As we continue our special Thanksgiving Week Draft Profiles I would like to announce that I have created a Big Board with rankings of all the players in the draft. It is under draft central. We only have about 20 now but next week will keep adding another 20 until we have every major player on the board. Here is our Michael Oher draft profile:

Oher Lead Blocks.

Name: Michael Oher

Position: Offensive Tackle

School: Ole Miss

Height & Weight: 6-6 / 332

Class: Senior

What I Think: Oher in my opinion is the best Offensive Tackle in this years class and he has some good competition with the likes of Eugene Monroe and Andre Smith. Oher in my opinion is the prototype NFL Left Tackle and I see shades of Ryan Clady in the way he plays. One of my favorite things about him is how he is not afraid to get down and dirty just to make a play. Oher will do anything on the field to contribute whether it is staying and defending the QB or lead blocking down the field. I love his open mindedness on just being able to make an impact. There are so many uses for him in the NFL I can not even imagine how a team might use him if they did not want him to start his first year. Oher has the perfect size and strength to be playing at the pro level. He is smart in his blocking and has great footwork. That is what sets him apart though from all the other great Offensive Tackles in this years draft. Oher has the optimum speed and quick usage of his feet in blocking. It can beat even the shiftiest of Pass Rushers. Whether it be an Elvis Dumervil type player or a Dewayne Robertson style player, Oher can block them all and with great poise. Oher should work a bit on his lead blocking for those are the few times when I will see him give up a block but he still has the ability to become good at it. As a blocker, he helped running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis top the 1,000-yard rushing mark in consecutive seasons. He was a Consensus First Team All-SEC selection and was named Fourth Team All-America by Phil Steele. Oher is my favorite blocker in the entire class but may not be to scouts who prefer Eugene Monroe in some cases.

Draft Grade: A

My personal opinion is that this is the best class of Linebackers seen in years with two front men leading the pack. They are Maualuga and James Laurinaitis neither of who’s names I can type from memory. Rey was considered the follower from Laurinaitis but Laurinaitis has his stock dropping a bit which would be big for Maualuga. Here is his draft profile:

Maualuga Returns an Interception for a TD.

Name: Rey Maualuga

Position: Linebacker

School: USC

Height & Weight: 6-2 / 260

Class: Senior

What I Think: Maualuga has been part of the best defense of any College Football team in recent memory. He has had the company of Taylor Mays, Sedrick Ellis, Keith Rivers and company. All of which are most likely to or will be a first round pick. That has given him a good backdrop but has sure made a name for himself on his own. Maualuga is an exciting, well rounded Linebacker with a knack for hitting hard and staying on the ball the entire play. One of my favorite things about him is that he has the best pop to the line of any players in the draft or could be the best in the NFL. While it doesn’t always result in sacks, his main success is rushing the QB making them make bad passes. Do not draft him if you want hard core stats, but if you want an uncounted impact then he might be the right guy for you. Maualuga is now in line for All-American and Butkus Award honors, returns for his third season as the Trojans’ menacing starting middle linebacker as a senior in 2008. He is on the “Watch List” for the 2008 Lombardi Award and Bronko Nagurski Award. Maualuga returned for his second season as USC’s starting middle linebacker as a junior in 2007 and led the team in tackles. Overall in 2007 while appearing in all 13 games (starting all but the Notre Dame game, in which he was limited because of a hip pointer), he had 79 tackles, including 10.5 for losses of 40 yards (with 6 sacks for minus 32 yards), plus 1 fumble recovery, 1 forced fumble, 1 interception (returned for 19 yards) and 3 deflections. He was named to the 2007 Phil Steele’s All-American third team, Collegefootballnews.com All-American honorable mention, Pro Football Weekly All-American honorable mention, All-Pac-10 first team (for the second year in a row), Collegefootballnews.com All-Pac-10 first team, Phil Steele’s All-Pac-10 first team and Rivals.com All-Pac-10 second team. Maualuga is a talent and compared to Laurinaitis he might be becoming a bit more popular as it seems that Laurinaitis has his stock dropping quickly. Maualuga has over time become my favorite player in the entire draft and I have given the highest draft grade.

Draft Grade: A+

George Selvie is an overrated player who I have much higher in our Mock Draft than he should go. Currently I have Selvie as the 4th pick in the draft by the Raiders. To explain, the Raiders are desperate and need a DE more than any other team. Also I do not think that they make good decisions. Either way, here his his draft profile:

Selvie Celebrates After A Sack.

Name: George Selvie

Position: DE / ILB

School: USF

Height & Weight: 6-4 / 248

Class: Junior

What I Think: George Selvie is the most versatile defensive player in the entire 2009 NFL Draft and I love it! It could make him a top 10 pick if he performs well in the combine. But I think that there are some problems with him after watching lots of film of him play. The man is great at getting behind the line but has problems making tackles once the runner or QB gets past the line of scrimmage. An interesting stat that proves this is that of the 59 tackles he had in 2007 over 50% of them were behind the line of scrimmage. While that sounds great and it can be, it shows that he has trouble making tackles once they pass the line. That bothers me because it will make him vulnerable in the NFL to a Running Back who is great at finding small holes. A great feature about him is that he is reminiscent of a snake. Weird analogy, huh? Not really. If you have ever seen a snake they are not the fastest or the most powerful when they are moving but they strike quickly. You will see Selvie locked up in a tough block and then the next thing you see is him lying on the runner. He quickly is able to release from blocks and has a strong pounce when he tackles. Also while he may take a long time to get to the ball carrier, the strength and quickness of the tackle completely makes up for that. Selvie also comes off to me as the kind of player who will be best at situational plays in the NFL. Fresh legs and passing 3rd downs are his specialty. I don’t think he has the total skill set to play an entire game. The good thing is that he has the size where you could teach him to become better against the run. Last year Selvie was Consensus First Team All-American (AFCA, AP, ESPN.com, FWAA, Walter Camp, Rivals, CBSSportsline.com) and the 2007 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. Overall I like Selvie but question the use of him in the NFL. 

Draft Grade: B

Just for the record again, Thanksgiving Week we will be taking a break from the hiatus only to produce some more draft profiles. They will all be first round prospects and you can expect lots of A Draft Grades. Todays is Oklahoma Sooners Quarterback Sam Bradford. Enjoy!

Sam Bradford Throws Under Pressure.

Name: Sam Bradford

Position: Quarterback

School: Oklahoma

Height & Weight: 6-5 / 213

Class: Sophomore (RS)

What I Think: It might be smart not to apply for this years draft if I were Sam Bradford. It looks like Matt Stafford will apply and that would leave him as the frontman for the 2010 Draft or maybe even the 2011. Of course, that also gives him time for his play to drop and him regretting not signing up for this years draft. All that aside though, Sam Bradford has become a hot commodity for a lot of scouts and is being projected as a top 5 pick. Bradford in my opinion is an indecisive yet smart QB who can throw with pressure, throw in the pocket, and throw on the run. He has excellent poise in the pocket and is smart instinctively. One of my favorite features of him is his pump fakes. Pump fakes I view as one of the lost art forms in the NFL because they just aren’t as useful as they once were but Bradford takes full advantage of them. It mixes up a defense and can cause chaos. He has a strong arm and is the best short pass thrower in the NCAAF. One of my few problems with Bradford is that he is not nearly as accurate on long throws and relies on short passes with receivers who can make big plays out of them. That would be something I would be aware of if I was drafting him and did not have many offensive playmakers. He does know how to drive a team upfield though. Bradford I must say is very accomplished. In the second week of the 2007 season, Bradford was named the national offensive player of the week by the Walter Camp Foundation after tying the school record for most touchdown passes in a game with five total. During the November 24, 2007 game against Oklahoma State Cowboys, Bradford broke the NCAA freshman record of 29 TDs by passing his 30th TD to Joe Jon Finley during the second quarter. Some of his honors included freshman All-American from The Sporting News, Rivals and CollegeFootballNews.com, CollegeFootballNews.com’s Big 12 Player of the Year, Sports Illustrated All-America honorable mention, The Sporting News Freshman of the Year, The Sporting News All-Big 12 Freshman, Academic All-Big 12 and honorable mention All-Big 12 by coaches and AP. I like Bradford and while he might want to hesitate on applying this year he is actually my favorite QB in the NCAAF even over Matt Stafford. 

Draft Grade: A

Even though Bronco Madness is in the midst of a hiatus, for Thanksgiving Week we will have draft profiles to get us up to date on our Draft Central page. This week we will do one a day and they will all be potential first round picks. Today’s is Michael Johnson:

Michael Johnson Blocks A Pass.

Name: Michael Johnson

Position: Defensive End

School: Georgia Tech

Height & Weight: 6-7 / 260

Class: Senior

What I Think: Michael Johnson I have pegged for some time as the number one pick in the 2009 Draft. But do you want to know the sad thing about me having him there? I think that he is a very big project. Also I think he deserves to be a middle first rounder even though it is likely in my opinion he will go first or at least in the top 5. After watching film of him I see what scouts like in him. He has great break block ability and also has perfect physical traits not to mention a great burst of the line. My problem with him is completely instinctive. While physical traits, break block abilities and great bursts are things that are really hard or impossible to train in the NFL when instincts can be taught easier. That is why he would be drafted so early. He doesn’t know when to hurl his body at the QB and when to just carry them down. He also has bad or at least average footing. He did not start during the regular season as a junior but entered the game in all passing situations. That is why he originally became known as one of the leagues premiers pass rushers. Johnson also is one of the most impactful special teams players in the ACC making him a double threat. I would be beware if I was a potential drafter because he has had to overcome numerous injuries over his short career. That might only get worse in the NFL. 

Draft Grade: A-

While I will miss it, for a little while Bronco Madness will be facing a short hiatus that could be a month or two. (Hopefully less.) I really hate to do this smack dab in the middle of the season but sadly I am facing some personal problems and a whole load of other things that I need to put my full attention on. The sad thing is Bronco Madness would have been on track this month for one of our biggest statistical months in recent history. At the latest we will be back by the Off-Season. But bare with me Bronco Maniacs, we will be back. 

My Sincerest Apologies,

Garrett Barnes

On a lighter note, it was my birthday yesterday and after a long times wait I have finally gotten the once piece of memorabilia I have always dreamed of having. As a gift from my family they got me a signed Shannon Sharpe jersey.

I am very excited and of course will give you a picture of it at the end. Shannon Sharpe is my all time favorite Bronco and it is awesome. I have gotten it in a museum style framing with Broncos colors on the edge. The jersey is sewn to the back to keep it stable and the matting is made from the exact same material as the numbers.

Here is the picture. I apologize that it is backwards because I took it with photo booth. 

With a lot of talk about the 2009 NFL HOF inductees going around, I decided to make my very own Denver Broncos Hall Of Fame. So tell me what you think, and tell me if I missed anybody that you think should be in it. Anyway here we go! (Note, this is just players…)

Denver Broncos HOF RB: Floyd Little, the first Bronco great Denver Bronco! He was with the Broncos 1967-1975. In those years he complied 6,323 yards, 43 TD’s and added 9 TD catches. He was our first great, and also belongs in the NFL HOF. No other Bronco will were his #44 jersey, it was the first to be retired.

Denver Broncos HOF QB: Craig Morton, was the Broncos first big quarterback, and ironically he wore #7, he was not the good ‘Ol #7. But he’s very far from it. But he was a great QB, he played for 19 years! In 1981 he had 21 TD’s and 3195 yards. He never had the best numbers, and no doubt does not deserve in the NFL HOF. But he had heart, and was a good Denver QB.

Denver Broncos HOF LB: Randy Gradishar, was incredible! It is a crime that he’s not in the Pro Football HOF. He led a Denver ’D’ of the ‘70-’80’s, what was a 3-4 dominate force before 3-4’s time. He was the NFL’s 1978 Defensive Player Of The Year.  Merlin Olsen said about Gradishar: “If you ask me to name the five best linebackers I played against, or had a chance to cover in my broadcasting career, Randy Gradishar would be on that list . . . There is no question about his credentials; Randy Gradishar belongs in the Hall of Fame.”

Randy was incredible, and you could just talk about him forever. He was the best.

Denver Broncos HOF WR: Mark Jackson, if you know anything about the Broncos, then you remember “the drive” when Elway became JOHN ELWAY, and when Mark Jackson was introduced to the “Three Amigos”. He caught the TD pass that ended the drive, and became a Broncos Fan favorite from that point on. He was a great wide out.

Denver Broncos HOF QB: JOHN ELWAY, is one of the two Broncos currently in the Pro Football HOF. You don’t need to know anything about #7, but I will say there will never be another like him.

Denver Broncos HOF T: Gary Zimmerman, the second Bronco to be put into the NFL HOF. He was great, and led a line that could give you 5 minutes in the pocket, and also open up holes for a freight train.

Denver Broncos HOF S: Steve Atwater, The best safety in NFL history! The fact the he’s not in the Pro Football Hall Of Fame is also outrageous. Atwater returned 24 interceptions for 408 yards and a touchdown. Tackles: 1180.Forced Fumbles: 12. Two Super Bowl rings. His stats tell the story of his great career by themself.

Denver Broncos HOF RB; Terrell Davis, paved the way for modern day backs running style. Such as M. Barber, and Tiki Barber, and many others. The style of just flat out getting the job done. Every run counts, you never slow down, back down, fall down, or get down. He is one of my all time favorite Broncos, though many talk about his injury shortened spam in the NFL, they never seem to realize how incredible his stats are for only 7 years Pro. His 7607 rushing yards, and 65 total Touchdowns are mind blowing especially considering he only played in 20 games in 1999-2001 (Three Seasons). He also was the Super Bowl XXXII MVP. He deserves NFL HOF and has a chance to get in this year.

Denver Broncos HOF LB:Bill Romanowski, Romo due to stats not being collected and counted like they are now-a-days he does not have mind blowing stats, but his 39.5 counted sacks to say some. Bill was feared, and one of the best.

Denver Broncos HOF TE: Shannon Sharpe: Sharpie, had in his sweet career, 815 catches, 10060 yards, and 62 TD’s make him one of the best ever.

Denver Broncos HOF DB: Darrent Williams, DWill will always in Denver Bronco fans, players, and coaches hearts, along with anyone associated with the NFL. Many people do not realize how good his career really was. If it was not sadly shortened by death he would have become an All-Pro NFL HOF DB.

Denver Broncos HOF LB: Al Wilson, the best of his time. Yes, the best of his time. Ray Lewis is overrated, and the others did not have the heart of Al Wilson. Even after his career ending injury, Al fought, and tried to get back into football. But his injury was to bad. I love Al, him and John Lynch. They were the best ever.

Denver Broncos HOF WR(s): Ed McCaffery, and Rod Smith, much like the duo that Brandon Marshall, and Eddie Royal, they were the BEST! And both could find them selves in Ohio’s Hall.

Currently NFL playing current or former Broncos who will get into the Denver Broncos HOF: Jason Elam, John Lynch, Champ Bailey, D.J. Williams, Tom Nalen, Jay Cutler, Elvis Dumervil, Brandon Marshall, Tony Scheffler, Dre Bly, it’s to soon too say, but MAYBE Selvin Young. LOL that’s like the whole Bronco team.

Honorable mentions: Otis Armstrong, Bill Thompson, Matt Lepsis, Rick Upchurch, Tom Jackson, Tyrone Braxton, and Reggie Hayward. Many more, tell who you think I missed, or should maybe not be in, via the comments.

Jon Krause is a member of the Bronco Madness staff, you can catch his own blog at Broncos Zone.

I wanted to try something new this week and see what Garrett and any readers think of it. As a way of piggy-backing on Garrett’s Prognosis Article, I will take an in depth look at the Broncos on a weekly basis, position-by-position. I watch the game a little more analytically than the average fan and find that I can often pick up on subtle things that others may miss. That talent is often lost when doing a simple play by play of the game, but I hope comes across well in this format.

Special Teams
Matt Prater stated some concern previous to the game about the playing field. I think that got into his head on the first field-goal attempt. Of course, I just signed him to my fantasy team this week, which could have led to the miss also. Sorry Bronco Fans. Another note on special teams, though it is actually far more the fault of our defense, is that we are reverting back to the past couple of seasons when it comes to field position. Does anybody watch any team that starts more drives inside their ten yard line than us? The coverage team did a nice job on containing Joshua Cribbs, aside from one nice return.

Defensive Line
Just not getting it done. There were a lot of noteworthy draft picks spent on this unit and so far it has not panned out. Elvis Dumervil was the only lineman creating any pressure in this game and even he could not get to the suddenly fleet-footed Brady Quinn. Worse, the Browns ran the ball 29 times in this game and the Broncos Linemen accounted for only 5.5 tackles. Opposing backs are getting to the second level untouched consistently, which of course is leading to us struggling terribly against the run.

Linebackers
Wesley Woodyard may have been a find. The undrafted rookie out of Kentucky came into the game following an injury to Nate Webster and played with an emotion we haven’t seen out of a Broncos defensive player since Big Al left. He could end up being a long term answer to our linebacker question marks. Of which there will be plenty for the next month or so. We could be moving forward with Woodyard, Jaime Winborn and Niko. Winborn played well, but is it possible for him to make a tackle without jumping up, ripping his helmet straps off and playing to the crowd like an ass? Maybe, we’d all be more impressed if he wasn’t constantly caught out of position on cutback runs.

Cornerbacks
Dre Bly played, perhaps, his best game as a Bronco. He blanketed the far more physical Braylon Edwards all night, made a great pass defense in the end zone and forced the critical Kellen Winslow fumble. Karl Paymah also played much better than last week, though in fairness, the Browns pass game was not exactly challenging the corners.

Safeties
Marquand Manuel played fairly well, though asking him to cover Kellen Winslow was obviously a little much. He did not miss as many tackles as he has in recent weeks and was not exposed in coverage, though again that is probably due more to the limited range of Brady Quinn’s throws. Calvin Lowry was unimpressive as he was obviously out of position on the first Winslow touchdown, but hopefully he can learn in victory.

Offensive Line
Another superb performance in pass protection. The Browns got one sack on a blitz and that was the only real pressure they put on Jay all night. Is this O-Line just not built for the run anymore? Where are the gaping holes we’re used to seeing? That being said, if they are going to win throwing the ball then I guess it’s good they excel at Pass Pro.

Tight Ends
All three tight ends came up with big plays in this game. Nate Jackson did a nice job catching the ball, but the guy can not block. On more than one occasion you could see the guy simply try to shoulderblock and get blown right off the ball. Daniel Graham is the opposite, he did a really nice job of blocking, but dropped an easy touchdown early in the game. He did make up for it later with his 28 yard touchdown reception, but two are better than one. Scheffler provided a lot of heart in this game clearly playing hurt. Hobbling after every catch Scheffler still managed to come up with 92 yards receiving.

Wide Receivers
Eddie Royal played a magnificent game and is in my opinion, one of the top two or three candidates for OROTY right now. He showed smarts in his route running, hands on the catch in the first quarter near the end zone and speed running away from the Browns on the 93 yard touchdown. If he can just stay on the field he’ll be part of one of the best receiving combos in the league for the next 5-7 years. Along with Brandon Marshall. Marshall has not been as dominant in recent games, but in the second half at least came alive again. I was actually surprised he didn’t get flagged on the winning touchdown, just because he seems to be the only wideout in the league who gets called for OPI. Stokley was a non-factor on the field during the game, though he made one key play just off the field. Great heads-up move by Stokley to stop Marshall from pulling out the Obama Glove. While I don’t think that’s something that SHOULD draw a penalty it WOULD have.

Running Backs
Torain looked like he was just starting to get it going, so of course he’s gone. Peyton Hillis did fine just taking the handoffs and had the one excellent three yard run when we needed it most. Without his second effort the Broncos never have a chance to win this game. By the way, it’s not just the system. Next up at running back for the Broncos? PJ Pope.

Quarterback
Jay Cutler played okay in the first three quarters. His only interception was actually Brandon Marshall’s fault for running the wrong route and though he threw a couple of close calls, most QB’s are going to get away with some from time to time. In the fourth quarter though, we got a reminder of what we all saw in Cutler in the opening three games. Little mentioned in that 93 yard touchdown pass to Royal was the tremendous pump-fake that Cutler delivered just before the picture perfect pass. The Broncos have played best this season when Jay runs a no huddle with a spread offense. The Broncos have not run that consistently during the losing streak and I think they would do well to get back to it. I know the no-huddle goes against what Shanahan would usually do, but he’s got the QB for it and it works when they go to it.

Overall Thoughts
Wasn’t this fun to watch? Did any of you think the Broncos could score 21 points in a quarter again? I think the spark in this game may have been when the Browns went for it on 4th and 1 from mid-field with a 10 point lead. How insulting as a team. The question now is, will this be a spark going forward? It’s nice to get the win and then 10 days to get ready for the next game, but remember that after the bye week the Broncos looked terrible against Miami. If they can’t build momentum from this game it will prove to be just an entertaining, but irrelevant game in their canon. If they put together a winning streak off of it and it catapults them towards the playoffs, that game winning drive by Cutler at the end will be the second most memorable that a Broncos QB has ever had in Cleveland.

Per Adam Schefter of NFL Network it turns out that Champ Bailey may be back sooner than we thought. He could be playing next week against the Falcons which would be a big relief.

He was expected to miss up to four games with a groin injury suffered last month during a Monday night loss to the Patriots.  If he plays in nine days, he will have missed only two games.

This is great because his missing presence has been really missed. I am so glad that we will get to see him again. Also, part of the reason that he might play earlier than expected is his hometown is Atlanta and he might want to get to play in his hometown.

Also, on a worse note it looks like Ryan Torain will be out for the rest of the season. He has not ben put on the IR but that is what it looks like for the time being.

Brady Quinn was great. Jay Cutler was better. This game finished perfectly and marks the beginning of a Broncos comeback. With the dominant play of the passing game and a decent effort by the running game I am proud to call myself a Bronco Maniac. So of course here is your game review and prognosis:

Jay Cutler couldn’t have chosen a better time to prove himself to Broncos fans yet again. With a second half comeback to beat the Browns, Jay Cutler had a great game. He had the second most passing yards of any QB this year. He had a whopping 447 yards with 3 Touchdowns but one interception. I don’t care about the Interception though because he still had a great game.

As for the running game we are facing some well…problems. I felt after a little while into it as Ryan Torain was heating up we might have a good running game but he did not get the chance to come back as he injured his leg. Again. That is along with a whole slew of other Halfbacks leaving us with only Peyton Hillis as the starting Halfback. Ryan Torain had 68 yards and 1 Touchdown before leaving the game. Peyton Hillis then had another 24.

The Wide Receivers were on a role but I do wish that Brandon Marshall had made better decisions and ran the right routes. He had 89 yards and 1 game sealing Touchdown at the end. Eddie Royal was the star of the receiving squad with a career high 164 yards and 1 Touchdown. Tony Scheffler had 94 yards total. He got the game started with a 39 yard catch to get us rolling.

Special Teams was okay and we did an overall good job of getting us in nice field position the entire game. I would have liked to see Matt Prater make all of his Field Goals but he did not and that’s okay. He was 2-3 but what I don’t get is why he will make these long ones and miss all the short ones. It makes no sense to me.

As for defense we were terrible and if not for a good offensive effort we would have lost that game easily. We had one turnover which was a forced fumble by Dre’ Bly to be recovered by Karl Paymah. Paymah I think has been very good. The coverage was average and needs some tweaking but for the time being was okay. Our problem was letting up big plays.

We let up big run plays, big pass plays and won off of offensive fire power on our side and offensive mistakes on theirs. Overall I need to give credit to Brady Quinn who I am a huge fan of for picking away at our defense. The running game does not look good on paper but did succeed overall. We definitely need to work on that.

PROGNOSIS:

Don’t get injured again. Easy and simple. 

Jay Cutler needs to keep on using the Tight Ends to his advantage. If our running game can not work than we need more options to pass to than just our Wide Receivers.

Take advantage of the long week. We have about two weeks to prepare for our next game against the Falcons. Focus on shutting down Michael Turner.

MVP’S:

O: Jay Cutler (Even with some bad decisions in passing he had a great game.)

D: Dre’ Bly (No one else did anything good on D.)

ST: Peyton Hillis (Had some good break blocks to get a few extra yards.)

Jeff Winters instead of a review of the game this week is going to present us with a good article on the Broncos and how there is still hope for us even when it seems like we have very little hope.

I was prepared to write a scathing review of the Broncos tonight. Something I’ve never done, but is certainly deserved. But, then I watched Barack Obama win the Presidency and I watched his speech. Say what you want about President-Elect Obama’s politics, he’s a very inspirational speaker and he has inspired me to believe. The Broncos will show some pride and develop a run defense. Yes, We Can.

The Broncos will get healthy and not let every quarterback look like Tom Brady. Yes, We Can. The Broncos will run for 100 yards in every game for the rest of the season. Yes, We Can.

Jay Cutler will regain his form from the first month of the season and once again look like the MVP Candidate we all thought he could be. Yes, He Can. This team will pick their bottom lips off the ground, stop feeling sorry for themselves and play with some passion. Yes, We Better.

That’s the missing ingredient. That’s what I don’t see on this team. That’s what they need to turn around a season that has suddenly become miserable, I don’t care what place they’re in. When’s the last time you had fun watching a Broncos Game? Coach, Jay, Marshall, Elvis, DJ, Champ, Somebody…inspire me the way I was tonight.

I have come up with a new fan poll after we have kept our last one up for a long time. This is an interesting one on who you think our best rookie has been this year. So speak your voice! Who do YOU think was this years best rookie? Your options are Clady, Royal, Kern or Hillis. So have fun and be sure to vote!

Every day I fear the next thing I post because I know that it will in most cases not be good. It is for good reason too as we have more bad injury news. Is anyone really surprised?

D.J Williams is out for the next four weeks with a third degree MCL injury. He is a key part to the defense and will be sorely missed.

“We are going to have (LB Wesley) Woodyard and (LB Louis) Green (to replace LB D.J. Williams). Woodyard doesn’t have a lot of experience, obviously, but he has played well on special teams. Lou Green has a lot of experience. We will take a look at those two guys and make a decision on which direction we are going to go,” Shanahan said of the incident.

Also Marlon McCree will be out for 3-4 weeks as well with an injury. Replacing him will be *gulp* Calvin Lowry. And by the way… What about Josh Barrett? I want him back on the active roster. I want to see what he can do.

Things are not looking good for us right now. My one hope is that Wesley Woodyard replaces him and not Louis Green. Woodyard has been good in certain situations and I think that we could do well with him. 

As for the Browns game, usually we should be able to win it. But I am starting to doubt we can with all the bad news. I am going to sometime soon be bringing a Depth Chart of what we look like with injuries and or bad play from some players. 

Well it is over and I can not believe we lost the game. I really thought we had it in us to win that game. But I guess some things are not meant to happen and I do have a few bones to pick which I will of course go into later in the review.

I have to say that I am disappointed with the production of Jay Cutler so far. Cutler has completely fallen down on the job. While I don’t want to say it, maybe Jay Cutler is not the answer after all. I still have hope and trust with him but if he does not show me anything else than I will become a bit less lenient than I have been. He finished the game 307 yards, 2 Touchdowns, and 3 Interceptions.

The running game was the worst I have ever seen it. We had a total of only 14 yards on the ground when the goal of the game was to establish the run game. Guess what? It didn’t work at all. Ryan Torain did not have the debut that I wanted him to have but I still hold out a bit of hope on him. Andre Hall actually had the best game. Sad…

As for the receiving core our star player was actually our Fullback Peyton Hillis. He had 7 receptions, 116 yards, and 1 Touchdown. Eddie Royal also had an okay game with 63 yards and a Touchdown. Brandon Marshall was completely shut down by Will Allen and had only 2 catches for 27 yards. Oh but he should have 104 yards. He had a 77 yard Touchdown catch that would have had us take the league but he was charged with offensive pass interference. It was the tiniest little push. I have seen receivers do it a billion time and it was a bogus call. The difference between how it sealed our fate versus the Chargers game was with the points we would have won. There was no guarantee the bogus call against the Chargers would have cost us the game. 

The Offensive Line was good and only let up one sack by of course Daniel Graham. I have had it with him and he has done nothing but hurt us lately. 

Our Special Teams was the best part of this weeks game. Eddie Royal was just making so many big plays on Special Teams one of which resulted in us getting a Touchdown after putting us in perfect field position. Matt Prater missed one of his only Field Goals this year. But it was still from 49 yards and that was pretty hard to make. He did make a 50 yarder though. Brett Kern had some huge punt though and looked great.

I would like to announce formally that I now have hope for Jarvis Moss at Defensive End yet again. He had 2 whole sacks and had a very good game. I think that if he keeps this up he could still make it in the NFL and maybe not be as big a bust as I have been letting on lately. Karl Paymah looked very good out there and had an Interception while limiting the pass game. I think he is also making very big strides in his play.

The run defense was overall very good but I am very worried about the injury that D.J Williams is facing because that would be game over for this entire season and I would lose all hope. If it lasts one week I will be fine but anything more and I could cry. Make that will cry. I think D.J has become the best player on the defense. It would be heart breaking to see him go down.

PRONOSIS:

Establish the running game again. I am not sure how but even with multiple Running Backs out we still need to somehow rebuild our running game to win. It is right now my biggest worry.

Keep up the effectiveness on defense. For a team facing this many injuries we did a great job playing defense. We stopped the run, limited the pass and overall had a very good game. 

MVP’S:

O: Peyton Hillis (I have never seen a better receiving Fullback.)

D: Karl Paymah (He was great on coverage and had an INT.)

ST: Eddie Royal (Put us in nice field position most of the time.)

I can’t take much more of this. The season is over and we may be in way over our heads at this point to end with a winning record. I hate to be a total kill joy but this is just bad. Hall and Pittman are on the Injury Report and here is the press release:

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos on Monday placed running backs Andre Hall (left hand) and Michael Pittman (neck) on their reserve/injured list, Head Coach Mike Shanahan announced. Both players were injured during Denver’s game against Miami on Sunday.

The club also on Monday signed defensive tackle Matthias Askew to its practice squad.

Hall, a second-year running back in his second year with the Broncos, saw time in all eight games for Denver this year and registered 35 rushes for 144 yards (4.1 avg.) along with three receptions for 25 yards (8.3 avg.). He also returned a team-high 21 kickoffs for 469 yards (22.3 avg.) and tied for the Broncos’ team lead with six special-teams tackles (5 kickoff, 1 punt).

Pittman, an 11th-year running back in his first year with the Broncos, appeared in all eight games (3 starts) for Denver this year and posted 76 rushes for 320 yards (4.2 avg.) with four touchdowns along with 10 receptions for 112 yards (11.2 avg.). He recorded his 11th career 100-yard rushing game with 109 yards on 20 carries (5.5 avg.) during the Broncos’ game vs. Jacksonville on Oct. 12.

Askew (6-foot-5, 302 pounds) is a third-year defensive tackle who joins the Broncos’ practice squad after competing in the Redskins’ 2008 training camp. Selected by Cincinnati in the fourth round (114th overall) of the 2004 NFL Draft from Michigan State University, Askew has appeared in six career games (all with the Bengals) and owns six tackles (2 solo) along with one forced fumble. He was a two-time all-state selection at Dillard High School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and was born on July 1, 1982.

I can’t stand the Dolphins right now. Their fans have been obnoxious, the refs had one of the worst calls I have seen in ages and Joey Porter is one of the most despicable human being on this planet right now.

According to Associated Press Joey Porter said a few things later after the game about Brandon Marshall. Take a gander my Bronco Maniacs:

“He’s one of those guys that if he don’t get the ball in the first two series in the first quarter, he’s out of it,” Porter said. “He had 18 catches in a game before. So he’s not used to going the whole first half with no balls. We got in his head and he pretty much was done.”

It is one thing to say that. It was true. But this is crazy: ”He’s one of those guys that if he don’t get the ball in the first two series in the first quarter, he’s out of it,” Porter said. “He had 18 catches in a game before. So he’s not used to going the whole first half with no balls. We got in his head and he pretty much was done.”

Wow. He moped and cried? Look Porter, he first of all didn’t say anything to you guys, he did not act inappropriately, all he did was look frustrated. I think that’s justified. Oh and he wouldn’t have been shut out if not for a stupid ref call that took away a 77 yard Touchdown pass. 

You think that he is baby. You may be one of the biggest ones in NFL history. I will give you credit that when you talk the talk you usually walk the walk. But this is just absurd what you are saying. Why can’t you just be quiet? You won. There is no reason to insult the team, the fans and the organization.

I am not sure why I am pointing this out but I noticed something interesting listening to Mike Shanahan at his press conference this week. It really doesn’t matter but I thought you might want to see it.

It looks as if (and this is random) that Mike Shanahan died his hair. Maybe I am wrong but look at these before/after pictures.

Looks to me like he died his hair. Nothing wrong with that but still you have to wonder. I just thought you might be interested seeing it. Go Broncos!

Ah… I remember the days when we had the best passing defense in the league. Pro Bowl players, young stars, old stars, and induced so much ground running we missed the Playoffs because of it. D’oh!!! Though we never had to complain about that great passing defense. Remember Champ Bailey, and Dre’ Bly at the pinnacle of their careers. John Lynch still hitting hard and Hamza Abdullah showing so much promise.

And now… Wait what happened?! Just last year we were scary good. Nobody on earth could get past our passing defense. We once hit a bump or two but we were still great overall! But now there is nothing left of what we once had. Dre’ Bly seems old and can not cover as well as he used to. Champ Bailey is injured. Everything seems to be falling apart at the seams.

And yet, there is hope. Jack Williams showed great promise in the Pre-Season with two Interceptions. While Champ Bailey is gone he will be playing number 2 receiver. But that does not mean things are good. Or at least they are not yet. We have at this point the worst Safety team in the NFL. Anybody have John Lynch’s phone number?

But that is a good question. Maybe it is time to bring him back. I don’t care how you feel about betrayal and how it just would be awkward. Do you want to know what is really awkward? Having the best offense in the league and missing the playoffs because your Safeties aren’t good enough. Maybe I am being selfish though. I am a huge John Lynch fan. Before he came to Denver he was my favorite non-Broncos player.

We are in desperate need of a better passing defense. But what do we do about it? First off we know our problems. Age and a lack of speed at Cornerbacks now that Champ Bailey is injured, and no real Safety situation. I was a big supporter of Calvin Lowry when we decided to make the change and start him. I was wrong. We all are sometimes.

So I have a plan. It will take some time and will not be easy. But it will work. Nah, just kidding you. It is quite simple. First, fire Ronnie Bradford. He is our Defensive Back coach and he is not doing a good job right now. I expect more from our Safeties. The Broncos have a tradition of talented Safeties and he is not following by it. We need something more there.

Then, if Jack Williams performs well we need to promote him to our number 2 Cornerback and shop Dre’ Bly. Bly is not doing very well and I like Jack Williams. He could do a great job this year and soon could be our new number 2 Cornerback. It will happen eventually so why not now?

Finally this one is a long time down the road. At the NFL draft we need to draft a powerhouse Safety in the first round. Here are our two options if they are available: William Moore, SS, Mizzou and Taylor Mays, FS, USC. Both could do great jobs and while it would probably be a drop for us to get Moore it is possible. It is more likely though that we draft Taylor Mays. 

But since this is a big issue you need to hear more than one opinion. So I have got Jon Krause our Saturday columnist to share his expertise at Defensive Back with you all. Here is his opinion on the state of the passing defense:

It is a bye week and the Broncos got a little R & R. With all the injuries we have been facing it seems like a good time to have the bye week. Now we can turn the season around and get back on the playoff track. With the Chargers 2 games behind this is the perfect time to widen our lead in the AFC West.

Starting of course with our film room, Brandon Marshall we all know can do about anything you ask him to. This includes blocking. Check out this great block by him. Second, a reminder that we need to watch this wildcat offense. It can do some crazy things. 

INJURY REPORT via NFL.com:

WEATHER REPORT via Weather Underground:

WHO’S HOT & WHO’S NOT:

HOT: Elvis Dumervil after a recent hiatus from Sacksville is back on track and is on fire! He may have been the only bright spot of the entire New England game with a whopping 2 sacks! Elvis had a thumb injury early in the season which as you could see hurt his production. But boy, he looks good again and is back to bringing Doom.

NOT: I never wanted to say this, but Jay Cutler is *gulp* not. After his worst performance of the season against New England he needs to get back to his self. He was the MVP of September but has had a bad October. Now that we are in November he can hopefully get back to himself. After 1 Touchdown and 2 Interceptions against the Patriots he better.

HOT: Chad Pennington now with the Dolphins is having his best season in recent memory. After two straight average seasons he is now back on top with an unlikely team. Last week he had 1 Touchdown and 314 yards utalized Ted Ginn for really the first time this season and Ginn ended up with his best game since… well college.

HOT: Ronnie Brown started the season above the clouds and a powerhouse Running Back. He is starting to fall back down to earth though. While still putting up decent numbers he had only 41 yards last week against the Bills and only 11 the week before. (I should know, he is on my fantasy football team). He is hoping though to pick up against the Broncos.

OVERVIEW:

If there was ever a week for Jay Cutler to get back on track it would be this one. I am not saying that the Dolphins are bad. Actually, I think they have improved tremendously and look very good right now. But (and there is a but) their Passing Defense is let’s just say… terrible. They have had on the season only 4 Interceptions. I am not saying ours is any better because it is not, but Jay Cutler should eat this defense alive.

They are ranked 20th in allowing passing yards and teams average about 333.7 yards against them total. They average 233.3 passing yards total. Jay Cutler should be able to get a bunch of Touchdowns and a whole lot of passing yards. If there was any time to make a comeback it would be now. The Chargers are 3-5 and I truly want to see us take advantage of that.

Though there is a bright side, while the Dolphins have the best sack attack in the league right now, the Broncos have one of the best O-Lines which could help Jay Cutler stay poised in the pocket. When a good QB goes up against the Dolphins and is able to stay comfortable in the pocket they can pick apart the pass defense perfectly and reek havoc on the Dolphins.

That would be my goal for today’s game. I have a strange defensive scheme for today that just might beat the Wildcat Formation. If we are using the 3-4 defense today than we have one extra Linebacker. If I was Bob Slowik I would make one of those Linebackers stay on the Quarterback instead of focusing on the Running Back and leaving that for Nate Webster. Here is how it would work:

As you can see in the strategy above, the MAC (Webster) will play large zone coverage down field and assist as almost a third Safety but also spy on the run game. The WILL (Williams) will blitz on Brown and Pennington forcing them to pitch the ball. The extra Linebacker (Woodyard) will play on the Quarterback forcing sacks, forced fumbles and pressure behind the line of scrimmage. My Left End (Moss only because he fits the job) will spy on Brown and contain the line. The other two Linemen will blitz. By using this, they can contain the Wildcat formation well. They won’t use it but they should.

So that is what I think should happen and some stuff that will. The Broncos need to win this game. It is life or death for our situation in the AFC. I can’t wait for tomorrows game. 

Sunday Week 9 - November 2, 2008: The Broncos will play Miami @ Invesco Field At Mile High on CBS. It’s horrible how good the Dolphins are this year, the have a record of 3-4, but compared to last years 1-15 that is amazing. I can’t believe how well they’ve done - especially Ronnie Brown. They will be a hard team. The last six seasons the Broncos are 6-0 coming off the bye with Mike Shanahan, so that will help. Some “experts” think that Denver could even start off 5-0 after this bye.

If you look at their schedule that’s not all to unpractical, but don’t start talk’n yet. We’ve lost 3 of our last 4, and getting back on the winning track is a very hard thing to do once you’ve got off. The bye game at the best time, even though we’ll be without Champ Bailey, and his little bro Boss, the Broncos are doing pretty good injury wise. The Broncos are getting the following back from injury: TE and Jay Cutler’s favorite target Tony Scheffler, WR the best slot guy in the NFL who has 2 TD’s on the year Brandon Stokley, also RB who needs 5 yards this week to reach 1,000 career yards.

Coming off a sweet rookie year Selvin Young has disappointed, though it’s not much his fault with only 47 carries, and a line that is much better withpass blocking. He also has to share his load with Andre Hall, Pittman, and now Torain. If Selvin gets healthy, and holds on to his starting job he could be great.

“Everybody’s upbeat and looking forward to finishing this season off the right way, We have to go out there and play good football. That’s the bottom line for us.”

Said Stokley, who is coming off a concussion.

Hopefully we get back to our winning ways and pay revenge on the Dolphins from our 34-10 loss in ‘05, the year we went to the AFC Champ game.

As usuall we’ll do the cases, Passing, Rushing, and ‘D’:

Passing Case: Broncos, Jay Cutler, 163 completions, 1862 yards, 13 TD’s and 7 INT’s. Favorite target: Brandon Marshall, 49 catches,  598 yards, 3 TD’s. Overview: Denver passing game has been off track the last few games but hope to rebound against the Fins. With Tony Scheffler coming back Jay looks to have another great fantasy day. Dolphins, Chad Pennington, 140 completions, 1710 yards, 7 TD’s and 3 INT’s. Favtarget (This can be disputed, but I’m going with my opinion) Ted Ginn Jr. 27 catches, 352 yards, 0 TD’s. Overview: The Dolphins have not had a good QB in a LONG time, and Chad is no Pro Bowl QB, but his TD-INT ratio is never bad. And with Ted Ginn starting to grow up their passing game could become a nice compliment to their run game. Winner: I have to say Denver, though the stats may be kinda in the Fins favor, when the Broncos get rolling the really roll. And I think that they we’ll start rolling in the second half of the season.

Rushing Case: Dolphins, Ronnie Brown…just wow. He has become a fantasy impact over night. With 98 carries, he has 406 yards, and a beautiful 7 TD’s. He also has a nice one-two punch from Ricky Willimas who has 2 TD’s of his own. Leading blocker (FB) Lousaka Polite has spent time with the Cowboys and Bears, and is only starting for the Fins because their starter is hurt, as far as I know he’s okay. Fins Overview: One of the, if not the best, rushing teams in the NFL. Broncos, Michael Pittman 69 carries, 316 yards and 4 TD’s. Leading blocker (FB) Spencer Larson, he can block, he does not have any carries, and we’ll see how he pans out. Denver Overview: The Broncos running game has not be itself ever since the signing of free agent Travis Henry last year. Henry did not perform and we had to learn to rely on our passing game. Since then we have not been able to find it again. Oh how I miss it, did you know that the Broncos have not scored a rushing TD since September 28th of this year! Are you kid’n me? Those stats are worse than our defensive stats. That is so awful, we need to run the old rock more often. Winner: Fins, well they did not have much competition, but they are pretty good compared to any team.

‘D’ Case: Miami Dolphins, ranked 12th in points, 20th in yards, 17 sacks, 4 INT’s, most tackles, Yeremiah Bell, 55 tackles, 0 sacks. Overview Fins: The Dolphins ‘D’ is not too bad, and Joey Porter is a Pro Bowl possibility with 10 sacks and 3 forced fumbles. Denver Broncos, ranked 29th in points, 30th in yards, 17 sacks, 2 INT’s. Most tackles, D.J. Williams, 69 tackles, 2 sacks. Broncos ‘D’ overview: The Broncos defense is sad. Winner: The Dolphins I think have a better ‘D’, right now. 

This could be rookie Ryan Torain debut, and in training camp Coach Mike Shanny spoke very highly of him, and the last time a rookie made a debut for the Broncos after Shanahan spoke highly of in training  camp the results were incredible! Eddie Royal surprised the NFL in his debut, in the draft he was the Broncos second pick, one by many ( I hate to admit even myself ) thought was almost a wasted draft pick. Though it did not look too bad because the Broncos needed a good return guy and Eddie was good at that. Never did we imagine that he’d impress in practice and win the #2 spot across from Brandon Marshall! In his first game against Oakland he ha