Its been a long time since I have updated this, so rather than try to talk about everything to catch up I will just go from where we are at, and that is winning game one of the regular season.
The first thing that stood out in my mind watching this game was the group of rookies we have is special. Bradley Chubb had a tackle and half sack, Courtland Sutton had 2 receptions for 45 yards, Royce Freeman had 71 yards on 15 carries some of which were key running out the clock, and finally Phillip Lindsey who also had 71 yards rushing, and 2 receptions for for 31 yards and a touchdown. These are numbers I think we can expect for a lot of this season. Royce Freeman is the running back we have been missing here for years. He can carry the load of an every down back, and is a good receiver as well. He is going to be the workhorse this year. Bradley Chubb was disruptive and played very well. He would get consistent pressure, set the edge, and play various positions. Courtland Sutton showed he was no training camp all American and came up with some big catches at big times. Finally, Philip Lindsey who is going to be a special player for the Broncos. Along with being able to carry the ball, he can split out as a slot receiver, return kicks, cover kicks, and be a huge match up problem. Lindsey runs a 4.3 in the 40, but has the toughness to try and run a defender over. His ability to catch the ball makes him that much tougher to deal with as it leaves defenses with the problem of who do the cover him with? He will run around a linebacker, and run through most safeties. There isn't much this kid can't do, and the Broncos are getting the most out of him.
The defense has adjusted well from year one to year two under Joe Woods. They allowed less than 70 yards rushing, sacked Russell Wilson 6 times, and only had a problem with the big plays. The other good thing was the sacks didn't just come from the linebackers. Chris Harris Jr got a sack, and Darian Stewart was in on a half sack as well. This shows that Woods isn't afraid to get creative with his blitzes. The combination of Chubb, Ray, and Shaq came up with 1.5 sacks, but more importantly got consistent pressure which gave Von Miller the chance to to his thing and he got 3 sacks in the game. Adam Pac Man Jones was a surprise this game as a solid returner, but more importantly he played a very good game at corner and played with that edge Denver with lost with Talib. Keenum threw 3 interceptions, and even though the first touchdown came after their first interception Case Keenum did not let them get to his head and played an overall good game 25/39, 329 yards and 3 TDs.
Finally I will say the last big reason we won this game was Marquette King. With 6 punts he put 3 inside the 20, and had a 44 yard average. Last year Denver did not have a punter that could bail the offense out when they didn't move the ball. Forcing any opponent to start inside their own 20 makes things much tougher on their offense. King is a weapon that Denver has the a lot of other teams don't have. He has the leg to flip the field when he needs to, but also has the accuracy to pin teams down inside their own 20 yard line.
This first game showed there is reason to be excited to be a Bronco fan. It also showed that there is a big reason to be excited about the young core of players Denver has from this years draft. Something that Denver fans haven't been able to say in years!
