Denver Broncos Notes, Quotes

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by Sports Xchange



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Updated: August 10, 2009, 3:20 AM EDT
-- DE/OLB Robert Ayers signed a five-year deal and was on the field for Monday evening's practice. Terms were not disclosed. Ayers seems to have an upper hand for one of the Broncos' outside linebacker spots in the 3-4, but the team still has to figure out its best combination on the outside. Ayers is a first-round pick who has picked up the defense quickly, although he could end up back at defensive end at some point.

Tim Crowder, Elvis Dumervil and Darrell Reid, all converted defensive linemen, are the top candidates at outside linebacker. Reid spent much of the offseason with the starting defense.
--Jarvis Moss, a 2007 first-round pick who is transitioning from defensive end to outside linebacker, left training camp and was considering retirement. His teammates were surprised, although close friends like former college teammate Marcus Thomas were trying to convince him to come back.

"I think he's going to think it over and do what's best for him," outside linebacker Tim Crowder said.

--Fullback Peyton Hillis hit teammate Tim Crowder so hard in a 1-on-1 tackling drill that Hillis felt bad afterwards and apologized. Crowder was down for a few moments with a stinger.

"It hurts me to see a guy laying there, it breaks my heart because you never know what's going to happen, you never know what kind of injury a guy has," Hillis said. "I'm glad he came up all right."

--Players have to run laps in practice for mistakes like fumbled quarterback-center exchanges. The entire scout team defense had to do a lap when only 10 of them were in the huddle. Coaching assistant Jay Rodgers had to run with the players.

--Cornerback Champ Bailey, safety Renaldo Hill and defensive tackle Marcus Thomas spent the first day of training camp on the physically unable to perform list, apparently the result of a failed conditioning test. They were back after some extra conditioning the first day of practice.

"We used precaution," Bailey said. "Use a day to kind of condition a bit, get in shape a little better, then get out there."

--Josh McDaniels has copied plenty from the Patriots, where he was offensive coordinator the past couple seasons, including the tight-lipped response to any injuries, even minor injuries the first few days of training camp.

"I'm not talking about injuries," McDaniels said. "That's just going to be the policy all year. So that's it."

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I think early in camp it's good to do that because you certainly don't want to go into your first game not having tackled somebody or been tackled." - Broncos coach Josh McDaniels on running 1-on-1 live tackling drills during camp.



http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/4809724/Denver-Broncos-Notes,-Quotes

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by Sports Xchange


Updated: August 10, 2009, 3:20 AM EDT
--LB Mario Haggan, who was used mostly in the middle last season, is working with the second-team defense at outside linebacker in the new 3-4 scheme.

--DE Ryan McBean is Denver's starting left defensive end at the start of training camp. Kenny Peterson is the right end. The two have one combined NFL start, by Peterson.
--CB Andre Goodman looked good early in camp, picking off a couple of passes. He said he likes the scheme because it allows him to play off a bit and react to passes.

--LB Wesley Woodyard continues to play inside linebacker in the 3-4 scheme. He and D.J. Williams have been the linebackers in the nickel packages.

--WR Brandon Stokley isn't guaranteed a role on this year's team with Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal as the starters and Jabar Gaffney getting a $10 million deal in the offseason. But Stokley has looked good in camp, getting open and making plenty of catches.

BATTLE OF THE WEEK: CBs Jack Williams vs. Alphonso Smith for nickel back - Williams was a fourth-round pick last year who had a good preseason, then faded as the season wore on. Smith is the favorite to win the nickel spot, considering the team traded a 2010 first-round pick to draft him in the second round, but Williams has been holding him off all offseason and at the beginning of camp.

OTHER BATTLE FRONTS: Eddie Royal and Alphonso Smith appear to be the only two candidates to return punts for the Broncos this season. ... LaMont Jordan and Correll Buckhalter are splitting first-team reps at tailback. Knowshon Moreno is holding out.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: RB Peyton Hillis - Hillis made a strong impression when pressed into tailback duty last season, but was put back at fullback by the new coaching staff. However, Hillis is making an impression again. His reps at tailback have been increasing in one-back sets and he is running hard, like he did last year before a hamstring injury ended his season. Hillis is a great athlete who can run, catch and block well, and he will have a role on this team.

ROOKIE REPORT: RB Knowshon Moreno remains a holdout. ... DE Robert Ayers agreed to his rookie contract Monday. ... CB Alphonso Smith is one of the favorites to return punts this season, and might also end up returning kickoffs. ... S Darcel McBath spent the first day with the starting defense because Renaldo Hill began camp on the PUP. McBath has impressed the coaches with his versatility. ... G Seth Olson has been taking second-team reps at right guard. ... S David Bruton has been with the second-team defense, but his main role as a rookie will be on special teams. ... WR Kenny McKinley has impressed with his quickness.

INJURY REPORT:

DE Nic Clemons suffered what appeared to be a left knee injury on Aug. 1, but the team said it wasn't as serious as first feared.

WR Brandon Marshall is still working back from offseason hip surgery. He has been given a few practices off, and limped off the field on Aug. 2.

[Dirk]

Thx for the updates Jr!

[Lonestar]

Updated: August 19, 2009, 11:20 AM EDT
-- WR Brandon Marshall was back at practice Tuesday after he and his agent met with coach Josh McDaniels on Monday night to reiterate their request for a trade. The Broncos have said they won't negotiate an extension for Marshall, who has one year at $2.2 million remaining on his rookie contract. Marshall had sat out practice since Aug. 2 with an apparent leg injury.

--Rookie Knowshon Moreno gave the Broncos a scare when he limped to the locker room after less than a quarter of work in his preseason debut, but he only sprained an MCL. He should be back before the regular-season opener.
--Head coach Josh McDaniels doesn't run a light training camp and didn't take his first preseason game lightly. Almost all of Denver's starters played the entire first half against the 49ers, which is a big departure from Mike Shanahan's plan of playing the starters for one series in the preseason opener.

McDaniels also wants to get his rookies up to speed, so they'll see plenty of action this month.

"All our rookies and all our young kids need to play a lot," McDaniels said.

--The Broncos are having light hazing of the rookies during camp. The latest prank was funny haircuts. The veterans chose what look the rookies would get, which included some random bald spots or stripes from front to back. Quarterback Tom Brandstater got just the top of his head shaved clean. That was better than the threat of having his eyebrows taken off if he didn't consent to the haircut.

"I'll save my eyebrows," Brandstater said.

--Cornerback Champ Bailey has looked good in camp, making a few athletic interceptions. He is coming off an injury-filled season but at age 31, looks as good as ever. "I feel pretty good," Bailey said. "Feel real fresh."

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I'm sure you guys will write a lot of articles and talk about it on talk radio and everything else, but it's not going to change me one bit." -- Broncos backup quarterback Chris Simms on a possible quarterback controversy.


http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/4809724/Denver-Broncos-Notes,-Quotes

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Updated: August 19, 2009, 11:20 AM EDT
DE Le Kevin Smith was acquired by Denver along with a seventh-round pick next year from New England in exchange for a fifth-round pick in 2010, according to FOXSports.com. That fifth-round pick will in turn be sent to Oakland to complete the Derrick Burgess trade. Smith adds veteran depth for the Broncos, who are making the switch to the 3-4 defense this season.

--The Broncos waived/injured RB Ryan Torain, who suffered a minor knee injury in camp. Torain has had no luck with injuries the past two years. He looked promising last year but an elbow injury in camp cost him a few months and then he tore his ACL shortly after returning.
The Broncos replaced him with RB Marcus Thomas, a fifth-round pick of the Chargers last year who spent time with three other teams.

-- OG Pat Murray was waived by Denver. He had been signed off Seattle's practice squad last December. Murray was out of football in 2007 after being cut by the Packers before the start of the regular season.

-- DE Rulon Davis was waived by Denver.

--DE J'Vonne Parker went on injured reserve with a knee injury. That cuts into Denver's depth on the line.

--WR Chad Jackson started the preseason opener as the fourth receiver in a four-receiver set on the first play of the game.

--RB Peyton Hillis rushed for 49 yards on 10 carries against San Francisco. He was the tailback for most of the second half.

--LB Spencer Larsen, a second teamer at inside linebacker, led the Broncos with six tackles against the 49ers, including one for loss. He also played fullback.

--C Casey Wiegmann was the only Broncos starter on offense pulled before halftime against San Francisco. Ben Hamilton moved to center.

BATTLE OF THE WEEK: Ryan McBean vs. Marcus Thomas for starting left defensive end. Thomas has more experience than McBean and has a better chance to unseat him than he did Ronald Fields at nose tackle. The move up the depth chart for rookie nose tackle Chris Baker also should benefit Thomas, because Thomas seems like a better physical fit at end. However, McBean stood out to the coaches in the preseason opener, picking up a sack.

OTHER BATTLE FRONTS: Mario Haggan moved past Darrell Reid and Tim Crowder to take the starting left outside linebacker spot. ... Correll Buckhalter started the preseason opener at tailback after LaMont Jordan spent most of the week leading up to the game recovering from a leg injury. ... Eddie Royal was removed from the depth chart at kick and punt returner, a nod to his importance on offense. Alphonso Smith is Denver's primary kick returner. ... Although Jack Williams has held off Smith as the nickel cornerback, Smith was the one who replaced Champ Bailey at left cornerback with the starting defense against the 49ers. Bailey was the lone starter on defense removed before halftime.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Nose tackle Chris Baker, an undrafted rookie, moved up from third team to second team in the week leading up to Denver's preseason opener, then made a huge impression during the game. Baker had a sack and another tackle for loss. The Broncos are thin on the defensive line, so Baker's development could be huge for the team. Baker, who is big and physical, went undrafted after being kicked out of Penn State for off-field issues. He finished his college career at Hampton.

ROOKIE REPORT

--Before injuring his knee against San Francisco, RB Knowshon Moreno showed off a strong initial burst, gaining 9 yards on his first NFL run.

--LB Robert Ayers isn't with the starting defense in base packages but is coming in with the first team in all passing situations.

--S Darcel McBath started the preseason opener in place of injured Brian Dawkins.

--TE Richard Quinn has shown he can be a factor in the passing game, despite not being targeted often in college.

--S David Bruton spent a few days with the first-team defense in Brian Dawkins' absence. He should be a primary contributor on all special teams.

--WR Kenny McKinley caught a 52-yard touchdown against San Francisco. He has also assumed a role as the second option on kickoff and punt returns.

--G Seth Olsen played with the starting offense after left guard Ben Hamilton moved to center to replace Casey Wiegmann.

INJURY REPORT: S Brian Dawkins has been out of practice since early in camp with a broken hand. He wasn't supposed to be out long -- his progress will bear watching because he was signed to the veteran leader of the defense. ... RB Knowshon Moreno will miss a couple of weeks with a sprained MCL, suffered against San Francisco.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/4809726/Denver-Broncos-Strategy-and-Personnel

[Lonestar]

Updated: August 19, 2009, 11:20 AM EDT
There will be plenty of shuffling on defense before the regular-season opener, as the Denver Broncos' coaching staff figures out what they have.

The most dramatic move was with linebacker Mario Haggan. A 4-3 middle linebacker last year with Denver, and mostly a special-teams contributor for his NFL career, Haggan was moved from third team to a starter at left outside linebacker before Denver's preseason opener. He passed Darrell Reid and Tim Crowder on the depth chart.
"We're all fighting for an opportunity to play," Haggan said.

The move showed how fluid the battles are at outside linebacker. Reid was ahead of Crowder, but Crowder had been cutting into his first-team reps. At right outside linebacker, Elvis Dumervil has been holding off first-round pick Robert Ayers. Dumervil has taken nicely to the switch from a 4-3 defensive end to a 3-4 outside linebacker.

The Broncos made other moves. They went from Darcel McBath to fellow rookie David Bruton back to McBath at safety as Brian Dawkins recuperates from a hand injury.

On the line, Marcus Thomas was moved from second-team nose tackle to end, partially because of the emergence of bigger nose tackle Chris Baker, an undrafted rookie.

The moves worked pretty well for the Broncos in the first preseason game. They allowed a field goal on their first drive, then forced two punts. The lone touchdown the starters gave up was on a three-yard drive after Kyle Orton's third interception.

Denver had four sacks, looked decent against the run and appeared headed in a decent direction.

The team is learning new coordinator Mike Nolan's 3-4 scheme, which everyone has said is a work in progress. One badly busted coverage led to a long touchdown catch by 49ers fullback Brit Miller. Overall, Denver looked pretty comfortable with the scheme. The Broncos swarmed to the ball well but need to be a bit tighter in coverage after allowing San Francisco quarterbacks to complete 14 of 18 passes, but many of those were short gains.

CAMP CALENDAR: The Broncos' camp ends on Aug. 20, three weeks after the team's first full-squad workout.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/4809722/Denver-Broncos-Inside-Slant