Next up: Denver Broncos

[Papa-pwn]

And wasn't that restructure really just a way of forcing Peyton to taken pay cut?

I believe Elway was trying to force Manning out at that point, and the intention all along was to implement Kubiak's system for Osweiler. Manning forced their hand and now they're stuck trying to run a hybrid. Should get real interesting as the season wears on.

I agree with you. There were many reports around that time concerning the FO and their positive opinion of Brock. Many fans believe this would have been the year to do so, since it is Brock's last year on his rookie contract. Give him the year, he does terrible? Don't re-sign him and use the high draft pick on a QB. He does well? Sign him to a somewhat discounted deal due to only one year of success.

Alas, we will have to wait until Peyton plays himself out of the door or is hurt. Brock definitely inspired more confidence in this offense this preseason

Thankfully the rest of the team is absolutely stacked, so even an average at best QB like Manning can potentially ride this team to a SB.

Edited September 12, 2015 by Papa-pwn

[jazz1988]

I hope he get's some burn in this game, obviously he will be a situational receiver but I think it's important to get him involved early this year. The Steelers had a lot of success fast tracking Martavis Bryant's development by throwing him into the fire and letting him figure it out. I want to see use use Waller in a similar fashion, don't baby him, let him go out there and show us what he can do and get some growing pains over with. Let him deal with getting jammed by a guy like Talib, let him fight for balls down the field, let him earn Joe's trust. If Waller can be a factor late in the year that is a huge boost to our offense, especially in the redzone.

 

Our buddies in Pittsburgh gave us the blueprint last year with Bryant, give him plenty of reps and don't try to make him into a full route tree type of WR his rookie year. Let him do the things he's good at like running streaks/deep posts and let him win jump balls in the red zone when he's isolated on the outside 1 on 1. Even if you treat him like a bit of a one trick pony he will get pretty damn good at that one trick and it's effective. Once he get's the easy stuff down using his height/jumping he can refine his route tree more going forward.

 

Bryant didn't  play right way due to a injury  in which he substained in preseason but  at the same time The Steelers other receivers besides Antonio Brown weren't very impressive during the early part of the season. Since those receivers were disappointing  the coaches it just open the door for Bryant to get playing time by the time he was healthy enough to play.

 

Week 7 against The Texans is when he officially played in a regular season game but he probably wouldn't have got that chance if the other receivers on the team weren't playing poorly. In Waller situation he has a chance to play but i'm not sure how much especially if guys like Aiken, Camparano, and Brown play well/stay injury free. We shall see though

[Papa-pwn]

sanders lives deep, i mean he is certainly capable of making plays in the short and intermediate range, but without the threat of a deep ball he suddenly because a lot less concerning.

Not quite. He plays a lot of time in the slot, running crossing routes and 5 yard outs. Denver's offense has been predicated on short passes for a while now, most of the longer receptions are the result of YAC.

[January J]

I agree with you. There were many reports around that time concerning the FO and their positive opinion of Brock. Many fans believe this would have been the year to do so, since it is Brock's last year on his rookie contract. Give him the year, he does terrible? Don't re-sign him and use the high draft pick on a QB. He does well? Sign him to a somewhat discounted deal due to only one year of success.

Alas, we will have to wait until Peyton plays himself out of the door or is hurt. Brock definitely inspired more confidence in this offense this preseason

Thankfully the rest of the team is absolutely stacked, so even an average at best QB like Manning can potentially ride this team to a SB.

definitely wouldn't consider manning average at best. Maybe in terms of mobility or durability but his knowledge of the game and quick release is something that is second to none.

[balfan23]

Again we see it from Pees because of the personnel he's forced to use in his defense. Is it an attack, attack attack defense? No there's a lot of bend but don't break. But when you have guys like Smith, Webb and Arrington all healthy you'll see the defense run at it's best. Pees gives his DBs the freedom to play to their comfort level be it starter or backup. You will rarely see backup guys who aren't as familiar with the defense playing as aggressive nor as fast because they don't wanna make the big mistake. However i don't expect to see that this game. All of these guys have faced Peyton, DT, Sanders and that system before. Those guys should play more comfortable and aggressive then the guys we got off the street last year. There may be some miscommunication with Lewis and Arrington being new but for the most part these guys should be comfortable with each other and those stunts and blitz that Pees like to call should have a highers success rate because none of our DBs should have a fear of getting beat.

Absolutely, personnel dictates the approach to coverage. Everyone got charged up over Pees running off coverage in last years playoffs, as the Pats were killing us with the short pass game. As if not having guys he could trust in the secondary at that time was his fault. I have to admit, I was saying to myself, no matter who we have back there, we have to try to press cause what we're doing isn't working. As soon as I thought that, LaFell beats us deep for the game winner. There you have it, people.

 

You say, "when you have guys like Smith, Webb and Arrington all healthy" we'll play differently. The question I have in my mind that will dictate how Pees approaches this Sunday's game is - is Webb really healthy? Arrington is still a bit of an unknown in our defense, but we're going to have to let him loose.

 

Expect the Broncos to be very active in moving their receivers around. They are going to work on matching up D. Thomas on Webb whenever possible, so we can't sit back and expect that we don't have to worry about him, because Jimmy will take care of him. We need the entire secondary to be functioning well. If we press cover, expect them to bunch receivers on one side and do a lot of criss-crossing. This is going to make the safeties do their job. Hill's been good, but Lewis hasn't proven yet that he's a solution. 

 

Tomorrow's game won't dictate what we'll look like this season, but it will be a good indicator on how much work we may need to do to get better in the secondary, or expect issues throughout the season when facing quality QBs. 

[balfan23]

Not quite. He plays a lot of time in the slot, running crossing routes and 5 yard outs. Denver's offense has been predicated on short passes for a while now, most of the longer receptions are the result of YAC.

Indeed. Here's a blurb from rotoworld.com: An AFC pro director told NFL Network's Albert Breer Peyton Manning's arm strength looks "significantly diminished."

 

Oh, good ... then we have no worries ... Not exactly. The guy knows the game with the best of them. If there's a weakness, he'll exploit. I think this is all over-blown. No, Peyton's deep ball capability is average at best, and while I think that could eventually bite them, I think it will be more of an issue in game 16 than in game 1. 

 

Still, the fact he's not a great deep ball passer at this point and his o line may be suspect, it makes it all the more necessary to be in tight coverage. The question is, will we trust our personnel to do that?

[January J]

Anybody know why Daryl smith and Chris canty were listed on the injury report? Saw something that said NIR which I'm assuming means non injury related but it said their status is "probable"...

Still torn on whether we should let Timmy go- I guess id leave it up to him, although sometimes players let their competitiveness get in the way of their brain.

anybody got anything on this?

[Moderator 3]

anybody got anything on this?

Most likely veteran day off

[HoldingCall]

Webb, is a concern on defense due to his lack of preparation and practice time. Will he get worn down? His conditioning has to be suspect. I would expect Denver to keep Webb running as much as possible and since Melvin may not play, who will the backup be? Ball and clock control on offense will be needed to help offset the question at the cb position. Interesting chess match ahead.

[redrum52]

Interesting perspective on how the Ravens are going to deal with the altitude changes. Harbs stated that they've done a lot of studies and it best to play within 24 hrs after arriving in Denver. Your body deals better within that first 24 hrs and that's why they're traveling tomorrow and not today.

I think he's been doing this since 12 though. I remember him saying this a while back.

[Ravensfan23]

Absolutely, personnel dictates the approach to coverage. Everyone got charged up over Pees running off coverage in last years playoffs, as the Pats were killing us with the short pass game. As if not having guys he could trust in the secondary at that time was his fault. I have to admit, I was saying to myself, no matter who we have back there, we have to try to press cause what we're doing isn't working. As soon as I thought that, LaFell beats us deep for the game winner. There you have it, people.

 

You say, "when you have guys like Smith, Webb and Arrington all healthy" we'll play differently. The question I have in my mind that will dictate how Pees approaches this Sunday's game is - is Webb really healthy? Arrington is still a bit of an unknown in our defense, but we're going to have to let him loose.

 

Expect the Broncos to be very active in moving their receivers around. They are going to work on matching up D. Thomas on Webb whenever possible, so we can't sit back and expect that we don't have to worry about him, because Jimmy will take care of him. We need the entire secondary to be functioning well. If we press cover, expect them to bunch receivers on one side and do a lot of criss-crossing. This is going to make the safeties do their job. Hill's been good, but Lewis hasn't proven yet that he's a solution. 

 

Tomorrow's game won't dictate what we'll look like this season, but it will be a good indicator on how much work we may need to do to get better in the secondary, or expect issues throughout the season when facing quality QBs.

Well by healthy i meant healthy enough to play. If Webb isn't healthy enough to use his quickness and comfortable enough to use his patience he may struggle vs Sanders. I think Jimmy will shadow DT all game. He shadowed his guy in the preseason so i can't see Pees going away from that. Kubes will have to really move DT around to get him involved. Pees does a good job of mixing his coverage schemes and like you said the Safeties will have to do their jobs well.

I haven't been impressed with Lewis but it'd be crazy to just write him off for making mistakes while learning the defense. I actually think the CBs will be a strength in this game, but Lewis and Hill will be the guys who has to make the biggest impact. I see this game played in the middle of the field when Peyton has the ball. If the Ravens can stop the run, which i think they will, it'll eliminate a lot of the play action. I don't think Peyton can live outside the numbers right now so he'd have to prove me wrong if i were Pees. I'd man up outside and pack the middle with zone early. Make Peyton and Kubes adjust to that and then you can start match Hill up with Daniels and bringing more pressure.

One of the biggest areas the Ravens struggled last season under Kubes was redzone offense. Although a small sample size, the Broncos have struggled in the redzone this preseason. I expect this to be a very quick game because of both teams looking to establish the run and short pass game. I'd stunt and game the Broncos oline early and often focusing them to play mistake free on those long drives.

[Cillmatic]

1. Destroy their O-line

2. Use Marlon and Waller

3. Run the ball

4. Play aggressive

5. Get picks

[LosT_in_TranSlatioN]

Lewis > Micheal Huff.... All that needs to be said

[Cillmatic]

Lewis > Micheal Huff.... All that needs to be said

Hill>>>James Ihedigidobobobo Edited September 12, 2015 by Cillmatic

[52520Andrew]

Lewis > Micheal Huff.... All that needs to be said

That isn't saying much lol

[Static]

Lewis > Micheal Huff.... All that needs to be said

 

I fully expect Lewis to lose his spot to Brooks at some point.

 

 

But compared to other safeties were had back there I somewhat trust him to make tackles but I still dont like him in single high.

[Sami84]

1. Destroy their O-line

2. Use Marlon and Waller

3. Run the ball

4. Play aggressive

5. Get picks

 

Vasquez and Mathis are elite. Won't be easy..need to focus on the tackles and center

[JoeyFlex5]

lol @ peyton "average at best" 

[gtalk12]

It's not even a question.....RAVENS

[52520Andrew]

Interesting perspective on how the Ravens are going to deal with the altitude changes. Harbs stated that they've done a lot of studies and it best to play within 24 hrs after arriving in Denver. Your body deals better within that first 24 hrs and that's why they're traveling tomorrow and not today.

Yup, they are now currently en route

[January J]

Most likely veteran day off

Right but why would they be labeled as probable for Sunday

[January J]

That isn't saying much lol

I would say that says quite a bit. Huge upgrade.

[BmoreBird22]

Right but why would they be labeled as probable for Sunday

Do they actually have a "definitely will play" status? I don't think so. Probable is the highest chance to play status, so if you have an injury, even if it's like a toe stub, you'll get that if you're going to play.

[BmoreBlitz]

Right but why would they be labeled as probable for Sunday

even if not injured. If a player doesn't practice they have to put it on the injury report. They were listed as NIR. And "probable" is the highest game day status. Edited September 12, 2015 by BmoreBlitz

[52520Andrew]

I would say that says quite a bit. Huge upgrade.

Doesn't take much to upgrade over a guy who played 1 awful game with us and got cut midway through the season is my point

[ellicottraven]

Around 24 hours from right now, we'll begin our epic season that culminates in winning SB 50! Let's go!

[Raven'evermore]

 Just a thought, but wouldn't 7 TDs from Joe be super sweet?  Just a thought.

[Cillmatic]

Just a thought, but wouldn't 7 TDs from Joe be super sweet? Just a thought.

It would also be impossible. The best chance he's had was the Buc's game of last season. He could've scored 8 in that game. Edited September 12, 2015 by Cillmatic

[cursona pirate]

 Just a thought, but wouldn't 7 TDs from Joe be super sweet?  Just a thought.

I always hope he throws 5+ TD's in a game

[Ravensfan23]

I strongly dislike the wait of late games and the Ravens only have 2 1pm games over the first 7 weeks. The schedule makers suck.