Most Overrated Team - Broncos (1 Viewer)

[packseasontix]

I see the 11 game win streak a benefit of the schedule more than the Bronco's power. Wins against Cincinnati at mid-season and a reeling Ravens team to finnish of the season don't impress me much.

Peyton has shown over and over he can not be trusted in the playoffs even when their team would be rolling along.

Manning has been in the playoffs 11 times only winning 1 time when having a first round bye (2009) and 3 other times when playing in the first round (2003,2004,2006) and 7 times he has lost the first game the Colts have played.

Also with only really 1 game below 50 degrees this season having a game where it might 20-40 degrees could show old man Manning stiffening up and throwing more INTs than TDs in yet another 1 and done.

Next season you will probably see the same thing though with him producing against a weak AFC West yet getting bounced 1 and done.

 

[rizzler]

Well thought out arguments.

I no longer feel manning is a HOF qb thanks to this. I'm changing my vote, folks.

 

[moleculo]

Sweet. Now tell me how the defense is overrated.

 

[Raider Nation]

I'm sorry -- thank you for applying but the Falcons have already filled this position.

 

[Run It Up]

Not the Niners who were labeled by some as the best offense in the NFL like week 3.

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

Not the Texans who are quite possibly the most overrated team - ever.

Not the Patriots, who's secondary even has a 50% chance of showing up on gameday.

The Broncos. Really?

 

[Phenix]

ointingandlaughingattheOP:

 

[Zow]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

 

[whitem0nkey]

Sweet. Now tell me how the defense is overrated.

well a reasonable argument can be made its easy to play with a 2 TD lead, you can blitz more and take more chances.but OP is crazy

 

[lod01]

Overall, probably one of the best teams he's ever been on. A threat to win it all. Solid D. Big receivers, pretty good running game.

 

[Gopher State]

I see the 11 game win streak a benefit of the schedule more than the Bronco's power. Wins against Cincinnati at mid-season and a reeling Ravens team to finnish of the season don't impress me much.Peyton has shown over and over he can not be trusted in the playoffs even when their team would be rolling along.Manning has been in the playoffs 11 times only winning 1 time when having a first round bye (2009) and 3 other times when playing in the first round (2003,2004,2006) and 7 times he has lost the first game the Colts have played.Also with only really 1 game below 50 degrees this season having a game where it might 20-40 degrees could show old man Manning stiffening up and throwing more INTs than TDs in yet another 1 and done.Next season you will probably see the same thing though with him producing against a weak AFC West yet getting bounced 1 and done.

Lots of coaching jobs open in the NFL, seems like you be qualified

 

[packseasontix]

Not the Niners who were labeled by some as the best offense in the NFL like week 3.Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).Not the Texans who are quite possibly the most overrated team - ever.Not the Patriots, who's secondary even has a 50% chance of showing up on gameday.The Broncos. Really?

Well lets see, you just named flaws with all of those teams. Hence they are looked at more accurately. The Broncos at this point I believe are the most overrated because to this point even with a QB who has bounced 1 and done multiple times in the playoffs everyone assumes the Broncos are the AFC Champs.I am not saying the Broncos are the worse playoff team, I am saying they are the ones rated to a higher level than what they are actually at. The Falcons were falling into this category but no longer as you see almost everyone viewing them as a team who underperformed but still got to their record and #1 seed.

 

[packseasontix]

I see the 11 game win streak a benefit of the schedule more than the Bronco's power. Wins against Cincinnati at mid-season and a reeling Ravens team to finnish of the season don't impress me much.Peyton has shown over and over he can not be trusted in the playoffs even when their team would be rolling along.Manning has been in the playoffs 11 times only winning 1 time when having a first round bye (2009) and 3 other times when playing in the first round (2003,2004,2006) and 7 times he has lost the first game the Colts have played.Also with only really 1 game below 50 degrees this season having a game where it might 20-40 degrees could show old man Manning stiffening up and throwing more INTs than TDs in yet another 1 and done.Next season you will probably see the same thing though with him producing against a weak AFC West yet getting bounced 1 and done.

Lots of coaching jobs open in the NFL, seems like you be qualified

???? Okay I was trying to bring up a few points and instead of anyone saying why Denver is so clearly better than everyone else and why Manning all of a sudden this time will do what he has failed to do in the past you try to act like I am trying to be an all knowing person going for a coaching position? Why don't you go jump in a lake and stay there til spring someone will

 

[Neil Beaufort Zod]

You know, I can kind of see the logic in it. The Broncos beat bad teams by a wide margin. But what happened when they played the really good teams? New England-- loss. Atlanta-- loss. Even Houston-- loss. The two playoff teams they beat (Cincy and Baltimore) are the weakest in the AFC field. You could say they're overrated since they're considered SB favorites and are maybe just a playoff team. Maybe they're really just a good team that took advantage of their schedule and will fold against better competition.

Not saying this holds up well under scrutiny: Those losses were early in the year when Manning was shaking the rust off after taking a year off and rehabbing. They don't make a lot of mistakes and their receiving talent is impressive. Throw in a better defense than Manning had in Indy, and I don't see anyone going into Denver and having an easy time.

But I don't think the OP is crazy to make that argument. I don't give much weight to Manning's playoff struggles, though. Just saying that they haven't really beaten great teams yet.

 

[packseasontix]

You know, I can kind of see the logic in it. The Broncos beat bad teams by a wide margin. But what happened when they played the really good teams? New England-- loss. Atlanta-- loss. Even Houston-- loss. The two playoff teams they beat (Cincy and Baltimore) are the weakest in the AFC field. You could say they're overrated since they're considered SB favorites and are maybe just a playoff team. Maybe they're really just a good team that took advantage of their schedule and will fold against better competition.Not saying this holds up well under scrutiny: Those losses were early in the year when Manning was shaking the rust off after taking a year off and rehabbing. They don't make a lot of mistakes and their receiving talent is impressive. Throw in a better defense than Manning had in Indy, and I don't see anyone going into Denver and having an easy time. But I don't think the OP is crazy to make that argument. I don't give much weight to Manning's playoff struggles, though. Just saying that they haven't really beaten great teams yet.

I will say one of the biggest reasons I even thought of this was the Bears. A team who was extremely up and down, if they played a mediocre team they got 3-5 turnovers and blew them out. Then when they played a good team (Seahawks, Packers, Texans, 49ers) they just couldn't do a thing.Oh well we will see what happens, I will be putting my money against the Broncos this post season though.

 

[Wise Old Owl]

Not the Niners who were labeled by some as the best offense in the NFL like week 3.Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).Not the Texans who are quite possibly the most overrated team - ever.Not the Patriots, who's secondary even has a 50% chance of showing up on gameday.The Broncos. Really?

Well lets see, you just named flaws with all of those teams. Hence they are looked at more accurately. The Broncos at this point I believe are the most overrated because to this point even with a QB who has bounced 1 and done multiple times in the playoffs everyone assumes the Broncos are the AFC Champs.I am not saying the Broncos are the worse playoff team, I am saying they are the ones rated to a higher level than what they are actually at. The Falcons were falling into this category but no longer as you see almost everyone viewing them as a team who underperformed but still got to their record and #1 seed.

Your whole argument seems to be: "Peyton has been one and done in the playoffs multiple times". Yeah thats what happens when youre a HOF QB that makes the playoffs every single year. This might be the most complete team Peyton has ever had

 

[Judge Smails]

Moreno is not McGahee. That's my only concern.

 

[SSOG]

I disagree with the primary premise of this thread. Manning is not just a name. On occasion, most especially when immediately followed by "up", manning can also be the present participle form of the colloquial verb "to man". It can also be a gerund. For example: "I look forward to the OP manning up after Peyton makes him look foolish in the playoffs this year."

Vegas has the Broncos at 5:2 to win it all, which means a lot of smart people who are actually putting their money where their mouth is aren't all that concerned by how Manning played in the playoffs against the Jets a decade ago. Anything's possible in a one-and-done format, but Denver's certainly looking good.

 

[Hang 10]

Don't really agree that Broncos are overrated but it's hard to argue that Manning isn't a bit of a playoff choker. He's been one and done on more than one occasion with better colts teams than this.

 

[ImTheScientist]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

Ignorance is how. The op an him should take a look at football outsiders.

 

[BustedKnuckles]

Moreno is not McGahee. That's my only concern.

The Broncos placed McGahee on short-term injured reserve in late November after he suffered a torn MCL on Nov. 18. McGahee will be eligible to return to practice next week, though he cannot return to the active roster until the third week of January – just in time for the AFC Championship Game, should the Broncos make it that far.

 

[BustedKnuckles]

I disagree with the primary premise of this thread. Manning is not just a name. On occasion, most especially when immediately followed by "up", manning can also be the present participle form of the colloquial verb "to man". It can also be a gerund. For example: "I look forward to the OP manning up after Peyton makes him look foolish in the playoffs this year."

Vegas has the Broncos at 5:2 to win it all, which means a lot of smart people who are actually putting their money where their mouth is aren't all that concerned by how Manning played in the playoffs against the Jets a decade ago. Anything's possible in a one-and-done format, but Denver's certainly looking good.

I dont see any one or two teams dominating this year,its anybodies guess who will win it all.The Broncos have as good a chance as any team in the playoffs.

 

[ShaHBucks]

3:1 Vegas favorites is a joke. I agree that they haven't had any convincing wins to date even though the streak is impressive.

 

[FunkyPlutos]

AFC is weak...NFC champ is Super Bowl champ!

 

[Run It Up]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

Not even true about their defense.It was definitely hyperbole but I don't think even their defense (the only part of their team not named Lynch that is remotely impressive, sorry Russel Wilson) is above .500 of the playoff field.

 

[Arsenal of Doom]

The Broncos benefited from playing against the AFC West and NFC South, but week-to-week consistency is also the mark of a good football team and they just went out and beat who they were supposed to from week 6 on.

They may have backed into the #1 seed in the AFC, but only because they avoided a bad loss along the way - like NE losing to Arizona or Houston losing at home to Minnesota and then on the road at Indy.

The only match-up on the AFC side I think is questionable is New England. The Broncos defense hasn't matched up well the last few times they have played. That's why ending up with the #1 seed was such a huge factor. They could certainly still lose, but they will be rightly favored if they match up again in Denver for AFC Championship.

 

[packseasontix]

3:1 Vegas favorites is a joke. I agree that they haven't had any convincing wins to date even though the streak is impressive.

2012: Packers +175 (1 and done)2011: Patriots +150 (1 and done)2010: Colts +275 (Lost in Super Bowl)2009: Giants 2-1 (1 and done)2008: Patriots 4-7 (Lost in Super Bowl)2007: Bears 4.5-1 (Lost in Super Bowl)2006: Colts even (1 and done)Tried to pull as much information I could as accurately as I could from various betting sources looking at articles just before the playoffs.Just throwing out there for all those "experts" putting up their own money, were looking at over 7 years without a winner of their top team in vegas.

 

[Raider Nation]

You guys realize Vegas isn't in the prediction business, right? It's about limiting vulnerability and showing a profit.

 

[purestrength]

ointingandlaughingattheOP:

 

[ImTheScientist]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

Not even true about their defense.It was definitely hyperbole but I don't think even their defense (the only part of their team not named Lynch that is remotely impressive, sorry Russel Wilson) is above .500 of the playoff field.

Pro tip: that's being a little to obvious. With that you will have to throw back anything you catch.

 

[MAC_32]

Might be missing/adding/forgetting about some stats, but iirc they're near the top of the league in pts scored, pts against, yds gained, yds against, 3rd down offense, 3rd down defense, sacks, sacks against, turnovers, and turnovers forced.

You're fishing.

 

[Run It Up]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

Not even true about their defense.It was definitely hyperbole but I don't think even their defense (the only part of their team not named Lynch that is remotely impressive, sorry Russel Wilson) is above .500 of the playoff field.

Pro tip: that's being a little to obvious. With that you will have to throw back anything you catch.

I'm thankful that you are extending your professional jackass tips, teaching us lesser homers one post at a time how to be an insufferable #####. But that's too obvious.

Might be missing/adding/forgetting about some stats, but iirc they're near the top of the league in pts scored, pts against, yds gained, yds against, 3rd down offense, 3rd down defense, sacks, sacks against, turnovers, and turnovers forced.

You're fishing.

Mostly making up but thanks for your concern. They are very much middle of the road except for select parts of their defense and Lynch.Offense:

9th in Total Offensive Pts

17th in Offensive Yards Per Game

16th in 1st Downs Per Game

15th in 3rd Down Conversions

6th in Offensive Penalties Committed

27th in Passing Yards Per Game

T8th in Passing TDs

5th in Ints Committed

31st in Passing first downs

3rd in Rushing first downs

5th in Passing plays over 40 yards (no surprise here at all)

3rd in Rushing Yards Per Game

T9th in Rushing TDs

Defense:

4th Least Yards Allowed Per Game (Broncos are 2nd Least)

6th in Least Passing Yards Allowed (Broncos are 3rd Least)

10th in Least Rushing Yards Allowed (Broncos are 3rd Least)

1st Least Pts Allowed (Broncos are 4th Least)

T18 in Total Sacks

T12 Passes Defended

T8 Passes Int

 

[shredhead]

AFC is weak...NFC champ is Super Bowl champ!

The NFC doesn't have an answer to the winner of the New England/Denver AFC Championship game.

 

[MAC_32]

AFC is weak...NFC champ is Super Bowl champ!

The NFC doesn't have an answer to the winner of the New England/Denver AFC Championship game.

You're both right, and wrong. 2 best teams are in the AFC, but NFC is better, and anyone in the NFC except for Minnesota could beat New England or Denver in the big show.

 

[shredhead]

AFC is weak...NFC champ is Super Bowl champ!

The NFC doesn't have an answer to the winner of the New England/Denver AFC Championship game.

You're both right, and wrong. 2 best teams are in the AFC, but NFC is better, and anyone in the NFC except for Minnesota could beat New England or Denver in the big show.

True, the AFC has more bottom feeders, so as a whole the NFC is better than the AFC. And yes, anyone in the NFC including Minnesota COULD beat Denver or New England, just ask the Cardinals, any given Sunday. If Denver or New England make the big dance, they will be favored to win no matter who qualifies from the NFC.

 

[Judge Smails]

Actually think the soft schedule will ultimately hurt them. Haven't played in a close, tough game in over 2 months.

 

[Iwannabeacowboybaby!]

You know, I can kind of see the logic in it. The Broncos beat bad teams by a wide margin. But what happened when they played the really good teams? New England-- loss. Atlanta-- loss. Even Houston-- loss. The two playoff teams they beat (Cincy and Baltimore) are the weakest in the AFC field. You could say they're overrated since they're considered SB favorites and are maybe just a playoff team. Maybe they're really just a good team that took advantage of their schedule and will fold against better competition.Not saying this holds up well under scrutiny: Those losses were early in the year when Manning was shaking the rust off after taking a year off and rehabbing. They don't make a lot of mistakes and their receiving talent is impressive. Throw in a better defense than Manning had in Indy, and I don't see anyone going into Denver and having an easy time. But I don't think the OP is crazy to make that argument. I don't give much weight to Manning's playoff struggles, though. Just saying that they haven't really beaten great teams yet.

The problem with the OP is this entire thread is about him, otherwise he wouldn't have posted that Manning is only a name in the title. That statement alone discredits anything else he has to say. Denver may not win or go to the SB but if anyone has seen Manning play this year, he's far more than a name discrediting everything else he has to say.So ya, Denver may not go all the way, upsets happen all the time. So he picks one team out of 12 that won't win the SB and when they lose along the way like 11 of those teams will he'll bump and say, see.... Manning was no good and Denver was hardly better if at all with Manning than Tebow.Sorry, but if you been around here long enough you can smell them out. I'm not interested in how this thread plays out. If you want to create a real thread that involves criticism and objective points as to Denver's weakness, don't title your thread Manning is just a name when the guy has played at a MVP level.

 

[Biabreakable]

AFC is weak...NFC champ is Super Bowl champ!

The NFC doesn't have an answer to the winner of the New England/Denver AFC Championship game.

You're both right, and wrong. 2 best teams are in the AFC, but NFC is better, and anyone in the NFC except for Minnesota could beat New England or Denver in the big show.

Will you be saying this still when the Vikings are NFC Champions?AD can beat any team in the league and every player on the Vikings plays their best for AD. This is a team that loves to be overlooked and under-rated. The Vikings thrive off of that so please continue.

 

[drummer]

This thread is awesome.

 

[Papa-pwn]

[QUOTE='Run It Up]

Might be missing/adding/forgetting about some stats, but iirc they're near the top of the league in pts scored, pts against, yds gained, yds against, 3rd down offense, 3rd down defense, sacks, sacks against, turnovers, and turnovers forced.

You're fishing.

Mostly making up but thanks for your concern. They are very much middle of the road except for select parts of their defense and Lynch.Offense:

9th in Total Offensive Pts

17th in Offensive Yards Per Game

16th in 1st Downs Per Game

15th in 3rd Down Conversions

6th in Offensive Penalties Committed

27th in Passing Yards Per Game

T8th in Passing TDs

5th in Ints Committed

31st in Passing first downs

3rd in Rushing first downs

5th in Passing plays over 40 yards (no surprise here at all)

3rd in Rushing Yards Per Game

T9th in Rushing TDs

Defense:

4th Least Yards Allowed Per Game (Broncos are 2nd Least)

6th in Least Passing Yards Allowed (Broncos are 3rd Least)

10th in Least Rushing Yards Allowed (Broncos are 3rd Least)

1st Least Pts Allowed (Broncos are 4th Least)

T18 in Total Sacks

T12 Passes Defended

T8 Passes Int

[/QUOTE]Pretty sure MAC 32 was referring to the Broncos, seeing as he didn't quote anyone and the thread topic is concerning Denver. Furthermore, he was right; Denver is, at worst, top 10 in almost all of those statistics.

 

[devouredbychaos]

This Broncos team almost reminds me of the '11 #1 seed Patriots. They beat up on a lot of soft teams, and got smacked around and lost at home in the divisional round to the Jets, after just demolishing them a few weeks earlier.

 

[Run It Up]

Pretty sure MAC 32 was referring to the Broncos, seeing as he didn't quote anyone and the thread topic is concerning Denver. Furthermore, he was right; Denver is, at worst, top 10 in almost all of those statistics.

If this were the case then he can't read, so take your pick.

 

[Crazysight]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

Not even true about their defense.It was definitely hyperbole but I don't think even their defense (the only part of their team not named Lynch that is remotely impressive, sorry Russel Wilson) is above .500 of the playoff field.

In his past 8 games the ROOKIE Wilson has thrown 16 touchdowns and rushed for an additional 4 (ie. 20 total touchdowns) versus only 2 interceptions. 5 of the teams he played in that stretch have passing defenses that are ranked top 10 (Niners-4 Cardinals-5 Jets-6 Bears-7 and Vikings-9). He also just threw his 26th touchdown of the season in week 17, which tied the rookie record for touchdowns thrown in a season now co-held by a guy named Peyton Manning. I'm sure that there is nothing "remotely impressive" about Russel Wilson. Did you even watch his game against the Niners two weeks ago? Seems these guys were giving you more credit than you deserve by assuming that such an insane comment could only be the act of a fisher.

 

[SSOG]

You guys realize Vegas isn't in the prediction business, right? It's about limiting vulnerability and showing a profit.

Limiting vulnerability, sure. That's why San Fran's SB odds are so good still (best in the NFC)- Vegas took heavy action on the Niners to win in the preseason, so their odds have remained artificially high through the year to limit Vegas's vulnerability. Showing a profit, also true. Vegas doesn't set the line where they think it deserves to be, they set it where they'll make the most. If the public overrates a team, Vegas might set the line to get an unbalanced amount of money on that side. With that said, outside of the SB and some preseason long-odds bets or exotic parlays, Vegas rarely has any vulnerability to speak of. And historically, the profit-maximizing motive has produced fairly accurate predictive data. Not as accurate as they could produce if that was their primary objective, but more accurate than anything else out there. As they say, there's a reason Vegas keeps building new casinos. They're good at what they do.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

You guys realize Vegas isn't in the prediction business, right? It's about limiting vulnerability and showing a profit.

Limiting vulnerability, sure. That's why San Fran's SB odds are so good still (best in the NFC)- Vegas took heavy action on the Niners to win in the preseason, so their odds have remained artificially high through the year to limit Vegas's vulnerability. Showing a profit, also true. Vegas doesn't set the line where they think it deserves to be, they set it where they'll make the most. If the public overrates a team, Vegas might set the line to get an unbalanced amount of money on that side. With that said, outside of the SB and some preseason long-odds bets or exotic parlays, Vegas rarely has any vulnerability to speak of. And historically, the profit-maximizing motive has produced fairly accurate predictive data. Not as accurate as they could produce if that was their primary objective, but more accurate than anything else out there. As they say, there's a reason Vegas keeps building new casinos. They're good at what they do.

Well said. It's not like they just put "bad lines" out there to even the public's betting. The sharps would kill them if they did.

 

[BeaverCleaver]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

Not even true about their defense.It was definitely hyperbole but I don't think even their defense (the only part of their team not named Lynch that is remotely impressive, sorry Russel Wilson) is above .500 of the playoff field.

Pro tip: that's being a little to obvious. With that you will have to throw back anything you catch.

Why do you do this?

 

[donkshow]

Not that Manning played fantastic by any stretch of the imagination, but those Colts teams routinely had brutal defenses.

 

[moleculo]

Broncos have been fairly dominant on both sides of the ball, and amazingly consistent. 11 games scoring > 30, 9 games allowing < 20. They are the #2 scoring offense in the league, despite never putting up more than 40 points. They are the #4 scoring defense, despite only three games where they kept the opposition out of the end-zone, and pitched no shutouts.

That's pretty damn good. Of course, I'm open to the idea that this is a result of playing mostly poor teams - I can see that argument. However, they didn't just squeak by these bad teams, they haven't had any close games. Their smallest margin of victory this year was 7 points to the Chargers - a game where the Broncos gave up a garbage time TD with 1:21 left to make it that close. I do wish they were a little more battle tested, it's unfortunate that all of their tough games were early.

Here are some interesting Bronco stats (note to run it up: the following, like this thread, is not about the Seahawks.)

Offense:

#2 in scoring

#4 in yards

#3 in 3rd down conversion rate

#2 in sacks allowed

Defense:

#4 in scoring

#2 in yards

#1 in opponent 3rd down conversion rate

#1 in sacks

Advanced NFL Stats:

#1 in overall team efficiency

#5 in offensive expected points added

#3 in defensive expected points added

#2 in offensive success rate

#2 in defensive success rate

football outsiders:

#2 in team DVOA

#2 offense

#5 defense

Putting aside the unbiased stats, my eyeballs say that this offense and defense are both nasty. There really aren't any weaknesses. The rushing O can take some time to get going, but Peyton Manning is one of the best in the league at figuring out how to convert a 3rd down. Moreno and McGahee (he will be back in time for the AFCCG) have both been solid, as long as they hold on to the ball, that is.

The passing O has been spread amongst many receivers, and is not dependent on play action. 5 players have more than 40 receptions, and both Thomas and Decker have > 10 TD's on the year. You cannot shut down this offense by taking away their best receiver.

Of course, the above is true of the Patriots as well - the difference is Denvers D >> NE D.

Where I thought this D would struggle, they have been great. The DL has held up extremely well, allowing opposition to run for 3.6 YPA (2nd lowest in the league) and leading the league in sacks. LB has been a definite strength - Von Miller is an absolute beast - 19.5 sacks, 28 tackles for a loss), Woodyard has been great, and DJ Williams is just rounding onto form. In the secondary, of course there's Champ, but opposite him, Chris Harris and Tony Carter have both been outstanding. If this D has a weakness, it's at safety but both Adams and Moore have been playing really well lately.

I don't see how anyone could possibly argue that the Broncos aren't at worst a top 4 team overall, especially given they will be playing in Mile High, and it's not all about Peyton. Does that make them overrated?

 

[butcher boy]

It's too early to judge a team based on its schedule. If a team has an easy schedule, the best they can do is roll over the competition which is exactly what Denver did. How many times were the 49ers doubted in the 80s 90s because they played in a weak NFC West?

 

[eoMMan]

Horrible thread. They have the best odds to win the SB for a reason.

 

[Neofight]

Not the Seahawks who are universally worse than every other team in the playoffs and yet are being regarded as a dark horse (by a select few in the northwest).

I agree with your overall point here that the OP is being silly, but how the hell could anyone think Seattle is "universally worse" than other teams - they're probably the most well-rounded team this year.

I'm still trying to figure out what "universally worse" means here. Does Run have a MIB fetish?By DVOA the Seahawks were the best team in the league. As well, the Broncos and Falcons faced the easiest schedules according to DVOA. The lack of faith in the Falcons and the hype around the Broncos suggests some people need to "see it before they believe" when it comes to Matt Ryan, while some will believe their preconceived ideas about Manning. Either way, Manning was damn good this year. As was Ryan.