OrangeandBlue: Denver Broncos Fan Blog

Anyone else noticing the similarities between the Broncos and the Steelers? Just take a look:

• Both teams have a very effective two headed running attack. The Broncos were 2nd in the league in rushing, and the Steelers were 5th.
• Both teams have an efficient QB who is called to control the ball and manage the offense rather than carry the team on his shoulders.
• Both teams stifled the run all season long, and ranked 2nd (Broncos) and 3rd (Steelers) in the league.
• Both teams are considered somewhat suspect against the pass, although those numbers are skewed by how many teams had to throw against them late.
• Both teams take good care of the ball while relying on their aggressive D to force some turnovers.
• Both coaches are among the most tenured coaches in the league and have lots of playoff experience.

So what’s the difference? You might look at their records against common opponents. The Broncos were 5-0 while the Steelers were 2-3. I’m not sure that one is all the meaningful. You might consider Shanahan a better big game coach with his two Super Bowl Championships to Cowher’s zero in one appearance. Shanahan might be a slightly better gameplanner, but Cowher’s big game experience can’t be discounted.

There is one clear difference this week — the fans. Not that Steeler fans aren’t great. They are. However, there won’t be nearly as many of them at Mile High next week. Broncos fans — you can…you must be the difference in this game. Disrupt the Steelers offense and let the Broncos feed on your energy. On the NFL Network, Trent Dilfer said the Seahawks fans were the most energized crowd he’s ever seen.

Let’s make him change his mind.

It wasn’t pretty…but it was beautiful.

The Broncos will likely still have their doubters. There will be those who will see the total yards gained and assume the Broncos were outplayed. Others will question a possible touchback on a Champ Bailey fumble or a phantom pass interference call in the end zone.

It would have been impressive if the Broncos had run for 150 yards or more against the Pats D. They didn’t, but I think they did someting even more impressive. They forced mistakes from a seasoned playoff team that had one ten in a row. The Broncos made key plays that prevented the Pats from getting any kind of rhythm. They hustled after loose balls and made timely interceptions.

On offense, Jake Plummer won’t get enough credit for this one. His numbers weren’t great, but he did what he needed to do. The Pats took away the run and play action and challenged Jake to be a pocket passer. Besides an ugly few minutes early in the third quarter, that’s what he became. He took what they gave him and turned in a performance that the box score won’t reveal.

Move on Broncos and don’t look back. The doubters won’t have a game to play next week and you will!

I just watched some of the Rose Bowl highlights on my iPod. Yes, I watched the game, and it was worth watching again. Probably like millions of people who also watched the game, $1.99 didn’t seem to me like too much money to enjoy the video capabilities of my new iPod.

NFL and broadcasting partners: please take notice. I would love to watch Broncos highlights like this every Monday next season. I would pay for a subscription service to automatically download weekly highlights to my iPod. But please make it worth our while like ABC/ESPN did — I couldn’t pass up 20 minutes of highlights for only $1.99

Let the negotiations begin between the NFL and Apple as soon as possible so that this can get worked out. Give us the option to download a game at a time, subscribe to a single team’s season highlights, or subscribe to the whole season. We’re football nuts, and we’ll do it.

Yes, it is true, and yet more than a few bewildered refugees have found their way here.

Harkov, who graciously hosts the site, has been traveling, so he’s not fully available to get to the server. In the brief contact I’ve had with him, he thought that the site is going through a DNS change, which means we all just have to wait for the changes to sort their way out to our ISP’s. I’ve had sporadic access to the site today, and all the data is still there, so don’t panic…at least any more than you already have.

While you are waiting for the site to return, you can visit or subscribe to the FreakFeed to catch up on all the latest Broncos news. If you are feeling especially opinionated and eloquent, you can alwayspost an entry here on the blog to satisfy the horrific emptiness that your fellow freaks are experiencing.

Although some of you already have done so in the comments elsewhere, feel free to share your agony in the comments to this entry.

The Broncos 23-7 victory over the Chargers today was a statement.

Coming out of the regular season, the Broncos might be the least acknowledged 13-3 team in history. Even the announcers in today’s game talked about how under the radar they are in the AFC. Between the undefeated run and the Dungy tragedy, the Colts are drawing a lot of focus. The Pats are making a great run here late in the season, and as defending champs, they are media darlings. The Bengals have the glamour boys — Carson Palmer and Chad Johnson. And all the Broncos do is win.

The Broncos served notice today. They likely don’t care what the media is saying, but they want to make sure the rest of the AFC notices. No individual players have stats that will make you turn your head, but that’s not what this team is built on. They are executing Shanahan’s game plans as well as any Broncos team in his tenure. This is a focused team and a serious contender.

Aside from the opener in Miami, the Broncos didn’t have any letdown games this year. (They usually seem to lose at least one game in the last half of the season that they have no business losing.) They were 5-2 against teams that are still in the playoff hunt. They are 8-0 at home where they would play anyone barring the Colts.

Bring on the Bengals/Patriots/Jaguars/Steelers. I can’t wait.

There is a weird triangle that has become evident in the AFC in the last few years. The Broncos can’t get by the Colts. The Colts can’t get by the Pats. The Pats can’t get by the Broncos. If everything falls in place, that triangle might work out in the Broncos’ favor in the playoffs.

Knowing this, I’ve got to root for the Bengals for the next two weeks. If they win the next two weeks, that would likely send the Pats to Indy for the Divisional Playoffs. I think they have the best shot at winning in Indy, so by all means, let them go.

A Broncos victory over the Bengals should not be taken for granted. Should they win, however, I would much rather see the Broncos play the Pats in Denver than the Colts in Indy for the AFC Championship.

Of course, this all might be worthless speculation since a Bengals loss in either week would likely send the Pats to Denver and the winner to Indy. Go Bengals!

My distaste for the Raiders began the same day as my love for the Broncos. My earliest memory, and feelings, for both teams dates back to the exact same moment.

It was 1977, and I was 7. I remember my dad explaining that we were about to watch the Broncos play the Raiders. He told me how dirty the Raiders were, and about how they reach inside helmets to break noses. I don’t remember which game it was — whether a regular season contest or the AFC Championship that year. I do remember that I instantly hated them — at least as much as a seven year old can.

Most of my memories of Raiders games kind of melt into one giant game these days. I remember John Elway catching a TD against the Raiders in a season opener. I remember Brian Griese’s best game ever against the Raiders on a Monday night. And I have some not so happy memories to go with the good ones.

In 1989, I went to see the Broncos play the Raiders at the LA Coliseum with some friends. We all wore orange jerseys. We almost died. The guy in front of me wore a black t-shirt with F*** the Broncos painted on it by hand. If he had been an entrepeneur, he could have sold 50,000 shirts just like it in one afternoon.

Fights were breaking out between orange and black shirts all over the place late in the game. We were the second row from the top, and I was convinced we were going to be tossed over the edge. Toward the end of the game, police officers were stationed by anyone with orange shirts for their protection. The Broncos lost in overtime, and that might be the only reason I got out in one piece.

The Broncos play the Raiders tomorrow, and it’s a game they should win. I will be happy to see the Raiders lose, but it’s not quite the same since they aren’t competitive this year. I’d much rather see the Broncos demolish the Raiders playoff dreams.

The Pro Bowl rosters have been announced, and Jake Plummer wasn’t included. He didn’t deserve to be.

Don’t get me wrong. Jake has had a great year. However, when you look at the AFC QBs who will be in Honolulu — Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Carson Palmer — it’s hard to make a case that Jake deserves it more than any of those guys.

It’s not just about the stats. Sure, all of those QBs have a better rating than Jake. The real difference, however, is that each of those guys means more to their teams than Jake does to the Broncos. If any of those guys were taking snaps for the Broncos, the Broncos would be as good or better than they are now. On the other hand, if Jake joined their teams, the same thing could not be said.

Jake deserves credit for a great season, and I don’t mean to take that away from him. He has done a great job of cutting down on the unforced errors and has managed the offense very well. But the real credit goes to Mike Shanahan for designing the offense to take advantage of Jake’s strengths. Jake is having a great year because he knows the Broncos system…and because Mike knows Jake better than ever.

I’m sure Jake would like to be in Honolulu, but without a doubt, he’d rather be playing in Detroit the week before. I’m hoping for the same.

Welcome to OrangeandBlue — the Denver Broncos fan blog.

Five years ago, I developed BroncosFreak.com out of a lifelong love for the Denver Broncos. As a displaced Coloradan, I wanted to create a place where I could interact with Broncos fans from around the country–and even around the world. The site has definitely lived up to that as 2500 people have been registered for the site over the years.

While forums are still a great way to interact, the age of blogs brings new possibilities for fan interaction. I considered changing the format of BroncosFreak, but I know that it is enjoyed daily by thousands of people. For those of you who enjoy the wide open expanses of a forum setting, by all means, continue to enjoy BroncosFreak. For those who enjoy a more simplified and streamlined approach, this new site might be for you. (Or, like me, perhaps you can enjoy both.)

It is with all of this in mind that I am starting this site. This blog is not designed to be limited to my own views, but it is open for others to post as well — see the Contribute page for more information on how you can post. In addition to what entries might be made here, I am also considering the possibility of aggregating the feeds from some other Broncos sources here as well.

In the meantime, explore a bit — it won’t take long at this point! If you have any questions or suggestions, please leave a comment.