Broncos Find Compromise With Pistol Formation

It is not unreasonable to suggest that as the season goes along, the Broncos will begin to click on all cylinders offensively as the Kubiak methodology is alien to this current squad despite his extensive history in Denver as both a player and a coach and will only get better with time.

So the pistol, after its success against the Lions, deserves another look, even as the Broncos try to develop their running game. In a new system with a worse offensive line, Manning might not be able to return to the form that made Sanders a star previous year.

After years of being let down by his defense, Peyton Manning is finally backed by the best D in football, which would be much more exciting if he wasn’t effectively reduced to a caretaker quarterback whose goal is to be reasonably effective rather than legendary.

Peyton Manning during the Broncos’ 24-12 win over the Lions last Sunday. That’s what the architect of the Broncos has done to a storied rivalry, and you won’t hear Manning complaining about it. For once, Manning knows he doesn’t have to score in the thirties every week to have a good chance to win big games.

Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning passes during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, September 27, 2015, in Detroit. The Broncos have no plans to abandon the run game, with Kubiak saying Wednesday, “it’s something that we have to continue to press with”.

Stafford was 31 of 45 for 282 yards with a 16-yard TD pass to Ameer Abdullah in the third quarter, two interceptions and a fumble on a play in which he had at least once chance to throw the ball away. With Julius Thomas and Welker combining for 1,566 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2013, it capped off a season that will be almost impossible to top from a balance standpoint.

“I’m at fault”, Caldwell said.

“It helps the quarterback”. RB Juwan Thompson (neck) was back at practice Wednesday but RG Louis Vasquez and Manning had the day off and LG Evan Mathis (hamstring) was limited. “We did it previous year”. They also have had the running back sidle up to Manning. “Maybe we’ll get on base at a few point and get going”.

“We have to keep C.J. on the field”. The defense shouldn’t be able to key on which way we are running. Whether it was the pistol or whatever, it’s the best that we protected him. And since he can still line up a running back directly behind Manning and force a defense to honor the run in either direction, Kubiak gets the look he wants as well.

After Manning’s yarn, the Broncos must hit foul balls on the ground, maintaining optimism through consistent effort. To Kubiak’s credit, he altered things to fit what works with Manning in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions, and the result was another dominant performance from the 14-time Pro Bowl quarterback. “I hear it all the time”.

“You never know”, he said. “If he didn’t still have it, he wouldn’t be playing right now”.