Football
Associated Press 21y

Orange Crush back in effect, some say

DENVER -- The Denver Broncos are off to their best start in
four years. A defense that has forced opponents to become
one-dimensional is a big reason why.

Denver has consistently taken away the run -- second-best in the
league at 56 yards per game -- which has forced opponents to pass
more than they would like.

The Broncos worked the scheme to perfection in a 26-9 victory
over San Diego on Sunday, holding LaDainian Tomlinson to just 48
yards -- 78 below his average -- and forcing the Chargers to go
almost exclusively to the pass.

The early dominance has prompted Mike Shanahan to call this
year's defense the best he's seen in eight years as Denver's coach.

"Right now I believe that,'' Shanahan said Monday at his weekly
news conference. "I don't think yesterday was one of our better
games. I thought we did some good things, but looking at the film I
think we can even get a lot better, which is a good sign.''

San Diego tried to establish Tomlinson early and had some
success, but coach Marty Schottenheimer all but gave up on the run
after halftime.

Tomlinson, the league's leading rusher, carried 13 times for 38
yards in the first half, but ran the ball just once in the second
as the Chargers passed on 33 of 34 plays.

It was the 19th straight time Denver didn't allow a rusher to
reach 100 yards.

Schottenheimer agreed with Shanahan's assessment and even took
it a step further.

"I think this defense is like the Orange Crush group back there
in the 1970s,'' Schottenheimer said, referring to the defense that
led Denver to its first Super Bowl appearance in 1977. "That's one
of the best defenses they ever had around here in my mind, but this
one reminds me of that defense.''

The victory puts Denver at 4-1, its best start since 1998, when
the Broncos opened season with 13 straight victories and went on to
win their second consecutive Super Bowl.

It also helped Denver erase the memories of an embarrassing
34-23 loss to Baltimore in front of a national TV audience just six
days earlier.

The Broncos had one of their worst special teams performances in
franchise history and lost their composure during Baltimore's
31-point second quarter.

Against the Chargers, the Broncos got off to a rare fast start
and rode the hot hand of quarterback Brian Griese, who played
perhaps his best game as a pro.

Griese started with a 69-yard touchdown pass to Ed McCaffrey on
Denver's second play from scrimmage and didn't stop there.

He hit 18-of-22 passes for 226 yards, including 13 straight
completions in the second quarter. Two of Griese's incomplete
passes were drops by receivers and the other two came on spikes to
kill the clock.

Griese finished 26-for-35 for 316 yards and two touchdowns,
completing passes to nine different receivers.

"I don't remember throwing a ball I'd want to have back,'' said
Griese, who finished with a 108.8 quarterback rating.

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