There are just some teams that are more of a challenge than others. For the Broncos, the Baltimore Ravens is one of those teams. For whatever reason, the Ravens just seem to know how to get the best of the Broncos which makes every game against them a dramatic challenge, especially when playing in Baltimore. After a remarkable 6-0 start and a by-week, facing the Ravens in Baltimore is no easy task heading into the second half of the season. We all know the Broncos defense is for real, and that the Broncos offense is competent enough to get the job done, but will that be enough against the Ravens? According to Madden…yes, but just barely. The Ravens get off to a fast start with a 10-0 lead, but things settle down after that and the Broncos begin a steady come back. A TD rush by Moreno and a TD by Orton give the Broncos the lead at the half, and a field goal on the first drive of the second half give them a one touchdown lead. But then in the fourth quarter the Ravens mount their own comeback and are able to get into endzone to tie things up. In overtime, the Broncos win the coin toss, but can’t do anything with the ball. Fortunately, the Broncos D force a three and out by the Ravens and then the Broncos offense do the rest, with a late TD run by Moreno sealing a 23-17 win by Denver. Kyle Orton threw for 21-35 for 245 yards and had 1 TD and 1 INT. Moreno meanwhile didn’t have a spectacular game, but it was a solid performance with 63 yards on 20 rushes and 2 TDs, including the game winner. Denver never has it easy against Baltimore, as this Madden 10 game once again reminded me, but the defense was enough to give them the edge with a little help from Orton and Moreno right when they needed it. Can Denver really overcome Baltimore, in Baltimore, to continue their undefeated season? We’ll know soon enough.
[Update] The problem with being undefeated, especially when no one expected you to be undefeated, is waiting for that first (mostly) inevitable loss. Everyone’s just waiting for it so they can point and say, “see, they can be defeated”, or in the case of the Broncos who no one had any high expectations of they can see “see, I knew they weren’t as good as they thought”. In any event, I’ve just wanted to get that first loss out of the way. Just get it over with so we can move on and try to finish the season as strong as we started it. Well, our old nemesis the Baltimore Ravens seemed more than happy to oblige as once again they stymied the Broncos in a 30-7 trouncing that handed Denver their first loss of the season. Kyle Orton had a hard time getting anything going against a swarming Baltimore D. They were in his face and throwing him to the ground. However, Orton once again avoided any turnovers, throwing for 23 of 37 for 152 yards, but no TDs. Meanwhile, the ground game didn’t do much better. Moreno rushed 10 times for 39 yards, Buckhalter contributed 16 more yards on 8 carries, and Moreno also fumbled the ball away. the Denver D didn’t do much better, giving up more second half yardage and points then they have all season. In the end, it was not just a loss, but a blowout that may once again raise questions about whether or not this 6-1 Denver team is for real or if those first six games were just luck (We know at least one of them was). Denver faces the Steelers next, that will be their chance to prove everyone right or wrong, and we’ll see what Madden 10 as to say about that later this week.
