BRONCOS // ROCKIES           

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BRONCOS ---  AFTER the Broncos loss to the Raiders, the team’s head coach John Fox reminded fans and media that the defeat was only by three points, 20-23, surely an attempt to build some confidence in the losing Broncos starting quarterback, Kyle Orton, in Orton’s receivers and the Broncos defense. Sunday’s Broncos takedown of the Cincinnati Bengals can be interpreted as the reverse of that message, that a two point first win of the season mustn’t build and sustain over-the-top confidence and unrealistic expectations about the Broncos remaining a winning NFL franchise.

Yes, good things happened and could happen again. For example, QB Orton focused on running the ball as if the strategy had always been his game-winning preference, still completing 15 of 25 passes, five straight in the first quarter. The Broncos were certainly respectable for yards gained, rushing for more than 135 and passing for 187. Too, Willis McGahee completed 101 yards from 28 carries. And seeing no escape from having to initiate a next-guy-onto-the-field strategy, John Fox chose who that would be expertly, though Tim Tebow as WR wasn’t a main target selection by Orton. Moreover, the Broncos held the lead each quarter, by seven in the first, 10-3 at the half, 17-5 end of the third. Also, the Broncos defense became not just tough but a seamless wall preventing a fourth quarter Bengals drive from becoming the TD or field goal that would have made it a Bengals victory.

On the downside, well, injuries narrowed the aperture for a better than two point win over the Bengals---Dumervil down, Lloyd down, Royal down, Thomas down. If the disrepair continues, that last man from the bench necessity could dry up vs. the Tennessee Titans come Sunday. Too, as Denver sportswriter and President of Mile High Sports, James Merilatt, has pointed out, injury causation can be more than coincidence, it can actually be a training and preparation flaw of the sort difficult to fix in a week’s time, hopefully not viral . . .   but right now the Broncos being 1-1 with 14 games to go in the season isn't the worst situation.

ROCKIES ---  Swept this week by the San Francisco Giants, the Rockies can only choose to fight for respectability as a team that keeps trying to win in spite of a 70/82 record to date. Of some help, however, can be seven of the next and last 10 games of the MLB season, three versus NL-W last place San Diego (65/88) and four against NL-C last place Houston (52/100), prior to playing the Giants again for a three-game series to be held at San Francisco.

Though winning even all of the 10 games left for 2012 would define the Rockies as a losing ballclub (80/82), the team will have demonstrated a positive learning curve, improved skill-sets, tenacity and pride, which is what manager Jim Tracy is hoping for, but against tough odds from top Rockies players Todd Helton, Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki being on the DL, while the Rockies pitching staff has been marginal and seems drained of near-term potential.

Probably best for the Rockies are three actions: First, press on, be the best that the team can be up against baseball’s numerous and varied situational factors as the season comes to a close. Second, begin thinking about new and improved rostering and preparation for next April. Third, outline procedures for determining all that caused the Rockies to go from being a team of great promise in April 2011 to fourth place and 15 games behind in the NL-W, an amazing irony in that individual Rockies players have done quite well, e.g., Helton, Gonzalez, Tulowitzki, Seth Smith and Dexter Fowler accruing high batting averages and significant OBP’s. Important, of course, is that no-one on the team should reach understandings about losses too quickly. Fallbacks like that experienced by the Rockies this year have surely been the result of multiple causes, no-one at this point in time being certain about the degree of harm inflicted by any one of the many causes.

END/ml  --- Comments welcome .  .  .