Okay, Broncos fans, reality check time is upon us.

Sure, Denver started out 6-0, and literally everything went the Broncos way in those games.

First, Brandon Stokley caught an 87-yard tipped ball for a touchdown to beat the Bengals in Week One. Next, when the Broncos played the Cowboys, Champ Bailey stopped back-to-back passes that could have tied the game up.

Then, Kyle Orton led Denver on a 98-yard drive to tie the game against the Patriots, and took the Broncos down the field to have Matt Prater win the game in overtime.

The cherry on top of the good luck sundae was Eddie Royal taking both a kickoff and a punt back for a touchdown, and Denver won against the division rival Chargers 34-23.

The hot start was reminiscent of many great Broncos’ starts, as every time they’ve gone 5-0, Denver has also gone to a Super Bowl. But, like last year, was Denver counting its chickens before they were hatched?

The Broncos started 4-1 in 2008, only to fall to 4-4. And even when they thought the division was wrapped up at 8-5, Denver lost the last three games and the AFC West to San Diego.

Now, the Broncos are looking at a possible relapse into their downfalls of last year, and are finding new ways to lose in 2009 as well.

Denver’s defense led the Broncos to their six-game winning streak, but now it looks somewhat soft. All game, at any time, the Steelers were able to pass on Denver’s D, even though the pass rush was better than most weeks.

And really, one could argue that the defense kept the Broncos in the game. Kenny Peterson forced Ben Roethlisberger to fumble and Robert Ayers took the ball to the house to take the lead 10-3. Then, as Pittsburgh was threatening to score while up four points already, when Andre Goodman picked a pass off at the goal line.

But the defense did seem tired at points, and allowed the Steelers to stretch their lead to 11, at 21-10, and eventually Pittsburgh put in another score to win 28-10.

Was it really their fault, though?

The offense was dismal to say the least in the second half, scoring zero points when their team needed it most, and only ran 19 plays after halftime. Their six drives amounted to four punts and two interceptions in the third and fourth quarters, definitely not enough to give the team a chance to win.

And let’s be clear here, the real problem with the offense, and the one position that has been affecting the entire Broncos team for the last two weeks—is quarterback Kyle Orton.

Orton has been efficient, but far from explosive in 2009, the definition of a “game manager” but he doesn’t ever have the ability to take a game over.

Orton showed in this game, that the only thing an opposing defense has to do is get within three yards of him; because Orton will take his eyes from downfield to up close if he thinks he might see contact.

Let’s face it, Orton is similar to a sloth when he tries to move in the pocket, but tonight he showed signs of “happy feet” which translates to scared play.

A quarterback cannot make solid throws, let alone read the defense when he’s afraid to be hit—therefore, the offense struggles.

Also, Josh McDaniels basically abandoned the run in the second half, and the Steelers knew they could blitz and force Orton to throw quickly.

While it seems McDaniels’ offense is the wave of the future, with its short, precision passing and misdirections—the young coach needs to gamble and go deep sometimes.

Not attacking the safeties deep allows them to suck up close to the line of scrimmage and attack both the run and the QB.

So really, the problem is two-fold—McDaniels won’t throw the ball deep, but it’s because Orton doesn’t have the arm strength.

So, while Denver may be a good team, and will likely make the postseason, they cannot win a championship until they find a franchise quarterback—something McDaniels traded away before the season began.

But, even if the Broncos had Jay Cutler, it would not necessarily mean they would even be 6-2, let alone better.

So for the Denver faithful, let’s all count our blessings and be happy the Broncos are atop the AFC West and in a position to make to playoffs this year, even if we may not compete for the Super Bowl quite yet.

Still, not a bad first year for an incredibly young head coach in the pressure-packed NFL.

Read more Denver Broncos news on BleacherReport.com

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