I managed to catch the tail end of the Denver/San Diego Monday night game given my new found curiosity in the Denver Broncos.  I flicked it on with about 6 minutes to go in the fourth quarter with Denver ahead 27 to 23 and with San Diego driving.

On the Denver 36 and facing a 4th and 8 with 5:48 to go, Norv Turner opted to go for it rather than kick a useless 56 yard field or punt.

Why not punt, Norv?  Situational punting?  High in the air and pin them down hopefully inside their 20 and ideally inside their 10 where Denver will have to play safe, block and tackle football to not make a critical mistake.

Does your punter suck, Norv? 

Why give the Denver offense the room?  If you do not trust your defense to get a three-and-out with enough time for another drive, why do you trust them to hold them from their 36 if that is your fear?  Fourth and 8 is a real low percentage play.  There was time for the D to get you the ball back.

That was the strategic play.

But that is Norv.  Marty Schottenheimer lite.  Norv was deemed an exceptional offensive coordinator by virtue of being the guy who got to watch Troy Aikman throw to Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith run in Dallas.  He parlayed this into a Washington Redskins' head coaching job where he went 49-59.

Walking corpse Al Davis turned to him in Oakland where he went 9-23, and then he managed to take over San Diego from Marty Schottenheimer, going 11-5 two years ago and 8-8 last year.  They now sit at 2-3.  It's a performance reminiscent of Pete Carroll's in New England when he took over a Super Bowl losing team from Bill Parcells going 10-6, 9-7 and 8-8 before the Doogie Howser lad was put out of his misery and dispatched to the college level where he has achieved success.

So Josh McDaniels is a great, young coach, and Norv Turner is now a three team retread with limited success.  It will likely be a trend in the NFL to take shots on younger guys rather than keep trying to get silk from a sow's ear.

 Josh managed to get the silk tonight, given Norv Turner did not trust his defense enough to get him the ball back, so Norv took a risk on 4th and 8 and wound up with what he feared most: the Denver offense with the ball back.

Way to go Norv.  I am sure your defense feels great about your vote of confidence.