Denver Native (Carol)
02-18-2009, 11:54 AM
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/news/2009/feb/17/broncos-mcdaniels-xanders-prepare-to-pave-path/
The answer is easy, sky-is-blue easy.
There is no hesitation, no deep breath needed, no night to sleep on it.
Yes, Jay Cutler knows what he would like the Broncos to find this offseason.
"The playoffs," Cutler said before the question hit the question mark. "I want to play in the playoffs. I've been (in Denver) for three years and I haven't played in a playoff game. I want to play in a playoff game, I want to win playoff games, I want the team to do great things.
"So, however we get it done, that's what we need to get done."
And a rather substantial step in that quest comes starting today, in Indianapolis, at the National Invitational Camp, better known as the NFL's scouting combine.
The Broncos' new-look front office, which includes freshly appointed general manager Brian Xanders and first-year head coach Josh McDaniels, will lead the team's contingent as they take a long look at 329 of the best draft-eligible prospects the football nation has to offer.
It will be the first combine for both at the top of a team's organizational ladder. It also will be, with nine picks already on the docket for the draft in April, a large piece of the puzzle when they construct the roster for the coming season.
Neither would be in the position they currently find themselves in without the struggles the Broncos have faced in recent seasons.
The team has one playoff win since the start of the 1999 season - in the divisional round to close out the 2005 season against a Patriots team that included McDaniels on its coaching staff - and has missed the playoffs the past three seasons.
The defense finished at or near the bottom of every major statistical category in 2008.
As a result, Mike Shanahan was fired after a 14-season run that made him the franchise's winningest coach, a total that included Super Bowl wins to finish the 1997 and 1998 seasons.
So here come the changes.
"Transition, there's always fallout sometimes, unfortunately, but that's part of the NFL," Xanders said. "In this modern system, there's always a lot of change on rosters from year to year. But the methodology or team sequence will always be, 'What is the best way we can fill this team need? Is it free agency or is it the draft?'
"That's where Josh and I are working daily to figure out the priority and the sequence."
So the Broncos head to Indianapolis trying to decide how much of the initial roster repairs will come from this year's draft class and how much will require spending in free agency.
McDaniels started his tenure with the Patriots as part of the team's personnel department. His opinion was valued enough by coach Bill Belichick that McDaniels often was sent by the team to conduct private, predraft workouts with draft prospects, including San Diego State quarterback Kevin O'Connell just before last year's draft.
And much like the Patriots' draft model, the Broncos now use the word "versatility" prominently in their discussions about what they want in prospective players.
It is a Belichick trademark, the desire, especially on defense, to have players who can do many things on the field, play in many schemes week to week without making assignment errors and still have the physical attributes such as speed and strength to play in the NFL.
"And every team wants to build its core through the draft," Xanders said.
"We want to be able to do the things we think are necessary to win each and every week," McDaniels said. "We want intelligence and versatility to go with production."
That means defensive linemen who can play more than one spot might be more valuable on the team's draft board than a player locked into one spot.
Or a running back who has performed well as a receiver might be more enticing than one who simply pounded away in a run-first attack.
In Belichick's tenure, the Patriots have leaned decidedly on "foundation" picks, or linemen, having taken only one running back (Laurence Maroney in 2006) and no receivers in the first round, while having taken two offensive linemen and three defensive linemen during that same span.
Their first-round pick last year - linebacker Jerod Mayo - was a starter and won the league's Defensive Rookie of the Year Award.
The Broncos have several needs on defense, and this year's class at the combine is particularly strong at linebacker. Many scouts think there is plenty of value for interior defensive linemen.
"We know what we would like to see in a Denver Broncos player," McDaniels said. "People are going to hear it a lot, but we want smart, tough players who play well under pressure. That's where we start."
"I'm ready to get going," Cutler said. "I think we've got a young group ready to go . . . and we can do more."
A prospect's week
The schedule for players invited to the combine, which goes today through Tuesday, with players coming in at intervals.
* Day 1
Travel
Registration
Medical pre-exam and X-ray
Orientation
Team interviews
* Day 2
Height and weight measurements
Medical exams
Psychological tests
Team interviews
* Day 3
Meeting with NFL Players
Association representatives
Psychological tests
Team interviews
* Day 4
On-field workout, including 40-yard dash, shuttle drills and position drills.
Who received the invitations
The breakdown of the original 329 invitees to this year's combine:
* Defensive backs: 59 (35 cornerbacks, 16 free safeties, eight strong safeties).
* Receivers: 45.
* Defensive linemen: 53 (31 defensive ends, 22 defensive tackles).
* Offensive linemen: 59 (13 centers, 19 guards, 27 tackles).
* Running backs: 31 (26 tailbacks, five fullbacks).
* Linebackers: 27 (13 inside linebackers, 14 outside linebackers).
* Quarterbacks: 21 (four designated as passers in other position workouts).
* Tight end/H-back: 21 (18 tight ends, three H-backs).
* Kickers/punters: 11 (four place-kickers, five punters, two kickoff specialists)
* Long snappers: Two.
Local connections
* Jon Cooper, C, Oklahoma (Fort Collins)
* Gartrell Johnson, RB, Colorado State
* Phil Loadholt, T, Oklahoma (Fountain-Fort Carson)
* Matt Slauson, G, Nebraska (Air Academy)
* Kory Sperry, TE, Colorado State (Pueblo County)
Tracking the No. 1s
The Broncos have had hits and misses with their top draft pick since 2001. Evaluations at the combine starting today will help them determine their next No. 1 selection.
T Ryan Clady,* 2008, 12th overall
DE Jarvis Moss, 2007, 17th overall
QB Jay Cutler,* 2006, 11th overall
LB D.J. Williams,* 2004, 17th overall
T George Foster,** 2003, 20th overall
WR Ashley Lelie,** 2002, 19th overall
CB Willie Middlebrook,s** 2001, 24th overall
No first rounder in 2005; * Starter; ** No longer with team.
The answer is easy, sky-is-blue easy.
There is no hesitation, no deep breath needed, no night to sleep on it.
Yes, Jay Cutler knows what he would like the Broncos to find this offseason.
"The playoffs," Cutler said before the question hit the question mark. "I want to play in the playoffs. I've been (in Denver) for three years and I haven't played in a playoff game. I want to play in a playoff game, I want to win playoff games, I want the team to do great things.
"So, however we get it done, that's what we need to get done."
And a rather substantial step in that quest comes starting today, in Indianapolis, at the National Invitational Camp, better known as the NFL's scouting combine.
The Broncos' new-look front office, which includes freshly appointed general manager Brian Xanders and first-year head coach Josh McDaniels, will lead the team's contingent as they take a long look at 329 of the best draft-eligible prospects the football nation has to offer.
It will be the first combine for both at the top of a team's organizational ladder. It also will be, with nine picks already on the docket for the draft in April, a large piece of the puzzle when they construct the roster for the coming season.
Neither would be in the position they currently find themselves in without the struggles the Broncos have faced in recent seasons.
The team has one playoff win since the start of the 1999 season - in the divisional round to close out the 2005 season against a Patriots team that included McDaniels on its coaching staff - and has missed the playoffs the past three seasons.
The defense finished at or near the bottom of every major statistical category in 2008.
As a result, Mike Shanahan was fired after a 14-season run that made him the franchise's winningest coach, a total that included Super Bowl wins to finish the 1997 and 1998 seasons.
So here come the changes.
"Transition, there's always fallout sometimes, unfortunately, but that's part of the NFL," Xanders said. "In this modern system, there's always a lot of change on rosters from year to year. But the methodology or team sequence will always be, 'What is the best way we can fill this team need? Is it free agency or is it the draft?'
"That's where Josh and I are working daily to figure out the priority and the sequence."
So the Broncos head to Indianapolis trying to decide how much of the initial roster repairs will come from this year's draft class and how much will require spending in free agency.
McDaniels started his tenure with the Patriots as part of the team's personnel department. His opinion was valued enough by coach Bill Belichick that McDaniels often was sent by the team to conduct private, predraft workouts with draft prospects, including San Diego State quarterback Kevin O'Connell just before last year's draft.
And much like the Patriots' draft model, the Broncos now use the word "versatility" prominently in their discussions about what they want in prospective players.
It is a Belichick trademark, the desire, especially on defense, to have players who can do many things on the field, play in many schemes week to week without making assignment errors and still have the physical attributes such as speed and strength to play in the NFL.
"And every team wants to build its core through the draft," Xanders said.
"We want to be able to do the things we think are necessary to win each and every week," McDaniels said. "We want intelligence and versatility to go with production."
That means defensive linemen who can play more than one spot might be more valuable on the team's draft board than a player locked into one spot.
Or a running back who has performed well as a receiver might be more enticing than one who simply pounded away in a run-first attack.
In Belichick's tenure, the Patriots have leaned decidedly on "foundation" picks, or linemen, having taken only one running back (Laurence Maroney in 2006) and no receivers in the first round, while having taken two offensive linemen and three defensive linemen during that same span.
Their first-round pick last year - linebacker Jerod Mayo - was a starter and won the league's Defensive Rookie of the Year Award.
The Broncos have several needs on defense, and this year's class at the combine is particularly strong at linebacker. Many scouts think there is plenty of value for interior defensive linemen.
"We know what we would like to see in a Denver Broncos player," McDaniels said. "People are going to hear it a lot, but we want smart, tough players who play well under pressure. That's where we start."
"I'm ready to get going," Cutler said. "I think we've got a young group ready to go . . . and we can do more."
A prospect's week
The schedule for players invited to the combine, which goes today through Tuesday, with players coming in at intervals.
* Day 1
Travel
Registration
Medical pre-exam and X-ray
Orientation
Team interviews
* Day 2
Height and weight measurements
Medical exams
Psychological tests
Team interviews
* Day 3
Meeting with NFL Players
Association representatives
Psychological tests
Team interviews
* Day 4
On-field workout, including 40-yard dash, shuttle drills and position drills.
Who received the invitations
The breakdown of the original 329 invitees to this year's combine:
* Defensive backs: 59 (35 cornerbacks, 16 free safeties, eight strong safeties).
* Receivers: 45.
* Defensive linemen: 53 (31 defensive ends, 22 defensive tackles).
* Offensive linemen: 59 (13 centers, 19 guards, 27 tackles).
* Running backs: 31 (26 tailbacks, five fullbacks).
* Linebackers: 27 (13 inside linebackers, 14 outside linebackers).
* Quarterbacks: 21 (four designated as passers in other position workouts).
* Tight end/H-back: 21 (18 tight ends, three H-backs).
* Kickers/punters: 11 (four place-kickers, five punters, two kickoff specialists)
* Long snappers: Two.
Local connections
* Jon Cooper, C, Oklahoma (Fort Collins)
* Gartrell Johnson, RB, Colorado State
* Phil Loadholt, T, Oklahoma (Fountain-Fort Carson)
* Matt Slauson, G, Nebraska (Air Academy)
* Kory Sperry, TE, Colorado State (Pueblo County)
Tracking the No. 1s
The Broncos have had hits and misses with their top draft pick since 2001. Evaluations at the combine starting today will help them determine their next No. 1 selection.
T Ryan Clady,* 2008, 12th overall
DE Jarvis Moss, 2007, 17th overall
QB Jay Cutler,* 2006, 11th overall
LB D.J. Williams,* 2004, 17th overall
T George Foster,** 2003, 20th overall
WR Ashley Lelie,** 2002, 19th overall
CB Willie Middlebrook,s** 2001, 24th overall
No first rounder in 2005; * Starter; ** No longer with team.