Denver Broncos: 2014 Season Final Report Card

It’s odd for many Denver Bronco fans to be sitting here staring at a calendar to realize that it’s now 2015 and they aren’t still playing football.  After being dismantled in Super Bowl XLVIII – or Super Bowl 48 – back at MetLife Stadium by an aggressive Seattle Seahawks side that was hoping to secure their first ever championship, the Broncos went back to the drawing board to add various weapons.  Their intent, very simply, was to return to the Super Bowl and they figured the additions of Emmanuel Sanders, DeMarcus Ware, T.J. Ward and Aqib Talib to a team with a defense led by Von Miller and a Peyton Manning fueled offense would bring them the desired success.  For the first 8 weeks of the season, few defenses could corral Denver’s offensive assault, but midseason losses to New England and a surprising defeat to St. Louis in week 11 brought up new concerns.  The team got back on track with 5 wins out of 6 games to finish the season with 12 wins to 4 losses and another AFC West title, and in securing the number 2 seed in the AFC, they felt good about their postseason fate.  Unfortunately, the Indianapolis Colts ended their run with a 24 to 13 win in the Mile High City that also triggered a slew of changes for their organization.  While it was expected that Offensive Coordinator Adam Gase and Defensive Coordinator Jack Del Rio might depart for another organization for a head coaching job, Denver also went in search of a new head coach after Coach John Fox and the team agreed to terminate their relationship the day after the Colts loss.  Former Broncos quarterback Gary Kubiak – who has established himself as a solid coach with impressive credentials in stays in San Fransisco, Denver, Houston – as the head coach of the Texans for eight seasons – and most recently in Baltimore was hired to replace Fox, and he will have a big task to keep the Broncos at an elite status, but he has some good building blocks to work with.  Before that happens, we take a look back at 2014 and give the team a final report card.