WARHORSE
04-26-2008, 05:24 AM
Good read:
NFL DRAFT: Broncos lacking impact players
Most NFL officials polled by Rocky feel that's the case
By Jeff Legwold (http://www.rockymountainnews.com/staff/jeff-legwold/), Rocky Mountain News
Saturday, April 26, 2008
In the weeks and months following a 7-9 season that Broncos owner Pat Bowlen has called one of the "most disappointing" of his tenure, coach Mike Shanahan has been steadfast in his belief about the team's personnel.
The team should have won 10 games last season, Bowlen has agreed, offering the team "gave away three or four games" - and that execution, not the roster, has been at the root of back-to-back playoff misses.
Yet with the draft set to open this afternoon, a survey of several NFL personnel executives and some longtime league observers in recent weeks by the Rocky Mountain News concluded with consensus that the Broncos' roster was still thin, in terms of impact players and quality depth, compared with playoff teams.
The executives said that has made it difficult for the Broncos to overcome mistakes in games - that they were always "grinding it out" or "going the long way," as two put it - or injuries to their front-line players on what has routinely been one of the league's oldest teams during the past five years.
And that's the reason, the personnel executives agreed almost unanimously, that the Broncos have only one playoff victory - a divisional-round win against New England after the 2005 season - since their Super Bowl win after the 1998 season.
Every NFL team, the Broncos included, evaluates one another's personnel throughout the season. That enables teams to prepare themselves for free agency each year and to help them decide whether to sign players who are released by other teams in training camp or during the season.
So when other teams look at the Broncos, say those surveyed by the Rocky, they put the same three players at the top of their list - Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Champ Bailey.
Those three were considered the team's impact players and potential Pro Bowl selections. (Bailey has been selected eight times already in his career.)
But the feeling was that once Cutler develops his ability to change plays at the line of scrimmage with more regularity and adjust to his secondary receivers after the snap - the general consensus was he sometimes decides where he's going to throw before he has the ball - he has a chance to become a top-tier quarterback because of his physical abilities, his composure and his ability to move the team in late-game situations.
As for Marshall, most teams expressed only concerns about his off-field travails but considered him a top-shelf prospect with plenty of potential if he can gain focus and maturity to go with what he has already done on the field.
But a three-player grouping at the top of the personnel flow chart, they said, simply puts the Broncos well behind most of the AFC's 2007 playoff field, especially San Diego, New England and Indianapolis.
The executives were surveyed before the Broncos acquired Dewayne Robertson. Though Robertson is considered a quality run-down player, his knees are a concern.
After that top tier, most of the personnel officials had a second grouping of Broncos talent that included tight end Daniel Graham, for his dominant work in the run game as a blocker and his ability to pass protect against athletic defensive ends, slot receiver Brandon Stokley, defensive end Elvis Dumervil, tight end Tony Scheffler and linebacker D.J. Williams.
Several teams believe Dumervil, despite his desire to play every down, was miscast in that role last season because of injuries to the defensive line and would be more far effective during the entire season if he had more of a situational role.
And the numbers somewhat bear that out. In the final seven games of '07, Dumervil had 4.5 sacks, with three of those coming against a struggling Chiefs offensive line, and that was after having eight sacks in the season's first nine games.
In five of the last seven games, he was credited with no sacks or half a sack. He had five sacks in seven games against playoff teams, but none of those was against San Diego, Indianapolis, Green Bay or Tennessee.
Some of those surveyed said they believed defensive end Jarvis Moss, who played only six games last season because of a fractured leg, could potentially be in the second group, but opposing teams see him as a situational player until he develops a bigger variety in his rush techniques.
In the third tier, in most of the evaluations, were cornerback Dre Bly, defensive tackle Marcus Thomas, center Tom Nalen, guard Montrae Holland, linebacker Boss Bailey, defensive end Tim Crowder, safety John Lynch, defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban and running back Travis Henry.
However, each personnel executive surveyed said he would rank Henry as a "declining" player whose injuries have robbed him of his power and conditioning in late-season games.
Some also said they might add newly signed linebacker Niko Koutouvides to this group because of his special-teams play.
They lumped the remainder of the Broncos roster below these three groups, and most said they would have to wait to see where the team's new receivers - Darrell Jackson, Keary Colbert and Samie Parker - would fit in the offense. Most believe Jackson will eventually start alongside Marshall, given his track record.
So with nine picks on their docket in the weekend's draft, the Broncos will have a chance to bulk up a roster that many who compete against them believe still needs help.
NFL DRAFT: Broncos lacking impact players
Most NFL officials polled by Rocky feel that's the case
By Jeff Legwold (http://www.rockymountainnews.com/staff/jeff-legwold/), Rocky Mountain News
Saturday, April 26, 2008
In the weeks and months following a 7-9 season that Broncos owner Pat Bowlen has called one of the "most disappointing" of his tenure, coach Mike Shanahan has been steadfast in his belief about the team's personnel.
The team should have won 10 games last season, Bowlen has agreed, offering the team "gave away three or four games" - and that execution, not the roster, has been at the root of back-to-back playoff misses.
Yet with the draft set to open this afternoon, a survey of several NFL personnel executives and some longtime league observers in recent weeks by the Rocky Mountain News concluded with consensus that the Broncos' roster was still thin, in terms of impact players and quality depth, compared with playoff teams.
The executives said that has made it difficult for the Broncos to overcome mistakes in games - that they were always "grinding it out" or "going the long way," as two put it - or injuries to their front-line players on what has routinely been one of the league's oldest teams during the past five years.
And that's the reason, the personnel executives agreed almost unanimously, that the Broncos have only one playoff victory - a divisional-round win against New England after the 2005 season - since their Super Bowl win after the 1998 season.
Every NFL team, the Broncos included, evaluates one another's personnel throughout the season. That enables teams to prepare themselves for free agency each year and to help them decide whether to sign players who are released by other teams in training camp or during the season.
So when other teams look at the Broncos, say those surveyed by the Rocky, they put the same three players at the top of their list - Jay Cutler, Brandon Marshall and Champ Bailey.
Those three were considered the team's impact players and potential Pro Bowl selections. (Bailey has been selected eight times already in his career.)
But the feeling was that once Cutler develops his ability to change plays at the line of scrimmage with more regularity and adjust to his secondary receivers after the snap - the general consensus was he sometimes decides where he's going to throw before he has the ball - he has a chance to become a top-tier quarterback because of his physical abilities, his composure and his ability to move the team in late-game situations.
As for Marshall, most teams expressed only concerns about his off-field travails but considered him a top-shelf prospect with plenty of potential if he can gain focus and maturity to go with what he has already done on the field.
But a three-player grouping at the top of the personnel flow chart, they said, simply puts the Broncos well behind most of the AFC's 2007 playoff field, especially San Diego, New England and Indianapolis.
The executives were surveyed before the Broncos acquired Dewayne Robertson. Though Robertson is considered a quality run-down player, his knees are a concern.
After that top tier, most of the personnel officials had a second grouping of Broncos talent that included tight end Daniel Graham, for his dominant work in the run game as a blocker and his ability to pass protect against athletic defensive ends, slot receiver Brandon Stokley, defensive end Elvis Dumervil, tight end Tony Scheffler and linebacker D.J. Williams.
Several teams believe Dumervil, despite his desire to play every down, was miscast in that role last season because of injuries to the defensive line and would be more far effective during the entire season if he had more of a situational role.
And the numbers somewhat bear that out. In the final seven games of '07, Dumervil had 4.5 sacks, with three of those coming against a struggling Chiefs offensive line, and that was after having eight sacks in the season's first nine games.
In five of the last seven games, he was credited with no sacks or half a sack. He had five sacks in seven games against playoff teams, but none of those was against San Diego, Indianapolis, Green Bay or Tennessee.
Some of those surveyed said they believed defensive end Jarvis Moss, who played only six games last season because of a fractured leg, could potentially be in the second group, but opposing teams see him as a situational player until he develops a bigger variety in his rush techniques.
In the third tier, in most of the evaluations, were cornerback Dre Bly, defensive tackle Marcus Thomas, center Tom Nalen, guard Montrae Holland, linebacker Boss Bailey, defensive end Tim Crowder, safety John Lynch, defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban and running back Travis Henry.
However, each personnel executive surveyed said he would rank Henry as a "declining" player whose injuries have robbed him of his power and conditioning in late-season games.
Some also said they might add newly signed linebacker Niko Koutouvides to this group because of his special-teams play.
They lumped the remainder of the Broncos roster below these three groups, and most said they would have to wait to see where the team's new receivers - Darrell Jackson, Keary Colbert and Samie Parker - would fit in the offense. Most believe Jackson will eventually start alongside Marshall, given his track record.
So with nine picks on their docket in the weekend's draft, the Broncos will have a chance to bulk up a roster that many who compete against them believe still needs help.