Brand new beginning for Broncos

Camp starts fresh as team loses a legend and leader

By Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published July 24, 2008 at 6:56 p.m.

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The latest edition of "The Broncs Zoo." See if you can replace the automatic Jason Elam.

On a day the Broncos said a tear-filled goodbye to one of the franchise's most decorated players, receiver Rod Smith, they stood on a doorstep of a new season hoping they have gained as much as they have lost.

Hoping they have assembled a roster that has at least some of all Smith brought to the team in his career.

"I always say to win championships, you've got to have work ethic, that you've got overachievers, overachievers with ability and overachievers with great ability," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said Thursday as he pointed to Smith. "And (if) you don't have those guys you don't win. . . . Players win championships and they set the tempo."

And there is the story of the Broncos in 2008. After an offseason marked by the Broncos' very public divorce from players they believed did not fit their desire for an improved locker room - receiver Javon Walker, linebacker Ian Gold and running back Travis Henry were released - they open training camp today.

They begin a seasonlong trek today to see if they have enough of the overachievers with great ability to be what they hope to be.

"What that is, is a player who has great talent, yet works as hard or harder than anyone else," Shanahan said. "That's what you need to win. I always say talk is cheap because it is; now we'll see where we are. But we like what we have to work with."

With Smith's retirement announcement, where the Broncos are is far enough away from their most recent Super Bowl appearance that center Tom Nalen is the only remaining player on the roster who played in Super Bowl XXXIII.

Where the Broncos are is coming off back-to-back playoff misses, including last year's 7-9 finish, having been beaten by division-champion San Diego by a combined score of 147-53 in the past four meetings.

"We've had some tough times," Smith said. "But guys want to succeed in that room. They do."

"But now it's day by day," Shanahan said. "We did everything we could in the offseason, everybody worked extremely hard, but we've got to take it day by day. It's what you do on the field."

Thursday, Shanahan pointed to a "99 percent" attendance rate in the team's offseason conditioning program - one notable exception was safety John Lynch, who Shanahan cleared to work out on his own in San Diego - as the foundation of why he believed in the current roster despite a relative lack of national buzz about the team.

"I like the feel," Shanahan said of the roster.

Of the offseason program, he said: "You know you have a special group of guys. . . . I'm not sure (99 percent) that's ever happened, it's never happened here."

But in the ultracompetitive AFC, the Broncos likely will need every offseason sprint, every pound lifted from all of their players to snap the current postseason drought.

And as they begin practice, they also will have to answer several pending questions, including:

* Who's the running back?

Shanahan said he was more worried about the production overall, about hitting the 5-yards-per-carry mark as a team and that he liked the team's collection of running backs.

* Who will kick and punt?

Matt Prater, now the only place-kicker on the roster, has been given the early vote of confidence as Jason Elam's replacement.

"We better be confident because he's the only one we got," Shanahan said. "We want to give him all the reps, we want to see what he can do, we want him to know he's our guy. We've got a lot of confidence in him. . . .

"He's done a great job in practice thus far and, hopefully, he can carry over into the preseason and, obviously, the regular season."

Shanahan added Brett Kern and Sam Paulescu will fight it out for the punting job and "may the best man win."

* Can they stop the run?

They'd better, Shanahan said, or they won't be in the postseason. The Broncos finished 30th in the league in rushing yards allowed per game last season and 31st in rushing yards allowed per play.

Bob Slowik is calling the shots on defense now, and people will see plenty of eight-man fronts and they will play with a far lighter, quicker defensive line than they opened with last season.

Two of the team's major signings in free agency were linebackers, Niko Koutouvides and Boss Bailey.

* What does the offensive line look like?

Right now, Shanahan said, it would be Ryan Clady at left tackle, Ben Hamilton at left guard, Tom Nalen at center, Montrae Holland at right guard. The right tackle spot would be up for grabs among Ryan Harris, Chris Kuper and Erik Pears.

* Will Clady be signed?

He was the team's only unsigned pick Thursday night but was at the team's training camp hotel.

• July 24, 2008

  8:14 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Dynamicdave writes:

  I sure hope Clady signs. We need Jay's left side, protected. Our running back situation looks very promising and have Boss and Niko in there on D, is a big plus. Let us stay healthy and we have a real nice shot at taking the AFC West, this year.

• July 25, 2008

  7:56 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  LingLingfor_prez writes:

  Raise your glasses to a two-win season.

• July 25, 2008

  1:53 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Chacmool writes:

  LingLing - When is the last time Denver had a 2 win season? Do you actually follow the NFL? Even know what NFL stands for? Denver has had 5 losing seasons in the past 32. That, moron, is excellent.

• July 25, 2008

  2:08 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  bigbadthor writes:

  My guess starting O-line:
  Clady - LT
  Kuper -LG
  Nalen - C
  Holland - RG
  Pears - RT

  Harris - Backup Tackle
  Hamilton - Backup G/C - takes over for Nalen next year, gives him another year to get over concussion.
  Kid out of Bowling Green other backup G/C

• July 25, 2008

  4:44 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  Dynamicdave writes:

  LingLing is a ding-a-ling. 2 wins? He MUST BE A RAIDERS fan, because THAT'S what THEY are used to seeing. I agree jonseof, 10-6 or 11-5. I think we will split San Diego this year. ITisWHATitIS, thanks, yeah, I saw the story this morning. I wrote my 2 cents, last night. when he hadn't been decided yet.

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