On October 7th 2007 Mike Shanahan coached the Broncos to the worst home defeat in over forty years. 41-3 to a San Diego Chargers team that was falling apart less than a week before. Ladanian Tomlinson was sobbing at press conferences, and San Diego fans were clamoring for Martyball. And Mike Shanahan led the team to a 41-3 defeat.
The Broncos are two plays and an upright from being 0-5. The inability to score in the red zone that has been a hallmark of the Shanahan led Broncos over the past four seasons has never been more apparent than it is right now.
Jay Cutler is not yet capable of running the offense Shanahan wants him to run, and yet Shanahan has shown no willingness to simplify the offense whatsoever to allow Cutler to succeed.
The Denver defense is an absolute joke, it's in complete shambles despite using multiple draft picks on defensive line help and signing several more free agents. Larry Coyer was made the second scapegoat of 2006 after assassinating Jake Plummer's career did not magically transport the Broncos to football fantasy land. Jim Bates has now fashioned a laughing stock of a defense.
And the most frustrating part of watching Broncos fans stumble around in complete shock over all of this, is that I've been pointing all of this out on this site for three years.
The fact that this team constantly plays down to the level of its opponents and frequently just no-shows entire games is blindingly apparent this season, as it should have been over the last four. That more than anything else is the sign of a poorly coached team.
This fan base has spent so much time attacking and scapegoating the team's quarterbacks and defensive coordinators yet failed to see that Emperor Shanahan is standing in front of them naked.
Which is why it's so hilarious to see the sudden realizations being had on Broncos sites across the net today.
It's time for a coaching change, it's been a decade since Shanahan won his fifteen get out of jail free cards on the back of Elway, Davis, and the best team by far in the NFL.
