The holidays are a time for self-reflection. You know, if you’re into that kind of thing. So with that in mind, here’s the good, bad and ugly of our Denver sports scene as we sit today.
The Good
The Colorado Avalanche unveiled its reverse retro jersey this week and let me say, there are not enough eggplant emojis to show my satisfaction. The alternate jersey utilizes the old Nordiques logo as well as the fleur de lis commonly associated with that region of Quebec where the team originally came from. The jerseys are sharp as hell and will look great on our ice boys this coming season. But wait there’s more. The Avs are reportedly going to incorporate more blue back into the regular uniform’s color scheme and from the mock ups I’ve seen, more eggplant emojis can’t contain my excitement. The Avs continue to be Denver’s premier sports franchise and the uniform remixes are just the beginning of good things to come.
The Bad
Drew Lock’s struggles are so five minutes ago. The Broncos ownership is suddenly on everyone’s lips. Talking about the Broncos ownership situation is like Hansel: it’s so hot right now. Yep, everyone is finally getting the memo that the fact that there is no actual owner of the Denver Broncos is a huge problem. I broached this topic a few weeks back as the Broncos farted away the first three quarters against the Chargers and someone on Twitter (ever the marketplace of ideas) asked “do you really think the players care who the owner is?” This goes far beyond the player’s performance on the field but the answer is of course, yes. A full-throated yes.
Not having an owner this whole time has handicapped the Broncos in so many ways, it’s difficult to gauge the damage it’s done. Think about when your boss is gone for the week. Is there more or less work that gets done? Now imagine a boss is absent for five years as Pat Bowlen has been. Things slip through the cracks. People don’t give their best. This goes for plumbing companies and it goes for NFL franchises.
Joe Ellis has poorly filled the shoes of Pat Bowlen but to pretend he could even attempt it is folly. John Elway has won a Super Bowl as GM and while his presence still carries some weight, the intervening years since that championship have been a horror show. Don’t be mistaken. The current predicament the Broncos find themselves in is purely the fault of these two gentlemen and having no one to answer to has poured gas on that fire. The idea that some accountability may have prevented this unceremonious slide into the toilet, is not out of the question.
But having the Broncos be bad is not good for the NFL. This is not the Chargers or the Browns who are expected to suck. This is a three time Super Bowl champ and perennial playoff mainstay that without an owner, is slowly morphing into the Rockies of the NFL. And that is something directly related to the chaotic ownership fiasco that the NFL, and especially you the fan, shouldn’t tolerate.
The Ugly
Speaking of the Rockies. Your Colorado Rockies couldn’t hire someone competent if they fell out of a plane and crashed through the ceiling of Dick Monfort’s office. The situation at 20th and Blake is almost the inverse of the scene at Dove Valley. There is an owner in place, but he doesn’t seem to know what he’s doing and has hired incompetent ghosts to run his team. With Theo Epstein recently stepping down from his position of team President with the Cubs, most Rockies fans didn’t even bother getting their blood pressure up wondering if he’d be hired because there’s no possible way the Rockies would hire him. He’s too expensive and it’s too smart of a move for the Rockies to make. Daniel Murphy has a better chance of playing first base for the Dodgers.
The Rockies are in desperate need of a team President and even though Epstein wouldn’t debase himself this way, the Rockies are the prime candidate to use someone of his skills. Dick Monfort has been on autopilot as the chief decision maker and Jeff Bridich, probably the worst GM in baseball unfortunately has had the run of the place. He’s the Wormtongue to Monfort’s Theoden and we’re all sitting here in horror, waiting for Gandalf to set things right. Anyway.
I admittedly didn’t know who Kim Ng was before she was hired as the Marlins GM, but I’m pretty sure Dick Monfort didn’t know who she was either. Ng has a great track record working with championship teams and it shows that there are good people out there who could do a far better job than what the Rockies currently have working for them. But like most things with the team, the shortsightedness by the owner will always be the biggest obstacle to producing a winning product. Ugly.
Let’s cleanse our palate with some wholesome gambling, shall we?
Cardinals +3 @ Seattle
The Cards went down to the wire and won on a last second play against a Bills team that isn’t too different from the Seahawks. I see it being close again and maybe the Cards winning outright.
Houston +2 v Pats o/u 48 Over
A Super Bowl of Suck! Are the Pats good? They lost to the Broncos but beat the Ravens. Says more about the Ravens I guess. The Texans are definitely not good, but they have Deshaun Watson and Will Fuller who are good. Houston keeps it close, if not winning the game. The over is definitely hitting.
Browns -3 v Eagles o/u 47 Under
The Browns don’t exactly look like the Browns of old and that’s a compliment. I think they keep the winning alive by taking care of a pretty bad Eagles team while keeping the score below the 47. The weather in Cleveland has been terrible for weeks, so keep an eye on it, and if it’s going to be bad again, hammer that under.
Bengals +1.5 @ the Football Team
The Football Team gave up a lot of points to the Lions last week and then almost came back and won.The Bengals got smoked by the Steelers. So why do I think they’ll cover that tiny spread? The Bengals are due and losing by one point (or winning) seems right up their alley.
Dolphins -3.5 @ Broncos o/u 45 Under
No matter who is under center for the Broncos, this will be a bloodbath. The Dolphins defense has been one of the best in football for several weeks and you saw what a mediocre Raiders D did to Denver. The Dolphins will roll in this one and take a good look at that under because I doubt Denver scores much at all.
