Girlie Football Garble

Yes I do have an opinion about the firing of coach Mike Shanahan, thanks Paige for caring and for asking. Because many don't know, I will start by explaining my devotion to the Denver Broncos. Most assume that I got into football because of my sports-loving husband, but you know what they say about assuming, it makes an a$$ out of you & me. I don't think I'm the arse in this case but that may be up for debate after my editorial.
My love for the blue and orange began in childhood. My Grandpa grew up in Colorado so liking the Broncos is somewhat of a family tradition. My Mom took the following to the next level and brought us up properly, taking us to games at Mile High and buying us various Broncos treasures like my first Raider Hater shirt. Mom also taught us sound football etiquette while at the stadium. During the pre-game above, she in her Steve Watson jersey and I in my Hater shirt, Mom yelled to the wide receiver, "Hey number 81, I got your number!" That was classic. Every year she got more daring. At the next Raider game, we sat on the 2nd row about the 10 yard line and Howie Long was standing approximately 8 feet in front of us when she decided to tell him, in a loud yet substantial tone, what a nice keister he had. Howie then turned around and gave us a chin up. My father was in a different section for that one. He is a Raider fan, believe it or not, so we sometimes tried to keep a good distance from him.
This is Mom with our season ticket holding cousins, Cid & Johnny, who insisted on trading us their 2nd row seats for our nosebleeds this game. They said the view was better up there, lol. It was a Monday night game vs. the Raiders, we have exceptional cousins!! Below is a heavenly Mile High kiss from 1o years ago.

Now for my take on the decision to fire Shanahan earlier today. I appreciate the two super bowl wins and all that Mike has done for the Broncos, but it was time for him to go. I have been saying that for two years now. Only Steve agreed with me at first and there are still alot of fans who aren't happy, but the team is in desperate need for change. Mike's belief in a small but fast defense was not working. The D was the biggest cause of frustration in most games. The second theory of Mike's that I came to dislike was that he could make any mediocre runningback into a superstar. It worked perfectly with the great Terrell Davis. Mike Anderson and Portis were decent, but nothing remarkable. To give credit though, the trade for Champ Bailey was significant. I think Payton Hillis has potential, but not establishing a solid running game has also been suicidal to the team. Sure the Rb's were injured most of this season, but whatever the OC and Shanahan had been trying to create with the run, didn't strike me as outstanding anyway. I've also been extremely disapproving of many late drive play-calling like the last 2 minutes of the game against the Bills where it was 3rd then 4th & 5 and they decide to go for the touchdown instead of the 1st down! What the crap? There was plenty of time to try for a touchdown if they would've tried for more downs.

Above is a picture I took of the crowd last year when they inducted Terrell into the ring of fame. It was awesome. Lyn & I shed tears through parts of the presentation. Davis was probably the best of Mike's coaching moves. And I don't know who made the ultimate decision to draft Ryan Clady, but he played a crucial role in the offensive line this year. Cutler's pass protection was the best I've seen in years. Don't even get me started on the Elam matter. I haven't read alot about Elam's salary issues or everything that happened there, but I was extremely disappointed when they let him go. I think Denver would've won at least 2 more games this year had he stayed.

Mike was a superb coach and will thrive for another team, but I completely agree that the Broncos should try a different direction. I haven't listened to much commentary about terming Shanahan, but I did see that Cutler wasn't happy. I hope he gets over it soon because I think Jay can take Denver to the superbowl if he stays on his game. For those of you who think he should put up or shut up, you should read about the how the reporter misinterpreted his words. First of all, the reporter is the one who asked Cut if he thought his arm was stronger than Elway's and Jay said his answer was taken out of context because his name doesn't even deserve to be used in the same breath as Elway's. He didn't say he was a better QB, he just gave his own opinion about arm strength. I think I sing better than Steven, doesn't mean I do, but is there anything wrong with believing in myself? Personally, I'm glad that Cutler has confidence. I will probably defend him forever because remember, Cutler has type I diabetes. He is a positive role model for Brooks. The extraordinary Elway was all I knew growing up and it was hard for me to even watch the Broncos for a couple or so years after he retired. Steve used to say that I was just an Elway fan, not a Denver fan, but I always loved the team and eventually overcame missing John and that gun. And man he could scramble. There will never be another Elway in my world, but we cannot live in the past and I loved his reply to Jay's confidence:

Elway on Cutler’s arm vs. those of some NFL greats: “Joe Montana, Steve Young, Brett Favre — they all could get outside and make big plays. Cutler is either more athletic or has better arm strength than each of them. His arm is pretty special, might even be as good as mine when I was his age. Certainly, it’s better than mine was at the end.”

To Emma, From Mom with Love :) She asked for it without any promptings, I swear!

Thanks Mom for creating this legacy. It hasn't always been easy on the blood pressure, but it sure is fun. Thanks Dad for the many taxi rides to Denver and back, and for giving us something to rival about. I wish Shanahan would've went out differently and I hope he doesn't leave a chip on his back for long. So who would I like to see as the new skipper? Bill Cowher, but I'm just a girl after all, what do I know about football?