BRONCOS AT PATRIOTS:
We’re here at Gillette Stadium as the Broncos get set to face the Patriots tonight in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.
A few players have taken the field for warmpus and as we inch closer to kickoff.
Temperatures are currently in the low 30s but they are expected to drop into single digits later in the night.
Stay tuned as we keep you updated with all the latest info.
BRONCOS MOBILE APP: For those of you who follow the action on your smartphone, there’s a brand new — free — official Broncos mobile app. For more information on the app, check out this blog. On your smartphone, visit BroncosMobile.com to download it. The app is now available for Blackberry, in addition to Android and iPhone platforms.
BRONCOS AT PATRIOTS GAMECENTER: For play-by-play action and up-to-the-minute stats, check out the DenverBroncos.com Gamecenter. We’ll keep you updated here with scoring plays, drive recaps and all the fun bits and pieces you can’t get from looking at a box score.
BRONCOS ON TWITTER: Another option is to follow the @Denver_Broncos Twitter account. There are constant updates on there throughout the game. You don’t have to be on Twitter to read the posts, but if you are, you should follow the account for news throughout the week as well.
SERIES HISTORY: BRONCOS VS. PATRIOTS: As we gear up to gametime, we’re going to post some stories from earlier in the week to get you all primed and ready for the Divisional Round matchup. Firstly, take a look at the series history between the two teams. This will be the 45th time the teams meet, with the Broncos owning a 27-17 advantage.
BRONCOS SIGN LONG SNAPPER: With Lonnie Paxton unavailable, the Broncos signed veteran long snapper David Binn.
TEBOW GETS READY FOR ROUND TWO: As the Broncos prepare to face the Patriots for the second time this season, Tim Tebow discusses what Denver needs to do differently to come out with a win.
PATRIOTS NOT SURPRISED TO FACE BRONCOS: New England Head Coach Bill Belichick and QB Tom Brady talk about the matchup with Denver.
INACTIVES: Check out the inactive list for both the Broncos and Patriots.
GAME PREVIEW: Check out a preview of today’s Divisional Round game between the Broncos and Patriots in New England.
PREGAME PHOTOS: Take a look at photos from the Broncos warmup session.
CAPTAINS AND STARTERS: Check out the Broncos captains and starting lineup for today’s game.
PATRIOTS STRIKE FIRST: A 7-yard TD catch by Wes Welker has given New England an early 7-0 lead.
PATRIOTS DOUBLE LEAD: Tom Brady hit Rob Gronkowski for a 10-yard score to give New England a 14-0 lead.
BRONCOS ANSWER AFTER CARTER INT: Quinton Carter intercepted Tom Brady, setting up a 5-yard TD run by Willis McGahee to cut into the New England lead.
INJURY UPDATE: Denver safety David Bruton has a concussion and is out. DT Brodrick Bunkley is questionable to return with a neck injury.
GRONKOWSKI EXTENDS N.E. LEAD: Rob Gronkowski reeled in a 12-yard TD catch and the Patriots now lead Denver 21-7.
BRADY HITS BRANCH FOR TD: Tom Brady tossed a 61-yard touchdown pass to Deion Branch, giving New England a 28-7 lead.
GRONKOWSKI ADDS ANOTHER TD BEFORE HALF: A third touchdown catch for Rob Gronkowski has given the Patriots a 35-7 advantage at halftime.
BRADY FINDS HERNANDEZ FOR TD: Patriots lead 42-7 after 17-yard TD catch by Aaron Hernandez.
BRONCOS TACK ON FIELD GOAL: Matt Prater connected on a 41-yard field goal late in the third quarter.
PATRIOTS KNOCK OUT BRONCOS: Denver’s season comes to an end with a 45-10 loss to the Patriots.
Tags: Divisional Round, Gameday Coverage, New England Patriots
And to you fans who think the play calling was suspect – there was nothing they could have called that would have mattered … Tebow is slow to recognize openings, doesn’t have the experience or the confidence to throw to spots before the receiver makes his cut, and the receivers either can’t get open or have no idea where the ball will be thrown … the experienced QB/WR/TE combos in the league have all played together for years, and know these things … we’re just no there yet … we might have had a few big plays, but in the end the result would have been the same or worse … just accept it for what it is …
Something stinks and if McCoy doesn’t get a job. He will be fired!!! I’m telling ya’ll the fix was in. There is a new Judas in town!!!!!
Tim The Robot Tebow just gave his typical post game press conference.
What do you mean the fix was in ?
Im out gotta get out of here. See ya’ll during the draft.
Other than the Tebow disciples I can’t believe that level headed Bronco fans like TRB would actually be surprised by the end result. I mean come on we know we are thin on talent, have either aging stars or inexperienced young ones and Elway has always said this would be a 4 to 5 year project to get back on top of the NFL. Sure we can fake a few teams in some games that are just regular season games with not much on the line or beat one that was depleted injury wise in the playoffs by playing a perfect game like the Steelers game, but come on, when the real teams come to play come playoff time, like the Pats, Packers, 49ers, Giants or Saints, we have absolutely zero shot, other than the proverbial Any Given Sunday, I mean it’s as glaring as the nose on my face…. We took this thing way further than our talent or our coaching could ever expect at this point so let’s rejoice in that, to be disappointed about this shellacking is just a case of having a constant overdose of orange kool aid.
Why do you guys think I left the blog for basically the whole week, because I didn’t want to be a let down for all of you miracle worshippers. I didn’t have the heart to bring you back down to reality. It is what it is and it ends pretty much like it should, we have got a looooong ways to go, players, coaches, GM, VP, the whole kahuna, lots of work ahead in the off season.
And don’t think for a minute this is going to be easy going forward, the organization is now basically sold on Tebow because of his Tebowesque performance against the Steelers, but a good look in the mirror will show anyone that he played only one good game out of the last 5 he played, and all those counted a whole bunch, they were all games we were trying to have real badly, meaning it’s an uphill battle all the way, no more orange kool aid for anyone in the organization would be in order, it’s going to be nothing but hard work to keep turning this thing around to where Elway and all of us want to go.
@Ty if ur QB is telling yu he can’t hear yu. Then yu wave him off like yu on ur own. The old HC is sitting up in a box with binoculars looking at the Broncos bench. When NE was in the redzone. He wasn’t even looking that way. He was looking at the Broncos bench. That had to show him on TV. It wasn’t a secret where he was. Im gone!!!
I have had a great time watching our Broncos this year. A good draft, a regular off season, and getting some injuries fixed, will lead us back next year. We will be more prepared and hopefully more talented. Tebow did all that was asked of him and he will improve.
You guys just had a division championship, a home playoff win, and a thrilling season over all. Thanks for a great season. Go broncos.
This is kod………..not too sure why my comments are not showing……didn’t think I was at all out of line…….
anyways……
I’ve finally calmed down……….such an embarrasing way to go out.
This was a complete team loss………..we were outplayed in every phase of the game so I’m not going to solely place the blame on TT. Could he have played better? YES! But so could’ve everyone.
We got schooled by the better team, plain and simple.
But oh well, we made the playoffs and actually won a game, which is more than I can say for a long long time.
And the best thing to come out of all of this is that we were exposed and we all know this team needs a lot of work in the off season on both sides of the ball.
Ican’t wait to see what we do!
Thanks for the great season Broncos!
We are all proud of your performances that went beyond many of our expectations.
A lot to build on. Plenty more to work on…
Broncos Country Strong in 2012!
Overall the team surpassed all if my expectations. We scratched and clawed our way to the playoffs. Honestly, we were just as close to being 4-12 again as we were to 8-8 with a playoff win. In other words, we were not even as good as our record indicated and this season was a bit of a fluke. Just my opinion, I love the Broncos as much as one can love a football team. Only time will tell if Tebows success this year was a blessing or a curse for our future development. He earned the right to be our starting quarterback next year despite horrific offensive game plans on multiple occasions. A solid run game is helpful, but isn’t going to win you a Super Bowl in this day and age without a superb defense, which we don’t have. With that said, you can’t build Rome in a day. Great year Broncos.
Anyway, you guys stay tuned for the final results of the score prediction contest TOMORROW MORNING.
I will do the regular weekly results posting followed by the overall season results listing every single blogger who scored any points troughout the entire season and their overall rankings.
And there will be a couple late shockers, GUARANTEED!
My thoughts on our future positions of need:
Offensive coordinator, MLB, S, RB, FB, TE, DT, # 3 receiver, CB, DE
Here’s who I’d like to see back as starters (assuming 4-3 returns):
Doom, Bunkley, Williams, Miller, Bailey, Harris, Carter (barely)
Solid Back Ups: Hunter, Mays, Bruton, Ayers, Woodyard, Thomas, Goodman
McGahee, Tebow, entire o line, Thomas, Decker (#3 WR)
One last thing – the great “Tebow experiment” is over … either Tim learns to be an NFL quarterback, or his options are very limited – either he goes bye-bye, or he learns another position … there are certainly things that he can do that would be very advantageous – but to build the team around the offense they’ve used with him this year WILL NOT BE IN THEIR PLANS … this kind of an offense WILL NOT WORK, and Elway and the brain trust know this … they did it this year because they felt they had to – it was all he could do that had any chance to succeed … and I think that part of the experiment yielded the results they thought it would … it WON’T WORK … so now, he either develops as a more traditional quarterback, or they go another direction … you saw what happened at the goal line in the 4th quarter – the Patriots had him defended, and he was lost … earlier in the year he was able to use his feet to get into the end zone, and in fact last week he did – but from now on he will be defended to the point that he’s little threat … so – we can all hope that the kid can pick up what he needs to succeed … I wish him well – for him, for the team, for the fans, and – yes – for me …
Like I said Bay … I was humbled … i said all year we weren’t the most talented but we played the most unified and the most resilient … and I thought that would be enough for at least a competitive game. I was wrong.
GREAT POST SNDVL … Im a young bronco fan and this was truly one of the best seasons I have ever watched. Never really knew what was gonna happen. Lotta ups lotta downs. Roller coaster ride … some of the greatest finishes ever … and first playoff birth and victory in so long … and we owe it to this talentless team lol … but they had the fight … and as a fan I appreciate that. Still believe in Tebow and feel we have some core talent that we need to keep … unlike McDaniels who stipped the team.
No desire for the Tebow back and forth… there will be alot of time for that this next 8 months ad nauseum
Have a great offseason to the seasonal bloggers. Another fun year thanks to you guys.
GO BRONCOS
I want to congratulate the Broncos on a great season,going far and beyond expectations…..WE NEED A GOOD DRAFT AND A GOOD FULL OFF SEASON………HERE’S TO NEXT YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!
Thanks to all the great bloggers – I have learned a lot from you all. I guess the next debates will center around the draft. I liked that the NFL show that has Bradshaw, Howie, Johnson, and company did show that Tebow has a better first year record than Brees, Rogers, and Manning and that only Brady had a better record than Tebow his first year. They were very even handed in their coverage. I still remember weeks four and five when we were being counted out for the year and I, for one would not have wanted to miss this season for anything. It has been quite a ride and I believe that we can be proud of our Broncos and their will to win. Go Broncos!
I disagree with the every word of the following, and I suspect it was meant to be posted 1 week earlier:
“Other than the Tebow disciples I can’t believe that level headed Bronco fans like TRB would actually be surprised by the end result. I mean come on we know we are thin on talent, have either aging stars or inexperienced young ones and Elway has always said this would be a 4 to 5 year project to get back on top of the NFL. Sure we can fake a few teams in some games that are just regular season games with not much on the line or beat one that was depleted injury wise in the playoffs by playing a perfect game like the Steelers game, but come on, when the real teams come to play come playoff time, like the Pats, Packers, 49ers, Giants or Saints, we have absolutely zero shot, other than the proverbial Any Given Sunday, I mean it’s as glaring as the nose on my face…. We took this thing way further than our talent or our coaching could ever expect at this point so let’s rejoice in that, to be disappointed about this shellacking is just a case of having a constant overdose of orange kool aid.
Why do you guys think I left the blog for basically the whole week, because I didn’t want to be a let down for all of you miracle worshippers. I didn’t have the heart to bring you back down to reality. It is what it is and it ends pretty much like it should, we have got a looooong ways to go, players, coaches, GM, VP, the whole kahuna, lots of work ahead in the off season.
And don’t think for a minute this is going to be easy going forward, the organization is now basically sold on Tebow because of his Tebowesque performance against the Steelers, but a good look in the mirror will show anyone that he played only one good game out of the last 5 he played, and all those counted a whole bunch, they were all games we were trying to have real badly, meaning it’s an uphill battle all the way, no more orange kool aid for anyone in the organization would be in order, it’s going to be nothing but hard work to keep turning this thing around to where Elway and all of us want to go.”
Nothing has changed Broncos fans.
We have a good team. Maybe not great, but good. And with a good draft we will be even better.
I, for one, absolutely can not wait for next season. The next 8 months are going to be suspenseful. We are in the doldrums right now. But nothing has changed. We are just ajead of schedule.
Go Broncos. Just believe.
@whineman:
“One last thing – the great “Tebow experiment” is over”
Yeah, if by “over” you mean Tebow has garaunteed his spot as the starter of this team to open up the 2012 regular season.
We need to draft defensive palyers and pick up some good ones in the free agent market cause with this defense we dont stand a chance. Beside our d line and line backers everybody else stinks in the secondary. So pissed to have a defense like this.
Thanks for the re-post alex, I didn’t think I made myself clear enough, LOL.
After a good sleep and time to reflect. It was a amazing season that we can not go backwards from!! Lets pick up our head and move forward!!! We will be back on top, just have to work on it. Alot of players are gonna be gone next yr. So lets get more talent. If we gonna go with this O scheme. Lets get someone who is a expert at it and can teach everyone not just some plays!!!! have fun see ya’ll at the combine!!!
Morning Broncos Country, ruff one to wach but it was expected., looking forward to your guys draft analysis., bay wats ur take on the Mccoy thing? The paper sucked this morning, only one article in Gazzette, terrible.
This team has me more excited than I’ve been in years. Can’t wait for next year and the upcoming draft. Can’t beat Brady if you don’t hit him. Where did our pass rush go anyways? Give Tebow an offseason and a TE and this game will slow down a lot for him. Could be a very dangerous QB to defend. Gets me pumped!
It is very disappointing to see the NFL turning a blind eye on there favorite owner cheating again. There is no way one of the leauges worst defenses can turn into the defense of the century over night. Unless they hacked the frequecy of the other teams communications and dialed up the proper response on every play. Even up to the last play, the linebacker blitzes the exact point of attack before the ball is even snapped. That was repeated the entire game. In my opinion Belichick wanted to shove it down there throats because his team was not in the spot light last week. I feel they only do it when it is needed.
The last time I saw this Joe Gibbs went to New Englend and was blown out. After the game he said through gritted teeth, it was like they knew the play before we ran it. After the game he privately complained to the league. Unbelievably they were found to be taping the games – WOW!!! Belichick wanted to shove it down the 3 time SB Champion to prove a point. ARROGANT! Then we find out the league had warned him in the past and he kept doing it.
I wonder if the league offices are excepting calls from Elway or Fox this week. Hopefully the Ravens make the proper adujustments on and off the field this week so the cheating won’t cause them to lose.
Is this the NFL or WWE!
Well I am a Tebow fan and with that said i have come to the conclusion we are all right. We are A LONG WAY FROM BEING A CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM, nooooo doubt. BUT WASN’T FUN TO AT LEAST FEEL LIKE OUR TEAM COULD BE BETTER THAN IT IS!! Been a long time coming 2005 ARE YOU KIDDING ME! TIM WILL GET BETTER JUST LET HIM GROW OL’E NUMBER 7 WASN’T THAT GREAT AT FIRST EITHER or do you all see him only through rose collard glasses? Don’t get me wrong I love the guy but what I seen yesterday, we need a whole new scheme man we sucked, were the steelers that beat up? And Beattles stomping people? And IF WE COULD GET SOME PRESSURE ON BRADY LIKE TIM GOT ALL DAY, DUUUUUUDE! AND DID YOU SEE FOX AND THE OC. LOOKING AT EACH OTHER LIKE THEY DIDN’T KNOW WHAT THE HELL THE OTHER WAS DOING ON THAT TIME OUT IN THE THIRD QUARTER? The only bright side to this whole thing for me is at least the HOLIDAYS are finaly over piece out crew!
I agree with Bay. I knew that we had no chance with NE. I did say if we played hard & aggrasive we will beat the Patsies. I was just dreaming like most Bronco Fans, but Bay is exactly right. I also fill that Fox has to go because I feel he had nothing to do with any success the Broncos had. His run first offense does not work. I also feel that Adam Weber should get a big chance at QB next year. I still have a big question mark about Tebows ability in the passing game. Draft well Mr. Elway.