Archive for November, 2008

Broncos vs. Raiders: Third Quarter Notes

November 23rd, 2008 - 4:46pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by Gray Caldwell

15:00: Eddie Royal is back deep for the Broncos. Sebasian Janikowski’s kickoff is a short one, awkwardly bouncing along the ground before Tatum Bell picks it up and returns it eight yards to the Denver 15-yard line.

14:50: Jay Cutler tries a deep ball to Royal on first down, but it’s past him, over his head. On second-and-10, Cutler hands it off to Bell, who is stopped after a yard.

It’s now third-and-9, and Cutler is in the shotgun. He drops back, bounces around the pocket and then takes off, avoiding tacklers and breaking an attempted shoestring tackle — he picks up 11 yards before being dropped at the 27-yard line.

First-and-10 for the Broncos and Cutler fakes a handoff before rolling right. He throws across his body to the left side of the field, lofting it over a jumping linebacker and into the waiting arms of Tony Scheffler, who was being brought down by safety Hiram Eugene. It’s another first down.

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Broncos vs. Raiders: Second Quarter Blog

November 23rd, 2008 - 3:32pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by Gray Caldwell

15:00: It’s first-and-goal for the Broncos from the four-yard line, but the Raiders have elected to challenge the previous play. They say Darrell Jackson was down by contact before he got up and sprinted to the four.

The ruling is overturned — an Oakland defender placed a hand on Jackson’s back just as his knee was touching the ground, so it’s still a first down for the offense, but it’s back 36 yards. First-and-10 on the Oakland 40-yard line. It’s a 28-yard reception for Jackson.

Just a quick note: the Raiders had one first down in the first quarter. The Broncos had eight.

15:00: OK, the game is back on and Cutler tries to get a pass to Eddie Royal near the right sideline but it’s intercepted. Chris Johnson returns the ball all the way toward the end zone, and starts strutting at the 10-yard line, holding the ball out. Royal chases him down and almost slaps the ball out of his hand but he falls into the endzone for a touchdown.

There’s a flag on the play, however. Holding on Johnson before the pass was thrown — first down for the Broncos at the Oakland 35-yard line.

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Broncos vs. Raiders: First Quarter Notes

November 23rd, 2008 - 3:03pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by Gray Caldwell

15:00: The captains are at midfield, and the Raiders will make the call. They call tails. It’s tails. Oakland has elected to receive, and we’re seconds away from game time.

14:56: Vernon Fox lays a big hit on Justin Miller, the Oakland returner, at the 19-yard line and the defense heads out onto the field.

The starters on defense are Ebenezer Ekuban, Dewayne Robertson, Marcus Thomas and Elvis Dumervil on the line, Wesley Woodyard, Spencer Larsen and Jamie Winborn at linebacker, Josh Bell and Dre’ Bly at cornerback and Marquand Manuel and Roderick Rogers at safety.

Rogers is starting in place of the inactive Marlon McCree.

14:21: Justin Fargas takes the first down run for two yards, then follows that up with a two-yard carry on second down. On third-and-6, JaMarcus Russell finds Zach Miller for three yards and the Raiders are forced to punt.

12:54: Eddie Royal fields the punt and takes it one yard as the offense heads onto the field for the first Denver drive.

The starters on offense are Jay Cutler at quarterback, Tatum Bell at running back and Peyton Hillis at fullback, Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal at the wide receiver spots, Daniel Graham at tight end and Ryan Clady, Ben Hamilton, Casey Wiegmann, Chris Kuper and Ryan Harris on the offensive line.

So Hillis will be blocking for Bell to start the game.

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Broncos vs. Raiders: Pregame Notes

November 23rd, 2008 - 1:45pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by Gray Caldwell

12:41 MST: It’s pretty comfortable weather out there — a great day for the Broncos to finally be back home. It feels like it’s been a while.

The players just got done warming up and most of them are back inside — even Matt Prater and Brett Kern are absent from the field for the moment. I just got back up from the field after getting some shots from the earlier warm-ups. I’ll post those momentarily.

12:58 MST: The team just officially released the inactives for today’s contest:

Champ Bailey, Nic Clemons, Tim Crowder, Calvin Lowry, Marlon McCree, Nate Webster, D.J. Williams and Selvin Young will not play this afternoon.

I’m posting pictures from the field right now.

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Barrett Signed to Active Roster

November 22nd, 2008 - 2:13pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by Gray Caldwell

On his 24th birthday, rookie Josh Barrett has been signed to the Broncos active roster.

Not a bad birthday present.

The safety spent the first 11 weeks of the season on the team’s practice squad. Selected by the team in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL Draft from Arizona State University, Barrett saw time in all four preseason games for Denver and ranked fourth on the club with 11 defensive tackles while adding two special-teams stops.

A two-year starter at Arizona State, Barrett played 47 career games with 27 starts for the Sun Devils and totaled 174 tackles, six interceptions, 17 pass breakups and four fumble recoveries. He received honorable mention All-Pac-10 honors as a junior in 2006.

To make room for the Barrett transaction, the team also waived running back Alex Haynes on Saturday.

Dual Rookie Excitement

November 21st, 2008 - 3:49pm by Adam ZinserOther posts by Adam Zinser

It’s only natural that the rookies feel generally excited about Sunday’s game — after all, six of them have been in starting roles, sometimes at different positions.

But for Josh Bell and Spencer Larsen, it’s a little different this week.

Bell, an undrafted rookie out of Baylor, started the first game of his career last week in Atlanta opposite Dre’ Bly.

This week, with the odds even better that Champ Bailey will resume his spot in the starting lineup, Bell could play at nickelback. If that’s the case, he’s looking forward to being on the field with both Bailey and Bly, two of the best in the business.

“I’ve been looking up to Dre’ Bly for a while, since he was at Carolina, watching him when I was back in high school,” Bell said. “Then Champ being one of the best, if I can get my little brothers and my family to see me with those two, and I’m good enough to be there, it’s going to be a great thing. I’m going to cherish the moment.”

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Larsen Wins Rookie of the Week

November 21st, 2008 - 12:19pm by Adam ZinserOther posts by Adam Zinser

Spencer Larsen suddenly found himself thrust into the spotlight after his performance in the Broncos’ 24-20 win over the Falcons last Sunday.

After all, few people start on both offense and defense while also playing special teams.

He has now been officially rewarded for his efforts by winning Diet Pepsi Rookie of the Week honors.

This is the first such award for Larsen but the third for the Broncos, as Eddie Royal has won it twice in 2008.

Larsen started at fullback and linebacker in Atlanta, and while he didn’t record any offensive stats, he did notch seven tackles on defense in his first-ever start at middle linebacker.

It’s unknown as to whether or not he’ll perform the same feat this Sunday when the Broncos face the Raiders at INVESCO Field at Mile High, but either way, his name is etched in Denver Bronco record books as the first two-way starter.

– Adam Zinser, DenverBroncos.com

Surgery a Success

November 21st, 2008 - 8:07am by Ryan TorainOther posts by Ryan Torain

So I had my surgery yesterday. I did everything they asked me to in terms of my prehab, just doing some quad exercises and trying to keep the leg strong, working with Greek a little bit and always icing it.

Yesterday everything went well, as far as I can tell. I feel good. My leg’s still kind of numb, so I’m just taking a lot of antibiotics and pain killers. I’m just trying to heal up. Right now I’m just groggy and tired, so forgive me if this blog is a little short.

The plan now is to rehab at the hospital for like 10 days, just some light rehab. I’ll stay laid up, keep some ice on the knee and that’s pretty much it. I do get to travel back and forth to home, which is good, I just go back to the hospital for the rehab every day.

I just want to say to everyone showing me support: Thanks a lot. I appreciate it, and you know I’ll be back next year, ready to get going in a hurry.

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Bailey Back for the Silver and Black?

November 20th, 2008 - 4:00pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by Gray Caldwell

Champ Bailey said after practice today that he is taking his injury day-by-day. Bailey injured his groin against the New England Patriots, and he hasn’t seen any game action since.

There was hope he could play last week, but he sat out the game. He participated on a limited basis in yesterday and today’s practice, so his status for this week is still up in the air.

“This thing is a tricky injury — it is something I have never dealt with,” Bailey said. “What I am trying to do is trying to work my way back in there as quick as I can, but trying to be patient at the same time.”

He said he sometimes feels like he’s not being accountable by not playing, but everything’s been made easier by the fact that the team has found a way to win twice in his absence.

“That is the good thing about all the games that I have missed in my career — we have only lost one,” he said. “That is great. Young guys get a chance to step up.”

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Nate Jackson to IR; Mustard Re-Signed

November 20th, 2008 - 11:41am by Adam ZinserOther posts by Adam Zinser

Head Coach Mike Shanahan has just announced that Nate Jackson will be placed on injured reserve and that the team has brought back Chad Mustard to fill his place on the roster.

Jackson injured his right hamstring during yesterday’s practice, prompting the move. He had seen action in all 10 games, catching 11 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown.

Mustard rejoins the team after spending the 2008 offseason and training camp in Dove Valley. He was waived before the season but re-signed on October 6, prior to the team’s game against the Jaguars. He played in games against Jacksonville, New England and Miami before he was waived again on November 4.

– Adam Zinser, DenverBroncos.com