As we pass the halfway point of the 2009 NFL season, there have been as many surprises as there have been disappointments. I don't think anyone saw the Titans stammering along to an 0-6 start or the Saints still atop the league with an undefeated record. I don't think many people thought the Patriots would be one muffed kick away from an 0-2 start against their own division only to drop a Franchise record 69 points in a snowstorm a couple of weeks later. Yes, its already been quite a season and I'm sure things will only get wackier as we approach the season's end. One of the more intriguing story lines of this season has been that of the Denver Broncos. Beginning the season with a new head coach, a new system and a new quarterback, combined with one of the leagues toughest schedules, many experts predicted no better than a .500 record for the mighty stallions. This was not at all the case as the Broncos stormed out of the gate to the tune of a 6-0 record beating division leaders Cincinnati, New England and Dallas along the way. One of the last remaining undefeated teams, Denver is now looking like a lock to win the AFC West with a stern defense and an efficient offense. So everyone is right to praise 33 year old head coach Josh McDaniels, right? I mean he's already done so much for a team in apparent disarray to egin the season, what's not to love. Well I'll tell that I think McDaniels is an idiot for one simple reason: Failure to recognize a weapon when he has one, and that weapon is a 2nd year wide receiver by the name of Eddie Royal.Royal burst on to the scene in his rookie debut on Monday Night Football, opening week of the 2008 season with a monster game: 9 rec, 146 yards and a touchdown.
I remember watching this and thinking, oh man, this kid is going to be dirty, the Broncos just got a steal of a pick at WR. What was even cooler to me was the Eddie Royal was my age AND from my hometown. In fact, our teams used to play against each other every year and I even remember watching him play when I was in high school. It was crazy to see this kid go from public school in northern VA to going for almost 150 yards and a TD in his 1st ever game in the NFL. Royal finished the 2008 season with 91 rec for 980 yards and 5 tds, going over 100 yards receiving 3 times, including a 6 rec, 164 yd day against Cleveland in week 10. That was good for second on the team behind prima-donna star wide out Brandon Marshall. Pretty good, right? With the explosiveness that this kid has, and a year of NFL experience under his belt, Royal should be having a breakout season in 2009, am I wrong? I certainly didn't think I was wrong when I drafted him in my fantasy league this year. In fact, I thought i was getting a steal of a pick when I saw he had gone unnoticed through six rounds and happily added him to my already loaded roster.Well here we are, 10 weeks into the 2009 NFL season and Royal has been virtually invisible putting up a pathetic 232 yards on 25 receptions. His longest gain has been for a measly 20 yards, well under that of a 93 yd reception he had last season. What really upsetting is that you can't even blame Royal for this slump. He is still averaging almost 10 yards a reception and making good catches when the ball is thrown his way. Whenever he gets a chance he produces, unfortunately someone has come up with an offensive scheme that virtually leaves Royal the odd man out. This guy is begging for balls to be thrown his way, yet he continues to get the shaft every week, I mean look at that picture, he LOVES it. He has only had one game this season where he had over 5 receptions. One! You can blame is on Kyle Orton and his lack of arm strength. You can
blame it on Orton still trying to develop a rapport with Royal as a receiver. But I am choosing to blame it entirely on Head Coach Josh McDaniels. I have no idea what this guys problem is, but he's become obsessed with using Royal mainly as a decoy this season and nothing more. Pretty much the only time Royal was even able to touch the ball was on kickoffs and punt returns, which is consequently how he's scored his only touchdowns this season, returning a kick and a punt in the same game! And yet, inexplicably, McDaniels decides to take Royal out of the kick return team the very next game! So say what you will about how great a job Josh McDaniels has been doing as a rookie head coach, but I will refuse to listen until he realized the kind of potential he has in Eddie Royal.For the 2009 Denver Broncos, Royal is like the cute nerdy girl from your high school (Think, Rachel Leigh Cook in Shes All That), who always gets overlooked by the "popular guys" (Coach McDaniels, Kyle Orton). Brandon Marshall is like the Diva, captain of the cheer leading squad who gets all the attention because of her good looks. But what the popular guys fail to
realize is that the cute, nerdy girl (Royal) is who they should be going for all along. She's got the brains and personality already, and once she hits college and comes out of her shell you know shes going to be smoking hot (Or in Royal's case, a top 10 NFL receiver). So where do I fit in? I like to think of myself as the guy who is nice to her and stay's in on Saturday nights watching chick flicks from the 90s instead of getting drunk and hitting on the hotter, more popular girls. Putting in my time now, so when she finally does get hot, she remembers it was me who was always there for her. This is why I will not drop Royal from my fantasy team, because when you least expect it, he is going to produce, I can see it. Now all we need is stupid Josh McDaniels to see it. If you want to make a run at the playoffs you need to turn a mediocre offense into an explosive one, and Royal is the one and only man who can help. Please Josh, I am begging you, look to your diamond in the rough and everything will be OK.
