DENVER
There’s no arguing that quality and quantity can go hand-in-hand for Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos.
Project No. 1 for the offense this year was to speed things up and run the no-huddle. By every measure, the project is running along smoothly as the Broncos reach the halfway point.
Over the first eight games, the Denver offense ran 593 plays compared to 536 over the first half of 2012. Manning and Co. have started 107 drives compared to 92 last season. And Denver’s offense – not counting scores by the special teams and defense – has produced 319 points compared to 212 over the first eight games of last year.
“I’m not going to say it’s as easy as it looks,” receiver Demaryius Thomas said. “The main part is, everyone needs to be on the same page. You’ve got to have everyone on the field knowing what they’re doing all the time.”
The increases of 10 percent in plays, 15 percent in drives and a whopping 50 percent in points have translated to a 7-1 record heading into the bye week.
Denver’s overall scoring, 343 points, is on pace to shatter the NFL record of 589 (2007 Patriots). Manning has 2,919 yards and 29 touchdown passes, also numbers that would blow away the current records of 5,476 yards (Drew Brees, 2011) and 50 touchdowns (Tom Brady, 2007).
All of which the Broncos were hoping for when offensive coordinator Adam Gase took over for Mike McCoy after last season and took the few remaining shackles off an offense that also upgraded with the signing of receiver Wes Welker and the emergence of tight end Julius Thomas.
Manning was no stranger to the no-huddle, up-tempo offense during his years in Indianapolis, but over his first year in Denver, the Broncos didn’t go fast all the time; there were so many new things to get used to for the quarterback and his new teammates.
One turning point came in a loss to New England last Oct. 7, when the Patriots hustled to the line for every play and ran an almost unheard-of 90 plays on offense, compared to 67 for the Broncos. The Patriots won 31-21, and Manning decided he wanted to go that fast one day, too.
The Broncos pushed the pace a bit more over the second half of last season, when they went 8-0 and ran 577 plays – 41 more than over the first half. But McCoy’s departure to become head coach of the Chargers, along with Gase’s promotion from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator, marked something of a fresh start.
The Broncos started installing elements of the no-huddle during their offseason training program.
In the third game of the preseason, the first-team offense ran 51 plays in the first half against St. Louis.
“That’s when we saw we could do it,” Demaryius Thomas said. “From there, we just said, ‘We want to stick with this.’”
Manning long has emphasized that the no-huddle isn’t simply a matter of going fast all the time.
By hustling to the line, the Broncos limit what the defense can do, substitution-wise, which makes it easier on Manning to diagnose what might be coming next.
Denver’s commitment to the no-huddle was on full display last week in the turning-point play of a 45-21 win over Washington. The Broncos were trailing 21-7 and had fourth-and-2 from the Washington 20.
Instead of calling timeout or debating how to handle the situation, the Broncos lined up and, without hesitation, snapped the ball. A handoff to Knowshon Moreno yielded 5 yards. Three plays later, Denver scored the first of 38 consecutive points to close the game.
“We like being able to go quickly in those situations,” Manning said. “If you’re going quickly on first, second and third down, why do you have to, on fourth down, huddle, and let’s have this big discussion? (Gase) and I talk about having a plan ready when (head) coach (John) Fox gives us the go-ahead.”
More than the physical side of the no-huddle, it’s the mental side – being ready for any scenario – that Manning insists is the bigger challenge of going fast.
“I think you find out real quickly who’s not in shape if you’re out there on the field for long drives and guys are having to tap out or guys can’t sustain the same execution late in the drive as they can early in the drive,” Manning said.
When the Broncos return from their bye week, the schedule will become much more difficult, with five games against teams that currently have winning records, compared to one over the first half of the season. The weather also figures to get colder, which could curtail the offense’s record-setting tempo. Meanwhile, the last few weeks have brought up some questions about Manning’s overall health and arm strength.
Regardless, the Broncos figure to keep pushing the pace. So far, so good.
“It’s all about players,” Fox said. “First, you have to have smart players to do it because you make so many changes. Our guys have been able to do it, whether on the road or at home, at a very high level. It’s experienced, smart players who aren’t afraid to work very hard to make it happen on game day.”
Chiefs and Broncos now will play prime time
NEW YORK – The Chiefs-Broncos game in Week 11 is moving to prime time.
The NFL said Friday that Kansas City’s matchup with Denver on Nov. 17 would be on NBC’s “Sunday Night Football.”
The Green Bay Packers and New York Giants originally were in that slot but were moved to 2:25 p.m. on Fox. Also, the Chargers-Dolphins game was moved to 2:05 p.m. on CBS.
Starting in Week 11, the league’s flexible scheduling policy allows it to move a more appealing game to Sunday night.
“We had originally protected the Kansas City-Denver game for Week 11,” CBS Sports said in a statement. “After discussions with the NFL we made a one-time accommodation so that the game can be seen by a national audience, which we could not provide during our regionalized singleheader weekend.”
The Chiefs, 8-0 and the NFL’s last unbeaten team, will visit Buffalo this week. The Broncos (7-1) are off.
Denver Broncos
Team Leaderboard
* leads the AFC
Offense
Denver: *466.4 yards per game, 107.9 rushing yards per game, 358.5 passing yards per game.
Defense
Denver: 380.6 yards allowed per game, 81.5 rushing yards allowed per game, 299.1 passing yards per game.
Passing
Peyton Manning: 333 attempts, 237 completions, 2,919 yards, 29 touchdowns, 6 interceptions.
Rushing
Knowshon Moreno: 109 attempts, 457 rushing yards, 4.19 yards per carry, 25-yard long (TD), 8 touchdowns.
Receiving
Wes Welker: 50 catches, 555 yards, 11.1 yards per catch, 33-yard long, 9 touchdowns.
Demaryius Thomas: 48 catches, 685 yards, 14.3 yards per catch, 78-yard long (TD), 6 touchdowns.
Eric Decker: 46 catches, 669 yards, 14.5 yards per catch, 61-yard long, 3 touchdowns.
Kicking
Matt Prater: 43-for-43 point-after attempts, 12-for-12 field goal attempts, 53-yard long, *79 points.
Punting
Brandon Colquitt: 28 punts, 1,265 yards, 60-yard long, 45.2 average yards per punt.
Kickoff Returners
Trindon Holliday: 11 kickoff returns, 379 yards, *34.5 yards per kickoff return, 105-yard long (TD), 1 touchdown.
Punt Returners
Trindon Holliday: 20 punt returns, 227 yards, 11.4 yards per punt return, 81-yard long (TD), 1 touchdown.
Scoring
Knowshon Moreno: *9 touchdowns, 8 rushing, 1 receiving, 54 points.
Wes Welker: *9 touchdowns, 9 receiving, 54 points.
Julius Thomas: 8 touchdowns, 8 receiving, 48 points.
Demaryius Thomas: 6 touchdowns, 6 receiving, 36 points.
Associated Press
