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Posts Tagged ‘Kyle Johnson’

Johnson Waived; Snell Re-Signed

November 27th, 2007 - 4:14pm by AndrewOther posts by

Kyle Johnson

Kyle Johnson’s return to the Broncos only lasted five days.

Tuesday, the team waived the veteran fullback, two days after he saw some fairly substantial work at fullback and on special teams in the 37-34 loss to the Chicago Bears. Johnson saw sizable action on the Broncos’ final three series after Andre Hall finally succumbed to the high ankle sprain he suffered on the Denver’s first play from scrimmage. When Hall left, Cecil Sapp moved to running back, placing Johnson back on the field at his customary position.

Concurrent with the waiving of Johnson, the Broncos re-signed offensive lineman Isaac Snell, whom the club had waived on Thanksgiving to make room for the five-year veteran fullback.

Snell first joined the team off the Titans’ practice squad on Oct. 10, but has yet to see game-time action.

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The Return of Kyle Johnson

November 22nd, 2007 - 1:51pm by AndrewOther posts by

Kyle Johnson

Thirty-six hours ago, Kyle Johnson figured he’d spend Thanksgiving like most Americans — hunkering down at a dinner table, enjoying the warmth of food and family.

Then came Wednesday morning, when he saw that the Broncos had left him a message.

“I saw that I had a voicemail from the Denver Broncos, and I (thought), ‘I really thought it was Betsy Klein (the team’s director of player programs) calling about tuition reimbursement.”

Not exactly.

“When it was Ted Sundquist,” Johnson said, “I knew there was something going on.”

What was going on was a slew of injuries to the Broncos’ backfield. Fullback Paul Smith hasn’t practiced all week after missing Monday night’s game with a calf injury. Travis Henry and Selvin Young also remained sidelined with knee injuries that continued to keep them out Thursday, leaving the Broncos with only three healthy backs out of a complement of six.

“We have to have some depth at that position,” Head Coach Mike Shanahan said. “We’ve got a few guys playing a lot of positions right now, and it’s a big question of who’s going to be ready. Whoever is ready — at least we’ve got a little more depth.”

For that, the Broncos turned to Johnson, who was surprised at receiving an NFL team’s call so late in the week.

“After Tuesday you think there’s not going to be too much action,” Johnson said. “Then the phone rings.”

And with that, Johnson had returned, taking the spot of guard Isaac Snell, who was waived to make room for the veteran fullback.

OTHER PRACTICE NOTES …

The Broncos moved their work inside to the South Suburban Sports Dome on Thursday. It marked their first session there in the current regular season. Since the Broncos last visited the facility simply dubbed “the bubble” this past summer, a new FieldTurf surface has been installed there … Javon Walker worked fully for a second straight day. “To practice on this turf today was a good sign; it didn’t set him back,” Shanahan said. “Hopefully he’s full go tomorrow, and if he is, then he’ll be ready to play on Sunday.”

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My Week as a Minor Celebrity

September 4th, 2007 - 12:30pm by domonique_foxworthOther posts by

I had a really, really busy week. It was really positive for the most part. We got a win, which is always good. I was able to stand on the side during the game and do some coaching, and I was really into the game as kind of a half-fan, half-coach, just to try to help out the young guys.

A lot of people got a chance to play, and a lot of people who aren’t here any more got a chance to put their talents on film, which was really good. Hopefully some other people around the league will pick them up based on what they saw us do on Thursday. Sadly, we lost a lot more players again. But the good thing about it is we’re done cutting. So the people who are here now are your 2007 Denver Broncos, which is great.

One of the big surprises was us cutting Kyle Johnson. You can’t say enough about him as a person and we’re all sad to see him go. He’s one of the brightest guys on this team and he’s one of the hardest working. I really haven’t read the paper, but I assume that everything the coaches have said about him has been positive. I’m sure they’re not happy to have to get rid of him, but it’s a complicated game with the salary cap, and you can only keep a certain amount of players.

I think one of the things that keeps me around here is that I can fill a lot of roles on the team, and I think that one of the things that hurt Kyle was that he’s a fullback. A lot of the other guys we have playing fullback like Cecil Sapp, he’s a fullback/halfback, and now they’re making Mike Bell kind of a fullback/halfback. Versatility is the way to go, and it’s the way this league has been going. Kyle is definitely one of the top five fullbacks in the league, and unfortunately fullbacks are kind of going out of style. A lot of people are using tight ends and what they call an “H-back” system. I expect him to get picked up pretty soon and I wish him luck with the rest of his career, and I’m sure the Broncos fans will miss him and his little touchdown dance that we’ve grown accustomed to seeing.

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OTA Day 10: Notes, Photos and Eddie Moore

May 31st, 2007 - 2:40pm by AndrewOther posts by

OTA Day 10
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:

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

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OTA Day 7: Notes and Photos

May 24th, 2007 - 12:20pm by AndrewOther posts by

OTA Day 7
Why open with a skyline shot? Because by any measurement, the conditions in the Mile High City for the final session of Quarterback Camp were glorious, even if the mercury was slow to rise, giving the Broncos their chilliest OTA so far this year.

The Broncos began their session about an hour early, and stepped onto the field Thursday morning to witness a dazzlingly clear sky — but also 48-degree weather.

“This is (like) the middle of Christmastime in Jacksonville,” said defensive tackle and Sunshine State product Marcus Thomas. “But I like it out here. I’m really enjoying myself. I like the weather. I still haven’t gotten to see snow yet, so I’m looking forward to that.”

OTA Day 7
A bigger deal at first for Thomas was his adjustment to the altitude, but that didn’t prove as problematic as he expected.

“It’s a heck of a lot better (now) than the first day,” Thomas said. “People told me it would take two or three weeks, but I think in the first three days I was pretty much set.”

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Working Hard; Reflecting Back

April 10th, 2007 - 1:39am by AndrewOther posts by

One week into offseason conditioning, it’s definitely the former for the Broncos who reconvened at Dove Valley for the workouts that commenced on April 9.

“I think it’s the same stuff, just more of it,” fullback Kyle Johnson said after completing his Monday session. “I’ve really got to give him (stength and conditioning coach Rich Tuten) credit where credit is due.

“He does incorporate a lot of the things that they teach you to do over the years, all your football training, incorporating that, conditioning, plyometrics, speed training, ball training. He has a nice varied program. It’s quality. It’s just hard.”

But at the same time, the sweat and toil is welcome after a three-month period unlike any endured by an NFL team in recent memory. The deaths of Darrent Williams and Damien Nash hit Johnson hard, though he acknowledges that others in the locker room probably endure more pain and grieving that himself.

“Certain guys who were closer to them, it’s affected them more, and when you see them, you can tell,” Johnson said. “It depends on how intense your relationships were with both of those guys.

“We talk about D-Nash; we talk about D-Will, because they’re not forgotten and they’re still in our hearts and minds,” he added. “But … we’re not talking about what happened, we’re talking about remembering them. At least that’s what I’ve done.”

Johnson heard the news of Nash’s death while on vacation in Europe, which offered him a chance to pause and turn over some thoughts in his always-active mind.

“You ended up with a little more time to reflect and understand that as important and significant as this game is in every aspect of our lives, it is a job and a game at the end of the day, and life itself is more important,” Johnson said. “So I thought that not playing football and not being around each other for a while might have been the best thing — and now being back together should be something that’s beneficial for us to continue the healing process.”

And sometimes the hardest of work can be a soothing emotional balm when it’s needed most.

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Season Review: Kyle Johnson

March 4th, 2007 - 11:49pm by AndrewOther posts by

Kyle JohnsonAfter being the clear first-team fullback through the back half of the 2004 season and into 2005, Johnson had to share fullback responsibilities with Cecil Sapp, who started once while Johnson started seven times.

While Sapp had 47 more yards from scrimmage than Johnson, boasting a 114-67 advantage, it was Johnson who accounted for the only touchdown from a Broncos fullback last year — and it proved to be significant, as it was the game-winning score on a fourth-and-goal pass at Oakland.

Johnson is eligible for restricted free agency; a team must be willing to surrender a fifth-round pick — and have the Broncos opt not to match their contract offer — in order to pry the Syracuse alumnus away from the only team for which he has played a regular-season snap.

FINAL ANALYSIS: His career touchdowns-to-touches rate remains impressive, with one score for every 4.7 times he’s touched the football in his four-season career … An ankle injury kept him sidelined for two games in 2006 … Started in Weeks 2, 5, 8, 13, 14, 15 and 17.

NEXT: Wide receiver David Kircus.

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A First Time for Everything

November 30th, 2006 - 2:09am by AndrewOther posts by

There is no on-ramp for Jay Cutler to ease his way into action. He didn’t play the occasional series like Tennessee’s Vince Young, or work his way gradually into more playing time like a vast array of players at other positions; he’ll make his first start, take his first snap and throw his first pass in quick succession, perhaps even on the same play if the Broncos call for a game-opening pass.

To at least one Bronco who’s been there, advancing through those opening moments is crucial.

“(My) first feeling as a rookie (was) getting that first play out of the way,” defensive end Kenard Lang said.

After Lang did that nine years ago, though, he settled down. He expects Cutler to do likewise.

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With Hall Looming, Returns a Pressure Point

November 21st, 2006 - 2:16am by AndrewOther posts by

Michael Turner returns a kickoffOnly the special teams practiced on Monday as the Broncos attempted to rapidly turned their focus away from the San Diego Chargers and on to the Kansas City Chiefs.

But for the kickoff-coverage units, putting Sunday night behind them proved to be a difficult task after Michael Turner singed them for 36.5 yards per kickoff return, allowing the Chargers to start second-half drives from their 40- and 45-yard-lines, which helped set up two of the four second-half touchdowns that doomed the Broncos to a 35-27 defeat.

“Obviously you can’t quite shake it off,” said fullback Kyle Johnson. “This is the kind of day when you’re sort of feeling it emotionally.”

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Broncos-Steelers Pregame Notes: Bell, Johnson Inactive

November 5th, 2006 - 2:09pm by AndrewOther posts by

Well, we got our answer on Tatum Bell … he won’t carry the football at all.

The Broncos deactivated Bell, which will leave the balance of the rushing duties to undrafted rookie Mike Bell, who would then become the first rookie to start at running back for Denver since Quentin Grffin on Dec. 28, 2003 at Green Bay, when he replaced Clinton Portis.

The backfield behind Jake Plummer will indeed be a backup backfield, as fullback Kyle Johnson is also among the inactives, leaving Cecil Sapp to make his second start in three weeks.

Quincy Morgan will be inactive in his return to Pittsburgh, with whom he spent last season returning kickoffs before suffering a season-ending injury in their wild-card win at Cincinnati last Jan. 8.

Joining Johnson, Morgan and Tatum Bell on the inactives are safety Hamza Abdullah, wide receiver Todd Devoe, guard Chris Kuper, linebacker Nate Webster and defensive lineman Kenny Peterson.

Tight end Nate Jackson is back up on the active roster after being deactivated last week. Undrafted rookie Brian Clark is also back up among the players; he made his NFL debut as kickoff returner last week and leads the team in average per kickoff return (25.0 yards).

Cedric Cobbs is also back on the 45-man active roster for the first time since Week 2, and Gerard Warren returns after missing last week’s loss to the Colts.

More to come from Heinz Field ….

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