Colorado Buffaloes Might Be Deion "Coach Prime" Sanders Only Option in CFB

the complete package even though the player may not remind you of chimra just yet see if the plays being run for him do L clock and game clock appear to be back and working simple toss play for the first snap for Bo Nixon good solid gain that's yards rushing a season ago he'll bounce it outside this time and that should be mlin the ball carrier flowers in on the tle really long receivers tall receivers Colt show Blitz back out of it ball is mofin looking to Bounce It Outside will'll have the first down Isaiah l in the tackle but not before M mlet follows the wall of and Mitchell so dicks will get the start mlin Liam Anderson gave Chase but could not get to [Applause] him on the screen llin good job by Johnson to shed third down and yet I think first down is the Difference Maker in this league they are playing a heavy front which I hope becomes a part of their defense mlin by his Lup first down spins away the track now is he the quote unquote backup running back to probably Javonte Williams yes but I do Wonder Nate when you look at the selection of plays in which mclf was involved and last year of course had a had an effective rookie season if the idea is not going forward that sort of Williams on the inside like Ingram mck Laughlin needing to do it here and there so he doesn't give away the play when he's on field but playing that kind of Camaro role I think you saw some similarities there even with B Nicks a quarterback yeah I think you see some similares I think the difference is that you know the saints were set up for especially early on like the the the Alvin Kamar that that fans think of is the Alvin Kamar from probably the first four years that he was in the league um and in that particular case for the most part you were talking about a guy that really was on the field very consistently in terms of the percentage of the snaps that he had all right um and then if you get to like the fifth and sixth years of his career right he got to the point where he was doing even more carries he was becoming even more of a Bellow for the New Orleans offense but this is a guy that's never rushed for a thousand yards by the way if you just to throw that out there folks he's never rushed for a thousand yards in his career um he's come close but he hasn't done it and the reason why is because he's a guy that is a Swiss army knife he's going to catch it out of the backfield in addition to running it that is something that we know that Shawn pyton would like to be able to do in this offense um I'm not sure that Julio mlon is the answer um I think he can fill some of that role um but to the point that you just made he's three inches shorter and 30 pounds lighter than Alvin Kamara um and that's going to make a difference I'm I'm a little less worried about the height per se although I do think that the vision over the the the line is important um but it's the size to me I mean again you're talking about a difference of about 30 pounds between those two that makes it harder for him to get into the the middle and run between the tackles with consistency well and it makes it difficult to get to um yards after contact right um you know things like that that um are important in that type of offensive play if you're going to be you know doing a little swing pass out to the outside it's not just a matter of that spacing chances are somebody's going to get a hand on you can get away from them and Alvin Kamar could frequently I need to be able to see that out of the rest of the Back Field that the Broncos have and U mlin size has me concerned about that and it should I mean obviously we're not talking as I mentioned it's not Apples to Apples mclam was undrafted and cimo was a third rounder obviously and you're talking about uh a guy that was at a good program at Tennessee at least when he finished up and so I I think it isn't the same when you're talk talking about the players but I think when you're talking about the style of what Shawn Payton's trying to do and and B knck is not Drew Brees and Julio is not kamarra nope and right now Javonte Williams isn't even Mark Ingram during that span of of time and they certainly don't have a Michael Thomas courland Sutton's promising and then we know they definitely don't have a Jimmy Graham so there's not a lot of the pieces there but we do know that Shawn pton seems quite frankly and we saw this last year with Russell Wilson and it was one of the issues I think that that came to a head sh has his offense the Broncos are going to run his offense a lot of pro coaches and I think quite frankly with very good reason take a look at the roster they have and say all right well I'm going to design an offense based on what I have in the room because the nature of pro football as you have you're subject to the randomness of the draft of free agency of the salary cap you don't get to go around the country and say wow my exact offense that I like running requires a 280 pound mobile right tackle and you just go scour the country and find one you can't do that in the pros Shawn Payton's approach there is a little more Collegiate coaching I run this offense if you play for me you're going to run this offense that's why in part it didn't work with Russell Wilson but it's why it should work to a certain extent with Bo Knicks the question is how does the talent Stack Up and Nate's 100% right they are not at the level of those Saints teams that that went on to the Super Bowl that maybe could have gone on to another Super Bowl they're not at that level of talent but you can see what pton is trying to assemble and and you're right yards after contract maybe that's an audri esime that has a role in that maybe when you're talking about those different things maybe they do with three backs on on the goal line who knows but pton is trying to recreate what you saw in New Orleans not because it's some sort of trying to recapture anything it's just because this is Shawn Payton's offense he requires players that run it and that's why the turnover for the Broncos has been so dramatic yeah exactly he's trying to he's trying to plug in something that he knows is successful um and will you have to tweak it to the talent yeah of course you will um and and that is where there's going to be a little bit of a compromise okay you brought up the Jimmy Graham example okay you don't have that tight end nope you're not gonna be able to run those play out you're not going to be able to the same kinds of plays now can you modify them can you sit down and say hey we think we want to be able to do this but we need to be able to pull it back because of X right because dolit can do this because Troutman can do this because croll can do this um that is where you need to see um what we all hope is the intelligence and the um Evolution a bit of Shawn pyton take place because if this is truly in his mind the rebuild if this is truly in his mind we are doing this and it's going to take place over two or three years he can understand that some of those plays that he wants to be able to run or some of the pieces of his offense that he believes he can have success in the AFC West and the NFL in 2024 25 26 to do that he's going to have to build up to it that he can't just drop it in right here in 2024 and be like Yay look it worked um a couple of times it might some of those plays he might but he doesn't have the exact back that he's looking for yet he doesn't have the exact um tight end by any stretch he doesn't have the quarterback yet no and I mean that not in that he doesn't have the body that he doesn't have the QB yet up here um he's not there yet all of those things mean that he is going to have to have some patience which sometimes when he's over there on the sideline and he's got that scowl yeah he does that thing with his lips where he's like this um he looks like a guy who doesn't have any patience uh Wilson about that and I need to uh I need to know that he's got some that he's got some patience and he sees the that this team is going because you and I have been begging for the fans to have patience um and you know look I think for a coach that has had a Super Bowl um and has had the parade and had all those kinds of things I would be willing to bet you that sometimes it's hard to be patient and I don't I don't blame him yeah I think it would be difficult when you've experienced it to have to sit back and wait for it to come back I I can only imagine it probably certainly is difficult Broncos fans can tell you how difficult it's been but last year when you look at yardage from scrimmage gavant Williams led the way with 1,2 courland Sutton with 772 Jerry Judy third was 758 he's in Cleveland now samj per to 593 but with only three starts jalo mcclaflin again with no uh as a rookie 570 that's even ahead of Marvin Mims who was the second rounder who the Broncos thought they'd be doing a little bit more with so mlin already carved out a larger spot than people had anticipated last year including Shawn pyton and it may just be training camp and this first week of preseason but it looks again as if pton has found a guy that he trusts that he likes and he believes still has upside uh obviously as we'll get back out to training camp on Wednesday the Broncos are off today but our training camp coverage brought to you by our friends at rolling smoke that's right you're getting ready for football season and we've talked about it many times you want to have uh that uh watch party at the house um it doesn't do you any good um if there's a watch party and you as the host are not able to watch uh and that's because you're stuck in the kitchen so let our friends rolling Smoke Barbecue take care of you when it comes to catering doesn't matter whether you're having say six people over or you're blowing this thing up and you're going to have uh you know 26 46 106 doesn't matter they can take care of you because they have exactly what you need to make it so you can enjoy the party all of the meats are hardwood slow smoke the sides are made fresh every single day so you get what your what you want you get your order together you make a plan right and then you put put in that order you tell them what time you want to pick it up what day you want to pick it up all those kinds of things you get it all done and they will take very very good care of you and they've got four locations to be able to help you out around the Denver metro area we can talk about the Stanley Marketplace in Aurora the golden Mill as well at the corner of Dry Creek and University in Centennial right across the street from arapo high school and the newest one in wheat rdge you can find the menu you can find information on the catering you can find those locations in case I went too fast for you all of it at rolling smoke bbq.com well uh I'll be at that one on across from arapo on in Centennial at some point this week because I usually do that every week because you talk convenient to the office well Nate talked about that you know you don't want to cook when you're well what if you just can't like me uh then there's even more yeah I mean you can also dine in right I mean you know you can you can do that if you want to I'm just throwing it out there because I know some of you are getting ready to throw some parties I would imagine so well it is an interesting uh week for the den Broncos of course they're off today they will be fac the Packers at the tail end of the week for their joint practices but we are also not all that far away from the debut of the University of Colorado's football program that will be on the uh 29th just two days from Thursday and up there in Boulder over the course of the the media day a couple little little bit ago Deon Sanders had a very interesting approach to a lot of different things and uh he he kind of came off a little bit aggressive obviously he was uh defensive he was frustrated called out some very interesting uh called out reporters and didn't want to go ahead and and necessarily address some questions had issues with even terminology the word bolstered came up when asked about bolstered about his offensive line Sanders pushed back and said I don't know what bolstered mean let's just say strengthened but okay but bolst you know he said pardon me S said improved bolstered means strengthened improved okay same thing but kind of an odd a nitpick kind of of he was in a [ __ ] mood he was he was in a bad mood I mean he was in a bad mood I don't know I don't know any other way to put it than that Deon Sanders was in a bad mood and the media ate the brunt of it yeah and they didn't the funny thing is Nate and we'll have Sean keer the never post join us momentarily to talk about that one of the guys that uh took it on the chin for the team here but the the truth of the matter is for see you and Boulder this year last year they started three and0 and got a bunch of national attention a bunch of national news but they finished one and8 that's the reality and the idea this year of course is that the uh hype on them a little higher they were one of the teams receiving votes in the AP preseason poll uh that puts them I guess technically at 42 as they receive one vote but this has a lot of overlap to the Broncos in so much as lots of attention paid new names new faces but eventually starts coming down to wins and losses and I think that's the concern I've talked about this all all season long I think that CU can get to six wins and get to a bowl I think that has the goal I think you're high you think they can get six wins I think they've got I think you're nuts if they don't I think there's going to be a lot of challenges in Boulder I think there's going to be a lot of difficulties for Sanders when it comes to the the medium and I got the impression and and again we'll uh we'll talk to Denver Post Shan keer in a moment that that has some of the I guess is to use keeler's term a whiff of fear about it the idea that that in the first year no expectations for for CU even the one in8 finish right when the team finished with one win the year before you can live with four and eight it was a big Improvement obviously we got attention they became relevant again now this year I think the expectation is moving to a new conference they need to get to if not a winning record they need to at least get to six 500 and get to a bowl game and if they don't then the questions start to to revolve around Dion ability to coach as opposed to be a recruiter and a recruiter more through the transfer portal than the high school ranks although it is worth noting that this year rather than last year the Buffs have a better Hall in high school so I think that here's where I here's where I'm going to disagree with you I think that there is I believe there is the same sort of growth um for lack of a better term this season in joining the Big 12 this a this is a this is a difficult conference um and and and the Pack 12 was to a certain extent as well but this is also a very difficult conference and I think because of that it's going to be more challenging than you think and I know you've got a lot to be able to talk to Sean Keeler about yeah obviously we have an opportunity to uh speak to Sean Keeler from The Denver Post and uh you can read all the stories out there from the post obviously with Sean job of covering this and and the term really is covering so Sean thank you for joining us and H obviously things up in Boulder feeling a little bit defensive right now with Deion Sanders Nate Lundy just talked about it as well I think for this the the first year obviously honeymoon period the second year the expectation of the Buffs need to at least make a bowl game but that said Sanders I think is feeling pressure that might not necessarily be there because this isn't exactly he wasn't exactly dropped into New York City or Chicago when it comes to Media markets it's not as if the folks that covering the Buffs are trying to eat him for lunch it's been rather I would say a soft touch coverage for the most part yeah and and Sean thanks for having me and you guys thanks for having me on I I think if I were a CU fan and this isn't how they think as you know and I know from social media uh I'd be a little concerned about that if I were CU Regent I'd be very worried about that like whatever this ends in this was never going to end well right it just wasn't whatever it was going to be so it's about look let's maximize the money let's maximize visibility and hopefully we maximize the talent and the wins it's going to be those four things and then whatever happens happens hey Rick George already said he's retiring the ad he's like this is the last coach I'm gonna hire because he just threw his hands up the air and said the heck with it let's take whatever comes with and let whatever happens because going conventional for a generation hasn't worked it was a great business move Deion Sanders was a fabulous business move for the University of Colorado what we don't know and what this season is going to prove and what we've talked about what we're all going to write about whether he wants us to or not is whether the football side of it can match the expectations of where it's at but yeah he's had it he's had it extremely soft and I think that's also one of the reasons he came uh in fact I know it's one of the reasons he came and then as you know then when you actually have questions that don't fit a narrative or are perceived to be coming after someone then it just highlights that even more everything is relative all politics are local when you look like the only bad guy in a room of sycophants it can be a very very lonely place and uh and I've have been there yeah and and uh you have been there obviously you got picked on a little bit too and the the idea that uh it is really tricky because looking at the way that the media coverage works at the college level at the pro level has really changed right there's been sort of a an influx of uh social media driven internet-based uh kind of uh and I mean it with absolutely no disrespect kind of a really organized fan clubs that to basically uh pump up the message and excite the the the Bas and that ends up being that's totally fine a lane in which to work but it has blurred a little bit into some of the media to the extent that Sanders is not even the only coach that at times when faced with coverage that asks uh even questions that are not that difficult just about wins and losses or about offseason plans or or what you accomplished that if if it feels if it doesn't hit a narrative like you pointed out that's confusing and in Sanders case obviously he gets to come with his own Army of social media people of video production this whole thing is is the Dion Sanders special now if you're CU it was worth it because you were irrelevant the money you've paid is totally irrelevant as well because the money the University made in the athletic department even among the student body has made it all worthwhile but to a certain extent cu's sort of just along for the ride aren't they they are and and let me give you it's hard to say anything about Dion and certainly in the moment and not sound either a whiny or B sour grapes and if you want to know what's going through the mind of that fat guy sitting there in that video that went viral it's don't be the story don't be the story don't be the story don't be the story because you're not right that's not the point of what we do now that's not how Dion looks at life it's I've been the story all the time and if I'm not something's wrong I get that like we're just coming at it from very different perspectives but to sum up and this is again so I say that don't sound whiny don't make it about you with an anecdote that's gonna sound very whiny and not about you this would sum up the covering Dion experience and I think you know the writers there uh who they've been there for a long time and and I have and everyone there is a good Soul even with me and may you know stab me in the back or shive me in the side they're good souls and I forgive them if they have it's fine we we do what we do but I remember one time and I remember this exchange I think it was in the spring where at some point Dion says uh we have this and this and this and our tight ends man uh you should you guys are saying we don't have this and this and this you should see what we have in practice I mean we we have this great stuff uh tight end does this and does that and we pointed out we can't go to practice we can't ever observe anything um and he's like well you would know if you went to practice but we can't go we can't see this and then he just kind of went oh well and then he went away he did a keer he went away all I thought was this is the fallacy of which we're dealing with but that's whiny because Deon Sanders has as a football coach has always not really cared about local media to your point Point there's the his inner circle comes and does their thing and then you can buy in we've talked about this you can buy into the second Circle which made that exchange with cbs4 really weird to me because right he owes them doesn't ow me an apology we're my bridges are burned I own that I have to own that but Eric Christensen had nothing to do with his business beef at a higher level of something that was not even tangental to what he does and his station is a bus business partner with smack Dion's agency I I was FL I mean I'm probably was still I was stammering at the time because I was trying to recover from that exchange the Arie exchange about bolster what have you but he does St y I mentioned that before you came on yep the person in front of me who just wanted to do an afflac commercial right press conferences are should be must see if you're not there because it's it's a circus every time we don't know what we're gonna get we've had moments where someone just stands up and says coach I just want to say how great you are and what you've done from man kind and coaching and football in general and that's all I've got and then they sit down and you're like I'm supposed to follow up with a pat Shermer question after that like what are we what are we doing here let's let's play this out because there there's always you know even after last year there was the idea that's it Deion Sanders is going to be one and done and and he'll buy out his contract and move on and the Pres assumption is by a lot of folks that he'll do it this year after shadar Sanders and Shiloh Sanders and leave there's that assumption as well but let's play this out so this is where I I question this one Colorado has given him everything he wants everything you know as you know full well you want to talk to Deion Sanders you talk to Deion Sanders people not the University of Colorado right right that's unusual a a larger more successful program that wasn't in the Dire Straits that that Colorado was doesn't need to do that no if you're Alabama you hire kayin dor you're like we're gonna handle things we're B we know how to do this you don't need to sign on on that so this idea that Deion Sanders would leave and go to a better program where would he go and moreover if the Buffs don't make a bow let's say they don't even make a bow what regular top 25 program is going to want to sign on for that circus as you put it while the coaching Acumen is still up in the air and I quite frankly don't see a single one so for Dion Sanders to be at one of what is now the crown jewels in a let's just say lesser Big 12 than it was when Texas and Oklahoma we're in it for Colorado to be a crown jewel in one of the Now power four and by the way the only of the power four conferences in which Colorado would be a crown jewel because of Deion Sanders where does he go unless this year is phenomenally successful if he wants to retain a college coach to my mind steu is the best place for him one way or the other yeah and I I you can get a copy of that contract there are a lot of very expensive outs as well on his end including if he would retire um and the more you think about it like when you take a deep breath We're All In the Heat of the Moment then need take a breath and I've asked myself in recent months that very question who else would want this and by this I think you hire Deion Sanders if you want to make money you are to be frank desperate if you are look we we've and to be fair to see you again that that's worked we we're on the cover of SI we would he's got to be the only coach maybe ever God hope there's still a print SI you know we're all in that game Knock on Wood right went four and eight and was a sportsman of the year if that ever happens again I'll you know I'll buy a drink we'll all we'll all have a good laugh at that but to that point that's the degree of publicity and and juice and the prime that you get but the football stuff to your point is TBD and this season is all about proving that St to go with the sizzle the sizzle was a big win it was a massive massive win for the Buffs but you got no Stak we have to find out what's there and I don't think any other school would do that unless they really re and even Dion has admitted in his Dion is I agree with him 70% of the time maybe 68 believe it or not about the business side of things and I think he's honest about that 70% of the time he has said There Are Places I wouldn't go because they wouldn't give me this like here are my parameters I got my three YouTube feeds I got Amazon I got this guy I got my on3 recruiting kid I got this Dion doesn't need us and he reminds us of that every day these are not CU people who are good folks and have always been on the level they would be the same before this they would Lord willing be the same after this this is just a different entity dropped in here but if it's about the football to your point about like I've already got a you know Alabama Clemson whatever I've already got something running they don't need Dion they've got that built in but you would have to be somebody further down in the pecking order that did and and he found it you know and from a marketing perspective it's been a perfect fit it's been just big enough to to give him what he wants although it's Dion he's big if he was at Ruckers he'd be big he'd be big it's not about that but ultimately I think what strikes me too in the bottom line from Friday and whatever else is I think Denver Sports and this is true in a lot of markets but especially here and you know this better than I at some point you gotta win at some point and I would think this is that point for this program and I think they will but if they don't have it help him because you're you have friends here but not as many as you think well and that's the part I think is interesting Sean because uh let let's say they don't make a bowl game then then the best move for Deion Sanders for his career if he wants to continue it is to actually work hard double down which you know I know he's doing I'm not suggesting he's not working hard I think there has been real real progress at the University of Colorado but you're GNA have to double down and then show everyone else if you want to continue your career that you can coach that you can build a team up you got it with your sons that's great now can you do it without your sons can you recruit a quarterback that you need to get can you win with that guy can you prove that you can win with the guys you recruited that are not uh that's not your son if he can do that then Deion Sanders vaults himself into a different level and then he can start naming his place but until then oddly even though it seems like it it's a bit of a uncomfortable situation at times these two sides in the end really need each other right now both CU and on Sanders oh they absolutely need this to work because there's no and that includes Sanders this isn't just if it doesn't work for cuu Sanders can bolt and go somewhere else not anymore they're tied together at the hip right this was his Proving Ground to say a My Method you know whatever 70% transfers don't we don't need to develop guys we can just grab them we we can shop Amazon Prime we could just ship him in 24 hours you know free shipping and and make this work his methods have to be proven for football-wise his coaching hires have to be proven neither of his coordinators you know Pat Shermer has a long track record Robert Livingston has I have friends in Cincinnati I used to cover the Bengals about 30 pounds ago they they speak very highly of him they like him he's an energetic guy but he's never done it this level we we just don't know it's it would be fascinating if we weren't in the middle of it because it is going to be an inter the experiment kicks up another notch because the talent to your point is that much better they have improved this is I've said it on other outlets this is eight or nine win Talent on paper what we don't know is is it still four and five win coaching and then what do you get like if the truth is in the middle you go seven and five as a worst case and we see what happens and I can see that I think that's the most what whatever the 90% outcome whatever term we want to use is likely and if everything went right maybe there's a 910 win team there and here we go and then it's mission accomplished and then you have the other problem where then to your point then somebody bigger or richer says come come make this come come here come make I need this I want all the smoke give me all of it I also can't think of many NFL teams though that would love that either especially given and I think Dion knows that too uh given the the parameters of the league and and the CBA and how much you gota he he doesn't have control over the players in the media that level like he would here and he just won't he won't even deal with that as a starting point although the Cowboys would like if anybody would just let them do whatever they wanted like shador Sanders grew up wanting to be a cowboy he didn't grow up wanting to be a buff let's be real about that they're Texans like I I get that too uh but yeah it's a very small window of places where that would be a fit and to their credit financially they've really proven that to be a hit and now this season's about proving it on the football side and we will see wins get some wins that'll take care of itself and the experiment will be televised the first three games National Television ESPN NBC and then the revamped Rocky Mountain Showdown on CBS can't avoid that one obviously that'll be on CBS the final game of the year at Oklahoma States on ABC and the rest of their schedule both time and televised Outlet TBD they're waiting the N nation is waiting to see what the Buffs will do after their first three games you want to pay attention to Sean ke everything he's covering all around Colorado Sports terrific terrific season all weather allterrain rer if you'll take that that meaning Sean Keeler joining us so much appreciate the time my friend thank you man all right Sean Keeler joining us from The Denver Post the bus have pointed out will start their 2024 schedule two weeks from Thursday North Dakota State those first three games by the way I mentioned all prime time night games the attention still fixed on on Boulder as the season begins Nate Lundy comes back and joins us here over at the desk and we're going to take a look Nate at the rest of you know we've gone over the Broncos and how they went let's take a look at what happened in the AFC West because the first step back for the Denver Broncos to the playoffs would be in the AFC West naturally I don't think anyone's expecting sensibly I hope to catch the Kansas City Chiefs but in the preseason opener for the Chiefs uh the Jaguars ended up getting the better of the two Jaguars 26 Chiefs 13 Patrick Mahomes three for four in his Cameo appearance it doesn't mean all that much but the big plays in the preseason game getting done by the Jaguars including this touchdown by CJ bethard to Devon du an NFL history in his first two seasons and this one hey you get a little draw on your drive and you're going to get a couple extra yards of you're free snap is coming turns and he launches this one in the direction of deest Johnson who pulls it in that's de D good job by CJ bethard putting the ball out and up two teams expected to make the playoffs the Jacksonville Jaguars now under Doug Peterson with Trevor Lawrence in that AFC South the expectations for them are also playoff birth one of the other teams the Bron theoretically has to jump over in order to make a wild card run what' you see from the Jags and the Chiefs um you know about I would say what I would expect you're talking about one team that is not really overly concerned about what they've got from a roster standpoint another one that um I think feels pretty good in the Jaguars uh feels pretty good about what they have probably have a few gaps that they need to be able to fill I think that's the case for um I mean look that's the case for a lot of NFL teams I don't want to overstate the obvious but I do believe that when you talk about teams that um are thinking wild card or maybe thinking division maybe um but for the most part A thinking Wild Card you're talking about teams that have um that have various questions that they need to be able to answer that they um you know I I'm a firm believer that if you went to Andy re right now and said cut your entire roster and put out a depth chart he'd be like okay you know cut all the cut all the uh the the EXs dudes um and and give me your 53 I think he probably could do it right here and now yeah I think there's a lot of teams that can't necessarily do that yet and you know I'll be honest with you I think Shawn Payton's probably not far from that but no I don't either um but I think the Jags had some questions to be able to answer um look I I said it from the moment that he was drafted um I'm a Trevor Lawrence guy um I have been um and it's because of what I feel I've observed in terms of his leadership when he is in the Huddle um and the leadership that I've seen him um display outside of the Huddle is as well so there's a lot of things that I that I like about the Jags um and it starts with the fact that I think Trevor Lawrence is the right person for for them to have under Center um and I think Doug Peterson is a good coach for him as well I think that what came out of that preseason game was probably what we expect right I mean you start to ramp things up a little bit get to game two get to game three um but I think everybody's going to protect their starters that's why you know what three for four right yay 75% completion he's on his way to the of Fame I mean he is but I'm also just like three three of four I mean look there there were Broncos fans ready to put Bo Knicks in the Ring of Honor after after Sunday's game against the Colts so um so yeah I think what we saw was what I would expect to see the interesting part I think for the Chiefs is the fact that uh Maris Brown suffered a get this one the clavicle is your collar bone okay we don't know where that is he didn't break it which actually sounds bad he dislocated it yeah to which ew where go if it's not in the right Vue no but he's expected to be out for sometime when that happened with Tyreek Hill he missed four games into the season that matters now because ri rice and brown were considered to be the starters Xavier worthy as probably the third wide receiver but then you go into Justin Watson Sky Moore who hasn't been able to click despite his high Draft pick status cadarius Tony who they're using more as a running back now for the Chiefs they're really thin at wide receiver it's something to keep in mind getting rid of Tyreek Hill and still going on to win the Super Bowl is one thing but even even Patrick Mahomes can only Elevate so many guys they can't afford too many injuries on the white no but I will but I will say you brought up um a guy that I think you know if you if you were gonna have some sort of a takeaway from the Chiefs it would be Xavier worthy yeah okay um your fantasy people well yeah fantasy fantasy players pay attention um and and I think the number one reason for that as was pointed out by Pro Football Focus is he came out when the starters came out yeah folks that's a that's a starter that's a big that's a you know in the first preseason game um that's a big indicator now let's see what happens in the second game let's see what happens in the third game but the fact that he was essentially treated as part of the first unit and came out when the first unit was done um yeah I mean that's basically it they went to their backups on the second drive he did one snap the very first snap of that drive and then he was done they are this is a guy that they that they clearly have expectations for or they would have kept him out there they already know and feel that they have what they need to have out of this guy yeah and obviously feel if Patrick Mahomes throwing him the rock things change pretty dramatically I don't think you worry about the Chiefs if you're Broncos fans they're running the AFC West they're they're out of free reach they're one of the reasons that a wild card's your best chance over in La at the Sofi Stadium on Saturday the Chargers in Jim Harbaugh's debut of course we know Justin Herbert is out with the planter fidas and and not playing uh they ended up taking on the Seattle Seahawks Sam Howell looks pretty good score had a couple of scoring drives there for the Seahawks how picked up from Washington obviously will back up Gino Smith at least up until Gino Smith maybe actually J Smith again a pretty wise pickup I think for dep for the Seahawks but it went very well for the Chargers we're going to give you their highlight and I say their highlight because well they had one NFL history in his first two seasons and this one hey you get a little draw on your drive and you're going to get a couple extra yards if you're a golfer you know it and man that thing had about 10 yards a draw Dicker the kicker Cameron Dicker with a 58 Y and that's all the offense the Chargers could muster when you when all you can get is a 58 y you did not do much on offense East stick took the start five for 13 for 32 yards and a pick in eight series that's less than a completion of series when asked to describe the game he only offered a one word answer frustrating yeah well look he's a backup quarterback for a reason um and that's what happens to teams when you don't have your starter it happens to everyone um and and that's going to be the case when it comes to um to Justin Herbert not being able to to play right now um you know the the the Chargers have a lot of changes from an offensive standpoint a lot of changes and not the least of which is now you've also got a different head coach right Ian the the Chargers to me are a very just a head coach a force of Personality head coach the Chargers to me are a really interesting um Team to keep an eye on as we go through the NFL season they've had to change everything about uh for their tight ends they've got a completely different tight end room wide receivers um their receivers their receivers have um have changed um head coach has changed um their starting quarterback has hurt um they're a fascinating team to to pay attention to over these next couple of games Chargers are one of those ones that are hard to read on paper you look at the talent and though they have kind of changed over the way the receiving core worked tight end cwork they still have Justin Herbert they have Jim harba they're in let's face it a soft AFC West fight Kansas City you assume this is a team that maybe should win 10 games and get and get a wild card their over under is a flat nine that's what the Chargers I think have the most variability of almost any team in the AFC because if Herbert's hurt for any stretch of time this might be a five wi team or a four- win team they're they're not that good so it's really based on the Herbert and Harbaugh combination so one of the teams the Broncos again looking trying to to make sure they stay ahead of if they're going to make a run maybe a good sign there the last uh team in the AFC West the Raiders out in Minnesota JJ McCarthy's debut and uh McCarthy looks okay two interceptions throws a pick gets but gets Vikings fans excited for the Raiders uh probably the best performance of the three teams that we've discussed so far Gardner minu 6 for2 417 yards and a touchdown but coming down to the last play of the game you remember Alabama winning a whole bunch of football games in the last few years remember who the kicker was again will rker well NFL snap spot right footed rer kick is good and and the Minnesota Vikings have walked off on the Las Vegas Raiders in the first preseason game it's will rard ball game rard makes the kick expected to make a lot of those one of the few kickers that I think when you look around and think when kickers get drafted why do they do that one of the guys that could have been drafted obviously and gets the job done but the Raiders 23 24 loss on the road actually made a I thought a pretty respectable showing because they're the one team in the AFC West that doesn't have their quarterback situation at least temporarily settled oh come on it's all about minum Mania come on I want Garder MCH it may very well be muu it m i want it to be mu come on it'll be fun everyone wants to be mu people want it to be v m fun man of course they do if you're not gonna be good I like that guy and the Raiders aren't gonna be good like be fun yes yeah with you if you won't be good uh if you're not going to be good be fun um I think one of the other stories that came out of excuse me that came out of the Raiders uh contest was Brock Bowers um obviously the tight end out of Georgia um that was drafted right behind um Bo right behind Bo Knicks uh in the first round um by the Raiders um I found it really interesting um you know going back and looking at some of the usage that he had um man they put him everywhere yeah they put him in the back field they put him as a as an outside wide receiver they moved him all over the offensive formation and Devonte Adams didn't play so when he was out there he wasn't getting any uh help there as well because Adams was not playing in that game yeah I just I was just I mean Bowers is an incredible athlete I actually have to give a little bit of a hat tip to the Raiders um to the fact that they are lining him up all over the place yeah um I mean normally that's not something you do in the preseason you wait and show people that once you get into the regular season but um take advantage of this guy um and use his athletic ability to cause defensive coordinators a little bit of a headache well I mean if you're talking about at least draft pedigree and you're talking about what he accomplished in college I think you look at Brock Bowers and you say is it impossible for him to reach the Kelsey KD level of tight end play not really Sam leaport I mean I think he's that kind of guy uh hackinson those very top tier tight ends I think Bowers is going to eventually be one of those guys you're right pretty bold by Antonio Piers to maybe try that but then again uh if Bowers is as good a player as he looks like he might be uh who cares if people know you if any point the the chief decided to put Travis Kelce is a a weird fullback alignment everyone's gonna be like well that's an interesting hand of you know tipping your hand but then again what are you gonna do about it um it it's fascinating and the Raiders will be fascinating they're not expected to be very good uh congratulations to McCarthy by the way he didn't have starting running back Aaron Jones or of course Justin Jefferson because they're playing it utterly safe with their of course very very expensive wide receiver but the Raiders give it a run but that means you noticed by the way the Denver Broncos the only team in the AFC West with a win and their quarterback let's go their top pick this year found their top pick last year in maybe the game's best play go to this next throws touchdown touchdown grab for Denver Marvin Mims J on the touchdown reception yeah boy did he get rid of that ball in a hurry as you described that throw yesterday a dart from uh Super Bowl next to Mims and and a good RPO read as well so for the Broncos obviously the only team of the AFC West to win a preseason game that doesn't mean anything ask the Los Angeles Lakers about their inseason tournament thing that they got uh nobody cares about anymore maybe they'll nobody cares win another one uh that means about the same as NFL preseason wins but it is a good sign for the Broncos to get the win it's a good sign to generate 34 points and when the other teams in your division seem to be having a couple challenges here and there you're never rooting for injuries obviously but they do happen and for the Chargers and now the chiefs with Maris Brown uh those are challenges and and those challenges that they have if the Broncos can avoid those pitfalls that's an opening for them to succeed so a lot to keep uh in in touch with regarding the AFC West and we'll continue to do that of course every week as the season goes along as long as the Broncos can stay relevant and in it but want to remind you that of course other sports are around the corner the Colorado Rockies are still going on their Bullpen is still bad as witnessed last night but we appreciate that every single one of you that subscribe to this show we really appreciate all of it and we know that it's great to have it so it fits your schedule that's what we tried to do here it's why we're switching over and and having it in this format as well so you can enjoy the show whenever you want to enjoy it but there are plenty of other podcasts on the audio side that you can listen to as well for deeper dives into your favorite teams Ryan Blackburn keeps you up to date with what's happening in the nuggets and the pickaxe and roll podcast by the way Nicole Y is first player in the history of the Olympics to lead the Olympic basketball tournament points rebounds assists and steals so we you'll want stay on top of that with the nuggets and that's what Ryan Blackburn does with pickaxe and roll aif Dean's always on the ice with the Colorado Avalanche check out his podcast hockey Mountain High the A's making some recent moves as well in their defensive core looking pretty deep we'll find out if that rolls around soon enough and myi Baseball fans know they can get the latest on the Rockies with Drew kman in the 20th and Blake podcast and for even more on the Broncos yeah we got you covered you want to know whether bonick will be the answer well we're all going to find out together but you can get a head start on it get the latest with the Broncos and more with the Broncos podcast with Troy rank our friend from the Denver posted is featured right here on the Mile High Sports podcast Network all that much much more just search m High Sports wherever you get your podcast and you will have a plethora of options to choose from to uh make sure you're up today of Pata I set you right up for that that was that was that was my John Stockton right up plethora of patas exactly well I got you a sweater plethora of patas that's an interesting way of describing the uh Johan pton said uh called him orphan dog so plethora pinatas might actually that might work can we um can we touch on one thing with the Buffs that you were talking about keer real quick before I know this is we're we're wrapping up the show here our final segment yeah um I want to go back to something right before Sean joined you and you were talking about the the win totals that they needed um the expectation of the win totals um I I I told you I think you're I think you're nuts I don't think they're going to win six games I don't think they're going to a bll game um I think the Big 12 is too good um I think frankly the like when I looked at the the schedule last year when their over under on wins was three and a half right um I believed we all jumped on that yeah I believed in I believed in the over but part of the reason I believed in the over was because of the opponents that they had at home and what I thought they could manage to do obviously they they got the job done against TCU that was a big deal um and that was a big deal towards that fourth win yes probably not one that a lot they were a 20 point Underdog in that game turns out TCU was not as good as people thought but but it was a surprise when I think about the Buffs and I think about their schedule I mean okay maybe you can feel meh about the first three you got five ranked teams in the in the preseason top 25 on your schedule there but you could okay so you're gonna start off with North Dakota State good Lord if you lose that there's a problem yeah then you got to go to Lincoln right now Nebraska is about as jaal and hide as it gets um I don't know what the hell to expect out of that team okay um and neither do Husker fans and folks I was born in Nebraska so I've got a lot of family that are Husker fans and they don't even know what the heck's going on and they're trying like hell to stay positive and it's not really working um then you go to Fort Collins all right a game c you should have lost at home last year should have lost so let's let's say you start out three and 0 then you go Baylor UCF K State Arizona Cincinnati Texas Utah like I'm trying to figure out where there are six wins the conf schedule's brutal UCF is on Baylor's at home UCF is on the road at eight they have K State at 18 right now coming in they go to Arizona at 21 and three of the ranked teams that you have to play you're getting at home right like it's not even like it's not even like you can sit back and say okay maybe we can take advantage of fulsome we can take advantage of the altitude Oklahoma State all in I mean of the six home games the three of them that are sitting there against ranked teams that that's you're G to be lucky to be three and three at home yes which means which then means you have to go 500 on the road that's why I'm saying I'm not buying the bowl game and I'm not buying six wins and that does make sense you know when you're talking about now a whole lot could change between you know by the time you play Oklahoma State at the end of the yeah when a full half of your home schedule is against ranked teams and beat everybody else but you're right teams can fall in their face but it's going to be tough I just wanted to get back to six is quite frankly their ceiling but I think it's within the realm I and I think five is the ceiling and that's getting lucky somewhere I think that's pulling something off that would be fascinating what the offseason in Boulder will be see and I and here's the thing I'm not convinced that it would be so this this was my argument with keer I think if they don't a bold Deon Sanders at this point has no choice you have to stay in Boulder prove that you have to that you can coach without your son I believe I I I think he also knows he's got it pretty good here I like this is just a gut feel I don't have anything to go off of other than a gut feel okay I do not believe Sanders is going anywhere I believe he will Coach in Boulder I can't tell you for how long and I think if he decides he's done in Boulder he's done yeah I agree I mean that's what I think is happening I I don't believe what why wouldn't you right now allow yourself to be on from a coaching standpoint the biggest deal in the Big 12 and and be the biggest fish in a somewhat smaller Pond of only four conferences that matter yes it's not a power five anymore it's power four how are you going to get better than that in short in short order and so there's not starting over somewhere else unless for some reason he wants to be coaching the seals right and the seals want that but beyond that you own Boulder right you own it you are the one coach at media day that everybody wants to hear from right you are the equivalent of all the times that that New England was in the Super Bowl and and and media night would happen when we would when we would travel like for radio row and things like that everybody gathered around groon I mean there were usually bigger crowds to talk to grank than there were to talk to Tom Brady and it was because you never knew what he was going to say he was going to be a little bit goofy he was a likable guy blah blah blah okay right now that's what Dion has served to him on a black and gold platter and he's also he can write his own checks he can do whatever he wants he has turned down reportedly turned down and he's got an and by the way he's got an nil group that's got eight figures worth of money in the bank right and you don't want to start that over again so and remember any players who transfer to Colorado with him where you to leave after next year cannot transfer out so I'm with you I I said from the day he was hired I said I think there's at least four years in which Deion Sanders is going to coaching Boulder at minimum because if he's intent on being an actual coach as is career you have to go through and show I can recruit guys that aren't just related to me I can win with those guys and then he can pick a spot turning down the contract offer from Colorado was sort of perceived as something I think bigger than it was Colorado understood how much money he's making for the University that the 40 million Max that he get all five years plus incentives was easily already exceeded they wanted to tear it up and give him more money Sanders wanted to wait because obviously if he takes the team to a bowl game this year if he does then he can come back to see you and say yeah that plus more and they'll do it and and both sides know it because C you'd be happy to pay it and the know sers would be happy to get it but starting over I'm with you Nate I think there is this weird Panic idea that just because Deion Sanders likes the spotlight you have the Stephen A Smith of the world saying he's got to go to USC Lincoln Riley's still at USC and we did that a couple weeks ago looked at Lincoln Riley's career record they're G to dump Lincoln Riley the Trojans for for Dion Sanders are they that desperate yet I mean Riley's won like 70% of his games there so where where is he really going to go until he proves he can coach so right now he and CU need each other and they need to go ahead and and play this out and for Sanders I agree with you if he gets the bus to be a regular bow Team and an occasional top 25 team and by the way his force of Personality will help and get them in the preseason rankings here and there why would you leave because out of the out of the pack out of the Big 12 pardon me that no longer has Texas and Oklahoma Colorado they're they're looking for someone right now the national narrative is well Utah or Kansas come out can come out of it which instead of people being excited about they're like oh Utah or Kansas Big 12 is a lot more exciting for basketball yeah because we know yeah it's best basketball conference in the country it's the best basketball conference in the country but for football they're looking for a face with the Texas and Oklahoma gone and the truth is that Colorado could actually be that face and could you imagine the shortcut from being a one11 school it's only a handful of years later being considered the Top Dog in one of the power four conferen that would almost be ludicrous but it's actually even possible and that's why I think you're right Sanders in the end understands that what he has is is no real downside and all upside at Colorado a program that has already been happy to basically tell him whatever you want to do we're cool with you want to run things yourself that's fine you don't want to have to report to the uh to the ad when it comes to doing media no problem you want to have your own people on the sideline filming things great you want to personally invite Lil Wayne to run out with Ralphie not yourself out how many other schools that have a better program than CU are going to do that Ohio State doesn't need that Notre Dame doesn't need that Bama doesn't need that they don't need those things Sanders is in a great place I suspect he knows it but he's got to get the wins and now that's the tricky part he also has a massive ego of course always has he's prime time so why in the world if you have a massive ego would you want to bail the moment your son is G which makes it look like it was him and not you just saying folks to do and that's the thing to do what exactly to do what going he's not going to coach in the pros except for I guess maybe the Cowboys would be crazy enough to do but I don't even think that's I told you w coach the I am convinced that he is not going anywhere that outside of Jackson State that he is not going to coach anywhere else in college football two FBS reportedly offered Deion Sanders uh their coaching job the University of Cincinnati now currently a big 12 rival and Colorado and Colorado was the only one that wanted that gave him a seven to eight million doll pool for assistant coaches because the assistant coaches Run game day for the on Sanders and the fit is good so the fit is good you know perhaps some of the frustration with Sanders could relax because he is let's face it you know I'm having a bad day this is a media Market in which you have a pretty supportive group they're not looking to tear you down it's not East Coast they're not looking to go that guy's an idiot every morning like you'll hear on on East Coast radio that's not really how Colorado functions Sean Keeler is not Howard esin okay no no not and in the end I I I think everyone will come to realize that so it's it's a good opportunity let's see what they do in a couple of weeks the Broncos will be at it this week they'll be back out at training camp on Wednesday with the Packers coming in for joint practices prior to the game uh one we'll be back at it tomorrow N Out at Dove Valley what do you want to see with presumably Bo Knicks now ready to start the second game is it going to look you think in the next three days like B Knicks In Deed if not word already is the Broncos starting quarterback um I don't know what I want to see tomorrow I want to see that drill where they throw the kitchen towels at him again um I like uh if you can dodge a wrench you can dodge a ball I like that one um I like the one where they do the diving thing and then they land on the mat yep I mean it's kind of it's kind of like artistic gymnastics you got to learn how to land so youself I kind of like that um I don't know Sean I don't know what I'm looking for tomorrow I think I want to fast forward to September 8th so badly right now that I'm tolerating the rest of it you are not alone with that but the Broncos don't have that luxury they need I mean I'm ready for the ABS to start for crying out loud I I would take I would take October right now if I could get it well we have to wait a little bit for that obviously but the Broncos do need every practice they can get if they're going to make any noise this year or even get themselves into a spot where they can match their record from last year we will stay I'd be picking real high four four wins five if they get lucky yeah I had him at five play the under prove us wrong Broncos we'd love to see it I'd love to be wrong about that that would nothing would make me happier we'll find out when we get out there this week we'll see if B knck is uh in charge obviously he's expected to start in this game against the Packers but the Packers not expected to start start any of their starters so it remains to be seen what we will learn thanks to Sean Keeler for joining us from The Denver Post always good to talk to him and yeah if uh if if he's right if you ever want to turn on a Deion Sanders press conference Sean keer will will be there and he will probably be catching a little Flack so uh we you know make sure you follow Sean terrific terrific writer for The Denver Post Danny Bailey's the man in the booth there that makes everything or it's not really a booth since we're in a big Studio but you get what I mean he's the guy that runs everything and makes it work thanks to Nate Lundy of course for sitting in again always appreciate it we will be back out tomorrow at Dove Valley as Broncos practice gets underway for everyone here at my High Sports I'm Shan drotar thanks for listening