Reid Fischer's World of Rants

It is extremely difficult to believe that football season is fast approaching and that teams have already opened training camp.  This of course includes the Broncos, who are dealing with the distraction that is Brandon Marshall.  Despite his beef with the organization, Marshall has actually shown up on time, which is more than rookies Knoshawn Moreno and Robert Ayers can say, but he has missed lots of action already due to injury.  Nevertheless, it is no secret that Marshall demanded a trade in June, and many think he will still get it before the regular season starts.  I don’t.  Not only will Marshall be a Bronco this season, but I believe he is about to have a monster season in Josh McDaniels’ system.

The biggest issues that Marshall has with the Broncos are a lack of trust in the medical staff (owning to the fact that he played through a hip injury last season that he feels the team misdiagnosed), the changes in quarterback, and the departure of Mike Shanahan.  The medical staff issue is understandable, although it certainly seems as though they are being much more cautious with Marshall early in camp this year.  There obviously isn’t anything Marshall can do about the changes on the coaching staff and at QB, but I feel that once Marshall sees first hand what this offense could be capable of doing, he will find himself in no shortage of opportunities to make plays.  Josh McDaniels is a very good offensive mind.  Different from Shanahan maybe, but an excellent offensive mind nevertheless.  I also think that this offense will be much better than people realize.  While Kyle Orton does not have the raw talent of Jay Cutler, he has shown a much better attitude and seems to be a good fit for McDaniels’ system.  I also think that once Moreno shows up (and it had better be any day now), he will have a tremendous impact in the running game.  Couple those things with that fact the Broncos also expect big things from Eddie Royal, Brandon Stokley, et al, and Marshall should find this offense very much to his liking.

The bottom line on Brandon Marshall is that he is one of the most talented receivers in football.  His off the field issues have been well documented, but if he can ever get his head on straight he has a wonderful future in the NFL.  Given his issues, he is lucky not to be suspended by the league this season, and he is really playing with fire if he is trying to get a lucrative contract extension right now.  I believe in the end Marshall will realize he needs to have a good year  and also stay out of trouble in order to earn the extension and raise he is seeking.  I expect Brandon Marshall to be highly motivated when the regular season rolls around, and that will be terrific news for the Denver Broncos.