The Broncos are flirting with disaster and I don't even think they realize it. You don't mess with Kyle Orton. The guy's an animal who's given back to the respective neck beard and alcohol dependant communities a thousand times over. After passing for 3,808 yards and outshining Jay Cutler last year, the Broncos do him the disservice of bringing in the hairless Brady Quinn and drafting Tim Tebow. Tebow is the anti-Orton, and seeing as how Orton was born to win regular season games in the NFL against inferior competition, Tebow is destined to fail. The guy hasn't even climbed to 2nd on the depth chart but he's already got a goofy looking shoe line and he'll certainly throw off the good vibrations vibe that Orton definitely has going in that locker room. The only reason Orton ever went to church was to get his hands on the communion wine. Throw in the fact that nobody can sit a first round pick at the end of the bench and expect not to get slammed when the team underperforms (which is very possible because after opening with Jacksonville and Seattle they've got 4 straight against playoff teams before playing a much improved Oakland. A 2-5 start isn't out of the question) and this only increases the pressure of Brandon Marshall leaving. With Marshall out of the picture, here's to Eddie Royal bouncing back. He showed explosiveness and promise in his first year, and with Jabar Gaffney being the leading receiver from last year's corps, he should get more balls his way unless Gaffney and McDaniels have lingering feelings from New England. Then all bets are off. Stay tuned. Jersey boy Knowshon Moreno should get more touches this year (assuming that he can bounce back from the first day, possibly serious, hamstring injury) with Marshall gone, but how well will he handle it? Backs aren't asked too much in McDaniels' system, but he'll have to play a bigger part for them to succeed and run for more than 3.8 yards per carry in comparison to Buckhalter's 5.4. If he falters, an aging Buckhalter is still a serviceable back but only problem is he's 32. At that age for a halfback he's basically riding a scooter and babbling about hard candy.
Putting their disgraceful treatment of Kyle (who may have become my favorite QB since google image searching him) aside, the Broncos have several other red flags going forward. Will this defense have another top 10 season or revert back to their performance from the year before? Teams have seen Don Martindale's schemes now so there aren't any more surprises and, while there are only 3 remaining starters from their 2008 starting D, their reliance on older veterans may come back to burn them. They're only Band-Aids for a year before they have to find someone new and that doesn't allow for continuity. That's pretty much how the Patriots roll, so you shouldn't be surprised to see it here, but no one is terrified of the Patriots D. They're good and all, but if I was about to take a handoff I wouldn't be worried about getting shanked Ray Lewis style. I don't see many shankers in Denver's lineup. Maybe I'm missing something. Their revamped D-line should be ok and Jamal Williams seems like a good fit at nose tackle to stop up their 26th ranked run defense, but it's unclear whether he'll bounce back or not after being hurt all last year. Part of their improvement can also be attributed to bringing in a new secondary before training camp last year, but they've all been in the league for quite some time now. Dawkins coming in and churning out 95 solo tackles was big, but he's on the back 9 of his career and it'll be a surprise if he can do something like that again. Philly tends to release guys a year or two before they're complete garbage rather than a year or two after. The only question with him is does he break down this year or next? I'm also surprised that Champ Bailey is, in fact, still alive. Good for him.
The most troubling thing for Denver fans might be the track record of the Belichek coaching tree. Jets fans loved Mangini until he became a loudmouthed Belichick wannabe who had to rely on a soft schedule to win games. At least the Mangenius got a whole season under his belt before the love started to fade. McDaniels was hot off the bat but his team proved, once and for all, that it is hard to play football when you've got your hands around your neck. For me, it all depends on the Tebow deal. If he benches Orton for Tebow I will never forgive him. Ever.
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