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    Home » Links at night: Getting to know the Broncos
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    Links at night: Getting to know the Broncos

    Adam LewisBy Adam LewisJanuary 21, 20147 Comments3 Mins Read
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    Seahawks WR Jermaine Kearse hauled in the go-ahead touchdown last week in the NFC Championship. He secured his spot on the team against the Broncos in the preseason. / Drew Sellers, Sportspress Northwest

    The Broncos were beat up and spit out of CenturyLink Field Aug. 17. The Seahawks won, 40-10, and WR Jermaine Kearse secured a roster spot in the first half with a 12-yard touchdown catch and 107-yard kick return for a touchdown.

    Otherwise, it was a preseason game that meant nothing: Both teams gave their backups extensive action. However, that reality comes with a caveat: It was the only time this roster of Broncos looked overmatched.

    That speaks as much to Seattle as it does Denver.

    The Broncos were a juggernaut during their 13-3 regular season. They boasted the league’s best offense, setting NFL single-season records for points (606), passing touchdowns (55), total touchdowns and passing yards. Their wide receivers — Wes Welker, Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas  — all finished with more than 10 touchdown receptions, as did TE Julius Thomas. Thomas led all Broncos with 14 TD catches, 92 receptions and 1,430 receiving yards.

    Quarterback Peyton Manning’s stats require a double-take: 5,477 passing yards, a 68.3 percent completion rate, 55 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions.

    Yowza.

    Better to know the Broncos a little better before Seattle’s No. 1-ranked defense faces one of the best offenses ever in Super Bowl XLVIII.

    • In Denver’s 26-16 win over the Patriots in the AFC Championship, Welker ran into Patriots CB Aqib Talib while running a crossing route, which upset Patriots coach Bill Belichick. The next day, Belichick chastised his former player, calling it “One of the worst plays I’ve seen.”
    • Tuesday Broncos coach John Fox defended Welker and sidestepped Belichick. 
    • ESPN columnist Jeffri Chadiha is picking the Broncos to win Super Bowl XLVIII. He compares them to the 2012 Ravens. He calls them a team of destiny. He says Manning is this year’s version of Ray Lewis. Seahawks WR Doug Baldwin just put another print-out on his fridge.
    • Las Vegas oddsmakers pegged Denver the slight favorite (1.5 points). 
    • Sports Illustrated points out Manning would be the first quarterback to start and win the Super Bowl for two franchises.
    • Denver Post columnist Woody Paige, a longtime contributor to ESPN’s panel show, “Around The Horn,” wrote that the Broncos played their best game of the season against the Patriots. 
    • Broncos RB Knowshon Moreno hurt his ribs in the fourth quarter of the AFC Championship. However, Monday his X-rays came back negative. Fox said Moreno is day-to-day.
    • For those who love fashion: The Broncos will bust out their home orange uniforms. For those who love meaningless stats: Denver is 0-3 when wearing orange uniforms in a Super Bowl. Meanwhile, the Seahawks chose the white top and blue pants. Why? Because that’s the combo worn in December when they beat the Giants 23-0 at the site of the Super Bowl.
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    7 Comments

    1. jafabian on January 21, 2014 8:37 pm

      I am so ready for the Hawks to win this and get all the doubters to shut up.

    2. Its onlySports(DavidWakefield) on January 21, 2014 10:29 pm

      I read one article talking about how serious the Seahawks seemed to be taking the preseason game against the Broncos and it had a play off atmosphere to it in August with Manning calling the signals and the defense getting after Peyton…he left with mid 2nd qtr with Denver behind 27~7.
      I have no doubt our defense will be giving the ole boy fits… and our offense should have some opportunities with their defense clearly a couple notches below ours~ Russell is cool as a cucumber with these pressure situations. Having Harvin back is heavenly.We need all of the offense we can muster. People will be talking about it as the new classic as the sun sets on ground hog day this year. Go Hawks!

      • whoKarez on January 22, 2014 1:10 pm

        It was 24-7 with 6:38 to play in second qtr when Osweiler took the field. But 2 of the touchdowns by Seattle could have easily played out differently. JK’s kickoff return for TD had a flag which was later picked up and Browner’s 106 yard fumble recovery for TD could have been ruled TD for Denver. Regardless of the point swing, Manning had marched down the field to the 1 prior to that play. Hopefully our defense does a better job of slowing Manning down.

        • Its onlySports(DavidWakefield) on January 22, 2014 1:55 pm

          Preseason means nothing…just like our whitewashing of the 49ers in their 1st visit here meant nothing in proportion to the play off game we won sunday.
          Still it is nice to have had a encounter with them. With this Seahawk team they mostly seem destined to take the hard way to a win…but if we beat these guys 27~26 its alright with me. With 2 weeks to prepare and an understanding in that preseason game of how intricate Manning runs his offensive line I like our chances. Go Defense. As usual they will have a monumental task and big moments are what this defense eats up.

    3. oldfan on January 22, 2014 12:19 am

      Jeff Chadiha anoints Denver as “The Team of Destiny” and Peyton Manning as this year’s Ray Lewis. Wow, Destiny’s got a great team. They make the Super Bowl AND the NCAA Championship (the annual Game Of The Century) every year, yet we never know who they are ’til sportswriters and TV guys tell us.
      Ray Lewis was a trash-talking “bad actor” (Richard Sherman?) through most of his career ’til the media change that to “lovable rogue”* for his last Super Bowl. Not sure Manning would appreciate the comparison.

      Meanwhile, let the cliched hype begin.

      *To quote John Huston in Chinatown, “Ugly buildings and old whores get respectable with age.”

    4. whoKarez on January 22, 2014 1:02 pm

      It was 24-7 when Manning left the game. JK’s kick off return for touchdown also had a flag but was picked up. Denver was moving the ball pretty effectively as was Seattle. 42-10 doesn’t paint an accurate picture.

      • jafabian on January 22, 2014 3:32 pm

        Even though it was just an exhibition game and that Manning left before the half and the starters for the Hawks played 3 quarters I remember Manning being very frustrated early on, yelling at teammates and coaches. Not sure if anything could be taken from that but I did find that interesting at the time. Peyton doesn’t get frustrated easy.

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