Over the Hill

From my residence I have a choice of four King Sooper establishments (our store of choice… they carry better produce, candy sales, and bread than Safeway, and I don’t get me started on Albertson’s), all of the same approximate distance from the crib. On Thursday nights I am apt to make a run for missing ingredients necessary for the next day… namely milk for the rugrats’ breakfast (PETA members can find my email and Twitter info on the right) and whatever they might need for lunch as they wean an education.

I also head to the Sooper in Golden as I am given the opportunity to come over the hill behind Colorado Mills on my traverse home…

… I let up off the pedal every time I cross that peak during evening hours. In tonight’s Indian summer air the lights were especially orange, a view that inspired three thoughts I wanted to share before I call it a night.

I understand it is an overplayed sentiment in these parts, but as a man hailing from the City with Big Shoulders now living the life of a Denver addict, it is hard not to appreciate the irony.

(Again we want to thank the NFL for insuring I cannot post a link to a video clip of the highlights here… you’ll have to go to the NFL Network direct to get a view of the debacle.)

The pain of watching Cutler throw five picks this evening, if you are a fan of the man or the Bears, was trumped only by the roar of laughter from those in the Mile High, many of whom were ready to jump ship once he was sent packing. The fans in this town continued to be spoiled by the fates of professional football as the league’s leader in interceptions is no longer working on behalf of the Broncos, and while you may question the arm the Broncos do possess behind center, there is no doubting the results.

Denver is hoping to see playoff football. Chicago is hoping to see a merciful end.

I love Freddie Barnes. He may not get the recognition he deserves coming from Bowling Green. The Green isn’t known for football prowess but they possess the best target working on the college level today and he’s making full use of the opportunity.

The guy has over 100 receptions on the season.

Check out Barnes’ game log thus far and, if you follow numbers or the game at all, you will find shock and awe. 15 receptions for 157 yards against Troy (a strong defensive unit)… 17 receptions for 109 yards against Marshall… 22 receptions for 278 ticks against Kent State, 10 for 160 against Ball State, 14 for 172 versus Central Michigan, eight for 122 against a strong Buffalo D, and tonight he posted 10 for 109 against Miami-Ohio. Over his last five games he has 10 touchdowns. He leads the FBS (Division IA for the common man) with 107 total receptions, and the #2 man on the list (Jordan Shipley from Texas) is over 30 mitts behind.

And as you may remember…

… he is a member of the Kodiaks in CTGFFL. We stand at 15-4 on the season and I’m hoping, like Denver, the fates continue to smile on me, and on Freddie.

Last but not least, as we mentioned before…

… Woody Paige is not only an obnoxious ass, but he’s a predictable ass as well.

Coming off the loss to Pitt on Monday we warned the cries for change behind center would be coming. We noted the eighthead wonder on Channel 9 wasted no time in spitting his rant (he actually did it twice… it’s the worst thing about the local sports coverage on Channel 9: they let that guy write his rant, he reads direct from the cards at the top of the show coming in from the game, then they let him do it AGAIN, word for word, before running through the highlights from with reports from the locker room… so the rant comes before the actual coverage of the event he is criticizing TWICE… it’s like telling a girl how awful you’ll be in the sack at the bar rather than letting her find out for herself, and then reminding her as she gets up to walk away… why would anyone stick around?), and we warned you the rest of the sheep would fall in line.

In fact, we sent warning this day would come before the season began.

To the shock of no one, Woody came through. Also to the shock of no one, he believes he is blazing trails, when in fact he is right in the line with the rest of the sheep.

Understand Woody is begging for the Broncos to turn down a guy that…

(a) … now stands at 21-12 as a starting quarterback in the NFL.

(b) … threw three interceptions on Monday night against what may be the best defense in the league, and that one-game total was two more than he had thrown through the first seven games of the season.

(c) … is completing over 62% of his passes on the season, a number that trumps a list of quarterbacks that includes Aaron Rodgers, Carson Palmer, Matt Ryan, Tony Romo, Eli Manning, and Donovan McNabb.

(d) … that has already won more games than Woody predicted the Broncos would win all season.

Understand Woody wants the Broncos to turn to a quarterback that…

(a) … nearly died from a ruptured spleen suffered on the football field just three years ago, and he has thrown exactly two NFL passes since.

(b) … couldn’t beat out Vince Young for a shot at snaps in Tennessee last season, and that couldn’t beat Brad Gradkowski or Tim Rattay for opportunity in Tampa in ‘06.

(c) … currently owns five more interceptions than touchdowns on his career resume, and neither of those totals match the number of touchdowns thrown by the current starter last season.

And I was hoping, as I came over the hill and watched the city from on high, the sheep at The Stable would know better.

We’ll be back late Saturday night to run through the links and our preview of the pending battle against Washington.

Thanks for stopping in.