Frustrated? Angry? Broncos feel same way
Nov. 28, 2010. The Broncos hosted the St. Louis Rams and lost 36-33, dropping their record to 3-8 during a season riddled with embarrassment. None was more glaring than the videotaping scandal that resulted in $50,000 fines for the team and its head coach, Josh Mcdaniels.
The Broncos had a paid attendance of 72,736 that day, but there were thousands of empty seats. It was the lowest turnout in the stadium’s then-decade of existence, and was the last time Mcdaniels would serve as the team’s coach in Denver. The Broncos scored 20 fourth-quarter points and moved within three points of forcing overtime, but by then the stadium was nearly empty. The feeling was lost.
Kind of like it is now.
Sunday, when the Broncos host the New York Jets in a game that counts little toward their season, there’s a chance Sports Authority Field at Mile High will have huge swaths of empty seats belonging to disappointed fans. The Broncos wouldn’t be surprised. They hear the critics and complaints. They feel the frustration, too.
“Our goal is to play well for our fans and I can promise our fans one thing, they will play hard for them on Sunday,” coach Vance Joseph said. “Being home is always a good thing. We’re looking forward again to having a clean slate and to win a football game at home in front of our fans. But we do get the frustrations because we have them also.”
For running back C.J. Anderson and others in the locker room, it’s more than that.
“We all are sick and tired of losing,” he said. “I don’t know if y’all understand how much losing bothers people because y’all are not in it. You don’t feel it. It’s like going to your job every day and it (stinks). It just (stinks). You’re talking to other players around the league and you’re seeing fun celebrations that you never got a chance to do. It just (stinks).”
Linebacker Von Miller has said he’s never had a season like this, where a team with three first-team all-pro selections on defense has dropped eight consecutive games. The Broncos haven’t just lost; they’ve been pummeled, losing by an average of nearly 17 points during their streak.
Miller has personally turned in another prolific season, especially considering the double-teams and chip blocks he’s faced. But he’s also made an effort to remain consistent off the field.
“I can control my attitude and my energy,” he said. “You can come up here every day and say positive things, but you just really have to have that energy about you. That’s what I really try to focus on, no matter what the score is, who we’ve played last week or who we’re facing this week. I just try to be consistent.”
But not even he is oblivious to the jeers from fans and the critics who hound him daily on social media.
“I get it every day on Twitter and on my Instagram in my DMS. I get it every day,” he said. “… I do check all my messages. I might not respond, but I see everything. I feel like that’s the least I can do. Somebody is writing me a message — some messages don’t mean anything, but sometimes you get a
message that you can’t help but to take in and to take it to heart.”
It’s been a while since the Broncos reached a low this low. But as frustrated as the fans may be, the players feel it more.