Re-signings And Familiarity Thrust Chiefs Atop AFC West p. II

The Denver Broncos Off-season

In his article called, “Broncos Enduring Plenty of Roster Turnover in 2015” site editor Sayre Bedinger for PredominantlyOrange, a FanSided Broncos web site, he says,

"“The Denver Broncos have seen a lot of roster turnover in 2015, and fans are getting a little antsy because compared to previous years, it doesn’t seem like John Elway is doing a whole lot about it…. They have lost a significant amount of players to free agency, but that was to be expected. Maybe some people thought there would be more action at least from the Broncos in terms of keeping their own players, but Elway has been sticking to a plan, and it didn’t involve the guys that were in-house.”"

Let’s take a look at some of the changes the Denver Broncos have undergone this off-season that’s making their fans “antsy.”

Yes, Peyton Manning is back but, they have a new Head Coach in Gary Kubiak, Elway’s drone, so their scheme has mandatorily switched to a West Coast Offense. Many were convinced of the QBs diminishing capacity as the season wore on and it’s plain to see Manning isn’t the player he once was. Mix one part new offense with one part old dog and what do you get? I predict many more “I just ate a lemon” faces from John Elway during games.

Many think Peyton Manning is still the ultimate regular season warrior at QB.

"“Achilles was a powerful hero in Homer’s Iliad, and undoubtedly the greatest warrior on the battlefield at Troy… when Achilles was just an infant, his mother immersed him in the river Styx… to make him invincible in battle… she held Achilles by his left heel when immersing him in the river Styx, and forgot to immerse his heel as well… And so, in spite of his great power and strength, and unsurpassed skill and prowess in battle, Achilles remained with one weak or vulnerable spot….”"

No one is invincible and the chinks in Manning’s armor are beginning to show. I’m a bit surprised that’s not apparent to more fans. His completion percentage dropped over 2% last year. He threw 16 fewer TDs and threw 15 INTs in 2014 which was 5 more than the previous year. I hope when Peyton Manning has his 39th Birthday Party in two days, that he has enough left to blow out all those candles. 39 is a whole big bunches of candles.

There’s a new defensive coordinator too. Wade Phillips may just make their defense better in the long run, possibly by the end of the year, but there’s going to be a good (or “bad,” depending on your perspective) long period of adjustment for the players still there. For instance, Wade Phillips base defense has always been a 3-4. The Broncos have been playing a 4-3. The personnel is much different and the thought of DeMarcus Ware changing from a 4-3 DE to a 3-4 OLB may not be something his 32 year-old legs (33 by season’s start) has it in them to do. At 6-4 and 258, is he a DE or an OLB? A similar question must be answered about OLB Von Miller. He’s obviously an OLB at his size, 6-3, 250, but are you going to ask him to split time, sometimes dropping into coverage, and sometimes asking him to rush the QB? I seriously doubt he’ll have Justin Houston type success and in the meantime I’m guessing he’s not going to the happiest camper. There will most certainly be an adjustment period, even for the Broncos best defensive players.

Someone who will no longer be a mile high, literally or literally (see what I did there?), is Terrance “Pot Roast” Knighton (it makes you wonder which meaning of Pot Roast they’re referring to? I’ll go with dinner meal instead of after dinner roasting that Denver-ites may now legally enjoy). Pot Roast was a fairly accurate nickname for him but he was usually the one eating the Chiefs lunch whenever they played. Out of all the Broncos defensive players, he has been their most consistent cog for the past two years. He would have been a perfect NT in their new 3-4 but thank goodness he’s a Redskin now. Hmm… a move from Colorado to Washington D.C.. Hmm. You go Pot Roast!

The Broncos simply don’t have a great, much less a good, running back. Let’s play the Miller’s Analogies game: John Elway is to Terrell Davis, as Peyton Manning is to whom? Sorry. There’s no one on the Broncos roster even close to being the answer to that question. What’s so surprising about this is, that Mr. Elway is, and has been, the man in charge of finding said running back for the past three years, since Manning arrived. He knows first hand how important a great RB is to his QB. There’s no way he would have won even one Super Bowl without Terrell Davis and he knows it. He may try to draft one this year but if you look over the list of RB prospects you won’t find a “Mister Wonderful” in that list. Hank Stram once said, “You can not win if you can not run.” Looks like John Elway will be a day late and a dollar short on this one.

On the offensive line, OG Orlando Franklin is no longer going to be protecting Peyton Manning but instead will be shielding Philip Rivers. In 2014, Franklin was ranked 5th out of all NFL left guards with at least 10 starts by Pro Football Focus. Except for penalties, he carried no negatives scores or grades. He is been very good and will leave a hole not easily filled in front of the “great one.” So, the Broncos signed OG Shelley Smith (who’s Shelley Smith?) and are going to pay him 5.65M for two years. This is the same Shelley Smith who was recently cut by the Dolphins, and these are the same Dolphins who are still looking to get better on their offensive line. Smith ranks 54th among Offensive Guards overall by PFF in 2014. Let’s see… Dontari vs. Shelley? Hmm… I guess I’ll take Mr. Poe… and a side of ground Manning to go.

25-year-old Safety Rahim Moore has taken his talents to South Texas and will be starting for the Houston Texans instead. Moore is a good Safety but he allowed a late game 70-yard TD to Jacoby Jones in the playoffs which fans, and apparently GM, could never forget. The Broncos will be less without Moore. However, Denver has since signed Darian Stewart from Baltimore to take Moore’s position and he may be a tiny upgrade but alas, he has a negative coverage grade from PFF as well.

The Broncos signed the Chiefs DE Vance Walker and gave him a two year, 5 million dollar deal. Walker was under utilized by the Chiefs and may be somewhat helpful. Hard to say right now. Wait and see situation with Walker. He’s certainly not going to make Denver fans forget about the taste of Pot Roast any time soon.

TE Julius Thomas (6-4, 251) signed a 5 year 46 million dollar contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Some Broncos fans are saying Julius won’t be missed. Denver signed a TE replacement in Owen Daniels (6-4, 235). Daniels will be 33 this year and has 72 receptions in the past two years. Thomas will be 27 this year and has 108 receptions over that same period. Those Broncos fans are wrong.

Soon to be 34 years old slot receiver Wes Welker “The Wunderkind” hasn’t been re-signed by John Elway and his days on any NFL field may be over. Welker’s been one of the best slot receivers ever and whenever he retires the space he’s left behind will be darn difficult to fill. It’s reported that Welker may end up with Green Bay.

Let’s touch again on the West Coast offense Gary Kubiak is taking to Denver because it raises so many questions. The Broncos are going to ask Peyton Manning to pass the ball, to set up the run (a basic premise of the WCO)? They’re going to take the ball out of Manning’s hands so they can run the ball more? They’re going to use C.J. Anderson to focus on the run instead of allowing Manning to call his own shots at the line of scrimmage, which he’s done ever since he stepped on the campus at Tennessee back in the day, 1994 to be exact. Oh Omaha, oh Omaha, wherefore art thou Omaha? Lastly, the Broncos are going to have Manning running the bootleg?? To the side of the field where Justin Houston makes his living??? Their meetings there should be such lovely affairs: of such are visions of sugarplums dancing in my head.

Clearly Peyton Manning will have fewer go-to Wide Receivers than in years past. Defensing their passing plays should be a much easier task than in years past, not only because of fewer targets, but because of his diminishing capacity. His arm strength is obviously on the decline. His protection won’t be as good plus the defense is going to allow more points and longer possessions by opponents.

As a fan of football, I can’t wait for the Chiefs to face the Broncos in 2015.

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