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Archive for 2009

From the Heart

December 22nd, 2009 - 1:50pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by

Tuesday morning, the Christmas wishes of three local children battling cancer came true.

Chris Baker, in association with the American Cancer Society, decided to invite the children to Dove Valley to gather around a big Christmas tree and give them a few early presents they had asked for.

“I had an aunt die from cancer recently, and I have another aunt that just got diagnosed with cancer,” Baker said. “I just thought it would be a good idea to give back to some kids who are struggling with cancer.”

So Melinda, 11, and Derek, 16, came with their families to Dove Valley for an early Christmas.

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Striving for Stability

December 21st, 2009 - 5:42pm by Zach EisendrathOther posts by

Speaking at his Monday press conference at Dove Valley, Head Coach Josh McDaniels talked in detail about the team’s erratic rush defense in Sunday’s 20-19 loss to AFC West rival Oakland.

The Raiders had eight runs for 150 yards — good for a 18.8 yards-per-carry average. The rest of the game, however, Denver’s defense was much stronger against the run — allowing a 3.5 yards-per-carry average on Oakland’s 26 other rushing attempts.

“It wasn’t all bad, but certainly on those (eight) plays, it was close to terrible,” McDaniels said. “Again, if you don’t make the plays in those critical situations this time of year, you’re going to be in close games, and ultimately, those are the plays that determine the outcome most of the time.”

McDaniels said Oakland’s drive late in the third quarter — in which the Broncos ended up making a goal-line stand on the first play of the fourth quarter — was symbolic of the team’s rush defense throughout the contest.

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Redzone Blues vs Black and Silver

December 21st, 2009 - 5:33pm by mark_cooperOther posts by

Tough day … MONDAY BLUES. :o ( I hate (not beating) the Raiders. Never use the “L” word.

Had to think about this one all day — 1-for-4 in the red zone. Where’s Hillis, where’s our identity. Maybe it’s me but we have an identity crisis. I guess you have to chalk it up to a new team, new coaches, new system, new players, new QB. I don’t have an answer other than past experiences that tell me so.

We’re a year or so out … much like the 7-7 teams around the league. Minnesota gets beat by the Panthers and New Orleans gets beat by the Cowgirls (are you kidding me) Wow! Again.

ANY GIVEN SUNDAY in the NFL you can punched in the mouth by 2nd and 3rd string people. It’s just that good or they wouldn’t be 1/10th of 1 percent of the people who come out of college playing football, only 32 teams = 1696 NFL players.

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Broncos vs. Raiders – Second Half Live Blog

December 20th, 2009 - 3:46pm by Chris GentilvisoOther posts by

Q3 – 15:00: After winning the opening coin toss and deferring possession, the Broncos will get the ball first here in the second half. One injury update for the Raiders — rookie TE Brandon Myers has a concussion and has been declared out for the rest of the game.

Q3 – 14:59: Janikowski’s kickoff sails out of the end zone, and for the fourth consecutive drive, the Broncos will start at their own 20-yard line.

Q3 – 13:59: Knowshon Moreno takes the first-down handoff on a sweep right, but finds no room and is stopped for no gain. On second down, Orton finds Tony Scheffler for his first catch of the afternoon — a 9-yard pickup. Facing 3rd and short, Orton takes the QB sneak past the marker for a first down.

Q3 – 12:18: At their own 30-yard line, Orton hands off to Moreno, who stumbles forward for a 1-yard gain. He goes back to the pass on second down, finding Moreno in the flat for a 6-yard gain before a tackle by Raiders LB Kirk Morrison. On 3rd and 3, Brandon Stokley makes a diving catch in the left flat for four yards and the first down.

Q3 – 11:38: LaMont Jordan spells Moreno, finding a fresh hole in the left side for a 13-yard gain and another first down.

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Broncos vs. Raiders – First Half Live Blog

December 20th, 2009 - 2:03pm by Chris GentilvisoOther posts by

COIN TOSS: Matt Prater is set to kick off, as the Broncos won the opening coin toss but elected to defer to the second half.

Q1 – 15:00: Prater’s kickoff is taken by Gary Russell six yards deep in the end zone. He takes a knee and the Raiders will start at their own 20-yard line.

Q1 – 14:18: Starting on defense for Denver: Ryan McBean, Ronald Fields, Kenny Peterson, Mario Haggan, D.J. Williams, Andra Davis, Elvis Dumervil, Champ Bailey, Andre’ Goodman, Brian Dawkins and David Bruton. Raiders QB Charlie Frye’s first pass was deflected at the line of scrimmage for an incompletion, and Justin Fargas followed with a 3-yard run on second down.

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Broncos vs. Raiders – Pregame Blog

December 20th, 2009 - 11:52am by Chris GentilvisoOther posts by

Greetings from INVESCO Field at Mile High. The 8-5 Broncos and 4-9 Raiders are set to square off in Denver’s first home contest since a 26-6 Thanksgiving night victory over the New York Giants.

The Broncos and Raiders are meeting for the 99th time in series history, with Denver winning 22 of the last 29 meetings. The Broncos are also looking for their 15th season sweep of the Raiders, since the teams’ start as original AFL franchises during the 1960 season.

Currently, conditions in Denver are picturesque, with sunny skies and temperatures near 50 degrees. Today’s high is expected to linger right around the 50-degree mark.

Speaking of weather, here’s a full report for the 2:05 p.m. MST contest:

Broncos vs. Raiders – Weather Report

If you’re heading out to the game, here’s how the roads are looking around the stadium:

Broncos vs. Raiders – Traffic Report

12:08 p.m. MST: Several Broncos have taken he field to begin their warm-ups, including Tyler Polumbus and Brandon Gorin.

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Carter Gets the Call

December 19th, 2009 - 1:53pm by Kyle SonnemanOther posts by

On Saturday, the Broncos moved cornerback Tony Carter from their practice squad to the club’s 53-man active roster. To make room for Carter on the active roster, the team released T Herb Taylor.

A rookie out of Florida State, Carter joined the Broncos as a college free agent on Apr. 27. The 5-foot-9, 175 pound defensive back started all 50 career games he played for the Seminoles — totaling 139 tackles, nine interceptions and 26 passes defensed during his collegiate career.

Carter became the first player in Florida State history to return a blocked extra point and a blocked field goal for scores in the same game when he accomplished the feat as a sophomore against Clemson on Sept. 16, 2006. The Jacksonville, Fla. native earned second-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors as a senior.

There For The Taking

December 19th, 2009 - 1:18pm by mike_riceOther posts by

There is no denying it: The playoffs are right there for the Denver Broncos.

The Broncos could guarantee themselves a playoff spot by winning their final three games. Even if the Broncos beat the Raiders and the Chiefs at home in the final three games, they would go a long way towards securing a spot in the post-season. It wouldn’t be a guarantee but it would be close.

That is itself is a terrific accomplishment. Let’s quickly rewind to January of this year. The Broncos had a new head coach and turnover on the staff.

Soon after, they had a new quarterback. Then in February, with the start of free agency, the overhaul of the roster began. That ended in late April after they signed their college free agents after the draft.

Expectations outside of team headquarters were mild at best. I’ll admit it, I was thinking the Broncos would be around 8-8, which to me, would have been a good, solid start for Coach McDaniels.

Obviously people inside team headquarters had other thoughts. Good for them.

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Woodyard Showing Support

December 18th, 2009 - 2:03pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by

Wesley Woodyard’s brother is currently working in Iraq alongside the U.S. Military, so it comes as no surprise that Woodyard would have an affinity for the troops.

Inspired by his brother, the inside linebacker decided to donate 10 tickets to Sunday’s game against the Oakland Raiders to military men and women who have recently come back from overseas.

“Sitting around talking to Andra Davis, he also expressed that it would probably be a good idea for me to reach out to the troops, just to show the support and the love that we as Broncos have for them,” Woodyard said.

He worked with the ticket office to help find soldiers who were back from abroad, and provided tickets to get them out to INVESCO Field at Mile High this weekend.

“It’s pretty good to get them to come to the game,” Woodyard smiled. “I know they’re going to be loud.”

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Ready to Seize the Moment

December 17th, 2009 - 2:31pm by Zach EisendrathOther posts by

With rookie Darcel McBath placed on injured reserve earlier this week and veteran Renaldo Hill sitting out Wednesday and Thursday’s practice sessions with an ankle injury, David Bruton knows full well that he might have extra duties on his plate come Sunday’s Week 15 matchup against the Raiders.

If or when his number is called, the rookie safety plans to make the most of those opportunities.

“You want to seize the moment and seize the day,” Bruton said. “And that’s exactly what I want to do if I get the chance — go out there and perform at a very high level.”

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