The newest Bronco was also the last one to leave the practice field Wednesday.
Some 20 minutes after his teammates had retreated to the locker room and adjourned to the weight room, defensive end Simeon Rice continued to work, running sprints around the perimeter of the south practice field.
Rice began his post-practice regimen by working on his one-on-one pass-rush moves against practice-squad offensive lineman Cliff Washburn, with defensive line coach Jacob Burney watching and offering guidance nearby. After nearly 10 minutes of that work while his teammates ambled towards the headquarters buidling, Rice began to run.
All that came after two hours of work in practice that pleased Head Coach Mike Shanahan.
“He did well,” Shanahan said, joking that Rice had 18 sacks during the afternoon session. “It’s going to take him a while to get used to our defense and feel comfortable with the system. He’s working right now to get some pass-rushing techniques in and get a little extra work.”
Shanahan expects that Rice will be able to play “15-20 plays” on Sunday, “but I’m not really sure yet until he actually practices and we get him in for a couple of days. We’ll have to wait and see.”
“We’ll soon find out,” Rice said. “Walking around the street, I feel fantastic. This calls upon a little more of an intense situation. For myself, I think I’m okay, I think I’m adequate to play, but we’ll soon find out.”
Shanahan also noted that Rice’s shoulder “was in pretty good shape.”
And even though Rice admitted Wednesday that “when I came into the league I wasn’t as damaged as I am at this point,” his arrival in Denver felt more like a dawn than a part of the sunset.
“It’s a shot in the arm — a B-12 shot,” he said. “It’s good for me. I feel like a rookie again.”
PRACTICE INJURY REPORT: Four players did not take part in Wednesday’s practice — guard Ben Hamilton (concussion), offensive tackle Ryan Harris (back), defensive tackle Sam Adams (team decision) and cornerback Karl Paymah (concussion). Tight end Stephen Alexander’s participation was limited, while offensive tackle Adam Meadows made it through the full session. For the Bills, the only two players not to practice Wednesday were defensive end Ryan Denney (foot) and linebacker Keith Ellison (ankle).
Tags: Mike Shanahan, Simeon Rice
Pumped up Big Time….West Coast
That’s good to see that he was putting extra work in. It would have been even better to see Moss, and Crowder out there with him, too! As much work as Rice needs to get back into shape, they need double to get up to speed! The season depends on how fast they grow up. Extra practice reps can only help them and ultimately, the team! How did the 1st team offense and defense look, Mason? Was B-Marsh running with the 1st team offense? Did DJ Williams look more comfortable as the new leader of the front 7?
dr_broncos22:
I don’t know how the first-team offense and defense looked, because I won’t be able to see a full practice for the remainder of the regular season. The practices are closed to those of us in the laptop-and-mic set after the first 10-20 minutes. We do receive injury reports sometime after the practices, the details of which we pass along.
Man that guy looks good in Orange and Blue! Can’t wait to see him in action, hopefully this Sunday. LET’S GET IT ON!!!!!!!!
Hi AndewMason. Help me out please? In the Denver Bronco’s Website Article, after Shanny said Rice’s shoulder looked pretty good. Rice admitted that he was “damaged”….what’s up? Did I read that right or wrong? Thanks man!
HOGblog:
Rice was referring to himself in general, not specifically his shoulder, as “damaged.” The full quote is: “When I came into the league I wasn’t as damaged as I am at this point.” He’s playing hurt, no question — but then again, who isn’t?
Im so excited to have rice on our team..we need him big time, especially after losing ekuban…when rice is up to full speed we are goiong to have a great line, with dumervil and moss coming in on 3rd downs, nice and rested…lets go broncos…thanks for the info andrew..
Everything’s coming together nicely. As is customary with most preseasons, Shanahan’s not tipped his hand. The Bills, in all likelihood have no idea what to expect when we descend upon Orchard Park, N.Y. Thus, this advantages the Broncos. The Bills have some offensive firepower, I know but the Denver defense should be dominant and I expect the Broncos to win in a rout. Consider this to be a prelude to one of the most successful seasons in this illustrious franchise’s history.
hey andrew just wondering…
at the bottom notes it said sam adams wasnt practicing because of a team decision? whats up with that?
thanks
What’s up with the Bronco defense? different people have different stories adds up to different feelings!! I feel slighted when I hear all these sports announcers say good and bad about other teams, but say NOTHING about our beloved Bronco’s! Of course that has been going on for years! I am a Bronco fan for life, just want some positive or negative or something about the Defense. My questions never get answered!!!
Andrew,
Great piece on Simeon yesterday. Not to beat a dead horse,but he doesnt sound nearly as positive as he did during the workout. Given, he was selling himself for a price, but it sounded as if he was ready to go. Now he seems to couch his outlook and enthusiasm and he does so with phrases like “its a process”, “takes time”, “not like riding a bicycle”.
I hope this wasnt JUST a sales job! I know it’s always about the money, but Im wonderig if we got what others really didnt want, or they saw something we didnt?
I’ve been giving John Hadley(St. Louis Post Dispatch) a hard time about prematurely announcing Simeon’s signing with the Rams. I know they wanted him to compliment Leonard Little as a dual outside threat, but now Im beginning to feel like there’s some buyer’s remorse…you know what I mean?
Love the fact that we picked Rice up! Glad to see that we is working and not taking his job lightly! go Broncos!
That HE not we !
Why was it a team decision to keep Sam Adams out of practice?
“It’s a shot in the arm”!!!! Well alrighty then, I (& we) have not seen the “d” in it’s best form. hanny I believe along wih bates are a reg. season contender! pre season is a atribute season, who gonna be faster off the snap count, who’s gonna create the hole for henry. I beleive, like others that the hand has not been tipped for this defense! I can’t beleive that the “D” was that lame! in atribute season! William is a great athlete & shanny is a anal coach! Simeon will do us good & get us @ least 8-10 helmets on the Q.B. (sacks). And Sam Adams won’t be on the bench, sitting a big man thats getting old, genius!! no worries~denver 24-buff~10