The Denver Post’s Mark Kiszla answered questions from readers in a live Lunch Special chat on Monday. Here are the highlights:
Alright Kiz. You’ve said you wanted the Broncos to take Saquon Barkley or that guard with the No. 5 pick. What do you think about Denver trading down?
Kiszla: My belief is there’s going to be a run on quarterbacks, putting the Broncos in a good position to take the best player available, rather than whatever QB is left over. So I do think there’s a chance of Saquon Barkley slipping or Quenton Nelson being available. I think both are future Pro Bowlers. Trading down. It’s not a bad idea. A stronger idea than trading up. If a team behind the Broncos is willing to pay a king’s ransom for a shot at drafting Baker Mayfield, then John Elway has to consider it. The Broncos have more holes on the roster than the No. 5 pick can fill.
Analysis on Nuggets making the playoffs.
Kiszla: My Magic 8-ball says: “Outlook not so good.” I’d say there’s less than a 20 percent chance. And might be Mr. Sunshine to give the Nuggets more than a 10 percent chance of slipping into the Western Conference playoffs as the eight seed. Just when you think the schedule does the Nuggets a little favor by sending Utah to play in Golden State, the banged-up Warriors send out a lineup that looks more like the Washington Generals than a legitimate championship contender. Denver needs to win at least 46 games to have a chance … and probably also a lot of luck to get in the playoffs.
What are the Broncos going to do about their tight end situation? Not a ton of names left out there on the market.
Kiszla: Jake Butt. There are a lot of eggs in the basket of the draft pick from 2017 that spent all last season rehabbing from a knee injury. He looks good in the team photo. And his personality is one that Broncos Country will embrace if Butt can make plays. Free-agent candidates at tight end? Like you, the names don’t excite me.
Can the Avalanche do to the Knights what the wild did to them in 2014?
Kiszla: Avalanche question. I love it. Love to see the NHL relevant to the Denver sports scene beyond the die-hards that are with the Avs, win or lose. Had the great good pleasure to be in the Pepsi Center on Saturday, when Colorado played Vegas. The joint was rockin. And it looked to me as if Avs fans should be rooting real hard for a first-round match-up against Vegas. I’d say that’s a 50-50 series … and it Semyon Varlamov can stay hot in goal, I’d be tempted to give a slight lean to the Avs. So could the Avs pull a first-round shocker? No doubt. But let’s worry about holding off St. Louis for a playoff spot first and dream big later.
Will the Avs make the playoffs despite everyone else continuing to win? What do you make of their remaining schedule?
Kiszla: Let me grab the schedule … OK, three road games jump out as key. The rematch in Vegas, where the Knights will be looking to avenge their 2-1 shootout loss. Then there’s the weekend trip to the Left Coast. Games against Anaheim and Los Angeles. There’s three tough road tests. Avs come away with 4 points in those 3 games and they’re in the playoffs for certain. Colorado should be disappointed with anything less than 2 points in those three games. Anything under 2 points? The last week of the season might be extremely tense.
Dear Mr. Sunshine (ca-ching!), does Mike Malone survive another season of the Nuggets not making the playoffs? Seems to me, Malone cost the Nuggets a birth by rushing an obviously not ready Millsap back into the starting lineup and by letting “Chuck at Will” Barton shoot the Nuggets out of too many games recently.
Kiszla: Mr. Sunshine. Haha. Tim Neverett, currently working play-by-play on Boston Red Sox broadcasts, gave me that handle years ago, when we did a morning radio show together. I called him Never Right. And he called me Mr. Sunshine, for my sunny takes on all things Denver sports. The Michael Malone question? I think it’s a big disappointment if the Nuggets don’t make the playoffs, despite the 40-plus games missed by Paul Millsap with a wrist injury. And if it cost Malone his job, it wouldn’t surprise me. But here’s the deal. The NBA is a players’ league. And Malone isn’t the one in this locker room being paid $30 million per season. That’s Millsap. Give him a pass for being hurt, if you want. I can’t do that. Since returning to the court, he has been inconsistent at best (maybe I am Mr. Sunshine). Seems to me Millsap has cost the Nuggets more victories than Malone.
Should Jared Bednar win Coach of the Year? He took a team that was beyond bad, beyond awful, and he’s got them on the verge of DOUBLING their point total, at least! And they’re the youngest team in the league!
Kiszla: Jared Bednar will be a candidate for coach of the year. And he should be. I give him big kudos and good old props for the job he has done. Especially because I stated long and loud and hard a year ago that it looked to me as if Bednar was in over his head on the Avalanche bench. Happy to admit that Bednar has proved me to be a knucklehead in my evaluation of his coaching ability. But not certain I’m willing to name him coach of the year for nailing down the eighth seed. I would be far more interested in campaigning for Nathan MacKinnon as the most valuable player. MacK is far and away the No. 1 reason the Avalanche has dramatically improved its standing in the standings.
First time since what 2010 they have some expectations on them? Dodgers are better but if they stay healthy and the pitching holds up they could host that play in game here.
Kiszla: The Rockies do have expectations. And don’t you love it? Get a little better productiion this year than last from Trevor Story, Ian Desmond and Carlos Gonzalez, the offense has to be better. As one that has long advocated a big, deep, tough bullpen as the No. 1 factor (or very close to the most important factor) to winning at Coors Field, how can I not like what general manager Jeff Bridich has done to fortify the pen? So I think it all goes back to the young starting pitching. Those young arms won’t show straight-line improvement. There are some hard lessons yet to learn. My first question: Is Jon Gray ready to be a legitimate No. 1 starter? A true stopper? If the answer is yes, then the Rockies will be back in the playoffs … and for more than one game this time.
Who will be the worse starting position player for the Rockies to open the season, CarGo or Desmond?
Kiszla: Now why do you want to go and harsh my mellow? Haha. I didn’t understand the Ian Desmond signing a year ago. I still don’t. I think CarGo has a bounce-back season in him. But I also admit to having a mancrush on CarGo. In covering the Rockies from the very first spring training, nobody but CarGo has been a bigger joy to be around. So my vote for worst starting position player is Desmond. I think the Rockies should give Ryan McMahon the job at first base and let Desmond be a super utility player.
Have you or any of the other brilliant minds covering the Broncos asked the Biffster how he rates Chad Kelly in comparison to the top four QBs in the draft?
Kiszla: I have not asked John Elway his thoughts on Chad Kelly. But I’ve got a sneaking suspicion. And I’m not certain you’re going to like my response. Kelly does not compare to the top four quarterbacks in the draft. At this point, Kelly is camp fodder. Nothing more. And if the Broncos do take one of the top four QBs in the draft, it would be a minor upset if Kelly is even around for training camp.
Mobile users, if you can’t see the live chat, tap here.
