Dierdorf and Enberg’s “Nice Thighs” Calendar

Did anyone else raise an eyebrow during the Broncos/Ravens game when Dierdorf began ranting about Le’Ron McClain’s thighs? It even included a prolonged close-up shot of McClain’s butt and thighs. It reminded me of Dick Enberg exclaiming “Look at the size of his thighs!” — or something like that — when calling a Chargers game a few years ago. If Dierdorf and Enberg could put together a NFL “Nice Thighs” calendar, who would they pick?

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Denver-Pittsburgh: Broncos Play in the East As Well As Steelers Do at Altitude

To be clear, this is no attempt to sugarcoat a pretty good thumping that Baltimore put on the Broncos last Sunday. The Denver offense looked terrible.

Aside from one series that was aided by three Baltimore penalties, the Broncos offense was completely dominated by the Ravens defense. Denver didn’t get beyond its own 32-yard line until 4:52 remaining in the first half, and that drive stalled just past midfield.

Denver made it into Ravens territory only twice in the second half—once on the touchdown drive (aided by penalties) and again on the meaningless drive to end the game.

The Broncos defense, on the other hand, played fairly well for three quarters. One sustained drive and a field goal is what the Broncos D surrendered in the first half. The other Ravens field goal was the result of a fumble recovered at the Broncos 23-yard line—the Denver D actually backed Baltimore up a few yards for that field goal.

It’s hard to blame the Denver D too much for wilting in the second half. Time of possession was decidedly in the Ravens favor.

It wasn’t pretty, there’s no denying that.

But let’s keep some perspective. Playing Baltimore IN Baltimore is no easy task. Baltimore lost three games, yeah, but by a combined 11 points. And their losses came at New England, home versus Cincinnati, and at Minnesota. They are far better than their record may indicate. Baltimore is as good as any team in the NFL right now. 

Playing at Baltimore is even more difficult for teams traveling from the western side of the Continental Divide. It’s a lot easier to deal with the time zone differences going west than east.

Consider this. So far this year, teams based on the western side of the Divide are 6-9 in road games on the eastern side of the Divide. Host teams that currently have a winning record are 9-2 against teams traveling from the west.

I know, I know. There are a couple of bad teams on the western side. This year Oakland and Seattle aren’t exactly lighting it up. By the same token, half of the wins by western teams came at Kansas City (2) and at Jacksonville (1). There are bad teams on both sides of the Divide.

Perhaps more telling are games featuring two teams with winning records where the game is played on the eastern side of the Divide.

In those games, the away teams are 2-5 so far this year.

Getting thumped is never a good thing. But going east and playing a winning team on their home turf is very difficult.

This week the Broncos face another good team in the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the game is at Mile High Stadium. Denver is 7-2-1 in the regular season at home against Pittsburgh. The last time the Steelers won in Denver in the regular-season was 1990, and their other win came in 1978.

Apparently the Steelers like the altitude about as much as Denver likes flying east.

Read more Denver Broncos news on BleacherReport.com

I Didn’t Tell You So! Brandon Marshall Playing Exceptional Football

My 14 month-old son does a lot of things that remind me of sports fans, including myself.

Things happen that make him absolutely delirious with joy. Then, quite suddenly, something will happen that makes him scream and yell and cry with frustration. Or vice versa. Sometimes it swings back and forth so quickly I don’t know if he’s laughing or crying, yelping for joy or screaming in anger, or all of the above at the same time.

For me, part of the fun in being a sports fan is the freedom of acting like a kid again. As fans, we have license to scream and yell and be joyous when our team does well and be frustrated when our team does something we don’t like.

There are a lot ways toddlers and sports fans are alike, and I’m damn proud of it. The way the Broncos are winning close games in exciting fashion, it’s quite possible I will poop my pants before season end, although, unlike my son, I’d be on my own to remedy that situation.

This year, there is another kid-like thing I’m terribly tempted to do: say “I told you so!” The mainstream media articles all seem to mention how universally maligned McDaniels, Xanders, and Bowlen were prior to the 5-0 start. They would have you believe, it seems, that EVERY Denver Broncos fan hated every facet of what happened over the offseason.

The truth is that many Broncos fans thought the changes were for the better and that this year’s team would succeed. I was among the group that were glad to see a team-first mentality brought in, and if that meant Jay Cutler didn’t want to be here, so be it. 

Still, I can’t shout out a blanket “I told you so!” because I was dead wrong on what to do with Brandon Marshall. I didn’t think Marshall could change, and so I thought Denver should have completed the purge of “Me-First” players and traded him for whatever they could get. 

And, man, I was as wrong on that one as the haters were on McDaniels.

Brandon Marshall is, quite simply, playing the best football of his career.

How can that be? He was a Pro-Bowler last year and his numbers so far are down compared to 2008!?! Yes, Marshall was a Pro-Bowler last year, but it was arguably undeserved.

True, he had 104 catches for 1,265 yards and 6 TDs. Those are certainly Pro-Bowl-worthy numbers, except when you figure in that he was targeted 181 times. Normalize his stats for 2008 by the number of times he was targeted and they don’t look nearly as good.

He caught 57 percent of the passes thrown his way, which ranked 27th in the NFL. Only three percent of the passes thrown to Marshall in 2008 resulted in a touchdown—29th in the NFL.

Instead of looking at yards per catch (YPC), look at yards per targeted: In 2008, Marshall averaged just under seven yards each time he was targeted. By my calculations that ranked 34th in the NFL.

If you think grading receivers on a per-targeted basis is down right dumb, consider this: the top-rated receivers for 2008 (regular season only) when you factor in catch percentage, first-downs per targeted, touchdowns-per-targeted, and yards-per-targeted were:

Judging from that list, I’d argue it’s a very valid way to rank receivers.

So how is Marshall doing so far in 2009?

The following rankings are among the top-40 receivers in yards through week 5.

Statistically speaking, Marshall is performing far better than last year in terms of catch percentage and touchdowns-per-target. He’s just slightly better than 2008 in terms of yards and first downs each time he’s targeted.

Of course, stats don’t paint a complete picture—and they get boring real fast. One of the head scratching aspects of Marshall’s level of play in 2008 was that he wasn’t a very good red zone target. With his unique combination of size, strength, and athleticism Marshall should be a go-to-guy close to the end zone.

Last year he wasn’t.

This year has been a different story. Against New England, the Broncos targeted Marshall near the end zone and he responded by making two fantastic plays. In the Dallas game, he used his size, strength, and elusiveness to make a highlight reel catch and run for the game-winning score. Scary thing is, he’s just now becoming familiar with the offense and, as a result, being utilized more often.

He’s gone from pouting about his contract to showcasing his talent like never before. 

Marshall has mentioned the influence of teammates in getting him back on track, most notably Brandon Stokely and Brian Dawkins (surprise, surprise). But in my mind, the way McDaniels has dealt with Marshall just might be the young coach’s most amazing accomplishment so far.

I’ve supported the new Broncos regime from day one, but on this issue I have to say “I didn’t tell you so!”

Read more Denver Broncos news on BleacherReport.com

Take Your Pick: Brandon Marshall or Eddie Royal

Broncomaniacs are at each other’s throats about what Denver should do with disgruntled wide receiver Brandon Marshall.

Should Denver try to trade him? It’s unlikely they would get a first and third (what Dallas essentially sent to Detroit for Roy E. Williams last year; Dallas also gave up a sixth and got back a seventh). Marshall’s history of legal troubles, his recent hip surgery, and his request for a huge payday likely reduced his trade value. Then again, some think Denver might be smart to get whatever they can right now for Marshall, if for no reason other than to end the distractions and jettison the only remaining vocal “me-first” guy on the roster.

Everyone agrees that the Broncos hold all the cards, and it would certainly be in Marshall’s best interest to shut up, learn the playbook, and show everyone around the NFL why he deserves a contract similar to the one Roddy White just signed, which is for six years and $50 million, with $18.6 million guaranteed. That is a lot of dough, though, and as an organization you better be very confident in the individual you sign to that kind of deal. They’re the kind of deals that, if they don’t pan out,  severely handicap teams for several years afterward.

I don’t think the Broncos brass has it in their plans to give Marshall that kind of cash, and a big reason why is Eddie Royal. Marshall hasn’t exactly proven himself to be a trustworthy person. And with the NFL salary cap there is only so much money to spread around on any particular team. Eddie Royal, by contrast, has demonstrated nothing but class and professionalism, and he’s arguably a better football player to boot. If you have to choose one of them to sign to a long-term, big-money deal and send the other one packing, who would you pick?

Royal signed a four-year deal as a rookie. We all know the kind of numbers he put up his rookie year. He’s fast (4.39 forty), elusive (did you see that 90-degree cut at full speed on the screen pass in the San Francisco preseason game?), and strong (he led all WR in his draft class for bench press reps, despite his somewhat small(ish) size).

Champ Bailey was recently asked if Royal reminds him of Wes Welker. Bailey replied that Royal reminds him more of Steve Smith. Steve Smith of the Panthers, not the Steve Smith of the Giants. The former is the second highest paid WR in the league, and we all know what he’s capable of after the whooping he put on the Broncos last year.

Royal appears to be a centerpiece of McDaniels’ offensive plans this year. I think he’s going to be a nightmare for opposing defenses. If he has a huge year this year, the Broncos will want to re-sign him sometime during or right after the 2010 season.

They likely wouldn’t have the cash to do so if they give Marshall a multi-year, big-money contract right now.

To me it’s a no-brainer for the Broncos management: you go with Royal. I think they’re thinking like Champ and believe Royal can be a Steve Smith type of player, while Brandon Marshall could end up being a giant waste of talent.

If you had to pick one, who would you take?

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