Broncos fans have left behind the “Let’s Ride” motto in favor of “It’s Bo Time,” a slogan long employed by southern regional fried chicken powerhouse Bojangles. This definitively sideways trade is perfectly indicative of the overall sideways movement of both our roster construction and performance outlook this season. Maybe that’s unfair – expectations were sky high for Russell Wilson when he came to Denver, so the downfall was especially painful. I think expectations are better tempered now, but ownership has kept the door open for hype by snagging a very experienced rookie QB with the highest draft capital spent on a QB in our team’s history. Then they paired him Josh Reynolds, his dynamic WR1 from college, which was a great move for the Bengals when they tried it with Burrow and Ja’Marr Chase. Bo Nix is not Joe Burrow and Josh Reynolds is not Ja’Marr Chase, but in traditional Wal-Mart fashion, the Great Value version could resemble the real thing if you ignore the cheap plastic and gasoline aftertaste.

I am not a Sean Peyton hater. This is at least partly due to having been in a football coma during the Bountygate scandal, and my father’s love for Drew Brees (he’s a Purdue alum) spilling over into praise for the coach who ‘unlocked’ him. I’ve also been so dulled by the decade of failure that followed Super Bowl 50 that by the time Sean Peyton arrived in town, I was no longer scrutinizing every little thing about my team. This has helped hide the blemishes while highlighting the social media-able aspects of our coach, like his sense of humor, facial expressions, and snarky attitude. I’ve been told Coach Peyton is fat, but I am fatter than him so I can’t hold it against him.

By contrast, I was an outspoken Vance Joseph hater, and it’s worth noting that during my surrealist horror series of Broncos game reviews two years ago, one of the fictional nightmares I wrote included rehiring Vance Joseph. That nightmare came true, but thankfully it appears Vance is one of those guys who sucks way more as a head coach, and sucks less as a coordinator. Truthfully I was happy with our defense in the second half of last season and I’m looking forward to seeing if it improves this season.

By now you may be feeling like this season preview is fairly surface level, and that’d be an accurate assessment. We’re past the point where any self-respecting football fan would stare deeply into the murky water of this Broncos team. This is in the best interest of all parties. Fans need to take some pepto bismol and a chill pill for a season, and the team needs room to breathe. Barring some miracle, this will not be a winning season. The legacy of no repeat losing seasons is a decade behind us now and the sting has lessened over time. We’re back in the ‘who knows what this team could be’ mentality, which begs patience while we find out and tolerance if it isn’t the best outcome. Like with many things in life, if you love something, you should be willing to give it some space instead of smothering it. Broncos fans have done a lot of smothering over the years; time for a different approach.

Author’s note: Hi! It’s been a hot minute, and I’ve sincerely missed being here. I’m going to attempt to return to a consistent schedule starting in mid-October. In keeping with my advice for Broncos fans above, I probably won’t be writing too much about football unless I have something interesting to say. Instead, I’d like to share with you guys how much progress I’ve made in the past year on my board game business, and start keeping a regular development diary. I’m also going to be going through with bariatric surgery in the winter or spring, during which time I’d very much like to share how my life changes. I know I’ve been a drop-in, drop-out guy for you all and while I’ve always wanted to be more consistent, this community has been so kind and welcoming to me no matter how unpredictable my contributions have been – I wanted to take a second to say thank you. It means the world to have such a supportive creative outlet full of kind and decent people, and I’m excited to return in a little over a month to keep sharing my life with you all.

See you soon,

Alex