Was the Broncos win against the Browns an inconvenient victory?
Nov 5, 2019, 6:28 AM
Put it right up there with “The Immaculate Reception.” Call it “The Inconvenient Victory.” At least that’s what a healthy chunk of Broncos Country seems to feel about Denver’s win over Cleveland.
I felt good about the win over the Browns. In a season going nowhere, it provided a highlight.
Brandon Allen’s first NFL appearance delivered the desired kickstart. The kid was solid. The offense under Rich Scangarello looked better, more creative, more fluid. Young players all over the field made key contributions from Philip Lindsay to Courtland Sutton to Noah Fant. The defense continually frustrated Baker Mayfield so often that America’s new, but not necessarily favorite, pitchman seemed more interested in trying out new ways to shave during the game rather than solving the Broncos defensive red zone riddles.
All in all, Sunday’s win provided some hope for the future. Or, so I thought until I started getting reaction from fans.
The criticism can be divided into two categories. One, all this win does is screw up the Broncos draft position. Two, it further messes up turning the keys to offense over to Drew Lock.
See what I mean? For many, this is an Inconvenient Victory.
Let me try and ease the rattled feelings of my Broncos brethren out there.
Stop worrying about the draft order. This is the Big Myth out there when it comes to the draft. Somehow, if you’re picking ninth instead of sixth, that’s a bad thing. The so called draft “experts” out there have built up the hype of the draft to the point where people think it’s absolute.
If you’re ninth instead of sixth then just natuirally you’re getting a lesser player. Stop it. The draft is still what it’s always been – a crapshoot. Sure, if every player delivered as promised then yeah, give me the sixth player over the ninth. But we all know it doesn’t work that way, right? So enjoy the win and don’t freak out about draft position.
As for Lock, the path will reveal itself. After this bye week comes the hardest part of the Broncos schedule. At Minnesota, at Buffalo, home against a Chargers team that just dominated Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, at Houston and at Kansas City. If Brandon Allen is really a diamond hidden in the rough, and he goes out and flat out deals against those teams, then guess what? The Broncos may just have found their QB. And isn’t that all that matters for the rest of this season – finding some sort of clarity at the most important position in all of sports? If Allen struggles against those teams, then up steps Lock for his chance.
Either way, the Broncos will have already realized Joe Flacco isn’t the answer. They’ll find out what they need to know about Allen. And, they’ll likely get a decent look at Lock. Which will put them in position to be able to decide if they want to go heavy on a QB in the first round next year. You know, the draft? Which is so easy to predict?
So enjoy the rare Broncos win fans. It wasn’t inconvenient. It actually was important. And if you really allow yourself to admit it – it felt good.
