Jim Bates knows that the defense he has assembled can succeed. He’s seen it — and not just in a Dove Valley practice against his team’s offense, either.
“On Thursday, we got off the field seven straight times going against (the Dallas Cowboys) on the practice field,” he said, referring to a period of practice in which the teams focused on third-down scenarios. “We were seven-for-seven.”
But when the teams dueled in their preseason game Saturday night, the Broncos’ third-down defensive magic evaporated in the steam room that was Texas Stadium. Dallas converted 10 of its 16 third-down plays, including six of eight when the clubs’ first-teamers grappled in the first half. Dallas averaged 13.5 yards per play, and needed an average of six yards to gain on their first-half third-down plays.
“We get in the game, and they go 10-for-16, with a lot of third-down-and-long situations. That just adds another possession for them,” Bates said.
“We have to eliminate that on third downs. But we have to do a better job on run defense, too. Our run defense has been very porous — as far as being accountable, running the scheme and not letting that run kill us.”
Through two preseason games, the Broncos have allowed 334 rushing yards – an average of 167 peer game.
“The biggest thing is that we just aren’t playing every down and being complete,” Bates said. “We’re still making too many mistakes and giving up too many big plays. We gave up seven plays for huge yardage, and it was something that can be cleaned up, but it’s got to be cleaned up. Bad teams always make excuses that certain plays take you (out of the game), and we have to eliminate the bad plays. But there was a lot of good, too, a lot of positive things, and we’ve just got to keep improving. It’s a new defense, but we have 20 days until our first game and we have to make improvement on a daily basis.”
However …
“We aren’t catching on as fast as we would like. There’s a lot of promising things we see on the tape, there’s a lot of good things happening on the practice field, but in the games, we have not played well, and we just have to get better. … We have to do a better job of coaching as far as getting basic fundamentals taught.”
But as Bates said, it’s better these issues rise now than in three weeks.
“Definitely,” he said. “That’s what preseason’s all about — players getting familiar with each other and being responsible, (handling their) gap responsibilities and eliminating big plays.
“We have plenty of time — if we can just fix these holes. It has to happen on the practice field, and we have to carry it into the games, because we’ve had some excellent practices, but we haven’t performed well, like we expected to in the games.”
What do you think of the defense so far in the preseason? Sound off below …
Tags: Jim Bates
I think the defense is the worse i have ever seen in Denver. But, it is a new system and the pre-season. I would like to see our d-line finally play as good or better than our d backs and line backers. The key to us making the playoffs is the defense. Defense wins championships….unless you have Elway and T.D.
i agree this is the worst i have ever seen this defense the defensive tackles are not getting any push i dont see why the blame is on the ends when the tackles arent pushing up into the pocket i think we should not have traded warren or released al wilson the team needs to get it together still im hoping to go into the playoffs
I’m not sure what Bates is talking about when he says the D hasn’t been missing tackles … what guy didn’t bounce of or get run over by Marion Barber the other night?
I get that it’s a new system and it’s the pre-season, but the fundamentals like wrapping up when you tackle don’t change and the guys aren’t even doing that. Unless something changes, it’s going to be a long season for Jay Cutler as he tries to keep the Broncos on pace in weekly track meets to the end zone.
ikip0ollo
ahh.. alright you damn cry fans wanna be coach.. thats ywhy one of you are coaches or players because you were all not good enough to get in the big leagues.. If you are a real die hard broncos fan support the team no matter what.. this is just one game and it dont even count.. damn people chill out.. the team will be alright..
ahh.. alright you damn cry fans wanna be coach.. thats why none of you are coaches or players because you were all not good enough to get in the big leagues.. If you are a real die hard broncos fan support the team no matter what.. this is just one game and it dont even count.. damn people chill out.. the team will be alright..
I am not very impressed with the defense that I have seen so far…..perticularly the game vs. the Cowboys. We allowed too many big plays and not being able to stop them on 3rd down is unacceptable. I know it is a new system, so they better pick things up v. the Browns and Cardinals or this will be a long season.
I know Shanahan isn’t going to show much game plan during the preseason, so I hope he makes one for this Saturday so we can see something. The fact that there are injuries is not helping matters.
i’m worried mr bates might be a little high. their defense is losing in the effort department. to play defense you need to have attitude and be tough you also need to want to succeed. our d line and line backers do not look to me like they want any part of effort. this is a coaching issue, there is no way a pro team should play like that. you could put good collage team out there and see better effort. they should be happy i’m not their coach because heads would roll! he needs to start sticking a few feet up a few places were the sun dose not shine. i ean pass rush aside, i can’t belive they can’t even stop the run! if you get no push upfront you should at least be there to stop the running back! what is going on?
still, i am sure that some of that is the players thinking too much instead of reacting. that will get better as they play more games. also they did just play a basic defense with little blitzing. i know bates would like to not blitz but trust me they will! they have too or they’ll lose allot of games this year. what also looks to be an issue is our line backers in pass coverage. there were allot of short passed these last two games that were blown coverages from the line backers. once again that is all about effort. when was the last time you could say denver line backers cant cover they cant hit and look sadly uninterested. i think bates should call his players out now. i know it’s early but bad habits are hard to break.
the good news is that our secondary should be able to cover one on one this year which will be useful when they blitz every down like will be forced to do. how do i know this? i remember when rhodes was our d coordinator he wouldn’t blitz either, he also got his @$$ fired! hey bates, SACK THE DAMN QUARTER BACK OR SHANAHAN WILL FIRE YOUR @$$!
As a lifelong bronco fan. This is a complete embarassment. Never should have let the D coach go. So far all bates has proven is that any good college team could run up 150-200 yards a game on the ground. And he is what a asst head coach….come on….are D last year was good really good. It wasnt there fault the season turned out the way it did. This is really the first time since shanny took over the team that I have thought he has completly lost his mind….After all Sam Adams? The guy can barley walk let alone chase down a back or quarter back….All bronco fans should expect alot of pain on sundays….Bates gone after 1 year.
Numbers don’t lie….Sure the score of the game doesn’t matter, but the numbers inside the game definitely do. 18/33 third down conversion rate in two games is like a video game. 344 yards allowed on the ground, is completely unacceptable.
We’ve been hearing the entire pre-season that the Broncos haven’t game-planned for anyone. They will this week, let’s see what happens…
TSG
http://www.milehighreport.com
Hey, the opposition are allowed to have a good day too you know. Everybody is human. Just because they are pro football players doesn’t mean they won’t wipe their arses’ in the same way we do, they make mistakes. What is important however, is that we don’t repeat these. I think that we will see these same errors being cut out of the game, but obviously, with the staarters only playing a fraction of the game means that they have less playing time to fix it.
But… its still the pre-season, there is still a hell of a lot of time before the regular season. We have too much talent in this changing room to not be one of the top 7 defenses in the NFL.
Where I am clearly not as fed up as some here, I do share a slight concern with the lack of effort in Saturday night’s game. It all starts with the running game and if we cannot stop Marion Barber, we’ll have no chance when it comes to our San Diego games with LT. Trust me, if we see what’s going on you can be pretty sure it is being addressed at Dove Valley pretty intensely.
I say give the defense time to get it worked out they have two more chances then it counts.
I was honestly more concerned with the offense, I didn’t see a whole lot of production from the 1st team that is supposed to get back on the field after our defense does their job. I agree with the above opinion saying that everybody can have an off night, let’s chalk it up to that because I expect a lot more of Cutler and company, if not then we will see the same as last year where the offense could not chew up time on the the clock. I really don’t want to live through that agony again, and I’m pretty confident that Shanahan does not either.
Take it easy Bronco fans, sure we’re all excited and we have high expectations as we should, but it is only the 2nd week of preseason. Give em a chance to work it all out, Remember these ones don’t count.
With the exception of a few players, this is the most emabarrasing Defense to ever wear a Broncos uniform. This could be a long, painful season. Where is the Pass Rush!!!! Opposing QB’s have enough time in the pocket to find ANY open reciever they choose…….plus eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Teams are running the ball DOWN OUR THROATS!! San Diego will emabarass us again………the Denver Defense will stop no one at this rate! Hey I got an idea, why don’t we trade our best defensive players to our division rivals?! Duh!
Jim Bates……1 year. Shannahan is losing his edge………….
The Game Vs. Dallas made me sick!! I don’t doubt that we will get things fixed, and I think this game will serve as fuel, and as a lesson. “Failing to prepare, is preparing to fail”
I have to say that all the comments everyone have written are right on target but what has me sick is that the running backs that have been burning us are a bunch of nobodys. San fran didnt even have Gore and yeah Barber is ok but come on, our secondary is going to be tired and run down by the time the season starts. Please bates needs to stop getting excited about what happens in practice and start getting fired up about whats not happening in games.
man!! yaw some little loser man it just a little preseason game it will be different when the real season comes. ALL U PEOPLE SAYING THAT THE BRONX WILL SUFFER THIS SEASON THAN F-OFF!!!
Yeah bailey&bly is right.. Broncos all the way… It’s preseason..
Saturday night’s game made me feel sick. But, I love the Bronco’s and know that sometime this season they will make me feel really excited and proud. So till then I will keep on keeping on.
On a specific note I can just imagine the film room on Monday. I can just see Jim Bates with his pointer talking to linebackers. The conversation was probably something like this. Bates (calm speech with a hint of the rising volcano of anger under the surface): “Okay so here is where you were trying to make a play, and here is where your gap is. You need to be in the gap. Not so much right here where you were, but right here where the gap is.” (Flip to next play slide) Bates: “Okay so here is where you were trying to make a play, and here is where your gap is.” Okay so you get the picture. I bet the conversation went on and on and on.
Prediction: This season the Bronco’s defense will have the most interceptions in the league.
Go Bronco’s! I love you guys!
Reading all your replies, makes me wonder if you are actually Bronco’s fans, or just bandwagon fans. I live by Kansas State, and the sounds of some of you Bronco fans, you are just like the K-State fans out here. K-State was the laughing stock of college football until Dan Snyder came in and made their team a success story, but now the fans here jusmp off that wagon the second K-State plays bad, just like you guys are trying to do with the Broncos. Sure the D looks bad, and not being able to takle is definitely a scary thought for the season, but if you really watch the games, they are still learning the new system which is a little bit different with the gaps that need to be filled, but a lot of the time there was a defensive player in the gap, they just did not make the tackle. Bates is a good coach and has an impressive record, but for us fans to think that he is going to come in and make the Broncos defense look and play like the Bears or Ravens defense right away are the ones that are high. I am not defending the poor play that has been done on the playing field at game time, because it has been poor, but that is the offense as well. The first teams both did good on their first outing of the preseason game in SF, but in Dallas they looked horrible. The Broncs did have a great defense last year, if you only play half a season, the second half they fell apart and could not stop anyone from scoring. You can blame some of that on the offense for not scoring themselves or holding onto the ball long enough to give the D time to rest. This is a team effort and all parts of the team are important, why isn’t anyone talking about the very poor special teams play. They have been horrible for a few years now, that cost us games just as much as the offense not scoring and the defense not stopping anyone. I hate to see what Devin Hester is going to do on returns against us if we can’t get special teams to play better as well. Go Broncos, I am behind you all the way, good or bad!!!!!!!
Everybody needs to quit whinning about the defense. The last 3 or 4 years, Larry Coyers defense was great in the preseason, great the first 4 or 5 games of the regular season, then what happens? The Bronx defense starts wearing down in the 2nd half of games then we start wearing down towards the end of the season. Think of how many leads we have giving up in the 2nd half the last couple of years. I see this defense starting out slow with new players and a new system. Hopefully they will continue to improve through out the season and will be stronger towards the end, instead of peetering out like they have the last couple of years.
I’ve been a die-hard Denver Broncos fan since 1965. I love them good or bad! But, the Defense still stinks! AND yes! So do Special teams!
Broncos 4 Life!
hey men , it’s only preseason , games are only training , it has nothing to do whith regular season games , the intensity level is far higher in the season .Yeah , that was not a good outing but i’m more concerned by the season ending of Ekuban and other injuries than the score of this game .Let’s wait the bills game and we’ll see and ever then , this is a long season remember last year , we were SB champ after 5 games and we see what happened . This is a long season !!!!! just wait till december and then , we can blame .
How do you think that the players and coaches would feel if/when they read all of this B.S… You all claim to be Broncos fans and only 2 or 3 of you show any support. Mike Shanahan is the winning-est coach since his start in 95. Accident? Nope. He has turned out 1000 yard rushers almost every year. Accident? Nope. Taylor and Thomas had HUGE success under Bates’ coaching in Miami fitting into the same defensive scheme as he is implementing in Denver. Accident? Nope. Show some spine. This is YOUR team. Act like it. If a player misses an assignment and is detremental to the game, look for that player to be blasted in Dove Valley and fix his issue. If you aren’t in the league, you have no right to criticize the people who are. They get paid to put their bodies and careers on the line for our entertainment. This is commonly called barbaric and primitive… but the only thing that is primitive here is the support for the Broncos after a sub-par PRESEASON GAME!!! YOU ALL make me sick. I wish that you had to apply to be a fan. I would pass the application because I AM A TRUE FAN. You all (with the exception of a small handfull…you know who you are) don’t deserve to have a team sacrifice itself for your entertainment. Ingrates.
good speaking man !
BroncosFrance has it exactly right. Look at the fact that 2 of our 4 RBs are hurt. Look at the fact that Ekuban is OUT FOR THE YEAR!!! I am so frustrated with the people on this blog!!! You are sell outs, plain and simple. You cannot handle the fact that “ON ANY GIVEN SUNDAY” one team will shine and one team will, apparently, have all of it’s “FANS” turn on in. I am so sad that I am now 1 of only 5 or 6 real fans.
WE’RE DOOMED!!!! THE SKY IS FALLING! FIRE SHANAHAN!!
Not funny, Ikana… not funny.
I AM A TRUE FAN!!!!! D Still stinks. If you can’t handle the truth, stay off the blog……..
1 [ONE] Playoff win since Elway retired!
ACCIDENT??
NOPE!!
I am A TRUE FAN and I am not afraid speak the truth!
You have to remember they have played ONLY 2 games with this defense. Not making excuses, but there WILL be some growing pains. We’ve got too much talent on the team to have a bad defense, just wait till the season opener at the Bills & you’ll see. I have faith that Shanahan, Bates, & the team will pull it offGO BRONCOS!!!
I say, yeah yeah, so they looked pretty bad on Saturday, that doesn’t mean jack about the regular season. The friggin’ Super Bowl champ Colts, even though I hate their guts, only won 1 preseason game last year. I doubt their fans turned on them. We are so banged up right now, how can you even try and rate how the regular season is going to go. Let’s just wait and see what happens…
IT WILL BE A WINNING SEASON & FUN SEASON FOR THE BRONX PERIOD!!!
It’s only the preseason. The Broncos will pull it together. The Orange Crush will rain down on Buffalo! Win baby! Win!
Bronco Thunder!
I think I’m more worried about the offensive line than our defense. If our defense is letting us down, and we have to rely on Cutler (which I am 100% confident in doing, I love that kid), he’s gonna need protection, something they couldn’t give Plummer or Jay last year. And with how banged up they are right now, Jay may be running for his life this year.
At the end of the year when we win the Superbowl everyone will say geez remember that crazy guy in northern ca who said we’d win the superbowl during preseason after denver lost to dallas? Keep in mind also that denver whooooped dallas in camp everyday and they had to actually game plan against the broncos to win in PRESEASON! So that means that they aren’t really evaluating the 2nd and 3rd string guys very well and maybe the fact that dallas new head coach got fired from denver after a few sucky years and he wanted to stick it to shanahan had something to do with the game planning of the 1st string team, while we just showed up to break a sweat?
All you supposed Bronco fans that really are Chicken Littles need to chill out just a little bit. Preseason is preseason for a reason…it’s nothing more than glorified scrimmages. Check out the track record of Jim Bates…his teams have been successful or down-right excellent everywhere he has coached. Give the team a little time to adjust to the new scheme…if they look like this on D after the first two weeks against the Bills and the Raiders, then I’ll give you permission to panic.
Also consider the schedule last week. Monday Night Football on the West Coast–a late night flight back to Denver and then off to Dallas Tuesday for two-a-days with the game on Saturday in hot, humid weather. If you don’t think all that affects performance, think again. Also, don’t forget the Darrent Williams–that had to affect the team mentally somewhat–it could have all added up to a poor performance Saturday night.
I also echo the sentiment that I would like to see this team finish strong in November, December, and especially January. I’ve seen too many seasons where the team has started strong only to fade at the critical time. The Patriots don’t do that, so take these games for what they are—practice games.
Any thought about bringing in a guy like Simeon Rice or maybe someone who doesn’t make the cut here in a couple of weeks. I was just reading about the Rams might be looking at Rice and it got me thinking that maybe the Broncos should do the same.
by the way, looked back at the Colts preseason record last year, 1-3. Not too great and they went on to win it all. Relax guys, we have a great coaching staff and they will have this team ready for Buffalo.
This is certainly a less civil place than it was during the non-playing season. A lot louder, too.
it is the per season, there is a new system, and none of us are pro level coach eather. I dont really think the team is falling apart there just off to a slow start this season. let us remmber that the past four saeson they won all four games and look how the season ended so maybe this a good sign. I agree that the game with dallas was trash, and I hope the team that played that game get cut. All the broncos players body were there but players stayed home
May the Orange Force be with us!
Look out Cleveland, some ticked off Broncos are headed your way!!!!! Can you hear the THUNDER?!!!
orange 22 and stop cryin
The defense stunk in first 2 exb. games. You 2 clowns have a problem with the facts. if and when the defense performs as advertised, you 2 clowns will get on the Bronco fans for something else, you 2 are a pathetic excuse for Bronco fans’
Mr. Bates,
Don`t know about your current defensive stats, but your SUNTAN is great!
Philly just cut Jeremiah Trotter!!! BRONCOS, SIGN TROTTER NOW!!!
Let’s get some perspective here. It’s just exhibition. Indianapolis only won one preseason game last year and won the Super Bowl. Now, if the D looks this bad in Buffalo in a couple weeks, then I’ll be grinding my teeth!
I can hear the Thunder!!!
the d was not that good but the offense was not good because the d of dallas was blitzing every play so dont get worried over the offensive line of the offense at all we should be able to have a high powered o and the d will get it together but still trading gerrard warren to oakland your crazy that was a mistake trade him to a horrible team outside of the afc west and we gotta tackle better when we get to the ball but other than that player brian clark wow i think with brandon marshal and javon walker and brandon stoklely and brian clark we should out score opponets for a while till the d gets used to the system we have to much talent to say the season is over now its only preseason chill
BroncoJohn has it right. We need to be worried about the injuries in pointless games and not lose sight of the effort one team put together to win in preseason.
I’ll feel better when the opposing QB is picking turf out of his helmet though. The corners will have better opportunities for ints then.
#27hitsokoye, great ID. I still remember that hit.
I think the defence played soft and looked as though they had glue on there jerseys when trying to get of blocks. I also feel like the d line has to step up more and get more of a push up the middle, even before the trade of warren the lack of a consistent push in the middle was there and no matter who you have in the secondery without a strong front 4 there will be alot of pass yards given up by the d. i would also like to ad poor fundamental tackling by the linebackers is not going to help much. By the way there is a complete lb on the market by the name of jeramiha Trotter,someone in the organazation should give him a CALL.