The first half of yesterday’s game was stormy for Eric Decker. He was called for an offensive pass interference early in the half, and then he fumbled what would have been a 19-yard reception mid-way through the second quarter.
During halftime, Decker’s storm cleared and a rainbow emerged.
Maybe an outside force granted the Broncos a little help since they were down to just two wide receivers.
“You know, we showed resilience. We had a couple guys go down – a couple key guys – and a couple key guys lost throughout the week, so, just to pull this victory off and really stick together shows a lot about this team and this coaching staff,” Decker said.
Decker’s daytime drama concluded with 5 catches for 113 yards and 2 touchdowns.
The thing that helped the other Broncos’ receivers (Matt Willis) was the effectiveness of the running game. Willis McGahee and Lance Ball kept the chains moving just enough to frustrate the defense and make the play-action a serious threat.
“We didn’t play the run well, so when you don’t play the run well you get a lot more play-action,” Bengals safety Chris Crocker said. “It opened up a lot of seams for them because once we didn’t stop the run, we started being more aggressive. Then we started to give up on most plays.”
The Bengals got burned on Decker’s 52-yard touchdown reception just like the Raiders got burned on Decker’s punt return for a touchdown last week.
“He’s had two good days as far as games go,” John Fox said. “He’s off to a great start this season. He’s a heck of a competitor.”
Decker came out of Minnesota in the 3rd round of the 2010 draft. There were guys that were drafted before him that were expected to make more of an immediate impact. Decker has undoubtedly proved his doubters wrong.
One of his biggest fans is QB Kyle Orton.
“Eric (Decker) is one of those guys that you can tell is just ready to take off and take it to the next level,” Orton said. “He’s a young guy, but just how smart he is – the way he can make plays, the way he bounced back after a tough fumble. He was upset with himself, but I never lost any confidence in him, and he certainly never lost any confidence.”
Without a doubt, the fans’ confidence is building at a rapid pace. With a healthy group of receivers, this offense could be one of the greatest shows on earth.
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