With a little less than three weeks remaining in Pro Bowl fan voting, Broncos fans are making their voices heard.
Five Broncos are among the top five vote-getters at their respective positions in the AFC — cornerback Champ Bailey, punter Britton Colquitt, safety Brian Dawkins, linebacker Von Miller and quarterback Tim Tebow.
Four of those five players were among the top five in mid-November, and Bailey has since joined that list.
It would mark the first Pro Bowl selection for Colquitt, Miller and Tebow, the ninth trip for Dawkins and the 11th for Bailey.
Voting is still open, and will end on Dec. 19 at the conclusion of the Monday Night Football matchup between the Steelers and 49ers.
The teams will be announced at 5 p.m. MST on a special NFL Total Access 2012 Pro Bowl Selection Show on NFL Network.
The game will be played on Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012.
PREPARING FOR PONDER
In Minnesota, Christian Ponder stepped in under center in Week 7 and has led the Vikings to one of their two wins on the season.
During that stretch, the rookie signal caller has thrown for 1,042 yards, six touchdowns and six interceptions, running for 132 yards and fumbling three times.
Dawkins said he has been impressed with what the young quarterback has been able to do.
“He’s doing a good job from what I can see,” Dawkins said. “They’ve lost some close games, and they’ve been in the games. He’s absolutely mobile. You can kind of see him pull away from guys when he tucks the ball and decides to run with it. Then, he has the mobility to get outside the pocket and still put the ball on the money down the field. He’s doing some good things that I can see on film.”
Two weeks ago in a close loss against Oakland, Ponder ran for 71 yards in addition to his 211 yards passing. Defensive Coordinator Dennis Allen said that double-threat can cause problems for a defense.
“I think he’s athletic, obviously,” Allen said. “He can really scramble around, extend the play, and that’s something we have to really contend with. I think he really throws the ball pretty well. I’ve been really impressed with this guy. I think he’s going to be an exceptional quarterback.”
BATTLE IN THE TRENCHES
One of the biggest challenges for the Broncos offense on Sunday will be contending with defensive end Jared Allen.
The three-time Pro Bowler ranks second in the NFL with 13.5 sacks — three ahead of the Broncos’ rookie pass-rusher, Von Miller.
Allen typically lines up on the right side of the defense, meaning he will match up with left tackle Ryan Clady, who Offensive Coordinator Mike McCoy said will be up for the challenge.
“We rely on him to do it all,” McCoy said of the 2009 Pro Bowler. “I’ve got no fear at all putting him one-on-one against the best guy we play each week. I’ve got a lot of confidence in Ryan Clady, as a staff we do, as an organization (we do). He’s an outstanding left tackle, and he’s exactly what you want.”
Still, the team won’t necessarily leave Clady on an island.
“There are plenty of times where we’re going to help him, because you want to do that,” he continued. “You want that guy to know that there is going to be a presence, [that] he’s going to be chipped, or that somebody’s going to be there.”
“Then again, I have a lot of confidence in Ryan to say, ‘Hey, if there are certain plays I need you, we’re going to count on you. We’ll single you up,’ and I have no questions at all that he’s going to win.”
As for McCoy, he’s excited to watch the matchup unfold.
“It’s going to be a great game for both of them,” he said. “They’re both outstanding players, Pro Bowl-caliber players. They play extremely hard every play. It’ll be a battle every play.”
Below are photos from Thursday’s practice, which was moved indoors due to plenty of snowfall in Denver.
-Gray Caldwell
Tags: Brian Dawkins, Britton Colquitt, Champ Bailey, Christian Ponder, Jared Allen, Minnesota Vikings, Pro Bowl, Ryan Clady, Tim Tebow, Von Miller, Week 13
Yeah, a Clady/Jared Allen match up it doesn’t get much better than that.
I have voted 4 times for all the broncos on the pro bowl ballot, and I’m going to do so again tonight.
Julius Thomas still with the do not hit jersey on, is he ever gonna be full strength this year?
That’s exactly why those fans votes only count for a third, LOL.
we are one point underdogs going into minnesota.
Bay,
Watching ESPN this evening I heard them talking that practicing in pads is not allowed from now through the end of the season. I that true?
Unbelievable we’re not favorite, it’s even up to 1.5 now.
Very well could be, there was a very limited amount of pads practices allowed all season under the new cba, that’s what the players fought for.
I don’t mind being an underdog though. I know minn will be an unusually tough game considering they only have 2 losses. We need to contain percy on special teams.
This would contradict ESPN info however it was written late July, maybe there was some tweaking to it:
During the regular season, there can be just 14 padded practices for the entirety of the season, 11 of those sessions must be held in the first 11 weeks, and teams can hold no more than two padded practices per week. One padded practice per week is allowed during the playoffs, and all padded practices are limited to three hours max.
My fault im kinda blazed lol@me haha I mean 2 wins.
Sounds like there should be 3 left if teams didn’t already use 14.
Broncos 20
Vikings 16
Thanks. Just wondering. They also said McNabb waived.
Two offensive starters returned to practice today for the Broncos, but star rookie linebacker Von Miller remains out while recovering from thumb surgery.
Running back Willis McGahee and wide receiver Eddie Royal joined teammates for practice in the South Suburban Sports Dome, where practice was moved because of heavy snow. McGahee missed Wednesday’s practice with an illness, while Royal was held out with a toe injury.
McGahee is on track to play Sunday in Minnesota, while Royal will likely remain questionable up until game time.
Miller will continue to be treated as “day to day,” but the more practice time he misses, the less likely he is to play against the Vikings.
Seems as if AP is not ruled out as previously reported:
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.—Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson is still not cleared to practice, but he says he hopes to play against Denver this weekend.
Peterson missed Minnesota’s last game because of a sprained left ankle. He said Thursday that he is feeling better and that the soreness is “winding down,” but that he’s “just taking it slow right now.” He said he planned to try doing some cutting on his own on the side to test his ankle.
Peterson’s status for Sunday’s game against the Broncos likely won’t be determined until shortly before kickoff.
Might be a game time decision for Miller too so by Saturday pm we may not have that info for those waiting to make their picks, oh well….
I’m way behind the times here, but I would like to respond from something a few blogs back.
I was born in 1981, so obviously I didn’t see the ’77 bronco mania. What I did see (being as how I was introduced to football in Durango, Co in the late 80′s) was the broncos in Elway’s prime.
Prior to 2009, I had never seen the broncos suck. Heck, even after the Elway era, Shanny always had us in playoff contention and either a deep run in the playoffs or a superbowl appearance was the perennial expectation.
This 4-12 stuff? So now we are like a forlorn empire.
But Lo, A new FO, a qb who scrambled for a 24 yard game winning TD on a broken leg in highschool, Von Doom and the resurgence of the Orange Crush, guys like Bailey and Dawkins that deserve it, and all of that against a glut of talking heads and fans alike who all say it can’t be done (I’m looking at you, Meril Hoge).
I’m sure it would be different, but I think a run to the SB would be at least as legendary if they can do that this year. Just for different reasons, and for a different generation.
So, Today I shaved my Beard… It’s been growing since Oct 16 of 2010…
I have not cut my hair since Nov 8, 2008 as a result of us blowing a 3 game lead and losing the division with 3 games to play… I will not cut my hair until the Broncos win a divional playoff game! You would laugh if you could see the before/after pictures!
I only mention this because this may be the year I get to cut my hair!!! I’m so excited for the last 5 games of the year!
The Vikes won’t be push overs, especially if AP goes… I read today he is running and the pain is tolerable… the article speculated he may play… They can rush the passer, and run the ball so I don’t expect a shootout… Colquitt will play a big part this week and with the Vikes having a new Long Snapper we may be the beneficiaries of a special teams mishap!
Lloyd opening up about the QQ and basically saying what I kept saying all along, get rid of Orton and play Tebow to find out what we got:
According to Matt Maiocco of CSNBayArea.com, Lloyd said he wished the team had started 2011 with clarity at quarterback. Indeed, it was Lloyd who coined the term “The Tebow Thing” during an interview with Sports Illustrated during training camp.
“This is what I was talking about in the summertime when (Kyle) Orton was on the trading block,” Lloyd told the Bay Area reporters. “Hey, trade him now so we can go into the Tebow era. Let’s get it over with and see if he’s got it. Let’s build the offense around him. Let’s do that. But don’t have a starting quarterback and run an offense and the anticipation for Tim to play be so powerful that it just distracts the team. … They did it. They structured the offense around him and they’re having success with it. It’s good for them. Hopefully, they get the desired result and they make a push and get into the playoffs and it’ll work out.”
Lloyd went on to say that he wasn’t surprised the Broncos were winning with Tebow. The Broncos are 5-1 in Tebow’s starts, all after Lloyd was traded.
“Not at all. That’s what I saying back in the summertime. Just gives us something to believe in. All I wanted in the summertime was some clarity,” Lloyd said, per CSNBayArea.com. Make it clear who the quarterback is going to be, and then we can buy into it. It doesn’t matter what the offense is. It doesn’t matter what you do. We’re the best athletes in the world at what we do. It doesn’t matter what we do, as long as we believe in it and we’re all executing it, it’ll work. And that’s the never-ending quest for every team. Just believe in what we’re trying to show you and it’ll work. So, no, I’m not surprised at all.”
Always nice to see a player telling it like it is, or like it was in this case, the QQ was very poorly handled, but luckily the organization has caught on but Lloyd is now gone.
I heard talk that they are trying to come up with something to protect that thumb. Miller said he is going to play. If those trainers/medical staff don’t come up with a solution to protect that thunb, Miller may get his feelings hurt. I imagine if the medical folks say he doesn’t play, then he doesn’t play.
Jebus man! When they win the divisional playoff round DO NOT cut your hair. You will be like broncos samsonite. I mean, if you cut it and they lose the next game, what then?
What if you cute it just before they play the SB and the lose? What if they win the sb, you cut it, and then they don’t repeat?
For Goodness sakes man. Never cut your hair again. It is working!!
What about my toe nails? Haven’t clipped them for a month and a half now.
I sure wish they would have listened back before the season started. I bet they wish thye same thing now too.
If I were the Vikes owner I would have AP on a luxurious Island in the bahamas until training camps begin. You are 2-9. All you are gonna get from running AP now is a slightly shortened career.
Save the tread on those tires for when You have something to play for.
Bay, you don’t need shoes to surf and post on all these other teams websites (hahaha…lol)!
Yeah, in this case some of us knew better than the organization, that’s for certain, better late than never, the Denver Broncos motto, but it seems that now they have put things in a higher gear, catching on as they go, not weeks or months down the line, finally.
When we win the Divional Round of the playoffs this year I will go to the Children’s Hospital in Denver and let a child shave my head… When I was a baby I spent about 4 months in there and they saved me so I feel like it would be a fun thing to do for someone…
I promise I won’t cut it till the playoff run ends whatever year it is… I have the same feelings about it you do!
I know one thing. If I was TT and the team wins the division, I believe I would gather all the guys and go pay Mr. Hodge a visit on one of his talk shows. Just walk right in with my team and welcome him to get snippy about us winning the division. I would rob someplace to pay to see his face drop if we did that. Talking about drinking from the kool-aid fountain. Hodge would be drowning in it!
@ Bay, Yeah, there was a lot of hoopla about Lloyd “dissing” tebow after he was traded, but that was nonsense.
I too wish the broncos had done whatever was necessary to deal Orton in the offseason and just started Tebow from the beginning. That was the expectation at the time.
Lloyd was just about the biggest supporter of Tebow in the off-season. I miss Lloyd. I think he would be helping us a lot right now. But w/e.
lol
BT when I moved back to FL from SC in hte late 70′s I could sit on my hair and had to braid my beard to ride nmy bike. When I got my job with law enforcement down here, I had to get it cut and shaved off, so I went to the barber and had him take my hair off so I could sent it to help cancer pts. I had to go to 3 different cities around here to find somebody that knew what and how to do that. I just couldn’t get all that hair cfut off and thrown away. I wanted something good to come of it so I donated it for wigs.
You know why dumb Hoge has a job it’s because he is so contoversial everyone hates him and hangs onto to his every word, ESPN loves it, people watch the network just to talk about the idiot. STOP FEEDING THE MONSTER, tune him off when he comes on and no one will talk about him and he’ll eventually be gone. I personally don’t even know much about what he says because once I find out someone is irrelevant in what they do I turn him off, gigantic waste of time. But most of the fans just love that stuff, like watching a train wreck and can’t take their eyes of it. The anti Hoge fans are basically paying his salary. Think about that for a minute.
That story sounds worse than my toe nails, LOL, just kidding nice gesture of you weatherman, an old hippie hey.
Oh that is very true Bay. Just like all the other tabloids and stuff.
Very old, but did spend my day on the back of a hog or two.
To be honest the only reason I know who hoge is, is because he tweeted “it’s a joke to think Tebow could win in the nfl.”
I literally know nothing else about him. But boy! Right now, doesn’t that seem like the dumbest proclamation ever?
One that gets you tons of listeners…
If Hodge opens his mouth, whatever comes out of it is dumb.
I got to hit the sack folks. Have a good evening.
ESPN is in a business just like any one else, they love to shock people to buld viewership, pretty much like tabloids as weatherman accurately said.
We definitely got us a factor back in WillieMac
Ball security, field position, and a stingy defense go a long way.
IMO, this is how they should use Tebow’s running from now on. First, no more designed QB gut runs on 3 and long. Second, keep the run option going in such a way as to be a little unpredictable. Third, use the QB scramble as an upgrade for the throw away. Call a pass play, and if it doesn’t work out, where most QBs would just throw it to the stands, have Tebow go ahead and do what he does for a 5-40 yard gain.
build…
Take it easy big man.
So far 33 pick us to win and zero to lose.
I won’t even tell you what that has meant in the past….
this is really our first and perhaps only trap game of the season.
but since this year our team is a grinding, punch-you-in-the-mouth type team, the trap game will not catch us.
I totally agree this will be a unusually tough game. We need to stop PERCY.
Long time reader – second time posting something…
I just finished watched the press conferences for McCoy and Allen… I have never seen a team so committed to the same message – being “We’ll do whatever it takes to win.” I’ve heard Tebow say it, Fox say it, Allen, McCoy, McGahee, Royal, Decker, Dawk, and Champ (I think Elway has said it too). This team is a true TEAM.
It’s cliched… but a champion team will always beat a team of champions…
Go Broncos!!
Hoge is good for one fumble a game on Super Tecmo….
Can you Imagine Von or Tebow for that matter on Tecmo!!! ;o)
Hoge is also a bitter man… as the Steelers were great before him, and great after him… Typical talking head!!! I can’t wait to hear is “I’m finally eating my words speach!”
speech*