One way or another, it will be an emotional weekend for Broncos’ running back Correll Buckhalter and safety Brian Dawkins. Both players are returning to Philadelphia to play their former team on Sunday.
Before joining the Broncos this past offseason, Buckhalter spent eight seasons with the Eagles, while Dawkins was with them for 13 and made the Pro Bowl seven times. He knows Sunday will be special.
“It’s going to be an electric atmosphere, I know that,” Dawkins said this week. “It’s going to be hyped. But once the whistle is blown and kickoff after that, it’s football.”
Buckhalter is looking forward to the trip.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun. There’s going to be a lot of people there I had some good time with as well as people in the organization that gave me an opportunity,” Buckhalter said this week.
Philadelphia fans are notoriously hard to please. The old saying that they would boo Santa Claus isn’t far from the truth.
But it will be interesting to see the reception they give to Dawkins and Buckhalter, two players whose work ethic endeared them to the Philly faithful perhaps as much as anyone can.
“Philly is a blue collar place,” Dawkins said. “They work hard for what they have. They want someone to care as much as they do. If they don’t feel like you’re giving your all, if they don’t feel like you’re pouring yourself out on the field, they’re going to let you know about it. They’re not going to hold their tongues. They’re going to let you know how they feel.”
They felt pretty good about Dawkins for years.
“I’ve always played with my emotions on my shoulders. Whatever I feel like, that’s what I let out. I’ve always been that way and I think that connected with them,” Dawkins recollected this week.
“I think me and Dawk should get a pretty good reception,” Buckhalter admitted. “I think the fans will embrace us. At the same time, we play for Denver now. We have a job to do and that’s to beat our opponent, which is the Eagles.”
And therein rests the challenge. Despite the sentimental story of two well-liked and likely-missed heroes returning back to the scene of many triumphs, the Broncos desperately need a win to stay on track for a playoff berth.
If they win their final two games, the Broncos will punch their ticket to the playoffs. If they lose, well, a myriad of scenarios exist.
All of this is not lost on Dawkins.
“This is not just about me going back home,” Dawkins said. “This is about the Denver Broncos going into Philadelphia, a tough place to play, and (going) against a very good football team. That’s where our focus needs to be.”
The Eagles are 10-4 and fighting for a first round bye in the NFC playoffs. They will bring their best against the Broncos.
Will the Broncos have enough to pull off an upset on the road? I’d love to get your thoughts.
Thanks for reading and posting.
Best,
Mike
Tags: Brian Dawkins, Correll Buckhalter, Philadelphia Eagles, Week 16
Good post Mr. Rice.
I think this game is going to be very emotional for Brian Dawkins. And something tells me that he is going to leave it ALL on the feild! And hopefully this will inspire and motivate our team to get FIRED UP!
And I know this sounds crazy, granted Philly is a very good football team, but this could be a potential ‘trap game’ for them. I know we are the lowly underdogs in this one, but there is a chance Philly might be under estimating us.
A Broncos win would be a nice way to finish out the Christmas weekend!
Thanks Rice for the read!
I’m sorry Bronco fans but after the performance from last week I don’t see an upset this week! I really hope that I’m wrong! It truly is crunch time and every game is important.
One thing that we have going for us is the fact that when we play good teams we are competitive and that alone should give us a chance to win!
Heres to the Broncos winning the next two games! CHEERS!
Go Broncos!
Broncos need a win here after that horrible display last weekend. If they lose again they deserve to miss the playoffs. We are a mediocre team but after the 6-0 start we all had our hopes up. Let’s go Broncos let’s get it done
Mike, I can see why you didn’t put yourself on the line with a feel for this game after last week “There for the taking” article when you said “Let me go on a limb: Denver will beat Oakland and Kansas City.” I’m kind of like you about this one, I rather hear how others feel about it than doing it myself, but after looking at all the ways the Eagles can hand it to us this week, and I posted plenty all week about that, I decided the situation we got ourselves into leaves no other opportunity other than to come out with everything we got, game planning and effort, and take this last shot of the season to show that we can be one of the legitimate post season team. Winning against KC just will not legitimize us regardless of it’s implications. I wrote on the previous blogg a little more in depth how I feel about this defining moment in our season, so I re-post it for anyone who cares to read it:
I’ll go out on a limb on a very tough game today and pick us to win 23-21. I hope the Broncos take a peak at these blogs on their traveling day today and see that even so I have outlined all week why I think there are so many reasons why we should lose, I still choose to believe in our guys and coaches to come out with a 110% effort Sunday. Anything less would not be acceptable due to the magnitude of the situation.
For a change, let’s get into the playoffs by our own doing, just like the Chargers have done the last few years. I mean those guys take control when they need to, gotta give credit where it’s due, they start the seaon 3-3, while we were 6-0, they are now 12-3 to our 8-6! They also now hold the all time NFL record with 18 wins in a row in the month of December, man, I don’t care how folks here hate Rivers, this team is and has been the bomb for quite some time now. If we could only take one page out of that and earn our way into the playoffs for a change. I hear guys like Broncsfan83, who are calculating who should lose this week to give us the best shot, I did the same thing, in fact I wrote it on a card so I can refer to all the scenarios as I’m watching the games tomorrow, but let’s get real, is it really the way we want to get in, hoping others lose, I think not, it is grand time that we learn to get in the playoffs the old fashion way again, by controlling our own destiny and win for gosh sake.
This back door way has got to stop, we have a great shot at going in through the front door these last 2 weeks, make us proud, hold your end of the bargain, pull out all the stops and come out victorious tomorrow, the whole nation would respect you for it, there is no bigger game to win, this is the time, right now. If we lose tomorrow and somehow end up getting in the playoffs by beating KC next Sunday, we would be the joke of the playoffs, we win today and next Sunday, we will be able to keep our heads high going into the playoffs, big difference.
Yeah, that’s how important this game is going to be to the psyche of our team, hence I couldn’t pick them for a loss this week, had to give them one more vote of confidence. Please reward me for it, LOL.
Mike, that is plain and simple how I feel about this game.
A Wash is a Loss……
I said at the beginning of the season that if the Broncos go 9-7 or better than I agree with the new direction. If we go 8-8 or worse, then it is a wash and it was all for not and the gamble didn’t pay off. So I’m down to two games to find out if I think it was worth it. I shudder to ponder where we could be If it weren’t for a couple of lucky plays or the superhuman abilities of Brandon Marshall?
Maybe just the fact that we got our tails handed to us by Pitt, SD and then the Raiders in our own house was the answer to my question of weither we really improved by firing Shanny? Maybe we’ll lose out and still back our way into the playoffs but that sounds like a recipe for humiliation at the hands of the Chargers, Colts or Ravens again.
Like I’ve said before, you can own a honda or a corvette but you better know wich one to drive when you join a race. We obviously have a lot of tallent on our offense but it just hasn’t been used properly in game planning and gemetime play calling. We rarely get the ball to Graham, Stokley, Scheffler, Royal, and dare I mention we could have Hillis catching out of the fullback pass option???????
I’ve seen enough of this McD/Orton offense to know that they struggle to get the ball to the playmakers, they have never really hit a solid tempo or looked comfortable out there on the field. It’s like watching leadfoot lumberjacks riverdance. Moreno is great and young but he cannot see the hole. Rewind the running plays on the Raider game and he was sailing past big gaps and then trying to cut right into the pile. He doesn’t have that vision to see the light and burst thorugh the gap. It’s a vision problem with him as much as anything the O liine is doing wrong. Not to mention he seems to fall down if someone touches his shoelace.
Finally, I’m going to use the S word and say that Coach McD is being “stubborn” by continuing to run Moreno on the same single back play up the middle on 3-1 and 4-1, continuing to run Moreno when he is gasping for air and limping back to the huddle. Not using a bigger man to get the tough yards! but hey, I was complaining about that two months ago and nothing has changed. I also think the strategy of having a “new game plan every week” has exposed some weaknesses like not being able to be consistent and not always playing to your strengths.
I know Orton will pass for 400 yards and 4 TD’s…… Moreno will break off a couple of 60 yard runs for TD’s……. and Hillis will get the handoff on 3-1 and we will convert on every try….. and we will DESTROY the SEAGLES!!!!!………. NOT….lol
Broncos 10
Eagles 32
I WILL ALWAYS LOVE ME SOME DENVER BRONCOS. WIN OR LOSE!
OC, 57 Yellow T-Bird was worried he might end up on the wall of shame with his 22 point spread pick for a loss (6-28) if we win. He’ll be glad to see he might not be on that wall alone since you just made a 22 point spread pick for a loss also. LOL.
I really agree with your assessment about Moreno’s vision, he has very limited vision therefore still runs as ragged as in the first game, IMO.
And ” It’s like watching leadfoot lumberjacks riverdance ” will give me one more thing to look forward to watching tomorrow. LMAO.
I hear you about everything, I basically word the same concerns here all season, but come game time, I choose to stick with the hope part of it until we are completely out of it, hence my silly pick, LOL.
Actually OC, I do not agree with everything you feel, for a couple of years I thought that the road was coming to a dead end for Shanny in Denver, so whether McD is the answer long term remains to be seen, but Bowlen had to choose someone, and if it doesn’t work within a couple of years, he will have another shot at someone else. Our D under Shanahan had been absolutetly atrocious for the last few years, I think people are quick to forget that since Shanny was an offensive mastermind, but let’s not forget that he is the one who stood in the way of improving the D year after year refusing to make the necessary coaching changes and totally screwing up on free agency or in the draft on that side of the ball. I don’t care how good you are on O, in this league you can’t be a winner without the D.
I want to share a few thoughts. Shanahan fired defensive coordianters every year. I think we need to give Nolan at least another year and see if we can improve more next year. I also want to give McDaniels some credit, he took a mediocere at best QB and turned him into an ok QB. Orton has more passing yards, TD and less Int. then Cutler, I think alot has to do with receivers but also the game plan. The D ha no faitht that the Raiders would be able to put together a game winning drive therefore they did not play 100% big mistake. The D needs to play with some urgency and we need to walk away with TD i am tired of FG. If we can improve in the Redzone we will be a force to be reckoned with until then we will continue to lose. YOu can leave the D on the field for 50 min and expect 100% out of them.
Let me fix something. You can not leave the D on the field for 50 min and expect 100% out of them. SOrry for the typo
The grape vine has it that Bowlen told Shanny Bob Slowick had to go, Shanny refused, hence the eventual demise.
Slowik
Just for the record. I think we should give Nolan and McD a few years to get it together. I totally don’t want to see another shake up, thats not a very attractive thought at all.
I thought Nolan and the defense did a terrific job overall and am really thrilled to see what the future holds there. I just can’t see any success for the offense with the current combination of QB and Playcaller.
Why would anybody even think of firing Nolan? His defense is WAY better than last year’s, and if he can do that much in one year, think of what it will be like in three years! Our defense started off hot, and all they need to do next year is maintain that for the whole year (but then again, one could say that of the whole team).
I think the real question about Nolan is not if we should keep him next year, that’s a gimme, but whether he will want to be here another year, that’s the unknown.
OC, are you still mad over TD’s 4, 7, 8 year career? Hope not…
CLINCHING SCENARIO: Broncos clinch a playoff spot with a win + losses by JAC, MIA, NYJ and PIT.<—– Not going to happen.
I’m not a stat man or a mad man bay…lol, but I will say that I think TD was like a shooting star and he acheived more in 4 years than most do in an entire career in the NFL.
I do understand the logjam of awsome players that are due to get in and why TD will have to wait though.
PS, Ricky Waters only won the SB once…..gotcha….lol
I will be watching the game by myself this time to see if that can change our luck. I have been watching with my brother in laws the last couple weeks (viking fans lol.) so it hasnt worked for them either. I agree Baylin if we can somehow someway get a win in Philly we would at least have that much needed momentum to dismantle the Chiefs and go into the playoffs with a head of steam. Good luck Broncos hope springs eternal.
coach
broncomvp24, for one its very posssible those teams lose..Jax play Pats……..Ravens play pits *without troy** miami will play the texans.
And the nyj are playing Ind….Those are ALL capable losses.
Im sorry bronco fans but im not sure how to call this game sunday. Id hate to agree with every one when saying “the broncos are who we thought they were” i refuse to say that actualy. Im mad, IM VERY MAD and the pathetic performance of Choking against the raiders at home once again. However, all i got to say is will the REAL broncos Please stand up! I think with correl bucky and dawkins we should have advantage on the offenseive side and defensive. We need to get Morenos A game and Lamont jordans A game. I dont see bucky playing much at all. Hillis WILL NOT PLAY due to him being our starting FB atm…
Broncos- 21 Eagles 24 or if the giants/ pats broncos show up Broncos 28 Eagles 21
OC, for what it’s worth, I always thought that we would never had won those two super bowls without TD, he is the one that made Elway complete, until then Elway could never get it done, so to the Broncos TD was the most valuable player for those two years, no doubt in my mind, of course over their career as a whole Elway was the most valuable Bronco ever. So your point of him getting to the HOF is worthy, hopefully he gets in one year. Peace out. LOL.
bronco-blaze, if you want to be in the picks, you need to give us one, can’t double enter you.
Also were very lucky to have the chiefs to end our season..WHY?? because i think WE STILL HAVE A SHOT to clinch the play offs if we lose to the eagles. 9-7 if we beat the chiefs. PLUS the chiefs are in the AFC so thats a conference win if we can not choke. So in a tie breaker against teams like pits or some 1 with a lower record well get in.
Diggin on the Peace Bro!….
Here’s to hoping for hope and a win tomorrow!
GO BRONCOS!!!
WE WILL WIN
and no, im not calling anyone fair weather fans or blah blah blah or sitting on my high horse cuz I have some doubts but we will win. The gap between the Eagles and Broncos isn’t much….they just do what we have stoppped doing….play 60 minutes of football….cuz we underestimate the opponent or think they have already been beaten so we can take a break
Colts….we shutdown peyton…when we felt like it….shut him down…3 INTs to boot…but when we got back into the game….defense just fell apart….they took a break….same goes for Raiders, heck redkins and some I am probably forgetting…this team played alot better when they werent HIGH on themselves….
McD is stubborn…He is no shanahan in the playbook and playcalling dept. He will be great but after years of experience wipe out his stubborness and young man ego. Nolan is fine in my book….lets get him some more talent to work with….I personally think we tanked after we dropped Jack Williams for Law and Brett Kern for Mitch Berger….IF IT AINT BROKE DONT FIX IT. They have adjusted well but the time they were taking to adjust hurt us. If it aint broke dont fix it….oh yes, WOODYARD SUCKS IN COVERAGE OMG. just bring him in on running downs only or something. Sure one man doesnt make a team win, and one man doesnt make a team lose but a chink in an armor can become a full blown problem. One person might not change a whole game (hillis included) but it would put us at ease that we left no stone unturned and one key play by him can swing momentum.
My girlfriend got me the video of the 1997 Super Bowl season for our boys. Man was it ever awesome to re-live that season over again. Those guys played a total team game. Elway threw bombs, Ed and Rod were making circus catches, and what can I say about TD. That guy was one of the best of all time, as short of a career he had. I can’t recall how many times he had 3 guys draped on top of him and he still moved forward. And if there wasn’t a hole, HE made one himself, smashing guys in the mouth in the process. Moreno could def. learn a few lessons from him!
That was my favorite season of all time……..
Looking forward to the game tomorrow! I hope our boys come out with their best effort of the season and take control of their own destiny. Play an entire 60 minutes, never give up on any plays, stretch the field, stop the run and do this one for BDAWK!
GIVE’R GUYS!!!
GO BRONCOS!
Living in the Syracuse broadcast area, I see quite a few Eagles games, as the presence of Syracuse University’s Donovan McNabb has made them into one of the “local” teams. They do have a formidible group of weapons, but they can be inconsistent. Even in this winning streak, they’ve had games where they’ve gotten off to very slow, discombobulated starts on offense. This could help the Broncos, giving them the time to get warmed up if needed. Against this offense, the D will always have to be on guard against the big play; but there’s a decent chance that this won’t be a shootout, at least not through the first half.
Even with Larsen out, I’ll still be calling for Hillis in short-yardage situations – because we really need to use a fullback more often. These three-wide sets on third and two aren’t fooling the defenses; if they know what we’re doing either way, let’s at least put in a lead blocker for our RBs. I’d still much rather see Hillis as our passing down back than Moreno, but I won’t exactly be holding my breath on that one. Hopefully Buckhalter will be able to go, and his presence will add a nice, explosive element to our running attack. I have confidence in Orton’s passing abilities and, while you hate to lose an Eddie Royal, I am excited at the possibiliity that Brandon Stokely will get more significant playing time. Go, Stokes! I’m also happy that Brandon Llyod will get a shot tomorrow; let’s bury the Eagles with the fury of a triple-Brandon attack!
This game appeared to me to be one of the toughest on our schedule from the start; I do think the Broncos, with a strong effort from all players and a better gameplan and playcalling from the offensive staff, have a good shot at this one, though. The homecoming of B-Dawk and C-Buck can only help. And our defensive strength, pass defense, matches up well against their offensive strength. I’ll make an optimistic prediction (whether or not I’m in time for the pick round-up), based on new playcalling and change-ups in personnel working for our offense, as well as Dawkins helping lead our defense to some turnovers to help hold down Eagle scoring: Denver Broncos 27, Philidelphia Eagles 20.
Eagles have clinched a playoff spot, Broncos have not yet – let’s play like it, fellas! Go Broncos!!!
LKW, you’re in with your pick, deadline tonight, no picks on game day.
Ah, keen.
its goin 2 suck witout #19 out their i mean dats our big play weapon wit tru speed dat takes pressure off b marsh and our runnin game we gotta score n da red zone
Let’s take care of business and beat the Eagles, that’s all I’ve got. GO BRONCOS!!!
While I hate the chargers…they are playing good football…not anything phenomenal but they are winning….we all know they will choke as usual but something i appreciate that they do is they use their fullbacks very well and of course their TE….something we should learn to do more…but i hate to say it….it all comes back to the QB…scanning the field better….Orton doesn’t always see everything like most Elite QBs and we miss alot of possible big plays….at the same time the Line has to give him time…but at the same time he has to use his legs more and give the oline some help and himself sometime…either way its a team effort.
THE SEASON IS STILL OURS FOR THE TAKING
GO BRONCOS!!!
Baylin Broncos 24 Eagles 21
this has been one helluva season Broncos…lets ride it out…i’m glad to see how capable our team is…cant wait to see how another year together makes this new group a better team..
win or lose, we still love the broncos..
Lets hope Dawkins give them a life-time performance!
D DAY.
TODAY IS THE MOMENT OF TRUTH, WE FIND OUT WHO WE REALLY ARE AS A TEAM.
G-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O……………..BRONCOS!!!
I thought this was funny, Woody paige in the DP explaining one of the reason we shall win today:
• Josh McDaniels doesn’t call for passes to offensive tackles, doesn’t win the coin toss and defer, doesn’t make bad decisions, doesn’t trash talk with the Eagles, and does have a sensational offensive game plan, especially on third and fourth downs.
Thanks to everyone for their thoughts. It is neat to read what you’re thinking.
baylinorcrush, here is my thought on the outcome of the game. If I were a betting man, I couldn’t pick the Broncos. The Eagles are really good, they’re at home and they still have a lot to play for.
The Broncos have been inconsistent. Can they go back there and win? I absolutely believe they can. Will they? At this point, I can’t say I think they will. But if they do win, it wouldn’t surprise me at all.
Mike
As always, I thoroughly enjoy reading your posts Mr. Rice. The insight provided with the pulse of the fans, via the blog comments… It really demonstrates the essence of Broncos Country!!! Most of the post are creative and downright hilarious! Old timers and new comers alike. Yet another reason to believe in that team from the old dusty mine post, a mile high above sea level! GO BRONCOS!!!!!!!!
Mike, thanks for your take, most appreciated and I fully feel your point of view, up hill battle of a game we are facing today, but as I said, I do sincerely believe that we might pull it off today, even if not by much. I think the gigantic importance that this game has taken because of the Raider loss shall be enough of a factor to push us over the top. We need this win to validate ourselves and have a shot at proudly entering the post season with one more win next week, with a loss we only get into the post season thru the back door if we win next week and others lose or on tie breakers if we’re lucky, an ugly ending to the regular season no matter how you slice it. THIS IS IT, let us represent ourselves proudly and take what is at stake with our own doing, let the other AFC wild card chasing teams rely on the scenarios, as for us we control our own destiny, and if that doesn’t do it for your team as far as the ultimate motivation tool, then we have some serious soul searching to do.
Top-o-the-mornin to ya Broncos Country!!!!
I woke up with a strange confidence that we will win today??!!
Here’s a GREAT BIG MILE HIGH SALUTE out to the Team and Fans on game day!!!!
I LOVE ME SOME DENVER BRONCOS!!!
If we win the last two, we’ll go into the playoffs having won our last two, if we lose today, win next week and somehow get in, we’ll go into the playoffs having won only one of our last four, so will everybody say, that’s how much different it could feel heading into the playoffs. This is critical to our chances and I will give the benefit of the doubt to our team and coaches that they know it and will give it their all. Ok, that’s it , I have no more positive reinforcement to offer, I have tried to pep talk us for the last two days and if all of what I’ve laid out is not enough motivation to get us over the Eagles, then nothing is. Like Nike says, JUST DO IT.
bay…. by the time I got to “we’ll go to the playoffs” the second time, I spilled coffie on myself and realized that I’ll be happy to get in the playoffs even if we have to put’er in reverse and Mater into the dance.
9-7 and a tidket to the playoffs would be a significant improvement over last year and will have made Josh a success in my mind. I just want to get there and have a clean slate starting in one playoff game.
Thats all I really want for Christmas.
OC, well of course, I would gladly take that also, but we are trying to win a game today!!! You wouldn’t make a very good coach with our motivational speech. LOL. The spilled coffee should of been your clue, not the other way around, hahahaha. LOL.
your motivational speech.
I hear ya Orange Crush,
This team is very capable of beating just about every team in the NFL….the question is just who will show up, our friend Dr. Jekyl or our ugly counterpart Mr. Hyde.
Either way, ill enjoy these next two games cuz it might possibly be our last for the next 9 or so months. And i don’t know about yall but altho i love football…I love Bronco football even more….and my prayer is we handle business today and next week so that i dont have to deal with “the broncos were who we thought they were before the season” for the next how many months.
PS: I said we win 24-21 and so did many others….thats sounds like the favorite…hopefully it becomes reality or possibly even better…..
Anyway, As always…
THE SEASON IS OURS FOR THE TAKING
GO BRONCOS!!!
There were 3 picks for 24-21, FTR, bronco-blaze and you.
TRB, BTW, the slogan you used all year “THE SEASON IS OURS FOR THE TAKING” might work all the way through the last game, cool choice.
Early games coming up, Go N-E, Go Houston and Go Baltimore.
Thx Baylin.
Felt it was fitting for our inconsistent team. Its all about how hungry we are and if we want it. If we want it, we will take it. I know the Vets do, and play everygame like its their last…dunno about the younger ones….we will see tho
I know it’s a common saying with fans, coaches, and players alike but the truth is NO ONE controls their own destiny. What is destined to happen happens. I hope we are destined to win today lol………..
coach, true enough.