Mason's Morsels

Dove Valley is neither car dealership nor franchise sit-down eatery, so there are no “Employee of the Month” plaques adorning the walls of Broncos headquarters.

If there were, Rod Smith’s name might be the only one on them for the last 14 years.

It’s not that others haven’t worked diligently to ensure Broncos success. It’s not that others haven’t at times provided just a little more on the playing field than the Broncos’ beloved No. 80.

But Smith came to set the example. His perfect attendance for offseason workouts was the stuff of legend. It might take a few years for Smith to become Ring of Fame-eligible, but his name and jersey number might find a home in the team’s strength and conditioning center, thanks to a baker’s dozen years of 100 percent attendance that would often leave rookies and newcomers a tad awestruck.

“Even when he was on the practice squad, you could see the desire and the determination that he had to be good — to be great,” tight end Shannon Sharpe said in 2003. “And he worked every day. There was no job that he wouldn’t do. They put him at wide receiver, he’d take all the reps on scout team and he was always the opposing team’s best receiver, and he got better, and he worked at it.”

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Rod Smith’s hip hasn’t improved in the two months that followed his brief practice-field foray in late October.

It’s actually gotten worse.

“It feels worse than it ever did before I had surgery,” Smith said Friday. “So pretty much it is not healed. It’s not healing at all. I’ve been through different procedures and been up to Vail several times trying to figure out a way to get it right, and it doesn’t feel right. I took the last six weeks off. I really haven’t worked out or anything, and it feels worse. I wake up in the morning, and I can feel it. I sit down, and I can feel it.”

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Injury update from the afternoon practice coming later … for now, here’s what Rod Smith had to say in the locker room today regarding the end of his 2007 season. He declined to talk last Thursday after Head Coach Mike Shanahan announced that the veteran wideout wouldn’t play this year, but made a statement today in front of his locker:

“It’s kind of tough for me right now, knowing last week that I wasn’t going to get to finish the regular season as far as getting a chance to play. I have to be realistic; I took something that was a 12-month injury and tried to make it into eight and a half, nine months. It was a grind, and I was basically tearing up my body trying to do it, and everybody — the staff and everyone — did everything they could to try to help me get back.

“From talking to Mike (Shanahan) yesterday, I still am a part of this football team, no matter what. I’m going to be here every day. He told me I don’t have to go to all the meetings, but as far as knowing the offense and those types of things — which I do — I’m going to be out there at practice. I’m at every practice. I’m going to every football game and trying to facilitate any way I can interpret defenses and stuff like that for our players and let them know about winning football. Somehow we’ve lost sight of how to go out there and collectively win as a group and individually I think every man has looked himself in the eye in the last week and knows what he has to do.

“Like I said, my role is limited, but my heart and my desire to try and win football games is not limited by any means, and I’m going to go out there every day and try to make us better. As far as what happens after this, I’m not worried about it. So as far as next year, I’m not worried about it. I just want to get through this football season and actually get comfortable with my body, because right now I still have discomfort in my hip, so I really want to get comfortable with my body, and, if nothing else, be able to live a normal life, whether I play football again or not.

“But it’s really not about me. That’s what took me so long to talk to you guys. It’s not about me. It’s about us. It’s about our team. It’s about being 3-5 and how we can go and take these next eight weeks and dominate the rest of this football season and find a way to get in the playoffs and do what we started out to do. So that’s my goal. That’s my focus and that’s what I’m dedicated to. So it’s really nothing to do with individual things that are going on in my life. There’s a lot. There’s always been a lot. But I can’t focus on those. I have to focus on trying to help prepare our guys and for us to go out there and be the best we can be.”

Like a category-5 hurricane lingering over 88-degree waters, the storm of injury-related losses that has beset the Broncos continued its unremitting fury Thursday when Jarvis Moss fractured his right fibula and tore ankle ligaments in practice, ending the first-round pick’s season after just eight and a half weeks.

Moss’s injury was compounded by the news that Rod Smith would not be ready to play within the next two weeks, thus going beyond the three-week trial period allowed to physically-unable-to-perform list. He, too, is lost for the remainder of the season.

Moss’ injury was “kind of a freak accident,” Head Coach Mike Shanahan said when he announced the news after practice.

“He’ll have surgery here in the next few days and it will be about a three- or four-month recovery time,” Shanahan said. “It’s very similar to the injury Cecil Sapp had (last December against Seattle), and he came back full speed. It happened in a nine-on-seven drill today.”

As for Smith, the decision came after a week of practice during which the wide receiver’s hip remained “quite sore,” some eight months after the debridement procedure that sidelined him through all of the offseason and training-camp practices, as well as the first seven games of the regular season.

“After seeing the doctor (and) after practicing for about a week, he could see that he’s a little too far away to have a chance to be activated in the next couple of weeks,” Shanahan said. “So, obviously, he won’t be activated in the next two weeks, which means he won’t be activated for this year. We’ll just take some time, see where it’s at at the end of the season and we’ll see exactly where he’s at.”

LYNCH UPDATE: Shanahan said that John Lynch was limited in his on-field practice work Thursday, and that he would have a better idea of his status after Friday’s session.”

When you’re a team captain and you haven’t practiced in nearly 10 months, you get your own cheering section upon your return. Rod Smith’s just happened to be the defensive backfield.

The cornerbacks and safeties froze their own warmups early Wednesday afternoon, turned to the adjacent field, watched as the veteran wide receiver successfully leapt skyward for a pass and promptly broke up in a cacophony of hoots, hollers, and a chant that sounded more like a heartfelt ode from the South Stands than a bunch of teammates clowning around.

“We love Rod! We love Rod!”

Sure, it might have been half-joking, but the underlying sentiment was all heart. The Broncos’ longtime leader was back on the field, and even though he remained a vocal presence in the locker room and on the sidelines throughout his convalescence and rehabilitation from hip surgery, he was nevertheless missed in the practice-time milieu, where his teaching and leadership was typically most evident.

“It’s awesome,” John Lynch said. “He’s one of the great teammates I’ve ever been around. I’m glad he was around and stayed vocal and a leader when he was hurt, because he’s kind of the pulse of this team; the heart and soul, whatever you want to call it.

“It’s a comforting feeling when he’s around, but whenever he’s back on the field — I don’t know whether it’s this week or whenever, that place will erupt, and it’s going to be awesome.”

Smith is still listed on the physically unable to perform list, and the Broncos now have three weeks to decide whether to move him to the 53-man roster or place him on injured reserve, which would end his season.

Those, however, were concerns for future days. For this one, the Broncos were simply giddy to have their captain back.

Somehow, it seems like this day is here a bit too early.

Not because the opponent is the Jacksonville Jaguars; these fellows are overdue for a visit to INVESCO Field at Mile High, having not visited Denver for any reason since Jason Elam’s 63-yard field goal in October 1998. (That was 10 girlfriends ago. Cripes, it’s been a while.)

No, it’s because Terrell Davis is going into the Ring of Fame. Not because he doesn’t deserve to enter in his first year of eligibility; perhaps no one deserves it more. But as I was thinking about Davis’ induction on Friday, I said, “His career should have been winding to a glorious close by now.”

You hate to think about the what-ifs regarding Davis. For Hall of Fame purposes, you can only judge his career around what was. Actual yardage builds résumé not speculative fiction. Nevertheless, it still seems odd that Davis is five years into his retirement from the field, while guys who arrived before him like Tom Nalen and Rod Smith are still with the team, playing and rehabbing on.

Smith, in particular, finds himself in a similar spot as Davis did earlier in the decade. The two have kept in touch during the years that have passed since Davis walked away from the sport, but the one-time teammates seem closer now than they did when both were in the starting lineup.

“I’m kind of in a parallel situation right now, and I’m trying to fight through a lot of things,” Smith said. “You can’t really talk yourself into it; you’ve got to let your body tell you what the truth is. The experience he went through is one for me to go through, as well. I can always call him.”

Smith can … and does.

“We’ve got some business deals together,” Smith said, “but the thing is, I can always go and relate to that guy. You know, there ain’t a lot of guys you can call for advice. He’s one of those guys you can call for anything. He’ll be there for you.”

While Davis’ rehabilitation work didn’t extend his career beyond eight seasons, it did allow him to come back and contribute in 2000 and 2001, although he remained hindered by the knee. It is the fact that Davis did come back to the field which buoys Smith now.

“One thing I did pick up from him is the fact that it ain’t over ’til it’s over,” Smith said. “You’ve got to go out there and grind it out. Your body will let you know, and his body let him know.”

Today, Broncos fans, officials and former teammates will let Davis know just what he means to the organization’s history. It’s just a shame this day comes now, and not several years later after a 13,000-yard career.

The Broncos announced their first round of cuts late Thursday afternoon, but the biggest news of the afternoon came with concurrent word that Rod Smith will start the season on the physically-unable-to-perform list.

Smith, who underwent hip surgery six months ago, has been in rehabilitation ever since. He was seen running following training-camp practices; however, he only began running in late July after being confined to working out in a pool in previous months.

Placement on the PUP list buys him and the Broncos 12 weeks before making a determination whether to move him to the 53-man roster or place him on injured reserve.

A player must remain sidelined as PUP for the first six weeks of the regular season. Smith then is eligible to practice for three weeks before a final decision is made — but the Broncos do not have to make that choice until three weeks after the initial six-week PUP stint concludes.

This means the Broncos actually have until Week 12 to determine whether Smith could play before being faced with the choice of moving him to the 53-man roster or injured reserve.

The latter option, of course, would end his season.

Last year, Domenik Hixon was designated as PUP after a protracted recovery from a fractured metatarsal bone; he would end up practicing for three weeks — as is permitted when placed on the PUP list — before moving to injured reserve.

The cuts were as expected based upon which players were absent from practice Tuesday, as reported earlier this afternoon.

Running back Cedric Cobbs … punter/kickoff specialist Paul Ernster … fullback Troy Fleming … safety Quentin Harris … tight end Teyo Johnson … wide receiver David Kircus … defensive end Kenard Lang … kicker Brandon Pace … wide receiver David Terrell … defensive tackle Demetrin Veal.

The Broncos also announced that Johnson, who played for the Hamburg Sea Devils of NFL Europa this spring, will be placed on injured reserve if he clears waivers. Fellow NFL Europa allocations Doug Neinhuis and Lamont Reid — neither of whom saw a snap of practice time this summer — were placed on the reserve/NFL Europa list for injuries they incurred during their spring overseas. Nienhuis injured his knee, while Reid suffered a pectoral-muscle injury.

As the sun’s presence over Dove Valley began to fade late Tuesday afternoon, a ray of light shone upon the Broncos’ practice fields.

Two rays of light, actually — in the form of Rod Smith and Tony Scheffler running up and down the east practice field as their teammates finished off a post-practice dose of special-teams work.

Both, of course, remain on the physically-unable to perform list, but their jaunts represented tangible progress, and the first public sign of progress in their respective rehabilitation work.

Meanwhile, back on the field, the practice was as much defined by who wasn’t on the field as who was there.

NOTES FROM THE AFTERNOON:

ATTENDANCE REPORT: The shoulder injury Domenik Hixon incurred did indeed keep him out. “Hopefully he can go tomorrow or if not the next couple of days,” Head Coach Mike Shanahan said … Ian Gold’s back spasms sidelined him … Brandon Stokley and Adam Meadows both practiced after sitting out the morning session … Players who kept a one-a-day schedule and sat out Tuesday included cornerback Champ Bailey, safeties John Lynch and Nick Ferguson, offensive linemen Tom Nalen and Matt Lepsis, defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban, defensive tackle Sam Adams and tight end Stephen Alexander … Lamont Reid and Doug Nienhuis and the three players on the physically-unable-to-perform list also continued to sit out … Javon Walker was in uniform, but did not take part in the team segments of practice.

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This was about as much athleticism as the Broncos would display on Tuesday morning, as Head Coach Mike Shanahan called his team together after pre-practice stretching, said a few words and then dismissed them for the day.

“We stretched well,” he said.

Most players couldn’t leave the field quickly enough, sprinting as though there was a loose football sitting in the end zone, waiting for someone to claim it for a touchdown.

“Everybody was amped up,” running back Travis Henry said. “I thought he was going to talk about the wind because it was really windy yesterday and we kind of lost focus in some areas. It was a surprise.

“He gave us a bone, and we’re going to take care of our responsibility, enjoy this time off and come back in July (for minicamp).”

So there’s not much in the way of notes from the day. Wide receivers Brandon Marshall, Glenn Martinez, Rod Smith and Brandon Stokley were all out of uniform, continuing their rehabilitation. Today, it was Martinez’s turn to be tethered to the goalpost for some conditioning work; on Wednesday, it was Brandon Marshall who went through that session after practice concluded.

And just as Shanahan shook up the schedule by calling off practice, some players threw a curveball to onlookers by switching jersey numbers:






A slew of other Broncos changed jerseys a group that included including safety/linebacker Steve Cargile (from No. 38 to No. 97), linebacker Ian Gold (from No. 52 to No. 91), linebacker D.J. Williams (from No. 55 to No. 60) and defensive tackle Demetrin Veal (from No. 97 to No. 38), among others.

And here’s a few more photos from the short session:







It felt like the last day of school here at Dove Valley, and in a way, it is, although the players will continue in offseason conditioning for the next few weeks. For the coaches, the end of OTAs commences their longest respite of the year. And for your humble blogger, the close of this practice means vacation is in sight … but still a few days away. I’ve got plenty of stories to write and Broncos TV pieces to edit over the next few days, so we can keep bringing you something new each weekday, even while I’m away.

Back with more over the next few days … until then, vaya con dios.

(Oh, by the way … my long-lasting respect to anyone who in the comments section can identify which cartoon character said “unfettered hurly-burly” and under what circumstance he or she said it.)

Approximately two months remain between today’s OTA workout — the 10th of 14 this year — and the start of training camp, but the sprint for positions is already underway, as the linebackers have learned.

While the weakside and middle linebacker slots are set in the grasp of Ian Gold and D.J. Williams, respectively, the strongside duties await someone to grasp them, and so far, Eddie Moore has made the first big push, working his way into first-team work throughout team camp.

“When we first met, Coach (Jim Bates said), ‘No one has a position locked in except Ian and D.J. Everything else is free and open.’”

Moore has walked through that open door, using his reunion with Bates — under whom he played for three seasons with the Miami Dolphins — as a catapult into an opportunity.

“It couldn’t have worked out any better,” Moore said. “It’s straight competition across the board. The best man will get the job.

Microfracture surgery kept Moore sidelined last fall, and he spent the season completing his undergraduate studies at the University of Tennessee. But Moore is healthy now — and so too seems to be his career after a year away.

More notes …

… Wide receivers Brandon Marshall, Glenn Martinez, Brandon Stokley and Rod Smith remained out of uniform …

… Tight end Tony Scheffler took in the session. He underwent surgery for a fractured bone in his left foot last week and is now on crutches, with a boot protecting his injured foot …

… Domenik Hixon turned in perhaps the catch of the day with a tightrope grab of a short Jay Cutler pass while falling out of bounds …

… Special teams has been a point of emphasis. The team worked on punts on Tuesday and Wednesday and turned to field goals on Thursday, with Jason Elam making his first on-field appearance of the week to date …

… And without further ado, some photos:

OTA Day 11 wraps up the week’s work on Friday … see you then.