Broncos Go Back To Work

When I think of the Broncos returning to action, I cannot help but think of that scene from Billy Madison where Billy is waiting for the bus. He sings, “Back to school. Back to school, to prove to Dad that I’m not a fool. I got my lunch packed up, my boots tied tight, I hope I don’t get in a fight. Ohhhh, back to school. Back to school. Back to school. Well, here goes nothing.”

The Broncos are going back to work. Back to work, to prove to the league that they are not jokes. They’ve got their wounds healed up, clean uniforms ready, and they hope they win more games. Well, here goes nothing.

Things could have not gone more smoothly during the bye week. The Chargers, Raiders, and Chiefs lost their games which gives the Broncos some more breathing atop the AFC West. Broncos’ players didn’t get into any trouble (at least that we know about right now). Injured players are on the mend. So are egos. I’d say all in all it’s good to be a Broncos’ fan today.

You have to believe that Mike Shanahan, Bob Slowik, Rick Dennison and Co. are out of popcorn this week. I’m sure they were in the film room for the better part of the bye week studying their team and the Dolphins because they know how much the Broncos need a win on Nov. 2. A win would give this team confidence and a nice boost to finish the second half of the season on a strong note. Many players are returning from injury including Tony Scheffler and Ryan Torain. There’s no question that we’ve missed Scheffler and there’s a lot of hype surrounding the rookie back in Torain. Michael Pittman, Jay Cutler, and Brandon Marshall needed time to recover after the Patriots game, so they should be good to go. Out of all of the weeks in the season, the Dolphins probably wish that they didn’t have to see the Broncos this week. The Broncos want need revenge. They need to show themselves that they are capable of pulling out close games. They need to see that they can hold onto the ball; That they can put pressure on quarterbacks; That they can score 30 + points per game. They need to realize that they have shown glimpses of hope in previous games this season.

The mini vacation that the Broncos had was necessary. I just hope they didn’t enjoy it too much. The AFC West is basically handing the Broncos a playoff spot on a silver platter. Whether or not the team turns a blind eye to that platter remains the question.