Matt's Musings

Now that the draft is over, and while we have some time to fill before teams come back, it's time to once again look at the positional units the Broncos have assembled for 2020. Today I'm continuing with the offensive line group. Offensive Line: On the Roster: Lloyd Cushenberry III, Nico Falah, Graham Glasgow, Patrick Morris, Netane Muti, Dalton Risner, Austin Schlottmann, Calvin Anderson, Quinn Bailey, Garrett Bolles, Ja'Waun James, Tyler Jones, Jake Rodgers, Hunter Watts, Elijah Wilkinson About: This might be the most important position group on offense. Without decent line play, you can't do anything. Running backs are stymied, quarterbacks don't have time, and it won't matter who your wide receivers and tight ends are. For the second off-season in a row, the Broncos have spent considerable time trying to fix this group, or at least improve it. Mike Munchak was hired last year, and I thought he helped the Broncos' line step up in the second half last ye...

Over the next 25 weeks I'll be rolling out my favorite films of the last decade. This is, as all lists of this kind, personal selections. Agree, disagree, make a comment and share your thoughts! No. 10 The Hunger Games (2012) Starring: Jennifer Lawrence, Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harelson, Elizabeth Banks, and Donald Sutherland Director: Gary Ross Academy Award Nominations : 0 Academy Award Wins : 0 About: We've reached my Top 10 for the last 10 years, and it begins with "The Hunger Games." I remember when this film came out. I hadn't read the books, but I was curious about the story, which made a star of Lawrence, who had quite a decade. This entire series ran in the last decade, with the final film in the series, "Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 2" being released in 2015. I felt the series diminished a bit as it went along. I wasn't taken with the final two films or the ending. However, for me, the power was in the idea and the first...

Heading into the 2019 season, there was a lot of optimism about Juju Smith-Schuster. Coming off a Pro Bowl and a great year in 2018, and finally free of the shadow of Antonio Brown, many expected Smith-Schuster to be a WR1. Instead, it was a brutal season for the Steelers’ offense, and for Smith-Schuster in particular. The third year wide receiver saw a career low in games, targets and receptions. He also played almost the entire season without Ben Roethlisberger, who was lost for the season in the second game. But with Big Ben back, and Smith-Schuster healthy again, will that mean a return to form? That’s what those betting on him are banking on, but let’s consider the evidence. Offensive Firepower Smith-Schuster came into the league in 2017, drafted in the second round after playing at USC. He came in as one of the youngest players ever, and even entering his fourth professional season is just 23-years-old. He seemed to be a great upside fit in an explosive Steelers’ offense that was...

I miss football, and sports in general. I'm guessing you do, too. And in the place of actual games, we've been seeing a lot of countdowns of classic games, players, etc. And that got me thinking about my own favorite team, the Denver Broncos. I have loved the Denver Broncos since I was a little kid, more than 30 years of fandom. I started watching them in the late 1980s, and have been faithful ever since. So I thought it might be fun to take a little walk down memory lane and consider my favorite players from those teams. So this is just a personal list, that will be presented in reverse order starting at number 30. Agree, disagree, have your own stories? Share them in the comments. No. 22 Neil Smith (1997-1999) About: Smith didn't start his career with the Broncos, nor did he end his career there. And he wasn't there long. But he was a missing piece the team used to win its first two titles. For years, Smith was on the other side. He played for the Kansas City Chiefs,...

The NFL Draft is over, so it's time to go back, revisit rankings, and see how the draft spots have impacted the way we view the players at the four crucial positions heading into (fantasy) football season. Today I continue with the running backs. This is my take on the Top 50 for 2020. The battle for the top really comes down to a pair of guys. It's brutally hard to repeat as the top back, so it's reasonable to assume that Christian McCaffrey might struggle to be No. 1 again. If you were to predict Saquon Barkley, I wouldn't argue. But McCaffrey had a great season, and to me he's earned the right to be at the top to start the season. While the top was easy to identify, what you'll see on this list is that running back by committee, which seems to be the preferred mode for 90 percent of teams, is pervasive. That means a lot of backs will have fantasy relevance and fantasy value, but it also means there is a widening gulf between the elite and the rest. It's a...

"And until we can see each other as equals, justice is never going to be even-handed. It will remain nothing more than a reflection of our own prejudices." --Jake Brigance, "A Time to Kill" This has been a tense and difficult week for our country. Protests have now taken place in all 50 states, many met with force, some leading to acts of looting and violence. But it's fair to say this has been a long time in coming, and if you don't recognize that there has been pain and suffering around the inequity of justice in America for years, you haven't been paying attention. I have had the privilege to teach a class at our church looking at themes of faith and worldview in film. Two years ago, in the Fall of 2018, my co-teacher and I sought to end our course with three weeks looking at the theme of race and justice. I knew it would be difficult and a challenge, but something that would be worth asking people to think about and speak about in our predominantly ...

We're into summer and we're getting an interesting set of new shows. As we move through this part of the year, given the content deficit we will surely have, I would expect to start to see new series roll out at a slower pace. So let's enjoy what we have and try to find some good ones to enjoy. In these weekly posts I review the pilot and second episode of new scripted series this summer. Don't see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks. Tuesday Nights: Stargirl, Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on The CW (Premiered May 19) About: This latest series is a D.C. Comic show, albeit one set in a different timeline from the Arrow Universe shows that dominate the network's schedule. It was created, originally, for the D.C. streaming site, and is airing there while also airing on The CW. This is a great tonic for those who enjoy the CW D.C. Shows and miss them during the summer. This picked up in the same time slot as "The Flash" just after the season ended, and should c...