Alright Broncos, Time to Give up the Charade

This weekend marks a significant point in the season for the AFC West. The Chargers have an easy win ahead of them when they play a much weaker Oakland Raiders team, whose offense has been compared to the likes of the Chargers, circa Ryan Leaf. That will put them at 4-3, a respectable record for a team that has been not playing like they deserve it.

Now the real factor this weekend is the Denver Broncos at the Baltimore Ravens. For the Chargers to even try to factor in a post-season birth they need a Ravens win, much like last year when the Chargers depended on the Bills to beat the Broncos, which lead to a 52-21 routing of the Broncos giving the Chargers the AFC West title, their fourth in five years.

The real question is this, can the Ravens stop Kyle Orton and the Broncos offense. The answer is uncertain. The Ravens have been giving up big plays week by week and Orton along with help from wideout Brandon Marshall can always throw up a big play. However, Orton's track record against the Ravens is less than stellar. In 2005, Orton's rookie season, he faced the Ravens defense and went 15-29 with 145 yards passing and no touchdowns, but he blames his poor performance on rookie mistakes. The Ravens defensive secondary needs to come ready to work on sunday or this game will be over quickly. One thing that the Ravens have against the Broncos, is that Kyle Orton has never faced Ray Lewis, who was on the sideline with an injury in their last meeting. Ray Lewis' commanding presence might take the focus of Orton who will then be drawn to make mistakes.

Most importantly, Kyle Orton is playing the best he ever has in his career, but this does not give him the clout of an elite quarterback. The Broncos are 6-0 because of the team performance as a whole and because Broncos rookie head coach, Josh McDaniels is either a terrific coach or having an extreme case of beginner's luck.

Orton will get cold, it is inevitable, and when he does it is up to the San Diego Chargers to capitalize on it and start winning, and winning like they want it all.

The season is not yet lost, the formula is simple, The Chargers need wins and the Broncos need losses, it can begin on Sunday if the Ravens can make a statement at home.