Broncos-Rams preview

This will be the last HPS update until after Week Two thanks to vacation-related reasons. (Yes, Week Two-tomorrow all loyal Americans switch from the Gregorian to the NFL calendar.)

In Week One, the Broncos go on the road to face the St. Louis Rams (CBS, 7 p.m. Berlin time). Are there interesting storylines and subplots? Apparently not. ESPN dedicated the first six paragraphs of its ten-graph preview to the Rams' new coach. That is so boring that we should immediately stop talking about it.

Anyway, there are plenty of things for Broncos fans to watch for:

1. Can the running game pick up where it left off last year? I sure hope not. That's because, as the Denver Post reported, the Broncos went more than a half during the AFC Championship without calling a running play.

The Broncos are really good, but they suffer when they throw too much. I don't know if the Rams will pass as much as they did under Martz, but they have enough talent to score early and often. Hopefully we can withstand any early onslaught and keep the ball on the ground.

2. Dumb turf theories. The Rams' field is artificial turf, if you somehow didn't know. (For years their offense had the pathetically outdated nickname of "The Greatest Show on Turf.") One highlight of games played on turf is how often announcers use the presence of turf as a crutch during games.

"St. Louis, you see, has a lot of fast players because they play on turf." (Grass-based teams emphasize a lack of speed?)

"Their wideouts have even more of an advantage playing on this fast surface." (The Broncos' defenders won't be running on the same field?)

Or the biggest lie of all, that it's not an absolute travesty that we have games in domes. (Real men play in the elements and on grass, or at least the high-tech wannabe grass they have at Invesco.)

3. Jake Plummer will fail. I don't think he will, actually, but I'm still worked up about how badly everyone wants it to happen. What did he do to us?

Yes, he flipped of the fans a while back, so in a way, he sort of flipped off all of us. So? That's never happened before? The other day I slowed down to let a guy into my lane, and the guy I was letting in gave me the finger. That was weird, but...I don't know where I was going with that story. I guess my point is Jake's not that big of a jerk. And he got in the road-rage thing a few months back, which is awesome. Stay off my tail!

But you non-believers can start rooting against your favorite team this Sunday. The Rams were 23rd in the league against the pass last year, though, so don't get too excited.

4. World-class football is back. Yes, college football's been here a little while, but if you don't like watching your alma mater lose to a 1-AA team, now you can see the professionals. Rod Smith, Al Wilson, Plummer, Torry Holt...can't wait for kickoff.

Oh, and the Broncos will...win. I won't say the score. I'd hate to ruin the surprise.