Ordinarily a Thursday would see the main site post both a daily notebook and another edition of Broncos Magazine Weekly. However, technical difficulties have prevented this from taking place. To make sure the content at least gets somewhere on the Web, I’m going to cut and paste it here. We apologize for the issues, which are completely beyond our control.
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THURSDAY NOTES
By Christopher Smith
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – Heading into September, few thought the Chargers and Broncos would be playing an October game with five losses between the teams.
The Chargers already surpassed their loss total from last season in the fourth week. With LaDainian Tomlinson, Shawne Merriman and most of last year’s 14-2 team back, many predicted a Super Bowl run for San Diego. And all the moves the Broncos made in the offseason had talk radio shows and message boards full of hopeful excitement.
There’s plenty of time for the excitement to turn into a memorable autumn, but this game is a pivotal matchup for two teams that hold themselves to high standards.
While there’s no such thing as a must-win at this point, each game does not count the same. A win over the Chargers would, as John Lynch explains, count double.
“I think it’s early to be talking about must-wins, but bottom line is we’re 2-2 and a lot of things feel like they’re not going the way we want. But we’re still on top of the division, and any time you have a division game as we’ve said often, it counts double,” Lynch said. “(We can) put ourselves up a game and put the Chargers down a game, and I’m sure they’re thinking the same way.”
The Broncos would rather be a game up on the Chargers than a game down, but San Diego’s struggles are problematic for some players because the law of averages says their downslide won’t last forever.
“I think everyone is a bit surprised. They didn’t lose a lot of guys and obviously some coaches left and made a few changes in that area, but you still have the players on the field and I’m sure they will come together here,” Jay Cutler said. “They’ve got entirely too much talent and they know how to win, from last year, obviously. They are going to put it together soon enough.
“They understand that there is a lot of football left. Obviously, they want to get back into the conference race. They are going to come out and I’m sure they will give us everything they’ve got.”
“Any time you play a team in the AFC West, obviously it’s a big game. We know how important they are, if you win your division, you’re guaranteed a home playoff spot,” Head Coach Mike Shanahan said. “That’s obviously the first thing you talk about as a team. We understand how important these AFC West games are — especially in our backyard. It’s a very important game.”
To turn that important game into an important win, Cutler realizes improvements are necessary.
“Outside the locker room I think everybody’s kind of freaking out a little bit and getting excited, but we have a lot of games left. We have to execute, offensively, defensively and special teams; we have to put it all together,” Cutler said.
“Every time the Broncos don’t win, people freak out, so we’re not that excited about it. We’re still working hard and we think we have a good football team. It’s not a lack of effort. The guys are flying around and we’re making plays, just not enough of them.”
Dre’ Bly, known for keeping an even keel, had a different take on the Broncos and Chargers’ 3-5 combined record. He refused to diagnose the Chargers’ struggles or guess whether or not they would put it together, choosing to place the responsibility for Sunday’s game with the Broncos.
“You know what, it’s not about them. It’s about us. We’re trying to get our confidence at a high where we feel like whatever we do, we’re unstoppable. Every week, the opposition possesses some capabilities and they’re going to have some guys that can make plays,” Bly said.
“They’ve been struggling, but I’m not worried about the fact that they’re 1-3 or if they were 4-0, it would still be a big challenge for us. Like I said, it ain’t about who we play, it’s about us as a team.”
INJURY REPORT: Lynch has missed just six games since 1996, and he doesn’t plan on making it seven this weekend. He was limited in practice Wednesday and passed his personal litmus test when he got out of bed Thursday morning.
“Once you go back on the field after an injury – I know I felt good yesterday, but then you always want to see how you’re going to respond the next day, and I woke up feeling great, so I think I’m good to go,” Lynch said.
Lynch particpated in all of Thursday’s practice.
The same could not be said for Javon Walker and Travis Henry, who did not participate in practice with knee injuries. Walker was inactive for Sunday’s game against the Colts. Their status against the Chargers has not been determined.
“(Henry’s) MRI was negative; he’s just a little bit sore right now. He’ll be day-by-day but he won’t practice today,” Shanahan said Wednesday.
Safety Hamza Abdullah is still out with his hip injury. Fullback Paul Smith (neck) also did not participate.
BRONCOS MAGAZINE WEEKLY: CHECKMATE
By Charlie O’Brien
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – Vicious trash-talking, intense scrutiny over each and every move, and a competitive air surrounding the game so thick you could cut it with a knife.
Is this the Broncos’ latest regular-season tilt against another NFL foe? Try cornerback Dre’ Bly and linebacker Ian Gold engaged in a chess match in the Dove Valley locker room.
While many coaches and players refer to NFL games as chess matches, some of the Broncos enjoy playing actual chess matches in their spare time.
For those used to seeing these guys sprint around the field at full speed, blasting each other with pads cracking and helmets smacking, it can be a little unusual watching them partake in a slightly more gentlemanly form of competition.
And besides, how often do you see a 6-foot-5, 305-pound lineman sitting intently over a wooden board, moving small plastic pieces around with the utmost intensity, and getting overly excited because he snatched his opponent’s queen or put him in checkmate for the third game in a row?
But this is a common scene in the Broncos locker room. Nearly every day, you’ll find a handful of players gathered around a table, some playing other games such as dominos or checkers, but the main event is always the chess match.
Although the current form of chess emerged in the second half of the 15th century, Bly said he takes credit for bringing the game into the Broncos’ locker room.
“We played in Detroit,” Bly said. “It just brings some locker room entertainment. Chess wasn’t something normally guys do, but I guess I started that.”
Bly is one of the more regular combatants, usually squaring off against Gold. Two of the more outspoken characters on the team, it’s always entertaining watching these two go head-to-head.
One one occasion, Gold won a particularly intense match over Bly, and despite Bly’s best efforts to explain the loss to anyone who would listen, each excuse he could muster was met with a loud, “Shut up!” from Gold. It was all in good fun, but for nearly 10 minutes, every word out of Bly’s mouth was met with a shout from Gold.
Why do these multi-millionaires get so hyped up over a simple game of chess? It’s easy, according to Bly: they are hard-wired to be competitive about everything.
“Us being competitors, us competing out here for a living, it’s another form of competing and doing what we do for a living, but just taking it to the locker room,” Bly said.
Tackle {player text=’Cliff Washburn’ id=7387} learned the game from a cousin 10 years ago, and he concurred with Bly’s explanation for the allure of the game.
“I like it. It’s a challenge and there’s guys around that will actually play, so that makes it more fun,” Washburn said. “You’re competing, and we’re athletes (so) we always like to compete.”
Gold said that while the matches were intense, they were a way for him to let off some competitive steam.
“This is a more subtle and more non-violent way to get that competitive nature out,” Gold said. “You’ve got to have other things you do when you get off the football field, other avenues to let that competitiveness out. This is definitely one of them for me.”
But competition aside, the players said they also enjoy the intellectual side of the game, as the planning and strategy required to win in chess mirrored some of the nuances of their sport.
“It’s just challenging, man,” Bly said. “The strategies, it relates to football, strategizing and trying to take down your opponent, trying to get his king. It’s competitive, it makes you think and it makes you study. It’s challenging and it’s fun.”
Washburn agreed with the football comparison and added that he enjoyed the unpredictability of the game.
“It challenges you to think, maybe unlike some other games,” Washburn said. “Maybe it’s more like football, because you’ve got different pieces, and each one has its own individual moves and there’s a lot of different combinations that can come about from that. Because of that, each game is different and it’s unpredictable. It’s always new every time you play.”
Gold said he relished the opportunity chess provides him to sharpen his mind in his otherwise physically-dominated lifestyle.
“It’s a thinking man’s game. It allows us to stimulate our minds intellectually,” Gold said. “We really don’t get to sharpen that part of our minds. We go out and play football, and yeah there’s some thinking involved, but it’s really kind of a run-and-hit game. We don’t get to really stimulate our minds intellectually as far as just thinking and things of that nature.”
But while the players’ reasons for loving chess vary, one commonality is each player’s response when you ask him who the best chess player on the team is.
“Oh, me, by far,” Bly said. “My experience, my determination, my competitiveness — I’m the best. I’ve beaten everybody numerous times, more than they’ve beat me. By far, it isn’t even close.”
But Washburn felt differently.
“Me. I just am,” Washburn said. “I wouldn’t even go with the win-loss record. If we had a tournament, that’s when you really show. Because when you play around here, sometimes you’re just like, ‘Let me see how this’ll work, throw this out here, whatever.’ But when it’s serious business, I’ve got to be the best.”
Gold’s answer to the question was based on his most recent matches rather than any overall performance.
“Oh, I know Dre’ said (he was the best), but he’s lost twice to me today,” Gold said on Thursday. “I don’t know if that means anything, but today, the best is whoever won last. At this point in time, I’m two up on him.”
Washburn’s assessment of his own talent may hold a little more weight, however, as his initial prowess over his teammates earned him a chess-related nickname: “Checkmate.”
“(They call me that because) as we first started playing, they heard me say that a lot,” Washburn said. “I was winning, but they’ve gotten better. I always say it’s not good to win every game, because then people get sad and depressed and they don’t want to play anymore. But they’ve won a few more games now.”
Regardless of who’s winning, Bly said he didn’t see the chess battles ending any time soon.
“It’s fun, and we go at it every day,” Bly said. “Every little break we get we’re playing chess. It’s fun, it’s something we look forward to.”
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Tags: Cliff Washburn, Dre Bly, Ian Gold, Jay Cutler, John Lynch, Mike Shanahan, San Diego Chargers
Travis Henry is a disgrace; he lacks common sense and basic human decency. After I got over the disgust of his fathering 9 children with numerous women I had to hear that this scum bag wasn’t helping support them. Then I wake up this morning to hear that he can’t quit smoking pot apparently because, yes, he is THAT much of a loser. ‘Here’s 12 million dollar Travis, just don’t smoke pot’. ‘DEE DEE DEEEEE’.
I concur. If he did keep smoking pot after he became a bronco, I say we’re better off without him. That kind of deal will kill a team. Just as the Dolphins. Better to cut him loose now, and worry about replacing him later.
Very sad news about henry , all the money invested have vanished in the air , i think Selvin young can be efficient replacing him but all this money could have been better invested in run stopping defenders , for example !!
I just want to know is he going to play sunday? Sounds like he needs a dad to baby sit him.
Travis what a waste, not only to himself but most of all the Broncos.What person in there right mind would want either him or Ricky Williams?
I say I’d want Ricky Williams, we already lost with travis henry, if we can get some of that money back we should go and take a chance with ricky… but the henry thing is just soo pathetic.
Ricky Williams??? Are you kidding, we’d be in the same boat.
Don’t forget, Henry’s contract had a provision in it about him repeating the substance abuse. The broncos were smart to put that in. If he is found guilty, the broncos get the majority of the signing bonus and everything back.
I think Ricky is actually a much smarter person. He is very polite and soft spoken but would always seem to know what he was trying to say and seemed very knowledgable the few times he was on fox nfl sunday and the likes. All the interviews I had seen with travis Henry always seemed like he was really slow abd kind of spaced out.. he didn’t seem to have all his marbles.. I’d take a shot with ricky using henrys money.
The fact that it is ok for teams and their doctors to prescribe every kind of painkiller under the sun to players until they are physically ADDICTED (ie Favre) and the league has no problem with that, is hypocracy. There are no performance enhancing benefits of marijuana (besides making bad tv shows seem funnier than they really are) so I see no reason why the NFL even tests for it. I am not condoning Henry being a moron. Plain and simple, he has a job that doesn’t allow smoking pot. If I fail a drug test where I work, I get fired. No questions, no appeals, I am fired….and I don’t make millions of dollars at my job!!! Consequentially, I don’t smoke pot! These guys need to grow up!! Yeah it may be retarded that pot is illegal, but the law is the law. That joint he smoked is going to end up costing him MILLIONS in salary and bonuses when we cut his ass. I don’t know about you guys, but I have never had any pot that was worth that kind of money. He must have a REALLY good hookup, or he is a f-ing idiot…..probably the latter…..
How smart can Ricky be after how many suspensions for the same thing?? Call it what you want, but they’re addicts. Bringing in another pothead will just mean we have to find someone else the next month when he gets busted again.
Either rely on the young talent, or find a decent free agent somewhere, but don’t repeat the same mistake twice.
Hold your horses…
…how quick it seems most of you are to pass judgement. Who cares that he’s not the poster boy for fidelity & fatherhood. The man is a member of your team. Oh wait, you all don’t mind him leading the league in yardage totals so long as his dirty laundry doesn’t wind up on your front lawn.
It’s ok for Romanowski & Alzado to juice it up as long as they kick ass and take names FOR the Broncos, right? Truth is, if he failed the tests for a 2nd time, he’s getting what he deserves. But what if it turns out to be an error? Can you go back on your judgement? How dumb would you feel if he isn’t suspended.
Some of you guys need to wake up from whatever fantasy world you THINK you live in and realize that in this place called REALITY, people make mistakes. I have no problem with people giving Henry a hard time for his substance abuse problems, but BE CONSISTENT.
If you were chiding Denver’s front office (Shanahan specifically) from DAY ONE of Henry’s signing, because of his character issues, by all means, please, TALK ALL YOU WANT. Fact is, i’m sure none of you guys were even aware of those issues, let alone talking about them. I envision dreams of 1,700+ dancing in your heads upon first hearing of his contract with our team. Funnier still, is how hard the NFL comes down on players who smoke weed. Correct me if i’m wrong, but isn’t Marijuana supposed to make you think & move a few fractions of a second slower? That would mean the guy is on the brink of a full year’s suspension for using PERFORMANCE DE-ENHANCER’S. That is mighty rich.
Now I don’t know about all of the people on here, but I cant say I am a saint. I have made some mistakes, but at the same time it is disappointing to hear we may be without the league’s leading rusher. There is one question that I thought of when I read it though. Pot is one of those drugs that people use to ass satisfaction to an otherwise disappointing life, right I mean at least everyone I know that dose smoke has really lame lives and would otherwise be miserable. Now why would someone who is doing what they have wanted to do for his whole life be unhappy enough to use pot?
Back to the actual post: I really enjoyed this post and it’s hard to tell if it’s a bad thing or a good thing. I mean Ian said he can get some of his competitive nature out, but if football was his only way to release that competition wouldn’t he spend more time thriving to do better? I mean bringing some tradition from Detroit isn’t exactly the best way to do things. Now if you told me the Colts were playing chess in the locker room I would be happy to hear it, but it’s not a great team doing it, it’s the Lions… Maybe it’s hindering the team. I am sure that’s a long shot but I am very superstitious so every little thing matters to me, and it dose not really seem to make since. The team shouldn’t need to be challenged intellectually if football isn’t doing it think harder, challenge yourself on how to get better and get in the O’s mind. I mean you want to be challenged intellectually think of the physics involved in the game that way the O doesn’t catch you over perusing the runner. If you want to feel good about winning a game win on Sunday outplay them in every aspect of the game, don’t let some board game become the only satisfaction you feel from winning. I mean come on guys you’re a great team. Maybe some people don’t know it yet. You play for Denver and we aren’t exactly liked by the rest of the NFL. Proof and point go to NFL.COM and count how many times every team is on their picture: Denver is on their picture board the least and when we are its not us doing something good it’s someone doing something good against us. This shouldn’t discourage our players if anything it should put a nice sized, healthy chip on our shoulder to go out there and earn respect…
Travis Henry is part of what has been happening to the social fabric of our country.He obviously has no respect for being Responsible for his “fathering” actions,He obviously has no respect for Being responsible to the Team with the Pot.This guy should not be rewarded for being a irresponsible adult. He is what he is,cut him loose. Management if they knew of his Fathering actions should have Known what kind of a irresponsible jerk he was and never should have wasted resources on him.I am dissapointed in Management(coaches).
Will it hurt to loose Henry?
Maybe a little, but this is the beauty of a Shannahan team. We have at least 2, if not 3, other backs that can post 100 yards per game.
I don’t care what team we play, that will wear a defense out.
Now our defense………
Hey flyeaglefly,
I can’t agree with you more. I’m sick of people saying how “safe” pot is, or its better than alcohol. Society looks the other way on this crap.
It’s unacceptable.
Bill Simmons, from Espn’s new Power Ranking puts Denver at 23, HILARIOUS…Jake at the helm never saw anything lower than top 10
23. Denver
The Broncos are two plays away from being 0-4 right now, with a monster schedule coming up — home games against Pittsburgh, Tennessee and Green Bay, road games at Kansas City, Detroit, Chicago, Oakland and Houston, and a home-and-home against San Diego — and if that’s not enough, they were just blown off the local sports map by the Rockies and might have lost their big-money halfback for the next 12 months. The good news is Shanahan made a fork move at a team breakfast this week just by staring at it.
(Random question on the Travis Henry thing: I thought pot killed sperm cells? How many kids would this guy have sired if he wasn’t a fan of the Mary Jane? Twenty? Thirty? And did you ever think the same person could potentially shatter Shawn Kemp’s fertility records and Ricky Williams’ drug test records? Put it this way: You are making a STRONG statement when you purchase a Henry jersey right now. You’re basically saying, “I love pot, I love sex, and your dad would have a heart attack if he knew I was dating you.”)
The funny thing is you people sit here and expect someone in the entertainment business (football, that’s what it is) to be perfect. At the same time you people listen to music, and 99% of all artists do some sort of drug. So let me ask you this Letplummer play if you buy a Richard Gere movie dose that mean you like to stick hamsters up well uhh you know? How about people who listen to Jon cash, or Elvis Priestly or any modern rock are they into that white stuff that goes up your nose? What about Plummer do you have one of his Jerseys? Dose that means you like to get in fights with people you get in car accidents with, or whatever it was that happened. What about when all of America fell in love with the 5 time Olympic gold medalist, is it an assumption that all America love’s steroids? How about people that watched Herby fully loaded, do they like to starve themselves while drinking and driving and doing all the drugs under the sun? The list is endless
This is the logic that you are using, and you people are pathetic because you sit here and support worse things in the world just by paying your taxes. Now you going to sit here and hound on a guy because he smoked a little pot (maybe) I bet at least 95% of you tried it at some point in your life. So stop being so closed minded and take it for what it is: we might loose a huge contributor to a team that we love. Oh and please use your brain before posting another comment about how horrible he is.
In a major blow to proponents of medicinal marijuana use, Travis Henry proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that pot is NOT a reliable method of birth control. Brilliant, Trav. Just brilliant.
BTW…where can I get my LETPLUMMERPLAY t-shirt that lets everyone know I just love to beat a dead horse?
“Now you going to sit here and hound on a guy because he smoked a little pot (maybe) I bet at least 95% of you tried it at some point in your life. ”
I tried it, but that was before I had anything to lose if I were caught. Now I have much less than an NFL sized contract and the Trust and Respect of a team and thousands of fans to lose, but I’m still smart enough not to do it anymore. What a stupid, stupid reason to lose so much. It’s ridiculous that you’re trying to defend his actions just because “other people smoke pot.”
I don’t think you get my point: it is hard to put someone at a higher standard than everyone else especially someone in the entertainment business.
A higher standard????????
If I get paid a few million in signing bonuses, and then a few more million in salary, and all my employer asked was to show up, do my job and not smoke pot???
I wish I had that life style. I wouldn’t be entertaining myself by shoveling some half-witted banter back and forth on a blog that about 12 people see
Broncos, PU……………..Go Rockies.
The Travis Henry thing is dumb, case close. Now I wanna vent, becuz we have other problems that makes you wonder if the decision makers for the Broncos were puffin da magic dragon when we made these deals… I like Bly but he was not worth the trade bait and money we paid him, ESPECIALLY based on da way were using him, we shoulda let Fowworth get his shot. Why do we continue to plug in these old farts that no one else wants and give them guaranteed contacts and now they are not even playing(Hot 97)? Our defensive line is suspect all the way across, and we did not sufficiently find linebacker replacements. I miss Al Wilson, so what do we do? We slide D.J over and get a practice squad player to take his place? We continue to play 7-8 yards off receivers on 3rd and 5 or less allowing them to run free into their routes and keep our players on da field longer than neccessary. And we have been runnin dat brilliant strategy for years! Go Selvin Young. We stink all over, our offensive play calling is horrendous and this goes back years, (sorry Snake I never thought you were the problem) and now were gonna put Cutler in da same positions? Our problem is da Head Coach, yeah I said it. I have been a fan for years, thru da 42-10 drubbin, and the 55-10 thrashin and I am a true fan. I believe this coachin genius thing has gone to his head or he is chillin with Travis puffin da dragon.
P.S. Instead of giving “Hot 97″ a 3 million one year guaranteed contract, we shoulda got da Tank(yeah we all deserve anutha chance, just ask YOUR Presidentof these United States) for the value price of less than 2 million for two years. Jerry Jones looks like da real genius.
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