Before we get into the analysis of the AFC Championship game from those I lean on in the league, a quick thought from Mike Vrabel on why he has spent so much time and energy trying to build relationships with players, and for them to do the same with each other.
“Well, you go through a lot,” Vrabel said. “You go through a lot and games are tight, they're close. There's good times, there's bad times. There's things that happen through the course of the year that you can't account for off the field. On the field there's injuries. It's just, every week is its own little saga. So, the closer that you can become kind of helps guys get through, helps coaches get through just the rigors of this league, as opposed to just being a bunch of independent contractors.”
WHEN THE BRONCOS HAVE THE BALL
AFC defensive coordinator (team played Denver): “First off, Nix is good. Let’s get that straight. He rarely takes sacks, but isn’t the QB that throws it up for grabs to avoid them (Mike: see Stroud, CJ last weekend). He’s smart, coachable, and Sean has crafted an offense that revolves partly around his legs. That’s a good athlete. But I don’t think they (Denver) change the structure of what they are offensively. They’ll just lean more into Stidham’s strengths. He’s got a good arm, and I would imagine they dial up a handful of shot plays to play into that.
“The book on Stidham is that he struggles with pressure. When you change the picture on him, will he see it fast enough? That's hard for someone who just hasn’t played a lot of meaningful football. If he doesn’t handle it, that’s when you get throws that are a beat late or a hair behind. Against this secondary, that could be a problem with the way they’re closing on the football in the postseason.
AFC defensive coordinator (#2): “Blitz him. Keep blitzing him. Challenge their
