A Few Preseason Thoughts As The Denver Bronco Season Approaches

As a die-hard Denver Bronco fan, it is hard to contain my excitement because I know the real football season is right around the corner. Don’t get me wrong, I love it when preseason starts but it doesn’t take me long to wish that the rosters were set and the games were for real. Oh well, it will be here before you know it; after all, Bronco fans have made it through the longest six months of the year – the off-season. Please continue reading for a few of my thoughts regarding the Denver Broncos and where we find ourselves out in the NFL year.

Preseason vs. regular season: While this is a necessary evil for the teams and players, it is much different for the fans. For starters, as an out-of-state Bronco season ticket holder who generally doesn’t attend the home preseason games for obvious reasons, I cringe every time I pay for season tickets and know that the preseason tickets are part of the package. Believing that is always good to make lemonade when life gives you lemons, I am glad the Broncos have made it easy to donate the tickets to worth while causes. I do like donating my preseason tickets to Big Brothers and/or Big Sisters knowing that some lucky child will get to go to the stadium and see the Broncos play. It is unlikely that this will ever happen, but one of these days I would like to see the Broncos remove the preseason games from my season ticket package, or at least lower the price.

All that being said, if I am in Colorado, I will go to a preseason game; I mean NFL preseason football is football and after a long off-season, vanilla football is better than no football at all. It just so happened that this year my wife and I were vacationing in Colorado and our travel plans worked out well with the Broncos schedule, so we attended the home opener of the 2014 season against the Seattle Seahawks. We sat through the 45-minute delay due to lightning and stayed for the entire game. I was impressed with Juwan Thompson and enjoyed the 34-yard touchdown pass from Brock Osweiler to Jordan Norwood. While the players were playing their first preseason game, I would have to say that the Bronco fans in attendance dumbfounded me at times. Obviously, even though this game was against the Seattle Seahawks, it was still a preseason game and it lacked the crowed passion that you would see in a regular season game. I was curious why Bronco fans in the south end zone attempted, and eventually initiated, the start of the wave…. while the Broncos had the ball and were on offense? Thankfully, this game didn’t count even though the Broncos won 21-16, which was ok with me because I had two Seattle fans sitting beside me. I have watched a lot of football, both on television and in person, and I have learned one thing – sometimes, despite how much you want to say something, there are times you just sit back and remain quiet. Thanks to the Broncos pitiful performance in Super Bowl XLVIII, and the thrashing they received from Seattle, I knew I had no room to talk, nor did any other Bronco fan and, unfortunately, I am sure some of them did. The Seahawk fans beside me, in my ‘professional football’ opinion, didn’t appear to be on the same level as me – both from a passion standpoint and downright football knowledge but, as I stated, I was showing them the respect that “their” team earned for them in February of this year. While it will be difficult, I hope the Broncos can find a way to win when they travel to Washington state in week three of the season. That will take away some of the sting that still lingers from Super Bowl XLVIII… not all of it though.

Preseason game number one against the Seattle Seahawks had a slight delay due to lightning in the area surrounding Sports Authority Field. After the delay, the Broncos went on to win the game 21-16.

To have season tickets, and actually utilize them, when you live out of state, a person has to be a pretty passionate, dedicated fan. Yep, that pretty much sums up me. I love the Broncos; I love being around Bronco fans and given the opportunity to watch a Bronco game in Denver versus watching it on television I will take the stadium every time. If a person has never seen a game in Denver, you can’t explain it – it is something they have to experience; kind of like river rafting, sky diving, scuba diving, etc. Not only do I enjoy the games in person, I enjoy being in Colorado – the heart of Broncos Country! Not only do I live outside of this area, I live near Kansas City and the home of the Kansas City Chiefs, which adds to the frustration. Being in Colorado makes me feel like I am at home – the mountains, the Bronco fans, the Bronco stuff, the orange! I mention Bronco stuff because you see it everywhere in Denver and Colorado – something you don’t have where I currently call home. Granted, there are small pockets of Bronco stuff and fans, but nothing like Colorado. I enjoy walking through the Wal-Mart, King Soopers, or any store for that matter, and seeing “Bronco stuff”. Again, I reiterate that it is hard to explain, but I know die-hard Bronco fans will understand! My wife has accepted this in me and just lets me go, thank goodness.

Predominantly Orange contributing writer, Craig Hurst, in front of Bronco stuff at a Colorado Wal-Mart. “We’re not in Kansas anymore Toto”

As the Broncos get ready for preseason game number two, I continue to look ahead to the regular season! The Broncos have a tough road ahead of them but I am looking forward to sixteen weeks of football and anxious to see how it all unfolds. I am sure all NFL football fans are in for an exciting ride. Until the season starts in early September, I am hoping the Broncos stay healthy. As we saw with Danny Trevathan this week, it just takes one play to lose a player and possibly change a season. Next man up – the Broncos said it all last season, now they have to put it into practice. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen too many times this year!

Go Broncos – beat the San Francisco 49ers…. or at least stay healthy!