In case you didn’t realize it, you just witnessed one of the most dramatic weekends in NFL history.
No? Then tell me. When was the last time the game’s best offensive player and the game’s best defensive player sustained season-ending injuries in their season openers?
That’s what happened Sunday. Tom Brady is gone for the season, as is Shawne Merriman. We can debate all day long whether they’re the best players in the league on their sides of the ball, but they get my vote.
With those two out of the picture, we need to refocus. We need to rethink things, especially in the AFC. The Cowboys clearly are the team to beat in the NFC, but it’s hard to tell in the other conference.
It isn’t just that Brady and Merriman are gone. By Peyton Manning’s own reckoning, the Colts have a lot of issues. As do the Jaguars, whose offensive line is a mess, what with both starting guards expected to miss the rest of the season.
Where does that leave the Broncos? We’ll know more when the sun sets on Sunday, but there’s no doubt they’re in the mix. If they beat the Chargers at Invesco Field at Mile High, they would have to be considered serious playoff contenders.
Not that everyone sees it that way. Check out these numbers from the Las Vegas Hilton, the world’s largest sports book: The Patriots were 3-1 favorites to win the Super Bowl before Brady went down. They’re now 20-1, tied for fifth with the Jets in the AFC. The Chargers are 6-1 — and that number could move with Merriman gone — followed by the Colts (7-1), Steelers (10-1) and Jags (12-1).
The Broncos? They’re 25-1, distant longshots any way you break it down.
Moral to the story: Stuff happens when you miss the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. But stuff also happens when you have one of the game’s up-and-coming quarterbacks. Given how things are playing out, there’s no reason to think Jay Cutler can’t keep the Broncos in the hunt.
Jim Armstrong: 303-954-1269 or jmarmstrong@denverpost.com
