A pair of knee injuries will force the Broncos to shift some spots for their Week 17 battle with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Head Coach Josh McDaniels announced at his Monday press conference that Russ Hochstein and Kenny McKinley were both being placed on injured reserve today. He added that Hochstein needs surgery, while McKinley is still being evaluated.
Hochstein has started 10 games this season, including the last eight at left guard. Offensive coordinator Mike McCoy said that loss will challenge another player to fill the void, but within the same constructs of what the team has accomplished with Hochstein.
“He has done a nice job since he’s stepped in and started playing,” McCoy said. “The next guy’s going to have to step in and do a good job. We’ve got to continue doing what we’ve been doing with him in there.”
With Eddie Royal inactive for the Eagles game due to a head/neck injury, McKinley was expected to see more touches on both special teams and offense. That proved to be the case late in the first quarter, as the rookie took the team’s first kickoff return for a 22-yard gain.
But on that play, McKinley endured a hard collision with an Eagles coverage man and did not return.
“It’s always hard when you lose someone like that, where they’ve done a great job and worked hard as a young player coming in,” McCoy said. “He’s really worked extremely hard to make the most of his opportunities. It’s just unfortunate that the injury happened.”
Despite the injuries, McDaniels motioned to some areas that need to be stronger for the Broncos to secure a win in their final regular season game. One of those spots was greater physicality in their blocking scheme, which paved the way for only 70 rushing yards against Philadelphia’s front seven.
“We did not win the line of scrimmage offensively, and they did a great job defensively of being more physical than we were up front,” McDaniels said. “They knocked us back into the backfield quite a few times and held us on a third-and-one. We did convert a short-yardage situation, but ultimately when we watch the running game, we’re watching what’s going on at the line of scrimmage.”
– Chris Gentilviso, DenverBroncos.com
Tags: Head Coach Josh McDaniels, Kansas City Chiefs, Kenny McKinley, Russ Hochstein, Week 17
OOOOOOHHHHHHHH FIRST COMMENT
FEEL MY WRATH!!!!!!!!!!!
READ MY WRATH!!! IN THE PREVIOUS BLOG
I <3 TheRoyalBeast
I’m not going to be able to watch any TV on Sunday. It’s going to be crazy to see what unfolded come Monday morning.
Why cant we finish a season? I really dont understand how we can be 6-0 and now fighting for the playoffs! Lets go broncos, we R BETTER THAN THIS! Keep Ya Heads up and BLOW OUT KC and hopefully like 5 billion teams lose so we can get in!
Last year we were like 6-2 as well and melted down,
The new regime hasn’t changed our curse…but if we are to blow out or beat KC…we need a legit ground game (like the first tiem we met). As far as playoffs…everything will fall into place if its meant to be. It will be fun to watch…..we played all the teams in the post season in the regular season and beaten half of them. Would be interesting to play em again.
Our season might tbe over tomorrow so these injuries aren’t as bad. Feel bad for Kid Kenny…..jsu twhen he was ready and eager to contribute….misfortune befell him
gary bronc,
I think all of us are feeling what you’re feeling. The Broncos have been fast starters for most of the decade and then pull major fade jobs. It is frustrating especially losing at home to the Raiders on a game winning drive engineered by JaMarcus Russell and losing to a pathetic Redskins team even if it was on the road. Keep in mind, however, most people expected Denver to win three or four games this season. I know that doesn’t help ease the pain much especially when everyone’s hopes shot through the roof following the 6-0 start, but the facts are Denver is now 8-7 and need to win this Sunday and get some help.
Here are the ways Denver can clinch a playoff spot this weekend:
* a win (vs. Kansas City) and a N.Y. Jets loss loss or tie (vs. Cincinnati) and a Baltimore loss or tie (vs. Oakland) OR
* a win and a N.Y. Jets loss or tie and a Pittsburgh loss or tie (vs. Miami) OR
* a win and a N.Y. Jets loss or tie and a Houston win (vs. New England) OR
* a win and a Baltimore loss or tie and a Pittsburgh loss or tie OR
* a win and a Baltimore loss or tie and a Houston win OR
* a Pittsburgh loss and a Baltimore loss and a Houston loss and a Jacksonville loss (vs. Cleveland) OR
* a Pittsburgh loss and a Baltimore loss and a Houston loss and a N.Y. Jets loss OR
* Pittsburgh loss and a Baltimore loss and a Jacksonville loss and a N.Y. Jets loss OR
* Pittsburgh loss and a Houston loss and a Jacksonville loss and a N.Y. Jets loss OR
* Miami loss or tie (vs. Pittsburgh) and a N.Y. Jets loss and a Baltimore loss and a Houston loss and a Jacksonville loss or tie
can someone please explain to me how the tiebreaker works with the broncos and the jets!!!!!
Regarding yesterday afternoon, I have to say that this was the most displeasing blogging I have ever witnessed here, all courtesy of broncoboyest95. In the matter of one afternoon he managed to considerably cheapen this blogging website, and if I said nothing I would be complicite, and I want none of that. He is the most arrogant, self centered, righteous young adolescent I have ever had the misfortune to read. It seems as the blog administration might of caught on and blocked him out after his last couple posts above: FEEL MY WRATH!!!!!!!!!!!, READ MY WRATH!!!!!!!!IN THE PREVIOUS BLOG…. Do yourselves a favor, don’t, it will ruin your day. LOL. This 14 year old is from Oakland and seems to be perfect material for the Raider fan base, what went wrong? LOL. Seriously, if that kid is ever posting here again with the same behavior, rest assured that while he is doing it I will be out, no way I can condone such outrageous malicious intent with participation. But I did enjoy just about everybody else’s comments yesterday, thanks to all you guys for that. Let’s not allow one bad apple to ruin the blog for the rest of us, I hope I never have to read through a blog like that here ever again. Peace out.
steve-o4broncos: They beat common opponents that we lost to, thats why they hold the edge… Sucks!
This is Broncos Country
The one I don’t understand is Jets loss or tie with a Houston win over NE. I get the Jets part but how does a Houston WIN help us? I mean if Baltimore and Pittsburgh both win and we also win we will all be 9-7 and we would lose the head to head against both of them right?
OK, I looked at the tie breakers again and I see why Pittsburgh would be out. It’s because if three teams are tied and two or more of them are in the same division they eliminate all but the winner of the tie breaker according to the division tie breakers, which would be Baltimore, before going on to the other tie breakers. Still don’t get the Houston win though. This is just too confusing for me. I give up. As long as we get in who cares anyway.
I admit I dismissed our chances too early in the season as well, right after the whole Cutler crying game. I thought 3 or 4 wins maybe, if we get an 8-8 season, I would be happy. But then, I got excited like everbody else and thought 11-5 wasn’t unreasonable at all. But now, it seams we are starting to see the real team we all anticipated seeing this season. Too many missed opportunities, i.e. Washington & Oakland losses. Seriously, loosing to Oakland should be its own tiebreaker for the playoffs. Lose to Raiders = No playoffs, no matter what.
I do, however, love to see the Chiefs get embarrased like we did four weeks ago, so LET’S GO BRONCOS. and see what happens. Maybe the Raiders can actually help us by putting the Ravens away.
By the way, does anybody else just get a little bit happier every time JC throws another interception?