The other -- and more troubling -- possibility arises from the possibility that enough film has been generated of the new-look Broncos' strategies and tendencies to allow other teams to figure out how to beat them, and that the Broncos have not yet properly responded.
For now, the Broncos are opting for the notion that they played a really good team on Monday night.
"They outplayed us," defensive end Kenny Peterson said, per the Denver Post. "There's a reason why they're Super Bowl champs."
"Certainly a very well-coached football
team," coach Josh McDaniels added. "Ultimately, they took over the
game in the second half."
Regardless of whether the outcome says more about the Steelers than it does about the Broncos, that 6-0 record has lost plenty of luster with two straight losses, especially with the Chargers now perched at 5-3.
Having San Diego on their heels might actually be a good thing. Without having to worry about being caught by a team they supposedly had put away on October 19, the Broncos might spend too much time thinking about the reality that they're not yet ready to compete with the truly best teams in the conference.
For now, they need to find out whether they can compete with one of the worst teams in the other conference. In five days, they go back to Maryland to face the Redskins. A win would take away some of the wobble as the Broncos prepare for a rematch with the Chargers.
A loss would be devastating, to say the least.
Uhhh... maybe the Steelers... are who we THOUGHT they were...
Did we really expect the Broncos to go undefeated?
even though the ravens and steelers just walked through the broncos they have a much improved defense. offensively their smoke and mirrors and dink and dunk offense will only take them so far.
Orton blows. Moreno falls down.
With that said, we lost to a mighty desperate Ravens team and very solid Steeler team.
Still--Orton is terrible.
One offensive touchdown in two games....I predicted 4-12...and after the NE game was ready to stand in line and drink the kool aid.....however, after the Raven game I thought....let's wait and see....and now....no McDaniels Kool Aid for me.....
Although Cutler made a lot of bad throws.....he would have been a much better QB for this offensive...at least he could throw it 35 yards down field which may have loosened up the running game...and why can't they bring back the zone blocking scheme that worked for a long time???
Coach McKnucklehead.....you may be a phony who thinks he knows it all...but your lack of experience is starting to show......
If you can't beat the 'Skins without Portis...maybe you and your little brother should go back and try and hook on with your Dad's high school team.....
I was wondering how long it would take for the smoke to clear and the mirrors to crack.
Listen to the Donkey fans starting to bite their nails. The implosion has begun.
Bronco Fans,
After beating the likes of CIN, DAL, NE and SD, DEN, sure loooked like contenders.
Having now been blowed out by BAL and PGH, DEN is who we thought they were - pretenders.
Either way, glad to have helped set yinz straight on 'at while more than helping yinz sell out your stadium. The pom poms were a nice idea but they hardly hid the truth.
- Steeler Nation
P.S. Would somebody, anybody, PLEASE tell Steve Young (read, "Poster boy for NFL action against allowing players to sustain multiple concussions") that Big Ben is in fact an elite NFL QB.
It was a horrible offensive gameplan. Way out of balance, and they have no power running game as long as they ignore (inactivate) Peyton Hillis.
You can't pass successfully without a good running game unless you have ultra-talented players on offense like the Patriots, Colts, Saints. And even those teams generally run the ball fairly well.
The Broncos, with mediocre talent, need a balanced gameplan. And when you're down 10-7, you don't have to call plays as if you're down by 40.
Broncos defense is legit but their offense is weak sauce. Dink 'em dizzy. That style just doesn't work well in the NFL these days. You have to hit some big plays.
florio4prez says: November 10, 2009 8:21 AM
Bronco Fans,
After beating the likes of CIN, DAL, NE and SD, DEN, sure loooked like contenders.
Having now been blowed out by BAL and PGH, DEN is who we thought they were - pretenders.
So Broncos played themselves? and who the hell is PGH? Arena league?
"Still--Orton is terrible"
Your name is very appropriate, you ARE a clown.
The guy went 6-0 in his first year with this team, and you think he's terrible? Of course there are going to be some hiccups along the way, but seriously, would you take Cutler back over Orton today?
You're a clown, you probably would.
Bronc fans are the dumbest in the league, must be the thin air doesn't allow enough oxygen to their brains.
"The Rest of the League" has caught up with the Broncos? How about just the AFC North?
By the way, how has no one mentioned the fact that the Broncos are one Immaculate Deflection away from being 0-3 against the AFC North?
Run the ball. Stop the run. It's a simple formula; even the Bengals are beginning to understand it.
The Broncos did neither.
"It was a horrible offensive gameplan."
I thought it was a decent gameplan by denver. They aren't going to run consistantly against the Steelers. Nobody does. They mixed up their formations and kept the Steeler D off balance during the first half. That's what teams need to do to be successful (when playing the steeler D).
Not sure what'll happen to them the rest of the way, but they are doing better than expected.
The Broncos don't have a long passing game. Take away the short routes, and then pressure Orton. The Steelers showed how to beat the Broncos.
Rothlisberger is an elite quarterback. That is obvious. The only way to stop him is to contain him in the pocket. If he rolls out, his passer rating goes up by something like 60 points.
Yes Bronco fans.
You are now about to find out how run of the mill Kyle Orton really is.
There is a reason that he could not beat out Rex Grossman in Chicago no matter how many times he stunk up the place.
He is a serviceable back QB and nothing more and his contract expires at the end of this season.
Still laughing about that trade?
The jokes on you.
The hate of the Broncos continues.
That's fine with me.
BTW, Cleveland is part of the vaunted AFC north.
I do wonder what Indi's record would be with "Our" schedule. I highly doubt they would be perfect.
Elite quarterback???
Elite quarterbacks don't win Super Bowls by completing just nine passes with two INT's and a rating of 22.
Please, he's better than most, but elite? No.
Richm2256, get a clue, his Superbowl performance LAST year put him in the Elite Status of NFL QBs.
Broncos playing how we all expected them to. Orton is mediocre defined.
A lot of you posters remind me a Vultures sitting in a tree looking down and making comments to each other.
Give me a break, the Broncos lost to two of the best teams (defenses) in the league. I love the comment I heard
This morning on the Radio.. ‘The Broncos fell to 6-2 and the Steelers rose to 6-2’.
Lets revisit how good or bad the Broncos are when the season is over and the playoffs are getting underway.
I'll take Kyle Orton on my team any day. The guy is an elite QB.
‘The Broncos fell to 6-2 and the Steelers rose to 6-2’
lol ..... one glass is half empty, the other half full. It's all "perspective". Still, either team is left with a half a glass of water, right?
The Broncos had a great run, but that run is over. Two more losses coming in the next four weeks.
I'll say this: last night, Kyle Orton looked a lot like Kyle Orton. High passes, off-target, none of the game management of the first six, let's please remember: the trade of "Bangs" Cutler (never trust a grown man with bangs" was never FOR Orton; he was part of the trade. Now, if someone else could throw a pass on-target, we could find a place on the bench for this porn-moustached pretender.
What is Alphonso Smith doing, we wasted a 1st round pick on a guy that didn't get on the field last night. What a HORRIBLE trade Cutler for Orton was, just HORRIBLE!!!!!!!
The broncos have two hands around their neck already...this division is still SD's
There is a team like this every year, remember the Redskins of last season who started off really well under a new unknown head coach and then as we got to midseason teams started having film on him and it all collapsed? Well, thats the Broncos this season.
Rest of league EH HEM Kyle Orton could be catching up with Broncos
think about this one. The Broncos lost to the same teams that the Chargers lost to for their first 2 losses. The Chargers went through the meat grinder and the Broncos caught em at the right time.
Since then, the Chargers have stabalized their line, their defensive backs are playing very well, and have been stopping the run very respectively. The Broncos have been exposed by 2 good teams and have been blown out in 2 consecutive games.
In order for the Chargers to take the division, they need to go to Denver and take one.
The only team that "caught up" to Denver last Monday was Pittsburgh... both are now 6-2.
I laugh when I read about Denver being "done" for the season. Once we blow out SD (again) in two weeks, you'll see just how "done" the Broncos are.
We'll probably lose 2 more along the way (to the Colts and Eagles) and finish 12-4 with the 2nd seed in the AFC.
"done"... you wish.
Mike has amnesia. Denver's record against Baltimore and Pittsburg -- 0 and 2.
San Diego's record against Baltimore and Pittsburg -- 0 and 2
Denver's record against San Diego -- 1 and 0
San Diego's record against Denver -- 0 and 1
Denver's goal is to make the playoffs. The shortest route is winning the AFC West. Denver is in the driver's seat since it beat San Diego in San Diego. They just need to regroup and play the rest of the games, starting in Washington, D.C. this week. GO BRONCOS!