“He’s been decisive. There’s no hesitation, and I think he and [quarterbacks coach] Dowell [Loggains] have done a great job within practice being conscious about it and working on drills to make sure that we’re better in that area”. I’m not going to really buy into the what ifs, ‘What could they possibly do? Things like disagreements over Adam Gase and Ken Whisenhunt as the team’s offensive coordinator after Mike McCoy left to be the San Diego Chargers coach in 2013.
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Sunday’s matchup between the Broncos and the Bears must make for an odd feeling for much of Denver’s roster as they prepare for a team coached by many familiar faces.
He was particularly steady last week in a 37-13 win at St. Louis, posting a career-high 151 passer rating.
Jay Cutler will finally face the team that drafted him in 2006.
PREDICTION: With CB Aqib Talib back, the Broncos are closer to full strength on a defense determined to prove a point to its former coach, and that’s enough to nudge Brock Osweiler to a victory in his first career start.
Once Cutler found out, the divorce was inevitable.
“We knew what he could do”, said quarterback Jay Cutler. Last year, in particular, was a debacle. Rolle’s play on the field hasn’t been spectacular, but he has helped anchor the secondary and has very much filled the role of the veteran leader the Bears’ hoped he would be.
New general manager Ryan Pace and coach John Fox made Cutler wait until March before announcing he was their quarterback going forward, further fueling speculation about his long-term future with the team.
Fox’s Broncos teams won four consecutive AFC West titles, made one Super Bowl trip and went 46-18 in regular-season games. He has a 107.3 rating over the past three games.
It helps that the Bears are more committed to the run and attacking opponents with screens. They still have sacked him 12 times, but that’s a steep drop from 38 a year ago.
One thing about Gase, though, is his approachability. If he can get the ball to Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas a few times and the Broncos can gets some plays from Ronnie Hillman and C.J. Anderson, it will turn the game into what they want – a battle between an opposing offense and their outstanding defense.
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The Bears are thrilled with the output of rookie RB Jeremy Langford in two starts with Pro Bowler Matt Forte (knee) on the mend, but the credit belongs to a mishmash offensive line playing well above its skis. They talk to you as men, they treat you as men, they expect you to go out there and perform as men.
