October 28, 2010

Week 8: Broncos vs. 49ers (in London) Preview





















Just to be nice and so I don't have to suffer going over the details, I won't mention any of last week's so-called "game". Ancient history if you ask me. So we move on to week 8, a game that will be played in London, England against the San Francisco 49ers at Wembley Stadium.

Offense:

This week it will be a QB battle of Kyle Orton and SF's Troy Smith who the 49ers head coach decided to replace the injured Alex Smith with instead of the original back-up David Carr. Can't tell you much of anything about Troy, other than his 3 years spent in Baltimore, since he hasn't played one down this season (his first) with the 49ers. It almost seems like he's a rookie getting thrown into the starting lane. I think this is a great shot for our defense to rally together and really put some pressure on a QB who hasn't played in over a year. Granted, this will be a far from easy test but this is as good of an opportunity as any to get a struggling defense back on it's feet.

Orton on the other hand will definitely need to keep his eye out for a few key players on the 49ers defense... more like, Denver's Oline needs to watch out for these guys to protect Orton. Our front 6 have given up more sacks than I'd like to account for on Orton and it's time we shut down an opposing defense. Orton is at his very, very best when he is protected in the pocket and not rushed around like some lost girl on the playground. Drives me nuts when he gets rushed and he just holds onto that ball forever and ever! Getting riled up already. lol

One of the biggest playmakers Denver needs to watch out for is RB Frank Gore. He's rushed 135 times for 573 yards (avg. 4.2) and one TD. And that's just his rushing stats. He has also 37 passes for 341 yards (avg. 9.2 yds a carry) and 2 TDs. Without question, our defense has got to hold this guy down. We're 30th in the league in stopping the run, Lord help us when we come face to face with #21. He can and will do serious damage if we let him. As for our running game, it... is... veeeeerrrrryyyyyy... slooooooolllllyyyyy... cooooommmmiiiiinnnngggg... toooooo.... liiiiifffffeeee. lol Having Knowshon Moreno back made a big difference last week. He was in all game. I hope he is free from harm with this last hammy injury (tellin' ya, put these guys up in bubble wrap!!). I am still waiting for him to find a gap and break free for the end zone. This weekend would be a great time for that to happen *hint, hint*.

Still loving our WR corps... they were covered very well last week but they can make a big difference as well this week. SF is 15th in the league in pass defense, right smack in the middle of the pack. I envision Brandon Lloyd getting quite a few passes thrown his way, but I'd also love to see Thomas in there. Wasting precious talent & time putting him on punt return duties. A very talented WR has been getting injured for returning punts... does McD have any idea how stupid that sounds?? Good gravy. Put him to REAL use on offense catching passes and let Squid take a good portion of the returns (so long as he can catch the ball and hold on to it). Alright, enough of my venting about what McD could do better. Wasting my breath here.

SF also has some power receivers that our D needs to keep close. Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree, Josh Morgan and RB Gore are the top 4 receivers for the West Coast team. They are just as threatening to our defense as our receivers are to their D. Denver is still 3rd in the league in pass offense, we need to keep it up but still balance it out more with our run game, if at all possible. For the love of football... Moreno, PLEASE stay healthy. We need you man.

Defense:

With the return of Brian Dawkins and Andre Goodman, I think the Broncos can have something to be upbeat about on defense and the team as a whole. Dawkins without a doubt plays a major role on defense, let alone the team. Having him back on the field will get everyone back in the game. I really, really want to see this defense put some major pressure on Smith, bury him 6 feet under over and over, get his pretty little uniform all dirty with mud & grass, make Mike Singletary regret putting him in as a replacement... need I say more to get my message across?? And for Pete's sake, stop Frank Gore. Stop their run game, period. If you look at San Francisco's offensive stats alone, it would seem like a walk in the park for our defense but I can assure you it won't and shouldn't be. I want to see this team fight for it to the very last second.

The 49ers defense is mostly stuck in the middle, makes sense since they've only won 1 game so far this season. 14th in stopping the run, 15th in pass defense, 13th in yards allowed and 23rd in points allowed. Patrick Willis, Nate Clements & rookie Taylor Mays are just a few names our offense should be aware of but our Oline should definitely be on the lookout for Parys Haralson & Travis LaBoy who have 3 sacks each. They will be hungry for more and we can't afford to let them get to Orton or force the pocket to collapse and have him run around with the ball like a lost little girl. Play smart football Broncos... smart football!!

Special Teams:

I want to see Squid take more returns. Catch the ball. Run the ball. Hold onto the ball. Nuff said. lol

Injuries:

Good news for Denver is Brian Dawkins and Andre Goodman will most likely be back for the game on Sunday. Bad news is, Denver still has some big playmakers out like Robert Ayers (foot) and Wesley Woodyard (hammy). Also, WR Eddie Royal was hit with groin injury and was limited in practice but he did travel with the team to London, so maybe that's a good sign he'll get to see some play time. Just don't aggravate the injury even more. We need his Royal-highness out there.

QB Alex Smith & Center Eric Heitmann are definitely out for the game. CB Nate Clements (ankle), RB Anthony Dixon (hammy) and CB Tarell Brown (back) were all limited in the 49ers Wednesday practice in London, while TE Vernon Davis (ankle) missed the Wed. practice. LB Ahmad Brooks (knee) had full participation in practice.

Some of these injuries could be the difference in how the game goes and ends. Interesting as always.


I would love nothing more than to say this should be an easy game considering SF is 1-6, and despite having a good RB who has put up some big numbers, their run game is 27th in the league. They are dead last in putting up offensive points, 21st in offensive yards and 16th with pass yards. Seems like such an easy feat with those numbers but stats aren't everything to a team.



Despite all the heartache Bronco Country has witnessed from this team, I'm still a firm believer they will turn everything around and put on a great game for not only us adoring fans but for the UK. They will be the ones to give football and the NFL a good name around the world when they come back home with a 28-20 victory.

Broncos vs 49ers (in London) Preview

Trivia Questions:

1) What uniform number did running back Otis Armstrong wear (1973-1980)?

2) Who had the Broncos' longest reception of 2003?

3) How many punts did Rick Upchurch return for touchdowns in his 9 seasons with the Broncos (1975-1983)?

Good luck & GO BRONCOS!!!!!

27 comments:

  1. I am happy with the guys coming back from injuries. I think Dawkins will be huge for our team.

    As for the questions, all guesses
    1) 40
    2) Rod Smith
    3) 10

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  2. OMG Princess, the photo of Dawkins, do you have a bigger version of it without distoritng the image???

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  3. Samoan I found this one.

    http://blog.ericbakke.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/Dawkins-601x460.jpg

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  4. Dawkins will be a huge return for us. There's your motivation, heart & passion for this team.

    lol, didn't think me finding a pic of Dawkins would become a fan frenzy. It is a great pic though.

    As for the questions, keep guessing. #3 guess isn't far off at all though. For #3, the number you should guess is less than 10. #1 hint - Armstrong's number is a # currently worn by one of our favorite players. He'll be playing in Sunday's game with this number.

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  5. Dawkins worth 1000% percent more on the field than he is off it.

    Oh BP7, Im your number one fan! lol

    Thanks Gouldy, thats perfeck!

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  6. Sweet as Samoan, glad to help.

    And yes Dawkins is huge for us.

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  7. lol, I have a fan! Woo Hoo!!! Never thought I'd see the day for that.

    So if you are my #1 fan, take a guess at those trivia questions for me, please! I want more guesses. I think I have too much fun with this. lol

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  8. 1)8
    2)Don't know if this was before the trade, but possibly Lelie?
    3)I am gonna go with Champ as being one of our favorite players... so 24?

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  9. Very nice guesses frizzle but I think you got #1 & #3 mixed up. #2 is still wrong. I'll give the other 2 to you even though you got them mixed up.

    #1 - 24 was Otis Armstrong's number
    #3 - Upchurch took 8 punts back for TDs in his career with Denver.

    I'll take more guesses for #2. If I give a hint about who this is, it would be too easy to figure out.

    Also, Aussie, if you would be kind like you always are... I'm gonna need your help getting a good link AGAIN for tomorrow's game. Shocker, they aren't showing the Denver game so I'm stuck watching shotty footage on the internet. It's always fuzzy or not very clear but hey, can't complain too much cuz I'll get to watch the game. Still, makes me so mad, steamin' mad that this will be the 5th week they haven't showed a Denver game. I think this is as close as I'll get to torture. Anyway, last time you posted a direct link to the game and it worked a lot better than using the links in the email you sent me. I'll try them but just in case, when the time comes it would be great if you posted a link like last time. Princess is very thankful. lol :D

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  10. I'm late. I knew #1 too. I'm going to go with Sharpe for #2.

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  11. Prediction: The D plays inspired, led by Dawkins. We win 23-13.

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  12. Aye Princess I will see what I can do, but that is like 4 in the morning for me, so unsure yet if I will be getting out of bed, I will try though.

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  13. Wait is the answer for #2 Clinton Portis?

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  14. ding ding ding, we have a winner!!! lol #2 is Portis. It was a 72 tard catch against KC in '03.

    I understand it might be early for you so if you can't get it, no problem. In case you haven't noticed by now, I'm a bit selfish when it comes to my Broncos. lol Don't get yourself up a 4am if you don't want to... but I would and I HATE mornings. haha

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  15. AHAHA, wow I crack myself up... what's a tard?? lol huh, must be high on the women's soccer team again. They're up 6-0 in the HALF against Guatemala. This is fun.

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  16. USA won 9-0, still think AUS can beat them Aussie??

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  17. Oh,
    Pick me, pick me, I know a great link, I use it all the time!!!

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  18. Haha Princess funny, tard... And yeah I still think Australia can beat the USA. And awesome got that question right nice.

    And Jazzy what link you use?

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  19. I could build suspense and tell you all tomorrow at 10:59 AM, but I would feel terrible if you didn't get to see it and I forgot to post the link. I haven't missed a single game thanks to this site.

    http://www.channelsurfing.net/

    just scroll down, they always have at least one link, and they are only up if they work, so there is no guess work. it is free, although some links require you to download veetle. But seriously, there have been two games so far that they haven't shown out here in new mexico, and they had the game on this website every week so far. It is surprisingly great quality too. Then I hook my mac up to my hd tv with the hdmi cable, and presto!!!

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  20. Yeah Jazzy I use that one too, have used that alot to get games.

    And yeah some run off veetle and other vshare tv.

    And love the hdmi hook up that is a sweet move you IT nerd haha.

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  21. lol, jazzy an IT nerd. hahaha funny boys

    And thanks for the link. I'll be sure to try it to get the game. I can only hope it will work for me as good as you have hyped it up to be jazzy. Would be easier if it I could use veetle cuz I already have it downloaded from another game awhile ago.

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  22. looks like you guys are good to go on that veetle link on channelsurfing.net.

    looks like a good quality link too. lucky for me they are showing the game out here on cbs anyways.

    GO BRONCOS!!!

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  23. Yeah thanks jazzy, its working perfect!!

    GO BRONCOS!!!!!

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  24. Well, it was working perfect till now. The thing just shut down on me and firefox won't let me download vshare. Jazzy if you're around at all, can you please post the direct link to the game. I'm losing my mind over here. help help help!!!

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  25. Well we lost so happy I slept in, come on guys get a win.

    Sorry I couldn't help out Princess.

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  26. sorry princess, I would have liked to have helped you, but I didnt know it went down since I had it on tv this week. Next time try shooting me an email, and i will get it on my phone right away and try to help a sista out! Best of luck in the 2nd half of the season, cuz we look BAD! Dang it! So if we finish with a terrible record, who do we look at drafting in the top ten in next years draft? A good DT maybe. All defense? cough..billcower..cough! Josh has the right idea, but it isn't equating to wins, so something is wrong with a team with this much talent.

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  27. Yeah we are missing something Jazzy, cough Tebow cough, haha. I think it is time to set Orton aside and give Tebow a chance, or maybe after one more loss and the season is done.

    And I am not sold on Bill Cowher, he would be a good coach, but don't know his perspective on Tebow. Jon Gruden on the other hand loves Tebow so he could be an option.

    But I still give McD that 3 years, this being his second. If no playoffs next year I would go after one of these two guys.

    Also we better go defense in next years draft. Need to spend all the picks on defensive players. Play hard defense to win games.

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