Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Wes Welker's Touchdown Streak Ends; Receiver Still on Pro Bowl Pace

Going into last weekend's game, Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker had caught eight touchdowns through six weeks, tying a franchise record for the most consecutive games with a touchdown catch. In Sunday's 39-33 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, Welker caught seven passes for 96 yards but was held scoreless, thus ending his streak.

Though his scoring streak has snapped, Welker is still on pace to catch 99 passes for 1,083 yards and 18 touchdowns this season. If those are not Pro Bowl worthy numbers, nothing is.
To help Welker earn his sixth Pro Bowl selection, I have teamed up with Procter & Gamble and Old Spice to help generate votes for Welker on the ballot. Though all Broncos fans certainly hope Welker is ineligible to play in the Pro Bowl while preparing to play in Super Bowl XLVIII, there's no denying that the players appreciate the honor of being selected to represent their teams in Hawaii.

Vote for Welker and follow @JonHeathNFL for game day Welker memes from Old Spice.

Week 8 Notes: King Claimed by Panthers; Broncos Sign Chad Bumphis

(Tavarres King)
The Denver Broncos have signed rookie wide receiver Chad Bumphis to their practice squad unit, the team announced on Tuesday. Bumphis fills a practice squad spot that was formerly occupied by rookie receiver Tavarres King.

King has been on Denver's practice squad for the first six games of the season before the Green Bay Packers tried to sign him to their active roster. To prevent Green Bay from signing him, the Broncos activated King to their 53-man roster one week ago today.

Just days after activating King, however, the Broncos waived him to make room for Von Miller, who was returning from suspension, on the active roster.  King was then claimed off waivers by the Carolina Panthers.

It is unclear why the Broncos prevented King from signing with the Packers and then waived him—it may have been that the team was expecting King to clear waivers so they could re-sign him to their practice squad. He didn't clear waivers, so the Broncos went with Bumphis, who caught nine passes for 138 yards in preseason with the Miami Dolphins.
On a different note, the Broncos have declared this week "Orange Sunday" and are encouraging fans to wear orange when Denver hosts the Washington Redskins at home on Sunday. This week's game will mark Mike Shanahan's first return to Denver since being fired as head coach in 2008. Shanahan's Redskins are 2-4.

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Audio: Talking Denver Broncos and Peyton Manning on TSN 1260 Radio


Last week, I went on the Jason Strudwick Show on TSN 1260 to talk about the historic season the Denver Broncos are having. Strudwick (@Struds1260 on Twitter) a former NHL player, now hosts a nightly sports show in Edmonton, Canada.

Thursday's interview can be heard below:


The Sports Network is a Canadian English sports channel co-owned by Bell Media and ESPN.

Big thanks to Jason for having me on—apologizes for some of the garbled audio due to the poor connection. You can listen to more of my radio appearances here.

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Week 7 Notes: Denver Broncos Activate Tavarres King to 53-Man Roster

After the Green Bay Packers attempted to sign the rookie wide receiver off Denver’s practice squad, the Denver Broncos have activated receiver Tavarres King to their 53-man roster, the team announced on Tuesday. 

To make move for the roster addition, to the team waived linebacker Adrian Robinson. King was drafted in the fifth round (161st overall) out of Georgia by the Broncos in April’s draft; Robinson was claimed off waivers by the Broncos on September 1st and had been a special teams player through the first six games of the season.

King wears jersey No. 15. If the Broncos choose to carry him on the 45-man game day roster this week, he will likely fill a special team's role.

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

As Denver Broncos Dominate, Secondary Ticket Prices Rocket Upward

Denver Broncos QB Peyton Manning has an NFL-best 138 passer rating. (Cartoon courtesy of DrewLitton.com)
The Denver Broncos are skyrocketing upward in Week 5 NFLpower rankings after surging to a 4-0 start and scoring a league-leading 179 points. As a result, secondary market Broncostickets have also been on the rise.

Secondary ticket prices for Denver’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles last week were an average of an NFL-high $331, according to Forbes.com. Tickets to Denver’s next game—on the road against the Dallas Cowboys—are starting at $159, with an average price of $420, according to TiqIQ.com.

In two weeks, the Broncos, the hottest team in the NFL, will host the Jacksonville Jaguars, the worst team in the NFL, at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. This season, the Jaguars have scored three touchdowns. Broncos’ quarterback Peyton Manning has scored 16 touchdowns himself, and Denver has scored 23 as a team.

Understandably so, Denver is expected to blowout the Jaguars. Currently, the Broncos are 28-point favorites over the Jaguars. If Denver stays a four touchdown favorite, it would mark the largest NFL betting spread in Vegas history.
The largest spread to date happened back in 1976, when the Pittsburgh Steelers were 27-point favorites against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to ibtimes.com. The Steelers went on to win the game, 42-0.

This season, Jacksonville has scored 31 points and allowed 129 (a net of minus-98). Meanwhile, Denver has scored 179 points and allowed 91 (plus-88).

Tickets to the Broncos' Week 6 showdown with the Jaguars are startingat $109 on TiqIQ.com, with an average price of $311. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:05 p.m. MT on Sunday, October 13 and the game will be broadcast on CBS.