Broncos feeling effects of '06 draft
By Lee Rasizer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published November 8, 2008 at 9 p.m.
It started with a single call.
The draft that provided the foundation moving forward for the Broncos was set in motion when coach Mike Shanahan picked up the phone April 28, 2006, a Friday night, just hours before selection weekend.
Shanahan wanted a quarterback. His best friend in the NFL coaching fraternity, Jeff Fisher, had dissected ad nauseam the three top prospects - Texas' Vince Young, Southern California's Matt Leinart and Vanderbilt's Jay Cutler - for months and had a similar mind-set.
The longest-tenured coaches in the league exchanged small talk, after which the worst-kept secret around was revealed. Young would be the Tennessee Titans' pick at No. 3 overall, behind the anticipated selections of defensive end Mario Williams (Houston) and running back Reggie Bush (New Orleans).
Shanahan then embarked on a fishing expedition.
He dug for information on the remaining two quarterback prospects, mindful both likely would be out of reach with the Broncos' scheduled pick at No. 15. But he had clandestine designs on possibly moving up.
Fisher, in turn, promised Shanahan he wouldn't let on he had called.
"That," Shanahan recalled, "was the first time I ever showed my hand to anybody."
The conversation lasted an hour. As Shanahan hung up, he was even more fired up to potentially acquire a player to become the new face of the franchise.
Hours later, the phone lines again were busy. This time, the Broncos held an extra third-round selection (68th overall) as possible ammunition to move up and snare their top target.
It already has been decided Leinart was out; and if Cutler was available, only then would the Broncos go all in.
The Buffalo Bills at No. 8 were the first team the Broncos approached, but they declined. The Detroit Lions were next, but they also said no.
The Arizona Cardinals were next on the clock, and they also were in the market for a quarterback. The Broncos were fairly confident but not entirely sure Leinart would be the choice.
When he was, and when the St. Louis Rams at No. 11 subsequently were responsive to the Broncos' offer, a resounding cheer went up in the war room at Dove Valley.
And one of the signature weekends in team history had begun.
"I could tell by the way the coaches and scouts were reacting that this was really something special," recalled Broncos owner Pat Bowlen, adding the feeling in the room that day was unlike any other he had experienced in his quarter century with the club.
"It was just different. And maybe you'd attribute that to the fact that you're drafting a quarterback who's, hopefully, going to be here for the next 12, 14 years. When you go after that particular position and you're getting a guy that you think . . . can play and be your franchise player, that's a whole different picture."
But just as heartening was what happened next - and then again, and again.
Like hitting all the green lights on a long drive across town, the Broncos' top target on the board was available with each selection.
And despite coming off an AFC Championship Game appearance, they needed those picks to hit.
The roster was skewing older. Past draft mistakes had robbed the club of young, talented depth. So it was imperative and impressive what occurred in the next 30 hours.
Among the Broncos' additions were what would become their top pass-catching tight end (Tony Scheffler), a No. 1 receiver (Brandon Marshall), their best pass-rushing defensive end (Elvis Dumervil) and an offensive line fixture (Chris Kuper).
"That one draft class has completely changed their team," NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said. "Obviously, they need to get a little better on defense, but if they can do that, you're talking about an offense that can compete at the highest level for the next several years."
ADMIRING FROM AFAR
Cutler never knew what was coming on draft day. As he watched from Judge Bean's Bar-B-Que in Nashville, Tenn., the Broncos were among the last teams he thought would take him.
"I never talked to the Broncos," Cutler said about a trend that largely would continue throughout the team's selections.
Even at Cutler's pro-day workout on campus, the Broncos never sent a representative. But the team secretly was smitten.
Broncos vice president of player personnel Jim Goodman, then the head of the college scouting department, had seen Cutler in the Senior Bowl and at the NFL combine, where Cutler went against the grain by working out while other top prospects sat.
Goodman also coached with Vanderbilt's Bobby Johnson at Clemson in 1993, so he had good inside intelligence.
As for the pro-day session, not only did the Broncos get a tape of that workout, they also received firsthand reports through scouting contacts.
"It was a cold day in Nashville. Windy. What would the normal quarterback do? 'Let's go in the gym,' " Goodman recalled. "Cutler went and grabbed the ball and said, 'Let's go outside.' And he's out there flinging the ball out there with that wind and that Tennessee cold late in February or March. It wasn't just, 'Here he is.' It was, 'Boom . . . boom . . . boom.' "
That echoed the heart rate of Broncos scouts and front-office personnel when it became apparent Cutler might be available.
The groundwork was laid long before, through a series of trades that were swung with a big assist from former general manager Ted Sundquist.
The Broncos dealt their first-round pick in 2005 to the Washington Redskins, giving Denver the 22nd pick in 2006, which in turn was sent to the San Francisco 49ers for two first-day selections.
The Broncos' 29th pick also was part of a three-team deal that included the New York Jets and Atlanta Falcons, allowing the Broncos to climb 14 spots.
Everything was aligned for taking a quarterback, from those accumulated extra picks, to the caliber of talent available, to the Broncos' own timing and mind-set with Jake Plummer behind center.
"I knew after we lost to Pittsburgh in the championship, that was as good as we were going to get as an offense, that's as good as we were going to get as a team with what we did offensively. And we couldn't win the Super Bowl . . . ," Shanahan said. "So that's when I decided then if there was going to be a franchise quarterback that was available, that we were going to go after him."
As the 11th pick, Cutler was the highest-drafted quarterback in team history (John Elway was acquired in a trade). Not since Tommy Maddox in 1992 had the club selected a quarterback in the first round.
"Jake was still here and he was still the guy, but I knew they drafted me for a reason," Cutler recalled recently. "I'd wait and do my thing, and when they throw me in there, they throw me in there."
But first it was up to the club to begin the process of rebuilding the roster around their potential future star while improving team speed.
WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN
After the move to get Cutler, the Broncos made more headlines, but it wasn't by drafting Marshall, Scheffler or Dumervil. They made noise by trading the 37th pick, acquired from the 49ers, to Green Bay for receiver Javon Walker.
That was significant because Rod Smith was getting older, Ashley Lelie was considered mainly a deep threat and David Terrell had potential but little else.
The Broncos needed to revamp their receiving corps, which prompted them to also draft Domenik Hixon out of Akron late in the fourth round in addition to Marshall.
But in the woulda-shoulda world of the draft, this one's a doozy: The Broncos were 15 seconds from staying put in the second round and drafting Greg Jennings, a Western Michigan product who has been among the Packers' receiving yardage and scoring leaders the past two seasons.
"We had it in," Shanahan said of the card bearing Jennings' name. "And Green Bay called us back. They wound up trading that pick back and still getting Jennings."
Jennings secretly had been in Denver for a visit a week earlier. Shanahan now calls Jennings "the one that got away."
Green Bay initially wanted not only the second-rounder but a fifth-rounder, too, for Walker, which is why Denver was so close to taking Jennings. The Broncos had declined until the Packers' last-second call-back, settling for the 37th pick.
Walker had one 1,000-yard receiving season in two years with the Broncos but was sent packing last offseason because of knee issues and a questionable attitude.
"The bottom line is, that's history," Shanahan said.
But the club wasn't done with its fascination with Western Michigan players just yet.
Scheffler's speed immediately jumped off the tape.
He was big and had hands like flypaper. But he also was a baseball player who didn't play spring football. And there was no real indication how tough he was as a blocker. But Shanahan loved him, so the Broncos took Scheffler with the 61st overall pick, well before his initial fourth- or fifth-round projection.
"I was fortunate to have a good showing at the combine, and people realized that I fit this system pretty well and took a chance on me," Scheffler said.
It ultimately would turn into a full-fledged run on players from nonfootball powerhouses, including Louisville's Dumervil.
"All of our guys from the '06 class all feel like we owe something to the Broncos because they kind of took a chance on all of us," Scheffler said. "They moved up to draft Jay. Brandon had a few issues coming out and kind of played different positions in college, that sort of thing.
"So I think we all had something to prove our worth to this organization, that we were worthy of them drafting us. I think that was a common theme."
DUCKS IN A ROW
There was a trend on Day 2 of the draft, too.
In the six weeks leading to draft weekend, a handful of names are affixed to each slot, first from a value standpoint and various mocks. The pick ultimately is made from shortlists culled from such sessions.
Marshall, Dumervil and Hixon were taken within 11 spots of one another in the fourth round. All were primary targets in Round 4.
"It doesn't happen that often," Goodman acknowledged about that convergence of events. "But I also think preparation causes that. If you're prepared and rehearse, send the scouts in there, research and drill so you've got your game plan, that helps."
But as history has shown, even the best-laid plans don't always pan out. From 2000 to 2005, the Broncos had one of the spottiest draft records in the league. Only three players - linebacker D.J. Williams, guard Ben Hamilton and cornerback Karl Paymah - remain with the team from that period.
So there was some extra pressure to deliver in 2006, especially from outside the organization, but some from within, too.
"At some point in time, . . . (the Broncos) decided we were going to try and go after some young guys and build a team," Bowlen said. "We wouldn't abandon the free-agent market but would put some emphasis in a different direction because we hadn't had a lot of luck in free agency.
"Obviously, we had some luck. But free agency always seemed to be a crapshoot. And if you pick your guys out of college, do your homework and get good character guys and good players, and if you can hang on to them, that's in my mind how you build a championship team."
And as an offshoot of that philosophy, getting huge results from second-day picks who initially are inexpensive can be a tremendous boon to such roster building.
As it has turned out, no one would underscore that point more than Marshall.
LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT
Goodman first caught a glimpse of the hulking Central Florida player at the Hula Bowl.
The veteran scout's immediate reaction: "Good gosh almighty . . ."
While Marshall's sheer size - he was 6-foot-4, 235 pounds - was the initial draw, he also appeared quicker and faster than anyone at that all-star game.
So Goodman went back to Dove Valley and began digging on Marshall. The player's verified speed was only in the high 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash, but his playing speed at times seemed to be much faster. Marshall's vertical leap was 37 inches.
From a production standpoint, Marshall didn't overwhelm in college. He had come from a midmajor program, where he often played second fiddle to Mike Walker, now with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Marshall, by necessity, played safety for seven games during his junior year.
"You could see flashes in the game," Shanahan said. "Every once in a while you'd see a second gear."
But there were some off-field questions that pushed Marshall into second-day status.
"There was the whole 'Baby T.O.' thing," Mayock said, referring to character knocks on Marshall that drew comparisons to, at times, petulant NFL receiver Terrell Owens. "But the question was, was he quick enough to be a wide receiver or was he going to have to be an H-back/tight end guy? But you watch him run and go, 'Wow.' There's no question now."
Said Marshall: "I just knew once I had a chance to get in camp and show the coaches how polished I was as a receiver - because a lot of people didn't think I was that polished as a receiver - that I would have the opportunity to play in this league and be a factor."
DOWN THE LINE
But that's the thing about second-day picks: Everybody's game has perceived holes.
The knock on Dumervil almost solely was focused on his 5-11, 258-pound frame. He was seen as too short to play end, not stout enough to move inside.
The Louisville standout led Division I-A with 20 sacks in 2005, and he recorded 23 tackles for a loss. He played with power and leverage and had a huge wingspan.
So the Broncos made him their only defensive selection of that draft class with the second of five second-day picks.
"My worst-case scenario was second round because of the height," Dumervil said, adding Jacksonville, Seattle and Indianapolis were destinations he thought he might have landed.
"But Tamba Hali went ahead of me. Mathias Kiwanuka. Darryl Tapp. I watched all of these guys go ahead of me and I was like, 'OK' . . . I led college at my position in forced fumbles, sack. I still have a chip on my shoulder because of that."
If anyone at the bottom of the Broncos' 2006 class had room for similar thoughts, it was Greg Eslinger, the team's final pick in the sixth round.
After all, he had won the Outland and Rimington trophies as the best interior lineman and best center in Division I-A, at the University of Minnesota.
Once again, size was a primary issue. Because he might be too small to fit well in other systems, Eslinger, like Kuper, was a match for the Broncos' scheme.
Eslinger missed the 2006 season because of a shoulder injury, was waived in 2007 and recently re-signed with the Broncos' practice squad after stints with the Cleveland Browns' and Houston Texans' developmental units.
Meanwhile, Kuper, a 2004 and 2005 Division II All-American at North Dakota, went from appearing in only one game on special teams as a rookie to the team's starting right guard six games into his second year.
Broncos scouts believed Kuper fit their mold - athletic, able to reach the second level of the defense.
That notion was only reinforced in the East-West Shrine Game, where Kuper's competitive nature against big-school competition stood out.
"My goal was to get in there and play. But I didn't expect that right away," Kuper said. "I wanted a spot, but I wanted a year to acclimate to the NFL. Once I got here, it wasn't as big of an adjustment as I'd thought."
Hixon went through his own adjustment period. First, he had a foot injury that limited his exposure at Akron and later landed him on injured reserve as a rookie. Then his hit in the Broncos' 2007 opener nearly left Buffalo's Kevin Everett paralyzed.
Hixon became tentative in the wake of that episode, and when the Broncos tried to place him on the practice squad, he was claimed by the New York Giants, with whom his career has been reborn.
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
It's too early to gauge where the Broncos' 2006 class fits in the grand scheme. But with Cutler and Marshall leading the way, it could be in the discussion alongside the 1973, 1975, 1983 and 2008 classes as perhaps the best in team annals, if it hasn't already surpassed them.
From a league perspective, Mayock labeled the group "one of the best" since he began closely studying the draft.
"I can't think of another draft in the last seven years - and I haven't sat down to go through all of them - where the productivity has been both at a high level and throughout the entire draft class," he said.
"Even Domenik Hixon is all of a sudden playing with the Giants and has talent. You're looking at three, four Pro Bowl-type players."
The starting point in any all-time discussion of drafts starts with the 1974 Pittsburgh Steelers, who selected four eventual Hall of Fame players - Lynn Swann, Jack Lambert, John Stallworth and Mike Webster.
No one is suggesting the Broncos' 2006 draft is even in that neighborhood.
But 12 teams have produced two enshrinees from the same draft year. Mayock believes Cutler and Marshall have that level of talent, though they have much more to prove.
The Broncos' recent slide from a 3-0 start and the struggles of both players only underscores that latter point. Yet the talent still is apparent.
"Cutler should be an All-Pro quarterback for the next 10 years. He's a guy who has the arm strength of Elway and the gun-slinging mentality of Brett Favre and can be awfully special," Mayock said. "And then you talk about Brandon Marshall; if he continues what he's been, keeps his head on straight and stays healthy, he could put up silly numbers over the next 10 years. So if these guys stay healthy and continue to develop going forward, you can be talking in historical proportions about this draft."
It's the group's collective goal to someday be considered the best draft class in Broncos lore.
"We're young," Cutler said. "We've all played young. We all got out there and gotten thrown in the fire and had some success. Elvis, on the other side, and Tony and me and 'Kupe' and 'B' on offense. There's an upside there that everybody's excited about. It's only Year 3. And we've got a lot ahead of us."
Broncos feeling effects of '06 draft
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