posted November 23, 2009 at 17:06 EST in NFL Articles
NFL - Is Marshall Ready to Lead the Broncos?
by Tim Furious
Broncos Showing More Fight in Locker Room
Take that headline literally. Brandon Marshall basically attacked rookie Knowshon Moreno after the tailback coughed up a fumble during the 3-32 loss against the Chargers. Marshall has refused to back down, and denied an apology saying that the Broncos need to figure things out before they host the Giants on the night of Thanksgiving.
Yet the real question is whether or not Brandon Marshall is entitled to the level of leadership he is pushing teammates out of the way for.
Marshall is in just his fourth NFL season, and was a Pro Bowl receiver last year while Jay Cutler was still on the team. Now that Cutler is gone, the leadership of this team has virtually fallen in to the hands of rookie coach Josh McDaniel who is steadfastly losing grip on this team after four straight losses. The Broncos, who were in firm control of the AFC West, are now in the rear-view mirror of the San Diego Chargers and are struggling to find an identity.
Whether Marshall can beat that identity out of his teammates remains a questionable tactic. But who, besides McDaniel, is going to stand up in this locker room and seize control? It’s not going to be Kyle Orton, nor Chris Simms. It certainly won’t be first year acquisitions Brian Dawkins or Correll Buckhalter. Leadership has never seemed to be a quality of Champ Bailey, especially at this point in his career.
So is anybody going to stand up in the wake of Marshall’s recent tantrum? The Broncos’ betting faithful wait with baited breath as their sports betting pick is pegged as a home dog to the Giants this weekend by five-points.
Nearly every great team centers around one great leader. You have to have it. In Pittsburgh, the team plays for Ben Roethlisberger and before that they rallied around Joey Porter or Jerome Bettis. Ray Lewis is the man in Baltimore, and Carson Palmer is the focal point of the Bengals. Tom Brady, Brett Favre and Peyton Manning join Joe Montana, Jon Elway and Steve Young because they were all great leaders.
As far as receivers go, there are very few that lead by being vocal. You can make a case for a guy like Lynn Swann, and you can definitely defend the case for Jerry Rice, but is this the time and place for Marshall to be throwing a tantrum?
A big part of me says that it’s never the time to turn in to Roy Williams or Terrell Owens, even if the source of frustration is from the lack of focus and ferocity your teammates display while getting their noses broken for a month. Yet watching the Broncos, they don’t have a real identity and Kyle Orton certainly isn’t leaving the best taste in anyone’s mouth (Chicago could’ve warned Denver about it had he not romped to a 6-0 SU streak to open the season).
Still, part of me screams “yes!” because the Broncos have not been kick started by losing four straight games in harrowing fashion. That kick in the pants needs to come from somewhere. The other reason I’m nodding is because this is exactly how Brandon Marshall is, and if he can infect his team with his bullish mentality then it can only lead to a harder, smash mouth team that is fueled by anger, pride and confidence.
Marshall is depicted by many peers as a receiver that plays with the fury and hatred of a linebacker. He certainly plays like that. Marshall is currently the 23rd ranked receiver with 628-yards and 6 touchdowns. In 2008 he ranked 3rd in receptions (104) and totaled 1,265 yards. He’s accomplished all this by being possessing a level of competitiveness that very few in the league naturally possess.
It seems that his teammates are amongst the many that lack this killer instinct, so if Marshall has to try and be a leader by striking fear in to his teammates than it may just work. He’ll certainly deliver on the field as he always has. At this point, do the Broncos have anything to lose by letting Marshall run wild on the field and on his teammates? Could it be the worst possible situation for Marshall to try and lead a team out of the gutter when is by far their best player?
Worst case scenario is that the experiment fails and leadership is handed back rightfully to McDaniel. Best case scenario is that it works and you’re looking at the next great leader in Denver since Elway, and you’d be an idiot to think that Marshall and his head coach couldn’t have a blossoming relationship that centers around winning. So why not let B-Marsh be B-Marsh?
