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Posts Tagged ‘Dan Koppen’

Manning Leads Pro Bowl Votes

November 14th, 2012 - 2:07pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by

Voting for the 2013 Pro Bowl has been underway for about three weeks, and the early returns are in.

Quarterback Peyton Manning leads all vote-getters for the all-star game with 376,981 votes, and therefore is first in line at his position on the AFC squad.

Plenty more Broncos are among the top-five at their respective positions in the AFC, including outside linebackers Von Miller and Wesley Woodyard, who are one and two among AFC vote-getters.

The Broncos also have two wide receivers near the top of AFC voting — Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker are currently ranked Nos. 4 and 5 at their position.

Fullback Chris Gronkowski is currently No. 5 at his position, tight end Jacob Tamme is No. 5 at his position, Ryan Clady is No. 3 among AFC tackles, Zane Beadles is the second-highest vote-getter among AFC guards, center Dan Koppen is currently fourth in votes at his position, defensive end Elvis Dumervil ranks second, Champ Bailey is third among AFC cornerbacks, Rahim Moore is the fifth AFC free safety, Matt Prater is the No. 4 kicker, Britton Colquitt is the No. 4 punter, Trindon Holliday is the No. 5 returner and David Bruton is the No. 4 AFC special-teamer.

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Posted in DenverBroncos.com | 20 Comments »

O-Line Named Most Valuable Protectors

October 31st, 2012 - 1:46pm by Tyler EverettOther posts by

Tackles Ryan Clady and Orlando Franklin, guards Chris Kuper and Zane Beadles and center Dan Koppen, the Broncos’ starters on the offensive line, play an important role every week, but one that doesn’t often draw much attention or recognition.

But the Broncos’ unsung men in the trenches received a bit of spotlight with Wednesday’s announcement that the group took home Week 8′s Madden Most Valuable Protectors Award, which honors the league’s top offensive line.

Winning this week’s award also makes the unit eligible to win the annual honor, which will be revealed during this year’s Super Bowl. The award “serves to celebrate the loyal teammates in the trenches that most consistently provide the time and protection that is critical to their teammates’ and overall team’s success.”

Sunday night against the Saints, the group was every bit as valuable in the ground game as in the passing game, helping the Broncos rush for a season-high 225 yards in addition to 305 yards through the air by quarterback Peyton Manning. The success on the ground featured season-bests for Willis McGahee and Ronnie Hillman, who rushed for 122 and 86 yards, respectively.

In addition to the recognition for the line as a whole, Clady earned Sports Illustrated’s Peter King’s Offensive Lineman of the Week award.

A big part of Manning’s success through the air was his ability to get comfortable in the pocket, as Manning was not sacked once in 30 pass attempts.

“The Broncos offensive line provided consistent protection for Peyton the entire night,” John Madden said in a statement.

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Posted in DenverBroncos.com | 7 Comments »

Belichick Respects the Run

October 3rd, 2012 - 10:44am by Sam DavisOther posts by

Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick knows all of the different challenges that Peyton Manning will pose to his defense on Sunday.

One of those challenges is the way Manning utilizes the run, knowing exactly when and where to hand the ball off.

“I think Peyton has always used the running game well,” Belichick said in a conference call Wednesday. “He certainly understands how to attack defenses and where defenses are light, whether it’s in the running game, or the outside passing game, or play action or down the field or misdirection plays — whatever it happens to be — Peyton does a really good job of anticipating them, seeing them and getting his team in place to attack them. Certainly the run game is a part of it. I think he’s always used that as a good weapon against the defense, and it has complemented the passing game.”

The Broncos have run the ball 113 times this year, an average of nearly 30 times per game. Willis McGahee has led the way with a pair of 100-yard performances and a trio of rushing touchdowns.

The 10th-year veteran has spent his entire career in the AFC — including his first five years in the AFC East with the Buffalo Bills — so Belichick is very familiar with him.

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Walton to IR, Mays Activated

October 1st, 2012 - 1:15pm by Stuart ZaasOther posts by

The Broncos have placed J.D. Walton on the injured reserve list, ending the third-year center’s 2012 season. Walton suffered an ankle injury during the second quarter of Denver’s 37-6 win vs. Oakland on Sunday and did not return to the game.

Prior to the injury, the team’s third-round draft choice out of Baylor had missed just one snap in his career, which was due to his shoelace coming untied during his rookie season. Walton was one of just three offensive linemen who entered the NFL in 2010 to start all 36 possible regular-season games through Week 4 of the 2012 season.

Dan Koppen, who the Broncos signed on Sept. 11, filled in for Walton on Sunday. The 10th-year veteran is the NFL’s all-time winningest offensive lineman with an overall career record of 107-31 (.775 pct.). Koppen started 120-of-121 regular-season games and 14-of-14 postseason contests during the first nine seasons of his career with New England.

At Head Coach John Fox’s Monday press conference, he said that Koppen did “an excellent job” in relief duties against the Raiders.

“Dan, with more reps in practice and a better understanding of our offense, he’s capable of playing better,” Fox said. “He did a good job kind of on the job training just getting thrown out there quickly when J.D. went down. Considering all that, he did an excellent job.”

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Multiple Tuesday Transactions

September 11th, 2012 - 12:52pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by

On Tuesday, the Broncos placed defensive tackle Ty Warren on injured reserve with a triceps injury and waived offensive lineman C.J. Davis.

The club filled those roster spots by re-signing quarterback Caleb Hanie and adding a veteran presence on the offensive line, signing center Dan Koppen.

The team also dropped offensive lineman Wayne Tribue from the practice squad.

Koppen — a 10th-year lineman — won two Super Bowls with the New England Patriots, where he spent the first nine years of his career.

The former fifth-round pick missed all but one game in 2011 after being placed on injured reserve. In his career, Koppen has started 120 of 121 games played, earning a Pro Bowl berth and second-team All-Pro honors in 2007.

Hanie was released last Saturday before the Broncos opened the season against Pittsburgh, in a move that Head Coach John Fox called “procedural,” in order to provide “some flexibility moving forward.”

The fifth-year quarterback completed 22 of his 39 passes during the preseason for 246 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He was originally signed as a free agent on March 25.

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Posted in DenverBroncos.com | 35 Comments »