaced with coaches that can.

When did “almost” become good enough?

[Davii]

How many .500-ish seasons then? 7-9 to 9-7 is purgatory, the Broncos current regime would never escape it. They don’t draft well enough nor recruit well enough, they think like an ordinary, everyday Also-ran. If the coaching staff can’t win with the scrubs this organization prefers then they need to be replaced with coaches that can.

When did “almost” become good enough?

Lighten up Francis. You don't fire a coach after one year unless they show they're horrifically incompetent.

[Shazam!]

How many .500-ish seasons then? 7-9 to 9-7 is purgatory, the Broncos current regime would never escape it. They don’t draft well enough nor recruit well enough, they think like an ordinary, everyday Also-ran. If the coaching staff can’t win with the scrubs this organization prefers then they need to be replaced with coaches that can.

When did “almost” become good enough?

9x7 would show growth and improvement

[Poet]

I agree, but if we go 7-9 you don't fire Fangio after one season. That's some ridiculous Browns/ Raiders bullshit.

Especially in a pretty brutal division. Coaches can improve, just like players. And, to be honest, it's nice to give a coach another offseason to find players to fit the schemes, as well as adjust the schemes around the players they do have.

[Simple Jaded]

9x7 would show growth and improvement

So ****** what?

[Simple Jaded]

Lighten up Francis. You don't fire a coach after one year unless they show they're horrifically incompetent.

The talent level on this team isn’t getting significantly better than it is now, it’ll just get older and scouted better. They need a staff that can get 10+ wins out of average players.

[Shazam!]

Lighten up Francis. You don't fire a coach after one year unless they show they're horrifically incompetent.

The talent level on this team isn’t getting significantly better than it is now, it’ll just get older and scouted better. They need a staff that can get 10+ wins out of average players.

Im pretty sure Broncos have one of the youngest teams in the League.

[FanInAZ]

If this team goes 7-9 to 9-7 Fangio should be fired.

Why would you want to follow the Cleveland Browns model of giving coaches only 1 or 2 years before firing them, which has resulted in them having 10 consecutive losing seasons, 9 of which had double loses? https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/cle/

If you were the owner of the Dallas Cowboys in 1960, you would've fired Tom Landry after they were 0-11-1, before he lead them to 5 SBs, 2 of which they won.
If you were their owner in 1989, you would've fire Jimmy Johnson after they were 1-15, 2 years before he led them to 3 SB championships over 4 years.
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/dal/

If you were the owner of the San Francisco 49ers 1979, you would've fire Bill Walsh after they were 2-14 for the 2nd year in a row, or the following year after they were just 6-10.
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/sfo/

If you were the owner of the Steelers between 1969-1971, you would've fire Chuck Noll after any 1 of those 3 consecutive losing season, right before he led them to 7 double digit winning seasons over 8 years (they won 9 in that other year back when they only played 14 games per year) & 3 years before they won the 1st of 4 SBs over 6 years.
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/pit/

Although he wasn't a HoF HC like the previous 3, if you were the owner of the Chicago in 1982, you would've fire Mike Ditka after they were 3-6 (strike shorten season), 3 years before he led them to 15-1 SB championship season.
https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/chi/

Seriously, HCs leading teams to winning records the play-offs their rookie year are the exception, not the rule that should be mandated to all NFL HCs that gets hired.

[FanInAZ]

Lighten up Francis. You don't fire a coach after one year unless they show they're horrifically incompetent.

Yes Sgt Hulka :usa2:

For those of you who are too young to get the reference:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUtHkSw9nEY

[Shazam!]

Did anyone want to fire Shanahan after going 8x8 his first Season following up after a 7x9 season with Wade Philips?

[Jsteve01]

Jaded c'mon man. A nine-win season would be a 33% improvement versus last year. And I think you have to give a rookie head coach sometime. you can just tell from the way he runs press conferences to what people say about practices that all the structure that he's put in place is going to help. I am one of the few people that thinks 9 and 7 to 11 and 5 is realistic given how many good teams we were in close games with last year even with incompetent coaching. Will be betteron both sides of the ball.

my biggest concern right now is special teams. I felt like McMahon had the best unit on the squad last year and that wasn't saying a whole lot, but special teams have look horrid during the preseason. I think back to the early 2000s we would have top 10 offense and defensive units and then be bottom 25% on special teams and just always battling field position.

[Simple Jaded]

9-7 is a shit team.

[Simple Jaded]

Yes Sgt Hulka :usa2:

For those of you who are too young to get the reference:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mUtHkSw9nEY
I hereby dub Davii “Big Toe”.

[sneakers]

At least 10-6

the defense will be very good, and having a quarterback with a neck will be a plus

[TXBRONC]

Did anyone want to fire Shanahan after going 8x8 his first Season following up after a 7x9 season with Wade Philips?

Sounds like Jaded might have.

[Davii]

Sounds like Jaded might have.

Nah, it's part of his shtick, it's all a big troll