SEATTLE — The idea remains intriguing. Go back to the past to change the future. Use Gary Kubiak as the vehicle instead of a DeLorean time machine. Match him with a future Hall of Fame quarterback on the sunset side of his career. And to give this real punch, make a Super Bowl victory the measure of success.
This experiment creates skepticism because of Peyton Manning’s age. He’s 39 in a new system that would have fit a lot better at 29. He’s embraced rollouts, scrambles (How about that 1-yard jaunt last week?) and huddles. Heck, he’s even gone gloveless. Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders joined multiple teammates when he said Manning is playing with an edge, with a chip on his shoulder pads.
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It’s August, of course. But these are the guys practicing with him, and they are praising him without hesitation.
Predicting Manning to fail is a longshot. He never has during the regular season since his rookie year. He falls out of bed and wins 10-to-12 games. It’s what he does.
Manning will provide an initial read on his comfort level in this offense during the second exhibition game at Houston. He will figure it out, adjust accordingly as long as he’s healthy. Even as the offense establishes a physical identity, there’s no reason to think he can’t throw for 4,000 yards and 30 to 35 touchdowns. It’s who he is.
It won’t be what determines whether this season becomes special.
That lies on the defense.
When teams go from good to carving out room in trophy cases, it requires improvement across the board. The defense contains plenty of room for growth. It’s not the acorn that becomes the tree, but let’s be honest, the group didn’t meet expectations, a point driven home with the uninspired performance against the Colts, amplified by Jack Del Rio’s inexplicable decision not to use Chris Harris to cover T.Y. Hilton.
Lost in the unit’s ability to stop the run at a franchise-record level were troubling issues.
The defensive ranks: tied for 14th in turnovers with 25; tied for 23rd in fumbles recovered with seven (there was definitely some bad luck involved here, but too few fumbles were created) and 16th in points allowed at 354. The league average was 361. The top-ranked Seahawks yielded 254.
It underlines that a leap forward depends more on the defense than Manning rebounding from his last five regular-season games when he threw five touchdown passes and six interceptions.
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Wade Phillips has a history of caffeinating defenses, especially in his first season in charge. He revived Houston and Dallas. And rarely in his previous two decades-plus as a defensive coordinator has he inherited such a talented group. The Broncos feature five Pro Bowlers. Even more salient, they man positions that function as flux capacitors for Phillips’ scheme: defensive backs who excel in man coverage and edge rushers who harass quarterbacks.
The stakes are high. The Broncos have won four consecutive AFC West titles. Yet, general manager John Elway mutually parted ways with coach John Fox. It represented a risk.
But if this defense reaches its potential — which it clearly did not last season — it will be a move that is easy to defend.
Troy E. Renck: trenck@denverpost.com or
