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Posts Tagged ‘Peyton Hillis’

Youth Always Gives Hope

November 11th, 2008 - 10:09am by jim_saccomanoOther posts by

The Denver Broncos of 2008 have been hit by injuries like few teams in recent memory.

It has been unusual, to say the least, to watch the number of players on the Broncos’ injured reserve list reach double figures.

But you have a schedule, and you have to keep playing, and every time a player goes down it gives an opportunity to another, and in this case, a younger player.

Denver’s young player’s contributions have been tremendous this year, and couple those efforts with the team’s first place standing in the AFC Western Division and you get bright promise for future seasons.

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The Hillis and Larsen Tsunami

November 10th, 2008 - 7:28pm by Jake GrilleyOther posts by

Hillis and Larsen, “Thunder and Thunder”

The injury bug again bit the Broncos at the running back position on Monday with Ryan Torain being placed on injured reserve. With Torain joining Andre Hall, Michael Pittman and Anthony Alridge on IR, fullbacks Peyton Hillis and Spencer Larsen are preparing as if they could again lineup together in the Broncos backfield as they did on Thursday night.

“You can’t have thunder and lighting – we are both kind of thunder,” Larsen said about what the tandem should be called. “We would like to call it a tsunami or something like that.”

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Injuries Dominate Conversation in Broncos Locker Room

November 3rd, 2008 - 6:44pm by Jake GrilleyOther posts by

Injury news was running rampant in the Broncos locker room on Monday and players were quick to chime in on what this latest rash of injuries means to the Broncos season.

Hall/ Pittman Done for ’08
The biggest news of the day was the announcement that running backs Andre Hall and Michael Pittman had been placed on the team’s effectively ending their season.

One player that will have to step up in the absence of Hall and Pittman will be running back Ryan Torain who saw his first action as a Bronco against Miami on Sunday.

“It is a rough sport; injuries come and go,” he said. “You just have to stay focused and handle the adversity when it comes.”

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“Wildcat?” Try “Wild Horse”

October 30th, 2008 - 3:49pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by

A couple of quick notes from a sunny Thursday at Dove Valley.

“Wild Horse” Offense? The Broncos might be on to something. Talking about the Dolphins’ “Wildcat” offense, Peyton Hillis said he’s more than familiar with it, having run the “Wild Hog” offense at Arkansas. He said he’s been lining up as Ricky Williams in the formation.

Then, when some reporters jokingly asked Michael Pittman about running that offense in Denver, he jumped at the opportunity.

“Oh definitely. I’d definitely be the quarterback in that,” he said, smiling. “I’ve been lobbying for the halfback pass already — they haven’t put it in yet.”

Coaching by Showing: Quarterbacks Coach Jeremy Bates showed Jay Cutler how it’s done on the practice field this afternoon. During warmups, Cutler tossed the ball Bates’ way every other pass and let the coach rocket a ball or two toward the receivers.

It’s worth noting that Bates began his college career playing quarterback at the University of Tennessee.

Injury Update: Andre Hall was the only Bronco to be downgraded on the injury report. He did not participate in today’s practice. Champ Bailey was out, Tony Scheffler, Brandon Stokley and Selvin Young were still listed as limited participation, and Brandon Marshall, Michael Pittman, Dewayne Robertson and Ryan Torain all had full participation.

The only player on the Dolphins’ injury report is fullback Casey Cramer (ankle), who is listed under full participation.

Quotable: “Not really. I’m letting them be the coaches they can be. They’re really good coaches, and I wouldn’t want to listen to me either.”
-Peyton Hillis, on whether the coaching staff has picked his brain about stopping the “Wildcat” formation.

Pictures after the jump.

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An Interesting New Depth Chart…

August 25th, 2008 - 11:13am by Adam ZinserOther posts by

The Broncos released a new and updated depth chart Saturday, with some interesting changes on it.

The starting lineup remains the same on offense, with Eddie Royal continuing to hold onto that #2 wideout spot opposite Brandon Marshall. But Glenn Martinez has moved up behind Marshall.

Nate Jackson remains at the #2 spot behind Daniel Graham, with Scheffler at the #3. Jackson has worked with Graham in the team’s two-tight end sets, and he started on Friday against the Packers, scoring a touchdown in the process.

Peyton Hillis holds onto the #2 fullback spot behind Cecil Sapp. He saw significant action Friday night and performed well.

On defense, Marquand Manuel is listed as the starter opposite Marlon McCree. Hamza Abdullah mans the #2 spot behind Manuel, with Roderick Rogers and Josh Barrett behind him, in that order.

Vickiel Vaughn is at #2 behind McCree.

Also, Brett Kern is listed as the starting punter.

You can check out the full depth chart here.

What do y’all think about the changes and how things have progressed?

– Adam Zinser, DenverBroncos.com

Cowboys at Camp: Day 1, A.M.

August 13th, 2008 - 12:00pm by Gray CaldwellOther posts by

The ‘Boys were back in town Wednesday afternoon, and their offseason media circus came with them. There were easily double the reporters and photographers on the sidelines, many of which were from the HBO training camp documentary: Hard Knocks. Recently-retired Rod Smith even showed up to take in the action from the sidelines. Still, with all that attention focusing on the fields, the players went out and put together a productive and exciting practice.

The teams started out with their regular routines, Cowboys on one field and Broncos on the other — stretching, warming up and working on individual drills. Then the Broncos offense went to one field and the defense to the other, and the fun really started.

ATTENDANCE REPORT: Hamza Abdullah was back in pads this morning…Boss and Champ Bailey were out of pads with a right ankle and right hamstring, respectively…Louis Green was out of pads with a concussion/neck injury…Tom Nalen remained out of pads with a left knee…Erik Pears was out of pads with a sore back…Ryan Torain watched from a chair on the far sideline recovering from surgery on his left elbow.

POSTURING FOR POSITION: Niko Koutouvides took his reps with the first unit linebackers during practice, with Jamie Winborn and D.J. Williams on either side…The second unit linebackers consisted of Jordan Beck, Nate Webster and Wesley Woodyard…Abdullah, in his first day back at practice since Aug. 1, ran with the second team safeties beside Roderick Rogers.

MATCHUPS: Each field had a different set of drills, so we, the bloggers, decided to combine “Focal Points” and “Key Plays” into one category. So here is the breakdown of how each competition went down.

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P.M. Blog: Day 16

August 12th, 2008 - 4:56pm by Jake GrilleyOther posts by

The Broncos closed out their final practice before hosting the Dallas Cowboys for two-straight days of joint practices here at Dove Valley. Here are the highlights from this afternoon’s special team’s only session.

ATTENDANCE REPORT: After seeing action during this morning’s session Peyton Hillis and Chad Mustard were out of uniform joining teammate Louis Green on the sidelines.

POSTURING FOR POSITION: Eddie Royal, Glenn Martinez, Anthony Alridge, Andre Hall, Clifford Russell and Michael Pittman lined up at returner as the team worked on kickoff coverage.

Sam Paulescu and Matt Prater each kicked off during practice. Prater had seen all the kickoff reps thus far in camp.

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A.M. Blog: Day 16

August 12th, 2008 - 11:18am by Adam ZinserOther posts by

It’s less than 24 hours until the Broncos host the Cowboys for a couple days of joint practices, and the team held a two hour practice without pads Tuesday morning, the last day for fans to watch training camp.

As has often been the case, things got started with a laugh as D.J. Williams called up coach and former Bronco Keith Burns to lead the team’s breakdown.

ATTENDANCE REPORT: Hamza Abdullah, Boss and Champ Bailey, Louis Green, Peyton Hillis, Tom Nalen, Erik Pears and Ryan Torain were all listed on the out of pads list with their various injuries. Hillis did participate in practice, however. Champ, Green, Nalen and Pears all watched from the sidelines. Boss remained inside rehabbing his sprained ankle.

- Chad Mustard has been moved from the Physically Unable to Perform list to the active roster.

- New cornerback Wale Dada participated in practice after the team waived Lamont Reid. The previous blog entry gives a little more information on the newest member of the Broncos.

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P.M. Blog: Day 12

August 6th, 2008 - 5:42pm by Adam ZinserOther posts by

Though the sun broke through for most of the afternoon practice, it was definitely much cooler than this morning’s session, and thankfully, the dark clouds heading this way held off just long enough for the team to wrap things up and head inside.

ATTENDANCE REPORT: Hamza Abdullah, Champ Bailey, Peyton Hillis, Chad Mustard, Tom Nalen and Dewayne Robertson all watched from the sidelines with their various injuries/soreness. Abdullah was doing some calisthenics with out on the field to help rehab his groin before practice began. One end of a large elastic band was wrapped around his waist with the other end tied to one of the goal posts. He high-stepped sideways until the band became fully extended and taught, then would move back towards the goal post.

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P.M. Blog: Day 11

August 5th, 2008 - 5:16pm by Jake GrilleyOther posts by

Dark clouds were in the distance as the Broncos hit the practice field for the team’s afternoon special teams session. The mercury was a little lower at Dove Valley with temperatures in the low 60s and a slight wind gust helped to carry punts a few yards further and it just so happened that punting is what the team focused on throughout practice.

ATTENDANCE REPORT: Peyton Hillis remained on the sidelines nursing his hamstring injury…Hamza Abdullah was in uniform but wasn’t wearing a helmet, shoulder pads or cleats… The teams typical special teams unit was on the field. Two players of note practicing were Selvin Young and Domonnique Foxworth, on occassion both of these players have received the special teams session off.

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