The Retort

No Cutler, No Shanahan, No Problem

October 23rd, 2009 by Rob Barnosky Of The Retort Staff

There was a time this year when I wasn’t convinced that Josh McDaniels would finish the summer as the head coach of the Denver Broncos; now they may never let him leave.

The 33 year-old coach was replacing a Denver legend in Mike Shanahan. Shanahan, a two-time Super Bowl champion, won 138 games for the Denver Broncos in his 14 years as the Broncos head coach. The announcement that Shanahan would be replaced was a shock to fans, but even more of a shock was with who, and his age. But it wasn’t just the shoes that McDaniels had to fill that were creating pressure for him.

About the time he finished signing his contract McDaniels was on his way to running off the franchise quarterback, Jay Cutler. Cutler had only thrown for 4,500 yards, a franchise record, 24 touchdowns, and had one of the best seasons for a quarterback in the history of the Denver Broncos. On top of this, Cutler was also selected for the Pro Bowl.

It wouldn’t be long before Denver would be trading Cutler for Kyle Orton. Orton hadn’t just been any quarterback, but one of many storied sub par quarterbacks to play for the Chicago Bears. In a league dependent on solid quarterback play to win, the Bears were upgraded to Super Bowl-bound and the Broncos sent to the middle of the AFC west by all logical predictions.

In his first big move as a head coach McDaniels had run off one of the franchise’s best quarterbacks and was finding his fan support to be eroding. Then, just when it seemed like things couldn’t get worse for McDaniels and the Broncos, they found themselves in conflict with their best offensive player, Brandon Marshall. It looked as though Marshall wanted to follow the Cutler trail out of Denver. Soon Broncos fans would be watching him punt balls in practice, bat balls down, and jog through drills. Marshall ended up suspended and expectations for the upcoming season once again dropped.

It must have seemed like the end of the world for Broncos fans. First their successful coach, Shanahan, gets fired, then they lose Cutler and Marshall is wanting out. The season felt like a lost cause, but five games in the Broncos are undefeated. Their fans have forgotten Cutler and forgiven Marshall and McDaniels. Against all odds and expert predictions the Broncos have somehow emerged as an elite team.

The Broncos haven’t just done this against scrub teams. They have won games against the Cincinnati Bengals (4-1), Cleveland.

Browns (1-4), Oakland Raiders (1-4), Dallas Cowboys (3-2), and New England Patriots (3-2). Not only are McDaniels and the Broncos winning but they are doing it with Kyle Orton and most of the same team that won and lost eight games last year. Orton, through five games, has a quarterback rating higher than Cutler. While Cutler has a quarterback rating of 89, Orton has a rating of nearly 98. Additionally, Cutler has thrown five interceptions and Orton has yet to throw one. On top of the wins and Orton’s success, McDaniels has Marshall back, happy and playing well.

The Broncos, by any measure, are a much better team this year. Most experts predicted a team that won eight with Cutler to win less with Orton - and for good reason. There is really no explanation for the success. Sure, there have been several key additions, such as Brian Dawkins and Correll Buckhalter, but that doesn’t explain this start. This is a team that inexplicably is playing better at every position this year than they were last year, even with an apparent downgrade at quarterback. A defense that got shredded last year is now shutting down prolific offensive machines. I can’t explain it with anything other than Josh McDaniels. This guy has turned around what appeared to an inevitable train wreck in Denver and now fans are praising him as the second coming.

The season is far from over and the Broncos still have a long, hard schedule. In the upcoming weeks they will face the Chargers, Ravens, Steelers, Giants, Colts, and Eagles. These teams were all in the playoffs last year and by most measures, much better teams than the Broncos. I don’t know, and won’t predict, how long the Broncos can keep this undefeated streak going, but I do know that they have proven a great deal through five games.

After beating his former team, the Patriots, McDaniels has a record that Shanahan could only achieve once in his successful career. I’m not a fan, in fact, the Broncos are one of my least favorite teams, but even I can recognize a great coach.