I just can’t bear to get into details, so I’ll do what I do best: overview.
The Broncos: The Broncos have long been the kings of the sports scene here in Denver. One thing you could always count on is a competitive team. So much so, that an 8-8 season only a couple years removed from an AFC Championship game appearance gets you nothing but a former coach-for-life and an untested kid for head coach. I say kid – which is humorous to me, because Josh McDaniels tips the chronological scales at the same rate I do – 32 years old. I try to imagine myself coaching an NFL franchise at this age. It feels a bit out of reach. But then, I exercise my leadership skills in other areas. That really sums up the new Broncos though, doesn’t it? Untested. We have some great offensive pieces. We have a stench emanating from Dove Valley that is the remains of our defense. We have a big question mark at kicker. And for the first time in a lot of years, we aren’t quite sure where this team is heading. Is it on the uptick? Or a downhill slide? Is a .500 season next year acceptable, even if it appears that .500 is overachieving for a team learning a new system? It’s intriguing, if not heartburn inducing.
The Avalanche: The Broncos may be kings of the scene, but the Avs brought Denver it’s first major championship. With 2 Stanley Cups and a run of division titles that makes your head spin, the Boys of Winter were Big Men on Campus here for quite some time. But this is a time going the opposite direction. You’d think that at some point, management would finally admit that it’s a team in need of rebuilding. That this team is NOT built to contend every year. The salary cap era has come, and the Avs failed the test. Before we get too down, however, let’s make one thing clear: Joe Sakic deserves every bit of notoriety in this town that Elway has, and then some. Joe may have played his last game in an NHL sweater. If that’s the case, let us all start counting our blessings that we got to see one of the greatest careers in hockey history unfold at the doorstep of the Rocky Mountains. That being said – this is a team in disarray. The slide to the conference cellar is almost complete. Injuries take their toll, yes. But this team needs to take a good hard look at a few things: The Coach. The Personnel Decisions. The Goalie. The fact that a recently proud franchise is having a hard time filling the building. The Avs look to me a bit like the US economy. You know it will get better eventually, you just wonder how much worse it will get in the meantime.
The Rockies: The Kid Rocks aren’t kids anymore. This will be a telling season. I think the Monforts are taking notes from Pat Bowlen, and if Hurdle doesn’t get the job done, I think this will be it for him in Denver. The biggest thing of note as we prep for the 2009 campaign is the loss of Holliday. That hurts. Oh, it hurts. But honestly… it’s not a franchise killer. We’ll miss the offense, and dangit if Tulowitzki doesn’t man up and take over this team, I’m gonna go all Milton Bradley on him, but Holliday is an average defensive outfielder. So the loss of the power threat hurts, but the Rocks can survive. The biggest question marks are whether the former Kid Rocks can actually grow up and be ball players. Can Tulo lead the team, in the clubhouse and on the field? Can Ubaldo finally be the ace we dream of? Can Francis stay off the DL and regain his form? Can Ian Stewart play left field? Can Garret Atkins get over the emotion of losing Holliday and fill the offensive gap? Can Hurdle go ten minutes without chewing gum? I’m glad to see Taveras out the door, I think Fogg will make the team and contribute, and I’d sure like to see if Fowler can make the club. The Rockies will be intriguing to watch. If I had to guess, I’d say we have an 80-85 win season, and just miss the wild card.
The Nuggets: I leave the Nugs for last because I have the least amount of intelligent things to say about them, but they also show the most promise. Don’t look now, but they are leading their division. They’re battling with my second favorite team, the Trailblazers for the division. The Blazers are young, and Greg Oden might actually be made of glass, so I like the Nuggets’ chances. Chauncey has brought something this team has been missing for years, something AI never could have given – a championship-caliber motivation. That’s about as in-depth as my analysis gets. The bummer to this, is that while the Nuggets are solid, it’s not like the league is wide open. The Celtics, Lakers, Cavaliers, et. al. are in a whole different class. Remember in the 80s? Every year, the Nuggets made the playoffs. And every year they got torched by the Lakers as Magic, Worthy, and Kareem steamrolled their way to another titanic tilt with the Celtics. It seems that this year, it’s the Lakers’ conference to lose. And I feel hard pressed to make a case against it.
The Honorable Mentions: Well – the Crush are part of the temporarily-defunct AFL, so they’re a non-factor this year. The Mammoth— oh, who am I kidding. Do people actually watch lacrosse?
So there you go. The state of pro sports in Colorado, for the most part. The glory days of Denver sports were the late 90s for sure… there’s a long way to go before that comes back. But as always, we’ll be here watching every move and hoping that our boys, whichever group of boys we’re watching at the moment, pull out the miracle victory in the end and that one day soon, another championship trophy will come to rest at 5,280 feet.
