Mikey and His Donkeys Continue Shanahananigans, Get 'W'

Last year, for the Broncos' home opener, Old No. 7 and I -- in true Tradition fashion -- retreated from our upper-level seats as the week-two contest between Denver and the Chiefs went to overtime. The game, in total, had been a bit of a mindf**k, as both clubs seemed destined to play a ground-control, clock-eating, smashmouth type of football game. At the end of regulation, our clubs, both 0-1, eyed a scoreboard that lacked any touchdowns; the match was set at six a piece. Surprise was a common element to this game, as Damon Huard, in his first NFL start in six years, had looked poised in the pocket, Jason Elam had missed a rare field goal, and the Chiefs had shut out the Broncos in the first half. Week two of the 2007 campaign looked a little different for the Chiefs as they stared defeat square in the eyes during the waning fourth-quarter moments of yesterday's game against Chicago at Soldier Field. Not so much, though, for the Broncos.

For the second consecutive week, the Broncos, despite impressive total yardage numbers had mustered a point total that didn't match their offensive output. Another week-two division rival, this time young Lane Kiffin's Raiders, held the Broncos notched at a tie score. Only this time, the winners of the coin toss aimed to put this Michael Vick castoff of a dog, out of its misery.

Make no mistake, Sebastian Janikowski is a weird dude. He's also a pretty decent field goal kicker. His overtime/game-winning numbers are no special feat, but little pressure has been placed on any member of the silver and black in recent memory, so why wouldn't he nail a GW 52-yarder in the Mile High city? He would. And he did. Game over. Raiders 23, Broncos 20. But wait. Stop the presses.

Your final score from AmVesCoCap: Denver 23, Oakland 20. Huh? How'd that happen? I'll tell you how.

Mike Shanahan has never needed to give football fans any more reasons than he already has given to further the case against him that he is a weaselly, conniving manipulator of the rules who will stop at nothing to giving his team the advantage -- rule book or not --, but that doesn't stop him from giving them. In a week filled with finger pointing and allegations, Denver's head coach pulls the trigger on a violation of integrity no worse than anything that has come out of Foxboro in the last seven days.

Hold your horses, Bronco Nation. I know. We all want to win. We'll do anything we can to scrap and fight for a W each and every week. The difference is, that we do it within the confines of the way the game is set up to be played. Sure. I'll agree. The overtime formula sucks. It's a rotten feeling to watch your opponent line up for an OT game winner when your offense hasn't even touched the ball. But you know what? Those are the chips and sometimes you have to just let them fall.

What Shanahan got away with on Sunday is universes removed from icing the kicker. Ultimately, he nullified the play that cost him the game because, as I'm sure lovers of all things predominantly orange will say, he was "wise" enough to call that time out -- the seconds of which his club did not even use for strategical/recuperation purposes -- at just the right moment. There's another word for tactics like that. It's been thrown around a lot in the last quarter month. Maybe you've heard of it. It's called "cheating."

That's right. I said it. What? You don't like that one? Fine. How about the one the Associated Press is using in its headlines today? Skullduggery. Never heard of it? Allow me.

skull*dug*egery, n. dishonorable or deceitful behavior.

That's what the ol' dictionary says. Know what else? I look up "cheating" in the thesaurus, and that entry goes a little something like this:

cheating, n. lying, defrauding, deceiving; see DECEPTION, DISHONESTY.

Just like that, caps and all.

What Mike Shanahan pulled in overtime on Sunday is dishonorable and deceitful behavior, a topic about which he's well on the way to writing a best-selling novel. I'm aware that Janikowski doinked his "second attempt." That's all part of the ingenious plan, right? And yes, it would've been poetic justice for him to drain it, or for the Raiders to confine Jay Cutler and Travis Henry on the ensuing possession and neither one of those things happened. So chalk one up for the gipper. Hoot. Holler. Honk your horn. The Broncos have respectfully put themselves in first place in the AFC West. Good times.