@MarkKnudson41
Strike One: Most times a five-win NFL season brings with it a lot of finger pointing, complaining and even coaching changes. Some of that’s happening with the Denver Broncos – except for the coaching change part. All indications are that Vic Fangio and his staff will be back next season.
There are plenty of reasons for the Broncos most recent disappointing season. Key injuries certainly played a big role. Inconsistent performances from young quarterback Drew Lock. Mostly poor special teams play (Brandon McManus excellent year not withstanding) and even some highly questionable coaching moves. All that, plus some obvious holes at positions like right tackle and cornerback added up to a record that no Broncos fan can be happy with.
That doesn’t mean there weren’t some positives to take out of the season too. There are some things to be very pleased about as this young Broncos squad builds for the future.
At any level of football, things still start up front. For the Broncos to see a big step forward from left tackle Garrett Bolles is a huge positive development. A year ago at this time, most of us wondered out loud if Bolles should even be brought back for the 2020 season. The former first round pick had been that bad. Then, suddenly, he wasn’t. Even without the benefit of off season work with his coaches and teammates, Bolles found a way to make some dramatic improvements that earned him a Pro Bowl nod this season.
Toss in the Pro Bowl performance from often injured pass rusher Bradley Chubb and Denver got all-star performances from a couple of unexpected sources. That’s all good.
They also got All-Pro play from safety Justin Simmons, who has established himself as the Broncos best player. Denver’s biggest two off-season signings this year need to be multi-year contracts for Simmons and standout defensive lineman Shelby Harris, who has more than proven his worth over the past two seasons.
Speaking of signings, General Manager John Elway took some heat early on for the free agent signing of running back Melvin Gordon, who got a two-year, $16 million deal last off season. With local hero Phillip Lindsey already on the roster and established as a big play runner, many wondered why Gordon was brought in at all. But give Elway credit. He knew that with Lindsey being undersized, the offense needed a workhorse type as well. After a bumpy start that included some fumble issues and an off the field DUI citation, Gordon came on down the stretch, and ended up establishing himself as the Broncos unquestioned number one back. Lindsey’s injuries just magnified the value of having Gordon, who finished the season just shy of 1,000 yards.
The Broncos offense also got an unexpected boost from receiver Tim Patrick, who stepped in after Cortland Sutton was injured and became Lock’s go-to guy. Youngsters Jerry Juedy and KJ Hamler showed positive signs, too. Tight end Noah Fant was in and out of the line-up with injuries, but as a group, the tight end position seems to be as good as it’s ever been, with Fant, Troy Fumagalli and Nick Vannett putting up solid numbers. The offensive line struggled much of the year, but the young interior, with center Lloyd Cushenberry III and guard Dalton Risner shows promise.
With the hope that this can be a more normal off season, Elway and company can look to fill holes at cornerback and right tackle, while hoping that injured players like Sutton can return healthy. It’s a little farfetched to hope that Von Miller suits up for Denver next fall, given his salary cap situation, but you never know. The future isn’t all bleak.
The 2021 season is shaping up as a big one for Elway, Fangio and company. At least they have something to build on.
Strike Two: This year’s college basketball season started out much like last year’s ended – with confusion and cancellations. Just like the scheduled meeting on the football field in September that didn’t happen, we didn’t get to see Colorado and Colorado State match-up on the hardwood, either. And for the exact same reason.
Maybe we’ll get to see them play this March?
Back in early December, the Rams and Buffs were supposed to play in Boulder, but coronavirus issues cancelled the game. In fact, CSU’s first three games on their remade slate – including two games at San Diego State to open the season – we’re all put off. Non-conference games typically don’t get rescheduled by the “power five” programs.
When the Rams finally did get to play, their season got off to a sputtering start. But Niko Medved and his very young crew rebounded – literally and figuratively – to quickly get on an unexpected roll.
That roll has culminated – at least for now – with a historic comeback win at Mountain West conference favorite San Diego State – on national television no less. Turning a 33-7 first half deficit into a 70-67 upset win moved CSU to 6-1 (3-0 in conference play) on the season and put the Rams on the cusp of being nationally ranked. CSU has now beaten perennial tournament team Saint Mary’s and the #23 Aztecs on the road.
Meanwhile, the Buffs are off the start that most expected, having rolled their limited non-conference opponents (with the exception of a loss at #7 Tennessee) on their way to a 7-3 record after 10 games. CU has dropped a pair of conference road games at UCLA and Arizona but remain a serious threat to win the Pac-12 conference. The chances are more than very good that Tad Boyle’s squad will be dancing in Indianapolis in March.
Could the Rams join that party? SDSU remains a heavy favorite to win the MW, but after that, it appears to be a pretty wide-open race. Historically, the conference has gotten multiple teams into the NCAA tournament, and the young Rams – led by sophomores David Roddy and Isaiah Stevens – have as good a shot as any MW squad to grab one of those extra post season bids. We’ve seen stranger things happen late in seasons and during conference tournaments. And this March promises to be unlike any other in memory.
So, for arguments sake, let’s project that both CSU and CU get bids to the NCAA tournament. (Maybe Northern Colorado gets there too?) Would the selection committee even consider doing something cool for our state and find a way to match up the Rams and Buffs in the NCAA’s pre-planned bubble in Indy? In this COVID-19 era, it might be the only way we get to see the two schools compete in any sport any time soon.
Strike Three: The stillness of the Hot Stove League doesn’t mean that big changes aren’t still coming to the Colorado Rockies 2021 roster. And that certainly includes the distinct possibility that superstar third baseman Nolan Arenado is traded before the season starts.
But nothing is for certain – other than that Colorado (like most MLB teams) is looking for any way to recoup at least some of $100 million they lost in 2020.
It’s also possible that Arenado is batting cleanup for the Rockies on Opening Day this coming April.
In fact, no sure thing that Arenado gets traded at all. The circumstances are very very different from last year at this time. A feud with General Manager Jeff Bridich isn’t the prevailing factor anymore. Money is. Nolan is due to make a lot of it. The Rockies are hurting, so it makes sense to look at trade options. But almost every other team that might be a potential trade partner is hurting, too. It’s conceivable that Bridich won’t be able to find a suitable trade partner – a team that could provide a decent return in the form of top level prospects, or a team that can afford to add a $35 mil salary for the next five seasons, or a team that isn’t in Colorado’s own division (sorry, Dodger fans.)
And it’s also conceivable that Arenado and his representatives (and this includes the MLB Players Association, who get very involved in these sorts matters) come to realize that due to the economic climate created by the pandemic and resulting recession, opting out of his $35 mil/season deal at the end of 2021 doesn’t make (dollars and) sense, either.
In other words, it remains distinctly possible that Arenado’s Hall of Fame career ends up following the same trajectory as Todd Helton’s did.
Roughly 15 years ago, Helton was the lone veteran star on the Colorado Rockies roster. Trade rumors were everywhere of course, and at one point, it looked like Helton might be headed to the Boston Red Sox. That trade never happened, and Helton finished his career as it began, as a Colorado Rockie. At the time, the young Rockies were referred to by many as “Todd and the Toddlers.” And that group eventually made it to the World Series.
Economics could land Arenado in the same boat as Helton sailed in. The Rockies could end up saying goodbye to guys like Trevor Story, Jon Gray and others (of course David Dahl is already gone) instead and keeping their best player to build around. Again.
The odds are that Arenado ends up wearing a different uniform before the end of 2021. But then again, we may have to start referring to future Rockies squads as “Nolan and the Newbies.”