I doubt many people predicted the Broncos would beat the Falcons, which is what happened Sunday at the Georgia Dome. Denver won 24-20.
I admit I was not in the group that made such a prediction. I believed it was possible but a big part of me had to see it to believe it.
I believe.
I’m not ready to pronounce the Broncos a Super Bowl contender, but I am ready to say they are playing better football. And it is making for some good times.
Sunday the Broncos passed the Football 101 test with flying colors. Because of that, they beat the Falcons.
–The Broncos held onto the football. They did not commit a turnover. That not only maximized the Broncos’ chances of scoring but it kept the Falcons’ offense on the bench.
–The Broncos contained the Falcons’ powerful rushing attack. Yes, Michael Turner scored two touchdowns. But he needed 25 carries to gain 81 yards. That’s only 3.2 yards per carry. I’ll take that any day. We all pointed out when the Broncos’ rush defense struggled. Now we must give them credit for a job well done.
–The Broncos made big plays at big times. The Broncos scored 10 points in the fourth quarter and 17 in the second half. In their last game against Cleveland, the Broncos exploded for 21 points in the fourth quarter. That is coming through in the clutch. That’s getting it done when the game is on the line. That’s impressive.
–The Broncos are getting key contributions from players filling in for injured guys. Peyton Hillis, Spencer Larsen, Wesley Woodyard, P.J. Pope, among others, all gave the Broncos a lift. And how about Big Play Dre (Bly)? While not a replacement, he came up with a third quarter interception that was the kind of key play the defense needed to make. It led to Matt Prater’s 20-yard field goal that gave the Broncos a 17-13 lead. Bly had to cover Atlanta’s best receiver, Roddy White, much of the game and Dre acquitted himself rather well.
“We’re feeling pretty good,” quarterback Jay Cutler told 850 KOA after the game. “People counted us out against Cleveland (and) counted us out in this game. Guys did a great job offensively, defensively (and) on special teams. It was a good win for us.”
Indeed it was. The Broncos are heading in the right direction. The offense is cranking back up. The defense is showing noticeable improvement. Special teams are making a difference.
It looks like the Broncos are getting the hang of Football 101. Class is dismissed…but just for another week.
What stood out for you in the Broncos’ win over the Falcons? Thanks for all your posts. Your feedback has been great.
Thanks for reading.
Best,
Mike
Tags: 2008, Atlanta Falcons, Denver Broncos
3 Great drives, 10 plays, 11 plays, & 10 plays NICE!
Great Ballance on Offensive play calling 28 pass 24 runs!
1 key Int. by D. Bly!
5-159 kickoff returns By E. Royal!
Deffense holds on during a 12 play 5min. long drive VERY NICE!
Great fill in work by P. Pope, & T. Bell GOOD JOB!
All these great things led to a big win for the TEAM!
But, there is still room for improvement…ya the TEAM did’nt give up any turnovers but the D was still on the field most of the time 7:24 more to be exact. Four 3 & outs is unacceptable guy’s please work on this. TIME OF POSSESSION! Over all you get a B- and I hope the TEAM continues to get better.
GO BRONCOS! ! ! !
WHAT DO PEOPLE ONLY BLOG WHEN THIER PISSED?
Once again Woodyard looked like a stud and as we all expected Larsen played pretty good too. I really think Slowik needs to consider starting Wood yard and possibly Larsen. One thing that looked good with Larsen was he didn’t over-pursue like Webster sometimes does. Woodyard looks better than Boss already.
I went to the game yesterday (from NY) and could see a swagger on this team even during warm ups…Let’s be honest, the broncos are in Transition but things look good now and even for the future….I agree their not SB contenders and fans shouldn’t lie to themselves but we have a hell of a team if we can keep them together….Thanks to Dre Bly and Dwayne Robertson for giving your game gloves to my god-son (he’s a bronco fan for life)….on a side note, I was very impressed with the amount of bronco fans at the game…keep supporting the team. Go BRONCOS!
Key to good teams is toughness. This is the first game in a long time I can remember the Broncos being tough and physical. Tough guys lead to tough D and good special teams plays, both keys to the game. Great job boys, especially Spencer Larsen. Was there any player in the league more valuable than him on Sunday?
I just have to say that this has to be one of the best draft classes ever. Hillis, Larsen, Clady, Royal, and even Jack Williams and Kory Lichtensteiger have all come in and played like season vets all season long. Not to mention Ryan Torain looked great in the two quarters he played in Cleveland. Kudos to the front office for finding so many gems in the draft!
Oh, and Dre Bly has taken his game to an amazing level in the absence of Champ Baily. Once Champ gets back I think our pass D will actually look pretty good.
Good win overall, probably the most complete game of the year.
It may be to short of time frame to say this but I think the Broncos found the middle linebacker they have been looking for to replace AL Wilson. After watching him pursue down the line of scrimmage, and keep gap control and not flat miss takles every third or fourth play. When we get champ and D.J. Back it will make a better team out of the defense no doubt, it will be hard to put either Woodyard or Winborn behind D.J. but what a backup to have. Webster provides big hits, but he also has gap control issues as well as over pursuing the play, it may have been only one game but the play at middle linebacker looked the best it had all season. Limiting Turner to what they did was a big victory for the defense, not to metion keeping Matt Ryan in check for most of the game. This last draft is looking pretty damn good, guess the haters will have to bring up the past drafts now. It is always fun to watch the Broncos win but was there any rookie playing yesterday that didn’t do one hell of a job. Royal was his usual best, Hillis with the tapdance routine along the side line for the first down. Maybe this is what will make this team special for many years to come, some veterans better step up their play or they might be cleaning out their lockers for the final time!
Not enough mention of the special teams play in this game. Stopping the Falcon’s returns inside the twenty several times and great blocking for Royal on his returns. When you excel in special teams, it really influences the rest of the game.
wassup everyone hope you guys got to watch this whole game yesterday and not just the highlights it was great. First and formost great win and for Matt Ryan hes a stud i cant even imagine how good hes going to be having to play him maybe again next year or in four more years.Good Game, but you know wassup our man Jay ‘cannon arm’ Cutler came through with another 4th quarter touchdown drive, clutch. To all other Broncos fans ill see you guys on sunday at the TV watching the Denver vs. Chokeland game. one love.
Please take that Lowry out of the game he is becoming an ESPN highlight embaresment
Great game guys. I have been calling for Larsen at the mike position for weeks. He is a huge improvement over Nate and Niko. I know that DJ is the man but I am not sure I would break up Jamie, Spencer and Wesley. They have earned the right to start another game. Also dont forget it was our starters that were getting lit up by no name backs and now these three contained the 2nd best back in the league. Great job
One of the biggest things is that we didn’t turn the ball over. In the past few weeks we’ve been having issues with ball security. Also the strong play by some of our youngters was outstanding.
Hillis ran the ball well; Larsen played both ways well; Royal boosted our ST, Clady did his thing; And many more guys stepped up. That’s what we needed to see. With the injuries we needed guys to step up and play some good ball.
I also think that our D is looking better. With the exception to Turners big gain he contained the run well. I’m sure we had so simplify some things for the young guys and that might create some gaps but our pass D was decent. We didn’t allow a passing TD, which is great, especially the way Ryan was throwing the ball.
I’m looking forward to busting up the Raiders!!!!
good D !!!!!! not great D yet .But still a good job well done on both sides and special teams .Probably the best game this year!!!!!!!!!!
I will give credit to all those who said that Larsen needed to play some defense. I was a little skeptical and thought he might be rusty due to the fact that he has been practicing at fullback all year. However he stepped up and was a very solid player wherever he was playing whether it was offense, defense, or special teams. That was old school having him play on both sides but he showed that he is capable and will be good for them in the future wherever he is lined up. I disagree with the statement made by West Coast that they should keep DJ Williams out. Although these guys have been playing well, he is an all-star and unless he physically cannot go he should be in there.
What stands out is that awful shirt you picked out for your portrait. Jeez.
I have heard a lot of people talk about the un-predictable Denver defense.
How could “back up’s” be performing better than the starters?
Well, the “back up’s” at linebacker did what they were supposed to do!!!
I couldn’t stand watching earlier in the year as our “starting” linebackers frequently lost track of their resposibilities and played out of position. Thus taking bad angles and missing tackles.
The “back up” linebackers stuck to their gaps and to the scheme. And because of this they kept the Atlanta run game in check.
A GOOD defense plays well as a TEAM. The front 7 yesterday, did just that.
Larson is a smarter MLB than Webster. The job of the MLB is to read and react. Larson made the right reads and let the plays come to him. I’ve watched Webster get himself way out of position too many times because he just reacts without thinking.
Woodyard is a good player and is doing a great job at WLB. D.J. wasn’t the problem for the D when they had problems, he makes plays.
Winborn is also a decent player and has made plays because he sticks to the scheme (but he needs to realise he doesn’t need to over-celebrate everytime he does his job right). Boss Bailey was another player who frequently played out of position and missed tackles.
By the end of the season I hope to see:
-That the d-line continues to mesh and improve.
-The linebackers of D.J., Larson, and either Woodyard or Winborn stick to the scheme.
-A healthy Champ Bailey
-Yesterday’s Bly. The one that goes low to tackle and covers well.
Given this happens, I think we could have a D that keeps us in these games. Thats all we needed back in 97 and 98.
Mr. Rice,
What is the news on Charlton Powell.
That was one exciting game and a GREAT display of what’s to come from this young and talented team. I was VERY impressed by how they played – they earned this win. Proud to be a Broncos fan for life!!!
The rookies practically stole the show and I’m glad they did. Some of them are filling in for some VERY BIG shoes. I’d say we’ve hit a gold mine with the draft class we had this year. They all have proven themselves worthy of a chance and that they were worth the chance. Hillis never ceases to amaze me – he’s turning out to be huge for us. Larsen was incredible for playing on all sides of the ball. I mean taking responsibility for a position on offense, defense AND even special teams – WOW doesn’t do him justice for what he did. I don’t recommend we have him do that b/c he’s gonna get worn out but if we need the extra help like what he’s done then we gotta to what we gotta do.
And then there’s my man #6 – Jay Cutler!! I’ve said so much about him I don’t know what to say anymore. He has done so much with this team. His leadership has done wonders for our younger players. We couldn’t have picked a better QB to lead our offense in the right direction. I’m so proud to have him on this team. Keep up the GREAT work Cutler – you the man baby!!!
I’m not calling anyone out in particular on here but you nay-sayers know who you are – this just needs to be said. It absolutely amazes me so many people only come on here to talk trash about this team and that only happens when we lose. Some of you are just completely outside your minds. I mean how much more half-hearted of a fan could you be when you only care about this team when they win. They are a very YOUNG team still getting through the process and these younger guys happen to be replacing some irreplacable figures we’ve had over the years. They are young and talented but their struggles are what is going to make this team better in time. So there.
I cannot wait to completely crush the Raiders!! And the best part is that they’ll be coming onto our territory. Just imagine the damage we’re going to do in the comfort of our Mile High Magic considering what we did to them in the “Black Hole”.
Keep the faith Broncos Country…
GO BRONCOS!!!!!!!
WOW WOW WOWWWW! 1st I have to give props to Jay Cutler for getting out there and blocking on those 2 or 3 plays. I feel he showed alot of toughness by getting out there. U don’t see Peyton Manning, Philp “Cry Me A” Rivers, and many other Qb’s trying to block for the Rb or Wr too much. Yeah they might do it when the runner is right next to them but not out in the open like Cutler did.
I know the Def. still has improvements to make but they did look pretty good. I think lane assignments is the main thing that’s hurting the D. Turner scored his 2nd TD on the cut back. I also wanna give props to a fellow Louisianaian Brandon Stokley! Man he always comes up with some key catches. Everyone did a great job yesterday esp the running backs bc their tough running allowed our offense to use what we do best…..the play action.
I think the coaches managed every aspect of the game well. I also think that we are at the point in the season where the offense and deffense balance each other. Early in the year we were putting up alot of points while giving up alot of points. Now we are working the ball down the field and not going for the BIG PLAY on every possession. Which also allows our deff. to get some much needed rest.
I hope everyone keeps a level head for sundays game against the Traiders. Now is not the time to start to overlook any team!
On a side note I’ll be going to the GreenBay – New Orleans game next Monday with my BRONCOS gear on praying that the Packers and/or Saints fans dare tell me something!!
dtmac3….. I did not mean to sit out DJ and not let him play. All I meant was the D was not getting it done when he was out there and these guys got it done. I love DJ but would love to see more from the 3 muskateers. They rocked yesterday and I cant wait to see them next week. I do firmly believe that Larsen should start over nate and nikko in a heartbeat.
dlmyers ….. I believe that he ruptured his achillies tendon in the summer. He will be out untill next season. He should be ready for OTA’s
i have said it after the cleveland game i am proud of this football team. and this is why i said that when things arent going right with injurys and poor play this team has found a way to win . cant say enough about this effort against the falcons. i thought this was the best overall weve played so far no turnovers and yes i know i have said some bad things about our defense . but that was the best defense i have seen all year winborn is playing awesome bly is tackling and making key plays larsen plays like hes hungry . jay you made clutch plays all day. hillis plays with great effort.
Hillis could be the next Alstott! He just needs to change to a 40 number.
I WANT TO SUBMIT THIS REQUEST TO THE BRONCOS OFFENSE:
On the goal line. Let’s run the Maryland I! With Larson up front, then Hillis and last Bell.
only thing i have to say…….
i LOVE spencer larsen.
all i got to say is where has that defense been all year.what a time to start….GO BRONCOS
its great to finally c this team mesh together and play better than the opposing team on all 3 levels. i like larsen in there with the linebackers but i also think Webster gives the team some swagger and intensity. I know it was thrown our earlier but what do you guys think of trying the 3-4 again? with Larson and WEb in the middle with DJ and woodyard on the outside. For now i say dont try to fix whats not broken, but maybe we could give it a try
nickolijazz – Thankfully my wife loves that shirt!
dlmyers – West Coast has it exactly right regarding Powell.
Thanks to all for the posts.
Mike
dj is in his contract year. they may let him go and keep spance woodyard jamie i agree i wouldnt break up spencer woodyard and jamie
Dj in’st in his contract year….. be4 the season started denver signed him for lyk 5 years or sumthing like that.
Way to go Spencer, my fellow Mormon! You were a stud. Keep up the good work. Peyton Hillis, you rock. Nice play Dre’ Bly, excellent catches Brandon Marshall and Daniel Graham. I’ve never been more proud to be a Broncos fan. The future is bright, and the present isn’t too bad either!
I’m going to agree with colorado69 and say thier is an unsung hero out ther in Special Teams and E. Royal who set up the O five times with 159 yrds in kickoff returns, AND keeping the Falcons O under wraps GOOD JOB! ! !
GO BRONCOS! ! !
Could Larsen be an option at safety when the linebackers return? Thats the weakest part of the defense in my opinion. Larsen is a gamer, he showed he can make a tackle.
I am not sure if anyone remembers but i am seeing history repeat itself. The fourth quarter belongs to the Denver Broncos. Mike Shannahan is a genius that is building another great quarterback in Jay Cutler and is proving that he is still at the top of his game.
Way to step up rookies show the Nfl that this team is still a force to be reckoned with. all these young guys coming in and working hard goes to show that Denver is still a team with heart its nice to see with all the players that have gone down that we still have the depth to win games.
Defense looking good but always room fo improvement just keep working as we all see that is paying dividends for this team.
Go Broncos!!!!
WOW ! Great idea orang_crush420
OK Broncos just take care of the Faiders sunday and Indy take care of the Chargers as well. AFC West Champions?? I can feel it!!!!!
Outstanding Performance Denver,
From our coaching preparedness to our rookies, we stepped up.
To: My Team, and little do you know, America’s Team!!
Your Playoff Journey has now begun, and you must beat the Jets, Bills and Chargers in your “string of victories” to come.
To: the Strength and Conditioning Staff responsible for the Poorest excuse in the training of Agility Reads, and Plyometrics in the NFL:
Your training or ‘lack thereof’ of in such plyometrics and “agilities conditioning” has led to the ‘poorest performance’ in Sound Tackling Techniques, the absence of Courage, and above all, INJURIES that have compounded almost an entire Depth Chart.
On behalf of the World of Bronco Fans I ask,
What do you have to say for yourself?
To: the Head Coach, and Operations Staff:
I would relish in the Opportunity to train and revitalize your warriors to a Performance level worthy of our Marines. As one who helped train and kept Marines performance ready, I welcome this Challenge and Task and would do it for .33 % Less than his Salary. I will do it gladly for it would be my Honor as a Denver Native to Illustrate through Passion what some are calling “Your Identity”. I have followed the heartbeat of Our Organization since 95, therefore I Remember ‘Your Identity’ and will help your Warriors,
“See it to Fruition”.
I’ve served Country Honorably, now it would be My Honor to serve your Denver Bronco Organization.
Confidently Yours,
c/o Sir Jeshua Jackson, Esq.
LB & DB Strength and Agilities Coach
former USN
prince.jackson2@ymail.com
p.s.
In ’08 the Giants benefited from a post IraqVeteran’s vision, and the result: Superbowl!!
What do you have to Lose, SUPERBOWL!!
It’s Your Move.
Go Broncos!
Baby name meaning and origin for Winborn
Description for the baby name Winborn, the origins of the name and its meaning