WR Brandon Marshall posted by Marc Baker

This is my first blog so work with me here ok. Theres alot going around that Marshall is going to be traded away in the next few weeks. I just dont see that happening, because the broncos can afford to lose another great player. I believe with in the next few weeks that the broncos and Marshall will work out a new contract. Sure he posted a blog on his web site saying farewell to denver and its friends but could be because he dont think denver will keep him. Mcdaniels says that Marshall will be at training camp in July. After the numbers that he has put up the last two seasons he desevers a new contract.

Bears ink draft class early; Are they considering a veteran receiver? posted by Joe Anello

I can’t remember a busier or more significant Chicago Bears offseason. After the miraculous acquisition of Jay Cutler (which I still can’t believe happened), and then the signing of Orlando Pace, Jerry Angelo could have sat out the rest of free agency and skipped the draft and Bears fans would have been content. Not one to rest on his new QB’s laurels, Angelo refuses to let up.

Foremost among the newest faces is recently signed linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa, formerly of the St. Louis Rams. Pisa brings a wealth of experience and talent to the strong side, where he should beat out Nick Roach and Hunter Hillenmeyer for the starting job. Roach filled in when Hunter was injured last season, but neither player asserted themselves in the role. Tinoisamoa is coming off a regular season where he led the Rams with 104 tackles (88 solo) and added three sacks and two forced fumbles. Paired with Pro-Bowler Lance Briggs and Brian Urlacher, Tinoisamoa makes Chicago’s linebacking unit one of the best in the NFL.

Also, in typical Bear fashion, Angelo has signed each of his nine draft choices. Jerry is known for locking up his draftees with quick market value deals. Teams and agents are barely negotiating during this period, so this is one area where I have to give Angelo and his front office a ton of credit. They get their draft choices in camp. Receivers Juaquin Igelesias and Johnny Knox look to get plenty of field time this offseason as the Bears search more depth on the outside.

Speaking of receivers, there’s been a load of ballyhoo regarding a few names that are supposedly available. Given Chicago’s lack of experience at the position, fans are clamoring for a big name to pair with their young QB. (Greedy much?) I’ll run down the Bears’ options for you and why they’re available.

Kelways Korner - Brandon Branded as a 'Beast'ly Belligerent Baby posted by J. Kelly Flynn

 Ok Mr Brandon Marshall, after leading the NFL in RYAC (receiving yards after contact) in 2007, complimented by your 6' 4" 230lb frame, the nickname of, "The Beast" was aptly and well deserved. After back-to-back seasons (2007-2008) with 100 plus catches and 1,000 plus yds, your physical talent was needless to say, without question and one of the best as a receiver in the NFL. Now, had this been the main body of work to your story to date here in Denver, this is one fan whom would be firmly entrenched in your korner so to speak..but, in the infamous words of Paul Harvey, "now..for the rest of the story"..

4 arrests in the same time frame as mentioned above. Count 'em, 4! Three domestic dispute related,(alleged violence with two different girlfriends) and one for DUI.

I say any man who hits a woman, is no man at all...now I DON'T KNOW if Brandon actually struck either of these women but I DO KNOW that not to simply walk away from the situation, is indeed, an act in belligerent behavior..

On March 22, 2008, Marshall slipped on an empty hamburger wrapper while wrestling with 'family' members, and subsequently 'fell' putting his right arm through a television set at his home in Orlando, Florida. Hmm,ok, sounds a little 'fishy' to this fan but just maybe it's what really happened, but, once again,an act of belligerent behavior. Adccording to Broncos head athletic trainer Steve Antonopulos, Marshall "sustained right forearm lacerations to one artery, one vein, one nerve, two tendons and three muscles. Brandon later revealed that his right hand was numb during the entire 2008 season. Maybe this (not lack of concentration stemming from off-field antics) is what led to the 18 'on-target' dropped passes and several key fumbles in said same season.

Another Broncos Disaster? posted by Reid Fischer

Tell me this isn’t happening again.  Another soap opera at Broncos headquarters.  Once again a key player is at the center of it, a player who has loads of talent.  Heck, this player can certainly be described as a very unique talent.  The player in question is unhappy, and has reportedly demanded a trade.  Sound familiar?  This did not work out as the Broncos hoped with Jay Cutler.  How will it work with Brandon Marshall?  Unfortunately, the Broncos might be about to find out.  Mr. Marshall did not show for the team’s mandatory minicamp over the weekend.  

Marshall is unquestionably the Broncos top receiver.  He has caught 100 balls each of the past two seasons.  He has breakaway speed, and an ability to make plays after the catch.  He has certainly made a statement in Denver after being selected in the fourth round of the 2006 draft.  Marshall is due to make $1.2 million this season, which sounds good but ranks 58th among wide receivers in the league.  Marshall is also reportedly upset with the team’s medical staff for failing to accurately diagnose his hip injury last season.  Marshall had surgery on the hip in the offseason, but played through the injury in the second half of last season.  Our friend Adam Schefter, who will be joining ESPN in August, told us this afternoon on KOA that Marshall demanded a trade last weekend when he met with owner Pat Bowlen.  

Jay Cutler has already forced his way out of Denver with unruly behavior.  Does Marshall think he can do the same?  Or is Marshall merely posturing to try and get a contract extension?  Seems to me that Marshall is acting very entitled considering his off the field behavior the past few years.  Marshall is extremely lucky he wasn’t suspended by Roger Goodell again for the coming season, and it seems to me that he doesn’t have the leverage to try and argue for an extension.  From a football standpoint, Marshall was among the league leaders in dropped balls last season, which is of course not a good category to be atop the league in.  Either way, Marshall is evoking memories of the whiny Cutler by acting like a child.  At least Marshall had the courtesy to meet with Bowlen face to face unlike Cutler, but the actions are still the same.  Not showing up for a required team activity is a very selfish action no matter how you slice it.  This is particularly true when a new offense is being installed and most the personnel around you is also new.

"What have you done for me, lately?"-The Jay Cutler Story posted by Spencer Francisco Lau

      Did Jay Cutler make the right choice, when demanding to be traded, and who benefitted the most, from his decision? There are two sides to every story, or at least there should be, so let's examine this situation from both perspectives, before drawing our own conclusions, shall we? Cutler has indicated that he was happy things worked in his favor in the end, but he might have alienated many Denver Broncos fans in the process, who are still seeking a successor to the legendary John Elway, and restore the renowned franchise to prosperity.

     How many starting quarterbacks have taken over the helm that John Elway has held for 16 years, with the Denver Broncos? Brian Griese was the first, followed by Gus Frerrote, Steve Beuerlein, and Jake Plummer, until he was replaced by Cutler. Each quarterback had their moments, either while with the Broncos, or with other teams they played for. Frerrote, Plummer, and Cutler, have surpassed some of Elway's team records for passing yards in a game or season, but none have ever led the Broncos to the Super Bowl, like Elway did 5 times in his career, which is still a record for appearances by a starting quarterback. Of course, many successful players in all sports have never experienced playing for a championship, or even come close, but one should not be judged primarily by their ability, or lack thereof, to lead their teams to a title, as the tenure of a professional athlete, and their accomplishments, should not go unnoticed. A player must have made some good contributions to their teams, in order to remain on their roster, or in the league, for an extended time, and their ability to persevere and overcome adversity, also helps determine one's success in professional sports. We are all going to have our off days, when things don't seem to go our way, no matter what we do, or how hard we try, but that is a part of life we must learn to accept, and handle accordingly. Among those starting quarterbacks who have replaced Elway since his retirement, only Griese and Plummer have led the Broncos to the playoffs. Plummer had a winning record after coming to Denver, which he had been unable to achieve with some previously inept Phoenix/ Arizona Cardinals' teams, and then he seemed to play his worse, when it mattered most, during the championship game loss to Pittsburgh in 2006, so the Broncos drafted Jay Cutler the following season, as his eventual replacement. Cutler compiled some impressive statistics with the Broncos, in his 3 seasons with the team, and even though his record was a paltry 17-20, he established himself as a good quarterback in the league, especially after discovering he was a diabetic, and after seeking treatment to alleviate the symptoms that affected his performance during the 2007 season, he led the AFC in passing yards, was only sacked 11 times (the fewest among starting quarterbacks), and was elected to the Pro Bowl for the first time, so the future looked bright for Cutler, and with all the free agency signings by the team in the offseason, Denver looked to be a playoff caliber team again, in 2009.

Steelers Game By Game Preview of the 2009-2010 Season 1/2 posted by Rob Preston

As OTA's and minicamps progress while training camp begin to roll over the horizon, America's favorite sport nears its regular season.  While nobody knows how well teams will do in a season with the randomness of injuries and several other factors, it's always interesting to look ahead at the schedule and prognosticate.  Unlike most people, I'm not going to give just a win or loss for each game, rather I'm going to predict how many times the Steelers would win if they played a team 10 times.  For instance if the Steelers were playing a very crappy team, I would say 9/10 or 10/10.  At the end i will add up the wins and divide by 10, giving us how many wins they will have this season.

Week 1 Titans at Steelers

A great season opener with two teams that have plenty of history as well as new found bad blood.  The Titans are coming off a very disappointing post-season last year after earning the best regular season record last year.  While the Titans should still be a good team, they are losing quite possibly the most dominating DT in the game, Albert Haynesworth.  Unfortunately when the Titans "stomped" the Steelers last season, Haynesworth didn't play either, so no real gain there.  The big question will be Kerry Collins, and I think his arm will just about fall off.  I'll give the Steelers 6/10.

Week 2 Steelers at Chicago

The 2009 Bears will be a team to watch in 2009 with the addition of Jay Cutler.  With his ability to throw the ball down the field, Devin Hester may finally be able to reach his potential as a burner at WR.  The Bears will also be returning their star RB, Matt Forte, who impressed last season with over 1,200 yards.  Their defense should be solid as always, but the major question will be chemistry with Cutler and the WR's.  By week 2, will they have enough time together to have their timing down?  Probably not.  I give the Steelers 8/10.

Broncos' Draft Thoughts posted by Reid Fischer

I waited a few days after the NFL draft to post my thoughts on how the Broncos did because I needed time to digest their selections and determine whether or not I truly liked the moves the team made.  The truth is, like with every draft, it will be a minimum two seasons and probably three before we can really assign a grade to this or any team’s draft, so any opinion expressed now is really a shot in the dark.  For example, it looks like the Broncos’ draft of 2008 is good for the time being, as Ryan Clady and Eddie Royal both had outstanding rookie seasons.  We still need to wait another year or two however before we can truly evaluate that draft as a whole.  That said, I have a few thoughts on the Broncos’ selections from last weekend:

The Good:

- I really like Knoshawn Moreno.  A lot.  I know running back was not necessarily a need area with so many bodies on the roster already (including free agent signings Correll Buckhalter, J.J. Arrington and LaMont Jordan), especially in light of the money committed to that position already in the offseason, but I think Moreno could make an immediate impact for the Broncos.  I think a lot of times teams make a mistake of reaching for a position of need (more on that in a moment) and often pass up on special talents that could actually make the team better over the long haul.  I think Moreno could well be the offensive rookie of the year, for he possesses tremendous speed, breakaway ability, and ability to break tackles.  I watched enough Georgia games last year to see that Moreno is the real deal.  The other thing I like about him is he didn’t come from one of these spread offenses you see in college.  He actually learned how to pass block and be effective as a receiver out of the backfield.  If all goes well, Moreno could be the Broncos’ starter week one.  I don’t think there is any question he was the best back on the board and certainly a big playmaker.  Let’s face it, the Broncos haven’t had a consistent tailback since Clinton Portis, so it would be nice to have a consistent running game to rely on again.  Too many times last year the Broncos were unable to convert on 3rd and short, and it really cost them.  If Moreno can move the chains on 3rd & 3, it will not only  help the offense be better, but it also means less time the defense would be on the field.  That could be a win-win for the Broncos.  I really think Moreno could end up the offensive rookie of the year.

What a first day of the NFL Draft for the Browns...and other teams posted by Michael Mayer

The NFL Draft was going according to plan until the Browns went on the clock after Aaron Curry was selected the pick before. They ended up trading their pick to the New York Jets in a mammoth deal in which the Browns essentially ended up trading for 5 guys and gave up the number 5 pick. The Browns then proceeded to trade down twice more until they finally picked at 21. In a surprising move, The Browns chose to pass on Chris "Beanie" Wells and Ray Maualuga and took Cal center Alex Mack who is a very versatile player. I've heard the guy can play every position along the offensive line. In the second round, The Browns might have answered the question as to whether or not Braylon Edwards is staying when they drafted two receiver, Hometown Boy Brian Robiskie out of Ohio State at 36 and Mohamed Massaquoi out of Georgia at 50. Both are very talented. They also might have addressed somewhat their need for a pass rush with David Veikune out of Hawaii at 52. While Browns fans may not like the drafting so far, I think its far better than they think. Mack could be an anchor for the o-line for years to come and Robiskie is a great slot guy, while Massaquoui has the potential to be a one, maybe a two. I've heard some great things about Veikune. Meanwhile, other teams struggled when drafting. The one that obviously comes to my mind is the Oakland Raiders. With a glaring need a wide receiver, and Michael Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin (the two best receiving prospects) still on the board, the Raiders elected to select (in a typical Al Davis move) Darrius Heyward-Bay. Heyward-Bay was Continue reading "What a first day of the NFL Draft ..."

Dream Draft posted by Randolph Charlotin

No matter how many times I re-do my mock draft, the answer is always the same. Virginia linebacker Clint Sintim falls to the Pats. I’ve just completed my third edition and for the third time Sintim is the logical 23rd pick overall.

Is that a bad thing? No. Sintim sounds like a fit. I feel more comfortable with that selection than USC’s Clay Matthews Jr.

I wouldn’t complain if the Patriots select Sintim if there isn’t a better choice by the time New England is on the clock. But the player I salivate for is Northern Illinois defensive end Larry English.

The problem is I feel English will be long gone to Washington at 13th overall. 10 slots ahead of New England!

One thing I do know is the Pats will go after a player if they want him bad enough. If English is irresistible, how does New England get in position to draft him? Since Scot Pioli wasn’t officially replaced, I’m gonna sneak into his former office and devise a plan to land the former Huskie.

With eleven picks in the draft, New England has the ammunition to make deals. So who should they call first?

Now let’s get things straight. N.E. won’t trade up too high. They aren’t interested in shelling out an exorbitant lump sum of cash to a kid who hasn’t played a down. They were willing to throw in LB Mike Vrabel with QB Matt Cassel just to save an additional four million dollars. Money is an object to the franchise, especially with the marquee Pats about to become free agents next year.

Thoughts on the Broncos Schedule posted by Reid Fischer

It says something about the popularity of the NFL that the release of the schedule is now a two hour prime time event.  I somehow feel less stupid knowing I can’t possibly be the only one who eagerly anticipates the release of the schedule.  If nothing else, it’s nice to know what it is so I can plan around it.  For instance, I know that the Broncos will be playing on Thanksgiving night, so my family will know they shouldn’t plan to see me, things like that.   At any rate, my initial thoughts on the  Broncos’ 2009 slate:

- Somehow it seems ridiculous that the Broncos will be opening on the road for the fifth straight year and the seventh season in the past eight.  That being said, the reason for this is actually relatively simple.  CBS always has the final round of the U.S. Open tennis tournament during week one of the NFL season, and they always air the men’s final in the late afternoon slot where the second wave of games normally takes place.  Since the Broncos will never be required to have an 11 a.m. home kickoff, the only way they could open at home would be if they host an NFC team on Fox (which was actually thought to be taking place this year, since sources had speculated the Broncos would host Dallas in week one), or if they hosted a Sunday or Monday night game.  Since the Broncos aren’t an elite team these days, the latter option is clearly out, and since the league put Cowboys-Broncos in week four, you’ve got Denver on the road in an early game again.  But hey, at least it’s in Cincinnati against the hapless Bengals.

Suspect in Williams murder in court (AP)

A suspect in the slaying of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams has appeared in court in a separate homicide case. Willie Clark is charged in the 2006 shooting death of Kalonniann Clark of Denver. He was supposed to enter a plea Friday, but his arraignment was postponed until Oct. 2. Willie Clark also is charged with first degree murder in the drive-by shooting death of Williams on New... [read full article]

From Yahoo! Sports

Suspect in Williams' death to enter plea (AP)

The man accused in the shooting death of Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams will be in court to enter a plea in a separate murder case. Willie Clark is charged along with two other men in the shooting death of Kalonniann Clark, a witness in an attempted murder case. Also charged in Clark's death are Brian Hicks and Shun Birch. [read full article]

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Leaf surrenders on theft, drug charges (AP)

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Attorney: Leaf plans to surrender Friday (AP)

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Marshall attends own camp, not Broncos' (AP)

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