Rice Takes

Thanks to all of you who responded to the last post. As always, I appreciate hearing from you.

I’m not sure I’ll be able to post anything after the Jacksonville game. I’ll give it my best shot but I’ll be taking a little time off and then I’ll be back for the game against Indianapolis.

The Jacksonville game will be special for a reason unrelated to this year’s team: Former Broncos running back Terrell Davis will be inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame. I have some thoughts on that. Thanks for reading and I’ll be back soon!

Mike
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It is hallowed ground reserved for the greatest of Broncos. Its membership is a who’s who of Broncos legends.

Sunday, the Denver Broncos Ring of Fame welcomes another member: Running back Terrell Davis.

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It is an enviable position for an NFL team to be in: Win while not playing its best. That’s where the Broncos find themselves after two games of the 2007 season.

Sunday’s overtime win over the Raiders was the Broncos’ second consecutive nail-biter. The bottom line is that the Broncos are 2-0 and they are not playing nearly to the level at which they are capable of playing.

The Broncos have plenty on which to work after beating the Raiders. A few of the items:

• They surrendered 200 net yards rushing. The Raiders couldn’t throw the football, finishing with 53 net yards passing. But the Broncos could hardly stop Oakland’s running game. It was just too easy.
• For the second straight week, the Broncos’ offense marched up and down the field. But for the second straight week, they struggled to score points. The Broncos racked up 441 yards but they still had to rally to win.
• The Broncos’ special teams has to tighten things up. The onside kick the Raiders recovered seemed to give them new life. Even though Oakland didn’t score on the ensuing possession, the Raiders seemed to be energized by taking the Broncos by surprise.

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The Broncos’ 15-14 win over the Bills on Sunday was one of those games where it takes a little time sink in. After the excitement wears off, one is left to ask something along the lines of, “Did they REALLY just do what I think they did?”

It also shows that it doesn’t really matter how a team wins. The bottom line is the most important thing. The Broncos’ bottom line on Sunday against the Bills was a “W.” That’s all that counts.

I know it didn’t look pretty. The Broncos had plenty of opportunities to pile up the points. They outgained the Bills 470 yards to 184. The Broncos had a 171-112 yard edge in rushing yards. They held the Bills to 72 net yards passing.

And yet, the Broncos still found themselves scrambling to pull out an improbable victory on kicker Jason Elam’s 42-yard field goal as time expired.

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Finally. The regular season is here. Preseason just doesn’t do much for me. Sure, it’s mildly interesting to see if any players emerge as legitimate. Running back Selvin Young undoubtedly falls into that category.

But a guy like Young is the exception. There just are not that many surprises.

Now the rosters are set and it is go-time. It is time to see where every team stands. Here are a few observations on the Broncos as they enter Sunday’s regular season opener at Buffalo.

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