Earlier this week I got a call from a big Broncos fan in New York, “Benny from New York,” as he describes himself.
Sounds like the descriptions given to callers on talk radio. Anyway, Benny is not a Giants or Jets fan, but rather has the Denver Broncos as his adopted favorite team. He calls now and then, and I always enjoy chatting.
This week he reminded me of one of the great truths in the sports world if you work for a team, or if you ARE a team.
“Only care about what the people who love you think,” Benny said.
And I could not agree more.
The Broncos are heading into San Diego coming off a big 49-29 win over the division rival Kansas City Chiefs, and it is no secret we are climbing out of a 2-6 hole that is disappointing to us and all our fans.
When you have a losing record it is pretty easy to gain critics among your own fans, the media, and fans nationwide.
But the single most important people there are the ones who use the terms “we” and “us” when talking about the Broncos. If you are not a “we” or “us” person, you do not mean as much to us as those who are, and you should not.
The biggest single question one ever has to ask oneself about anything in the world — a team, a belief, a relationship — is, “Are you in, or are you out?
If the answer is you’re not sure, you are out. If the answer is you are in sometimes, or depending on team success, you are out.
A friend of mine in local television often jokes that “we are with you, win or tie.” That is kind of amusing, always worth a chuckle, which we always share. But as to where they are in the Broncos family, the answer is those people are out. It is perfectly understandable that there are a great many fans who have their most vocal support when the team wins. That will never change, and it is the same in every city.
But the people who come in numbers well over 70,000 for every home game, they are in. The people who are passionate about everything Broncos, including what color jersey we wear, they are in.
Not to be overly harsh, but sometimes you just have to dismiss the rest of them. The fair weather fans will always come back when you win. The critic is by definition someone looking for something to criticize.
“They” are not “we.” The people who live and work in the building, in the locker room, and who are not visitors in our building and in our stadium, that is our family.
The season ticket holder who supports the team, and who has for years and even decades, is the trunk of the tree that is called fandom.
We are glad to have as many as want to join the bandwagon, always, but never lose sight of the fact that the collective “we” is the core of support.
The Broncos could not be prouder of that group, the team, the players, the coaches, and those fans who were already staking a claim when Broncos Country was still just a territory.
We are family.
Tags: 2010, Denver Broncos, Jim Saccomano
“Only care about what the people who love you think” says Benny.
I have to say that would pretty much narrow the field a whole bunch, like kind of setting aside the majority of the world, seems counter productive to me, some of the best advice out anywhere comes from your enemies, like keep your friends close and your enemies closer. It’s all about how you read things, not just listening to who ever loves you, what happened to the Broncos this week is they responded to adversity, not to love. However I completely agree with the we and us mentality, we are in win or lose, Bronco blood is stronger than losses type of thing.
What I do find strange is that actually there are more bloggers who question their team when it is warranteed but who are always here blogging away whether we win our lose, to where they are many bloggers who love their Broncos and are here to clamor for it when the going is good but leave the airways when the going gets tough.
I guess differentiating a true fan from a bandwagon fan can work in multiple ways, but heck, everyone is free to root for their team however they wish, whatever makes them feel in their comfort zone, the rough patches are not for everyone… I guess you could say that to be a true Bronco fan requires toughness just like toughness is required of our players to cut it in this league.
This is a little off the beaten path! WE all hope this is the catalyst that turns our season around. Even if we fall short of the post season, if we can get OUR home field edge back, we can consider it a success!
Congrats on the first home division win under the McD Machine!
Well said Jim! I’d be there in a heartbeat if I could afford those season tickets… some day I’ll get to have them. lol My heart is in that stadium every home game though. That counts.
So I found out about this website (below). A petition to bring back the Orange jersey’s instead of bringing them out twice a year. Sign it & pass it along. I’d love to have the bright-put-on-your-sunglasses Orange jerseys back! haha
http://www.bringbackbroncosorange.com/index.htm
Can’t wait for Monday night to come. Broncos are gonna steal the thunder from those chargerettes.
Have faith Bronco Country…
GO BRONCOS in 2010!!!!
I am a fan that cannot miss a single play. Even after a few beers and I got to head to the mens room, I`m going to wait until a tv commercial. And my conversation has always been We or US. I stayed behind our Denver Bronco`s when we lost all those SuperBowls. I took a bantering but kept my head up. I`m proud to be a Bronco`s fan.
I submitted my vote to Orange Crush Jersey`s. Bring back the magic.
I remember a few years back I was in the Navy having a conversation a football conversation with one of my shipmates. I was describing a play I like we made in a win against the Ravens that broke their undefeated streak (they were 5-0 going into the game) and my friend stopped me and said “We? You don’t play for the Broncos. Why would you say we?” I was little stunned for a second because it truly suprised me that he couldn’t understand what “we” meant. Of course I’m not taking credit for any of it. Those guys represent the city and state that I love so the better question is why wouldn’t I say we? Especially when I was so far away from home. You know I’ve found myself with differeing opinions with guys like Baylin. But guys like Baylin are the biggest fans. If you love someone – really love someone – then you have to be able to tell them the hard truths, and you guys do. When we talk sports the word “truth” is a little trickier because almost everything is an opnion or conjecture but you guys get my point. The ones who love you are the ones who will tell you when you’re messing up. And THAT is why I think Jim says we should only listen to the ones who love us. Everyone else simply doesn’t have enough invested.
All that going to the new orange jersey thing does for me is make me buy yet another jersey since I wear the current team color jersey to every game I watch, rendering all my blue jerseys worthless, I’m starting to believe that this switching team jerseys is taking place mainly to build up jersey sales. How many jerseys can a man have? I have 8 already, enough is enough! However love orange and if you go back to orange, go back to the original orange, the new orange is not nearly bright enough in my opinion. And I’ll be able to wear my old orange jerseys then, just saying, so bottom line, I’m not voting for it, send me $100 for a new jersey and I’ll vote for it, LOL.
ILMSDB! W or L!!!!
LETS GET OUR ORANGE SWERVE ON AND WEAR THE ORANGE JERSEYS ALL THE TTIME!!!!
KEEP THE DRIVE ALIVE BRONCOS!!!!!
BB&R, thanks for acknowledging the true nature of the love of my team, means a lot, beats the heck from being beat down about it, like called pessimist, defeatist, debbie downer and what not, and I had really not made the jump from listening to the ones who love us to include the ones like I and many others who let the organization and the team have it when it is deserved, point taken if that’s what indeed Mr. Saccomano meant.
Oh come on Bay, you can still wear the blue jerseys twice a year for our alternate color……
The blue ones will still be viable, I have the Blue and the Orange TT jerseys…
I always wear my throwback all Orange Elway jersey when times are rough, It always makes me feel more inspired!!!!!
ILMSDB!
OC, I was already thinking of buying an alternate orange jersey anyway, but I’m just cheap, I don’t mind buying what I chose to but I hate it when my hand is forced and I believe they will twist my arm once again since McD has already put the ball in Mr. Bowlen’s court saying he would love to go the the orange but it would be up to Pat.
to the orange…
strandoftds,
You hit the nail on the head. Our team has a legacy with a great mix of triumph and adversity. I’m glad I’m not a Cowboys fan or a Steelers fan. I think our story is more compelling than the teams like that. When John Elway finally won his Super Bowl it meant more to him because of his preiviously losses and by his own admission he wouldn’t go back and change a thing if he could. That’s kind of a microcosm of what it’s like to be a true Broncos fan. I wouldn’t trade our 2-4 record in the Super Bowl for that of the Cowboys, Steelers, or the 49ers. I wouldn’t trade John Elway for Roger Staubach, Shanahan for Parcells, Atwater for a Ronnie Lott… ok well I think you guys get the picture. Proud to be a Broncos fan and I’m proud of our legacy.
WE are always all in! Bring on the ORANGE!!! Time to take it to the Sparklers!
i got one Orange throw back. Shannon Sharpe.
For sure, Bay! We may not always agree but I know where it’s coming from!
Broncos Born & Raised, well said. And during all 4 of those SuperBowl losses I was born and raised in Orange County Calif. I`ve been in the Springs for 20 years now. Believe me, it was tough, even in California. But ya know I wouldn`t change a thing.
And like you heard me say before, I went to some raider – Bronco`s games when the raiders where in L.A. And it was crazy.
I hope we can keep the momentum rolling into next week! I really wanna put up big numbers on SD!
We better put up big #’s on SD since Rivers is likely to put up big numbers on us. And we better go over there with the only mission being winning the game since after this KC loss the national media has now SD has a clear favorite to win the division. This is a huge game once again, that’s the problem when you start 2-6, pretty much every game after that is a must win if you want a shot at the division and the playoffs, like you make your bed and you have to sleep in it, no one will feel sorry for us that’s for sure, all our divisional opponents will be fighting hard as nails to put that last one in our coffin (not bad, haha), starting with SD Monday. Oh well, it makes the challenge of the second half of the season all that much greater and it would make conquering it a most incredible accomplishment that would send us all to football nirvana, that’s for sure.
Jim very well put. I wish I could be in Denver so I can go to the games but I still scream at the tv like Im there. I bleed orange and blue have since I was a little kid and I always will I cant wait for monday when we destroy the chargers and show every one in the country were not going to lay down for anyone and we can win any game.
Bay – $100? So now you have to be bribed to sign the petition? lol C’mon man. I do agree the current orange isn’t as bright as my Elway throwback but its the thought from the fans that count. The decision is ultimately up to Bowlen but it wouldn’t hurt for the fans to put the idea in his head. Just imagine when he gets an email or whatever with all these names on it asking for the old orange jerseys back on a permanent basis. As great of an owner as he is, I would hope he would at least consider our request for this seeing as how its one way WE stand out from everyone else.
I may not play for the Broncos, but doggone it you can bet that I say “we” and “us” when it comes to the Broncos…because they are MY team and I love em win or lose!! Yes WE have a lot of problems right now and yes WE are struggling right now but doggone it WE will bounce back (SOON) and all of these fairweather fans and haters will see what us “REAL FANS” or as Mr. Saccomano put it FAMILY have been saying!! I have no problem with anyone who questions or calls out the team when it is warranted. Heck, my parents did it to me when I was young because they did it out of LOVE. There’s a big difference between doing somehing out of love and just doing it to be negative. Nevertheless though I’m a Broncos fan at 16-0 or 0-16!! BRONCOS TILL THE DAY I DIE!!!!! I SIGNED THE PETITION……BRING BACK THE ORANGE CRUSH!!!
strandoftds…you took the words right outta my mouth on your 1:23 post bro!
Ya BFE, it`s the true bro.
Yea strand…
Whenever we go to the game I am hoping that they will have an authentic Thomas jersey in the orange for me to get since it’s my first home game and it is really exciting knowing that Orange will most likely be our home jersey here in the very near future!!! I think I am going to see if I can find the broncos official store in the stadiums number and give them a call and see if they have one in my size!! If not then I will have them get one for me by the time I get there and see if they can hold it for me!!!
Ya Broncosfreak30. And my guess is that they have it. I did go to the Bronco`s scrimmaging at Invesco field. That shop was big in the stadium. If I recall, they had many Orange Jersey`s to choose from.
A NY Broncos fan. Good, so im not the only one on the East Coast lol!!!. Broncos fan from Pennsylvania here and i will never change me team. HATE the steelers and am neutral for the Eagles (I’ve always been a Vick fan)
Nothingsafe I am in VA and I support the team…did I meet you at the Seahwk game…just asking I met a guy from PA while at the game this year…so east coast is strong
Nothingsafe…I hail from VA…so the east is well represented
I fully agree Jim! I live in S.Oregon so am surounded by 40whiners SeaChickens and Faiders and evn with all of them I have found comraderie with true fans that choose to agree to disagree. I bleed Orange and Blue and real Football fans respect that…Regardless of how we feel about decisions made, players traded, or the like… If you’re for reall you know it and you show it… GO BRONCOS !!