TXBRONC
10-16-2009, 07:40 PM
http://www.denverbroncos.com/page.php?id=334&storyID=9476
More Than Meets the Eye
By Gray Caldwell
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- In football, perception isn't always reality.
Some perceived the Broncos to be a disappointing team before the season even started. Undefeated through five games, that couldn't be further from the truth.
In the same vein, some perceive Robert Ayers' impact on the football field so far this season to be miniscule. As far as linebackers coach Don Martindale is concerned, that's a short-sighted view.
"That's what fantasy football has done -- everybody's looking at tackles, assists and sacks and all that instead of actually watching the game and seeing some of the things that he does," Martindale said. "I think every snap, every play, he gets better."
Andra Davis said teammates have noticed that Ayers' improvement from week to week comes from a a strong will, a humble attitude and a willingness to do whatever it takes to get better.
"To come in as a first-round pick, to get thrown in that fire early and you're expected to make a contribution, that's tough for a lot of people, and I applaud him," Davis said. "I applaud his efforts and his approach to the game."
Part of that approach has been listening to his elders and accepting any pointers veterans pass his way. Teammates have lauded his preparation in the weight room and meeting rooms, but Davis believes Ayers' willingness to defer to those with more experience has been the most impressive part.
Ayers said that comes from his experience as a senior in college, when he saw younger players joining the team with a less-than-stellar attitude.
"There are five-star recruits coming into college and they think they know it all, then they get a rude awakening," he said. "So I didn't want that to be me coming here, first-round draft pick then get a rude awakening."
When Ayers arrived in camp, he avoided a rude awakening -- but he admitted his eyes were certainly wide open after seeing the skill level and speed of the game at the professional level.
He and Head Coach Josh McDaniels discussed him feeling out of place in the first couple preseason games, and it might have been easy to feel overwhelmed. But Ayers kept moving forward, soaking in everything he could to be ready when his number was called in the regular season.
In Week 1 at Cincinnati, he got that chance, and Martindale said he hasn't stopped improving since.
Through his first two NFL games, Ayers' contributions didn't show up in the stat sheet. But that doesn't mean he wasn't productive on a defense that is now the No. 2 overall unit in the league, leading the NFL in points allowed per game.
"Productivity is met in different ways," Martindale said. "He's doing a lot of good things in our team defensive scheme that people don't see and recognize."
A prime example of that came in Week 2 against the Cleveland Browns. The defensive spotlight rightfully went to Elvis Dumervil, who finished the game with four sacks. But Ayers' active play at his outside linebacker/defensive end position was one of the reasons for the rest of the defense's success.
When discussing Ayer's production, one play from the game stuck out in Martindale's mind. With just more than 7 minutes left in the game, Ayers blitzed toward Brady Quinn on 3rd-and-1, forcing the left tackle to meet him. Ayers set the edge of the pocket, pushing his blocker toward Quinn and keeping him from scrambling. That gave Dumervil time to fight his way past the right tackle and sack the quarterback from behind.
Ayers' efforts, while overlooked in the stat sheet, are certainly noticed by his coaches.
"I'll say this -- he had a lot to do with a couple of Elvis' sacks because the quarterback didn't have anywhere to escape because of what Robert was doing on the other side," defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said. "Although he didn't get the numbers, he still was very helpful in what Elvis did."
And it doesn't end there. In addition to setting the edge of the pocket, he is often taking on blockers so his teammates can make the play, staying in his gap to help prevent running plays or pushing his blocker around to move the pocket to suit the defense.
His position not only requires him to occasionally put his hand in the dirt and rush the quarterback, he is also called to stand up, blitzing or dropping back into coverage depending on the situation. That makes his job as a rookie even harder because he has to learn so many different aspects of his new position. At the same time, it means his coaches have a lot of faith that he can handle all of his responsibilities.
"We're asking a lot of him in some cases," Nolan said. "He probably wears more hats than some of the other guys because of his ability to be versatile."
Ayers himself said he's not where he wants to be yet, but he can feel himself improving on his technique and following his assignments week to week. His impact has even started showing up more and more on the stat sheet.
In Week 3, Ayers notched his first NFL tackle. In Week 4, he finished the game with two takedowns and a hit on Dallas quarterback Tony Romo. Last week against the Patriots, he made three tackles. That steady improvement has the rookie feeling more and more comfortable in his role.
"You try to contribute when you can and make the plays that come to you instead of going out of your way to make plays, because that's when you mess up the team scheme," Ayers said. "Sometimes you've got to be that guy that helps the next man make that play. I've learned that since I've been here, watching guys like Andra and D.J. (Williams), they're always feeding each other tackles -- one guy might turn it into the other guy, or vice versa."
So Ayers has done just that, helping his teammates rack up sacks and tackles while he stays true to the scheme.
"You try to always remember that someone else is depending on you to be in the right position," he said.
Meanwhile, his teammates are noticing that his ability to help out and disrupt plays might soon change into making the big plays himself.
"He's starting to come into his own a little bit and getting hits on the quarterback," Davis said. "All those things will turn into sacks after a while."
So while some will look at his stats and assume Ayers hasn't been active on defense, his teammates and coaches know otherwise. If things keep going Ayers' way, his stats might reflect that sooner rather than later.
"I have nothing but good things to say about Robert Ayers," Martindale said. "I think he's right on schedule."
More Than Meets the Eye
By Gray Caldwell
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- In football, perception isn't always reality.
Some perceived the Broncos to be a disappointing team before the season even started. Undefeated through five games, that couldn't be further from the truth.
In the same vein, some perceive Robert Ayers' impact on the football field so far this season to be miniscule. As far as linebackers coach Don Martindale is concerned, that's a short-sighted view.
"That's what fantasy football has done -- everybody's looking at tackles, assists and sacks and all that instead of actually watching the game and seeing some of the things that he does," Martindale said. "I think every snap, every play, he gets better."
Andra Davis said teammates have noticed that Ayers' improvement from week to week comes from a a strong will, a humble attitude and a willingness to do whatever it takes to get better.
"To come in as a first-round pick, to get thrown in that fire early and you're expected to make a contribution, that's tough for a lot of people, and I applaud him," Davis said. "I applaud his efforts and his approach to the game."
Part of that approach has been listening to his elders and accepting any pointers veterans pass his way. Teammates have lauded his preparation in the weight room and meeting rooms, but Davis believes Ayers' willingness to defer to those with more experience has been the most impressive part.
Ayers said that comes from his experience as a senior in college, when he saw younger players joining the team with a less-than-stellar attitude.
"There are five-star recruits coming into college and they think they know it all, then they get a rude awakening," he said. "So I didn't want that to be me coming here, first-round draft pick then get a rude awakening."
When Ayers arrived in camp, he avoided a rude awakening -- but he admitted his eyes were certainly wide open after seeing the skill level and speed of the game at the professional level.
He and Head Coach Josh McDaniels discussed him feeling out of place in the first couple preseason games, and it might have been easy to feel overwhelmed. But Ayers kept moving forward, soaking in everything he could to be ready when his number was called in the regular season.
In Week 1 at Cincinnati, he got that chance, and Martindale said he hasn't stopped improving since.
Through his first two NFL games, Ayers' contributions didn't show up in the stat sheet. But that doesn't mean he wasn't productive on a defense that is now the No. 2 overall unit in the league, leading the NFL in points allowed per game.
"Productivity is met in different ways," Martindale said. "He's doing a lot of good things in our team defensive scheme that people don't see and recognize."
A prime example of that came in Week 2 against the Cleveland Browns. The defensive spotlight rightfully went to Elvis Dumervil, who finished the game with four sacks. But Ayers' active play at his outside linebacker/defensive end position was one of the reasons for the rest of the defense's success.
When discussing Ayer's production, one play from the game stuck out in Martindale's mind. With just more than 7 minutes left in the game, Ayers blitzed toward Brady Quinn on 3rd-and-1, forcing the left tackle to meet him. Ayers set the edge of the pocket, pushing his blocker toward Quinn and keeping him from scrambling. That gave Dumervil time to fight his way past the right tackle and sack the quarterback from behind.
Ayers' efforts, while overlooked in the stat sheet, are certainly noticed by his coaches.
"I'll say this -- he had a lot to do with a couple of Elvis' sacks because the quarterback didn't have anywhere to escape because of what Robert was doing on the other side," defensive coordinator Mike Nolan said. "Although he didn't get the numbers, he still was very helpful in what Elvis did."
And it doesn't end there. In addition to setting the edge of the pocket, he is often taking on blockers so his teammates can make the play, staying in his gap to help prevent running plays or pushing his blocker around to move the pocket to suit the defense.
His position not only requires him to occasionally put his hand in the dirt and rush the quarterback, he is also called to stand up, blitzing or dropping back into coverage depending on the situation. That makes his job as a rookie even harder because he has to learn so many different aspects of his new position. At the same time, it means his coaches have a lot of faith that he can handle all of his responsibilities.
"We're asking a lot of him in some cases," Nolan said. "He probably wears more hats than some of the other guys because of his ability to be versatile."
Ayers himself said he's not where he wants to be yet, but he can feel himself improving on his technique and following his assignments week to week. His impact has even started showing up more and more on the stat sheet.
In Week 3, Ayers notched his first NFL tackle. In Week 4, he finished the game with two takedowns and a hit on Dallas quarterback Tony Romo. Last week against the Patriots, he made three tackles. That steady improvement has the rookie feeling more and more comfortable in his role.
"You try to contribute when you can and make the plays that come to you instead of going out of your way to make plays, because that's when you mess up the team scheme," Ayers said. "Sometimes you've got to be that guy that helps the next man make that play. I've learned that since I've been here, watching guys like Andra and D.J. (Williams), they're always feeding each other tackles -- one guy might turn it into the other guy, or vice versa."
So Ayers has done just that, helping his teammates rack up sacks and tackles while he stays true to the scheme.
"You try to always remember that someone else is depending on you to be in the right position," he said.
Meanwhile, his teammates are noticing that his ability to help out and disrupt plays might soon change into making the big plays himself.
"He's starting to come into his own a little bit and getting hits on the quarterback," Davis said. "All those things will turn into sacks after a while."
So while some will look at his stats and assume Ayers hasn't been active on defense, his teammates and coaches know otherwise. If things keep going Ayers' way, his stats might reflect that sooner rather than later.
"I have nothing but good things to say about Robert Ayers," Martindale said. "I think he's right on schedule."