Denver.BloggersPub

Attention all Colorado kids entering 5th Grade this fall!  Did you realize you can get 3 free lift tickets to each of 25 Colorado ski resorts? 
OK, who can do the math?  That’s right:  3 x 25 = 75 days of free skiing and snowboarding.
Plus, you’ll receive other discounts on lessons, rentals, tickets for mom and […]

Filed under: Broncos, Denver

With training camps about to open, is there any position on any team that is more set than cornerback on the Broncos? With Dre Bly joining Champ Bailey, the Broncos don’t just have the best pair of corners in the league, they have one of the best cornerback tandems in NFL history.

But the arrival of Bly also meant that Domonique Foxworth knew he wasn’t going to start. And in an interview with Sports Illustrated, Foxworth didn’t sound all thta thrilled to have Bly on board:

“Having Champ and Dre’ is exciting but frustrating,” says Foxworth. “I could start at corner on any other team. To be honest, I think I can start at corner on this team.”

I don’t think anyone is going to agree with Foxworth on that last part, but it is a reminder that NFL players don’t necessarily want their teams to acquire great players. At least, not at their own position.

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Filed under: Broncos, Buccaneers, AFC West, NFC South

The last time I mentioned Jake Plummer, he was retired, planned to stay that way, and was eager to participate in a handball tournament. Well, Plummer’s high school coach would like you to know — and by “you” I mean “Jon Gruden” — that he has no plans on un-retiring. Ever.

“I had one conversation with him in passing,” said Steve Vogel, coach of Capital High School in Boise, Idaho. “He said, ‘They don’t believe me down there (in Tampa), but I’m done.’ “

Oddly, according to the story, it’s unknown if Plummer “has formally submitted his retirement papers to the NFL.” But as Rick Stroud writes, it’s also irrelevant. That’s because Mr. Snake has three years and almost $16 million left on his deal, which was traded to Tampa Bay for a 2008 fourth-rounder (if Plummer returns to football) or a seventh-rounder (if he continues to pursue handball).

According to NFL procedures, if a player is under contract at the time of his retirement, it is his club’s responsibility to determine his roster status. The club’s options include, but are not limited to, the reserve/retired category.

Obviously, the Bucs would like to have Plummer in camp — right now, Jeff Garcia is the team’s starting quarterback — but according to Plummer’s peeps, the former Arizona State star isn’t interested in having to earn a job (yeah, only chumps have to earn jobs). He’s quite content to keep a low profile, even if it means passing up a $5-million-a-year salary to wear a visor and hold a clipboard.

And if you still have doubts Vogel offers this:

“He’s never led that extravagant lifestyle. Years ago I was with him and he bought a shirt at the secondhand store. He’s real practical. He didn’t have all the fancy cars and stuff and drives around in a Honda Element. It’s real practical and speaks to Jake’s sense of values.”

That’s right, the dude drives an Element and shops at consignment shops. I think that pretty much confirms that he has no business in the NFL.

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July 21 - 22, 2007
10 AM to 5 PM
It’s “The Best Day in the Whole Wide World” if you’re a kid attending this annual Aurora event!
Kids can work their way up a climbing wall, paint a giant paint-by-numbers work of art or slop paint on a real car, sing on the karaoke stage, explore a giant […]

Filed under: Broncos, NFL Gossip, NFL Rumors, Denver, NFL Police Blotter

Broncos wide receiver David Kircus was bound over to district court this week on a felony assault charge, and his accuser, Jeffrey Krieger, described the early morning hours of May 20, when he escorted Kircus from his home and was punched in the face, suffering multiple fractures below his right eye.

The most extraordinary part of all this is how the Rocky Mountain News describes the defense Kircus apparently plans to mount:

Kircus’ attorney, Harvey Steinberg, painted a picture of a drunken Krieger and suggested that he was the aggressor, saying at one point Krieger had placed his hand on Kircus’ arm as he led him out of the house.

OK, let’s say the guy really did place his hand on Kircus’s arm. So what? That means Kircus is free to punch him in the face, breaking multiple facial bones? They were at Krieger’s home, and Krieger wanted Kircus to leave. Kircus should have left. If the best defense he’s got for rearranging a guy’s face is that the guy put his hand on his arm, Kircus deserves the five to 16 years in prison he can get if convicted.

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Someone please help me understand. He looks like…I don’t know…a zombie or something.

…Harold Reynolds. I just thought you should know.

Year
Player
Att.
Hits
%

2007
Willy Taveras
36
27
.750

1986
Harold Reynolds
20
3
.150

Can you name one former analyst America misses more? This is why you shouldn’t hug women, or bunt for hits when you’re not very good at it.
For more on Willy T’s amazing year on the track basepaths track, check out Purple Row and Baseball Prospectus.

July 13 - 15, 2007 
100 miles.  Running.  Well, a lot more than just running.
From Silverton, these amazing athletes run over 13 passes (situated at up to 13,000′ elevation), do some rock scrambling, wade streams, scurry along the edge of steep drop-offs, cross the Continental Divide a few times, go over the summit of Handies Peak […]

Filed under: AZ Cardinals, Broncos, Browns, Chiefs, Cowboys, Raiders, Redskins, Texans, Titans, Vikings, Fantasy Football

I just got a new ride, and it has Sirius Satellite Radio in it. Sweet. I find that I listen a lot to Chill, Raw Dog Comedy and NFL Radio, not necessarily in that order. Anyway, yesterday on his NFL Radio program, Pat Kirwan mentioned his NFL.com article about how there could be 10 quarterbacks in the NFL this year who are starting the season for the first time as a 16 game starter. I hadn’t realized it could be that many. He stresses that expectations shouldn’t be too high for these quarterbacks because their learning curve is steep.

Stat stud, Doug Drinen at the always interesting Pro-Football-Reference.com blog, wrote an entry a while back about the difficulties of teams with inexperienced players at the offensive skill positions. He took a historical look at the greenest teams at quarterback, running back, tight end and 2 wide receivers, and then compared that to their final season records. Though there were a few success stories in the bunch, the data shows that the least experienced teams at the skill positions usually stunk. But since all quarterbacks have to start somewhere, a number of those quarterbacks helming those teams eventually went to the Super Bowl.

So, I have a few questions for you. Are you concerned about the inexperience of your team’s quarterback and/or the skill players around him? And, what other Sirius radio programs do I really need to check out?

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Filed under: Broncos, Colts, Denver, Indianapolis, NFL Free Agency

Wide receiver Brandon Stokley signed as a free agent with the Broncos this year after four seasons with the Colts, and he thinks his new quarterback, Jay Cutler, has a lot in common with his old quarterback, Peyton Manning.

“Jay and Peyton both have great arms. They both have a great feel for the offense,” Stokley explained. “That’s what you ask in a quarterback. They have to know the offense in and out. You can definitely see that Jay does.

“And he’s a great leader out there on the field, like Peyton. You can definitely see the qualities.”

OK, OK, let’s not get carried away, Stokley wasn’t saying Cutler is or ever will be as good as Manning, he was just giving some encouraging words about the potential Cutler has to be a very good quarterback some day. Still, considering that Cutler is already bound to be measured against John Elway, inviting comparisons to another all-time great quarterback might not be the wisest idea.

Note: The linked Denver Post article refers to Stokley as “A possession receiver with sneaky speed.” Old stereotypes die hard.

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