Emotions, trolling have no place in Denver Broncos strategy

 

Don’t let anyone troll you.

The Denver Broncos will win a Super Bowl by playing and winning the way they did Sunday. They ran the football, won the turnover margin and dominated on defense.

The Broncos tried the Star Wars offense and got blown out of the Super Bowl against the Seattle Seahawks.

News flash: It didn’t work.

When it comes to who lines up under center, the only aspect that matters is that no mistakes are made. Whether it’s Brock Osweiler or Peyton Manning, the quarterback complements the offense. Just as it was in the back-to-back Super Bowl years with a future-Hall of Famer.

It was not about John Elway. It didn’t have to be about Elway. For the first time in his career he had a balanced offense. Look no further than the stats from Super Bowl XXXII when he finished 12-of-22 passing for 123 yards with no touchdowns and an interception.

And you thought Osweiler’s stats from the San Diego Chargers game last Sunday were bad – 16-of-26 for 166 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Oh, that’s right, it’s not about wins and balance on offense, it’s about touchdowns and yards. It’s about style points and how pretty and shiny it is. If a quarterback doesn’t throw for 450 yards and five touchdowns, he’s garbage.

Osweiler has made three starts in the NFL.

Anyone who believes or says mistakes shouldn’t and won’t happen, feel for them because they are mentally challenged.

The fact he’s won three games, two on the road, is a testament to Gary Kubiak and his coaching staff, Manning, his teammates and himself. That doesn’t take away what Manning did in the first nine games. It doesn’t take away what Manning has done in Denver the last four seasons – on the field or off.

The problem we’ve run into over the last three weeks is feelings, and they blind people of the whole picture. Manning supporters say Elway set him up for failure, yet how does that make any sense when the team is 10-2? The fans who say Osweiler needs to keep his job after three starts no longer appreciate what Manning did in Denver.

The Osweiler supporters see the Manning supporters as Tim Tebow maniacs all over again. They say it’s not about Manning, it’s about the Broncos.

And we go back and forth.

Folks, the Broncos are 10-2. Get over yourselves.

Give or take, that’s the basic argument from both sides, minus the vitriol. 

As stated earlier, it doesn’t matter who plays quarterback at this point as long as he complements the offense and doesn’t turn the ball over.

At this point, that’s not Manning, whether he’s healthy or not.

The offense has played better, it’s been more balanced and thus more effective. When you don’t turn the ball over, that tends to happen. Whether Osweiler gets the credit for that in your eyes is beside the point. It’s how it’s played out, and, unless he drops off completely the next two or three weeks, he will remain the starter.

If Osweiler continues to win, will Kubiak and the Broncos really risk all of that on the chance Manning may get his play figured out? This isn’t about sentiment, it’s about winning a Super Bowl.

Let’s say Denver heads into the penultimate Monday Night game against the Cincinnati Bengals 12-2 with a chance to wrap up the No. 1 seed. Will Kubiak and the Broncos really risk what has developed since early November on the chance Manning may get his play figured out? A guy who will have not played in close to two months in an offense that’s worked way more efficiently with Osweiler? And you’re going to throw a wrench in that because of what happened in the past?

But that doesn’t matter.

What matters right now is the Oakland Raiders.

If the Broncos played as they did against San Diego, they will win.

If Denver continues to play the way it has the last two weeks, they’ll win a lot more than that. They’ll win the organization’s third Super Bowl.

Don’t let anyone troll you: That’s what matters.