Chargers vs Broncos: In Enemy Territory

Alright, I have moved on…. no, I still am pissed that we let that game slip out of our hands!!! But, will still try to move on.

We actually got our questions out early this week with the opposing teams blogger. Kim Constantinescos runs our Broncos site called Predominantly Orange. She does an awesome job covering all Broncos info.

Here are some questions I sent her way and her responses:

What is the biggest weakness of the Broncos team?

The Broncos biggest asset is Peyton Manning, so their biggest weakness is that they can’t get him on the field. The Broncos’ defense has struggled mightily on third down, and not just third-and-short. They have allowed 18 conversions on 3rd-and-6 or longer. Ten of those conversions have come on 3rd-and-10 or longer.

Their troubles on third down have been one of the reasons that the Broncos can’t come out of the gate fast. Other teams have just been able to keep Manning off the field by slowly pounding away at the Broncos on first and second down, and then going bigger on third down.

A lot of San Diego fans are interested in how Ronnie Hillman is doing. Can you give us an update on how he is doing?

People in Denver are excited about Hillman. We’ve had it with former first round draft choice Knowshon Moreno and his antics on the field. Moreno was benched after fumbling in the second game of the season, and Hillman was inserted into the lineup after missing some of preseason and the regular season with a tweaked hamstring.

Hillman really stood out as a great receiving threat out of the backfield in week four. He’s got the quickness and speed to move the chains, but he’s struggled with his hesitation at the line of scrimmage. He also has to work on his pass protection. With time, the rookie will break out. It’s why the Broncos drafted him so early.

I’d like to see the Broncos use Hillman a little on punt returns.

How do you slow down the Denver Broncos offense?

The key to stopping the Broncos on offense is getting pressure on Manning. The Broncos are 29th in turnover margin (-6), and everyone has been fumbling the ball. Otherwise, Manning’s favorite targets have been WR Demaryius Thomas and TE Jacob Tamme. Extra attention on them could go a long ways.

If you could have one player from the Chargers roster to add to the Denver roster, who would it be?

I’ll go with Shaun Phillips. Malcom Floyd would have been the sexy choice for Manning, but this Broncos defense needs help at linebacker. Plus, adding another sack man to the Von Miller–Elvis Dumervil combo would create all kinds of headaches for opposing teams. Also, when the Broncos play the Chargers, we wouldn’t have to hear Phillips running his mouth.

What kind of pee did D.J. Williams use? Will he be part of the team after his suspension?

All the NFL is specifying is that the urine sample was “non-human.” Who knows if it’s synthetic or if he got it from some animal. He hasn’t been allowed into the Dove Valley practice facility, and he hasn’t even been in Denver much during his suspension which is disappointing. TE Virgil Green was suspended for four games and he remained in town working out with private trainer Loren Landow. You would think Williams would have the same idea rather than running off to Miami and Las Vegas.

Once the suspension is lifted, Williams will rejoin the team and probably be an immediate contributor. He’s lead the team in tackles and like I said, the team needs stability and leadership at linebacker right now.

If you have any more questions for Kim, send them in the comments and I will see if we can get her to answer them OR we can just mock the Broncos down there also. ?