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Boss Bailey on comeback trail for Broncos

By Lee Rasizer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published February 20, 2009 at 6:54 p.m.

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Linebacker Boss Bailey appears to be ahead of schedule in his comeback from microfracture surgery on his left knee.

Photo by Barry Gutierrez © The Rocky

Linebacker Boss Bailey appears to be ahead of schedule in his comeback from microfracture surgery on his left knee.

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Linebacker Boss Bailey appears to be ahead of schedule in his comeback from microfracture surgery on his left knee in early November.

Bailey's agent, Jack Reale, said Bailey already has begun jogging, is building strength and is on track for a potential return in training camp.

Meanwhile, Bailey's brother, Champ, is making headway in his return from surgery to repair torn ligaments and a dislocation of his left elbow.

"Once it heals, you don't want to go in and start lifting a lot of weights with that arm. You've got to build up slowly. That'll be the process," Reale said, adding that Champ Bailey might be recovered in time for some limited minicamp activities. "He'll proceed at his pace with that arm and work everything else. And by the time they put pads on, he'll be ready to go."

Comments

  • February 20, 2009

    7:12 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    Dynamicdave writes:

    I was mentioning that I felt Boss may not be with the Broncos at the start of regular season? Maybe I'll be wrong? I hope so because I supported him when Denver got him from Detroit. He was an injured waste last year. Guess we'll wait and see. Champ is a main character who needs to get healthy. We'll need his leadership and hard hitting.

  • February 20, 2009

    8:15 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    MRBONG writes:

    all the sudden we have to many linebackers Moss, Williams, Baily , Dumerville ,Larson , Woodyard and i wouldnt call any of them franchise linebackers Woodyard is probally the best of all of them but he is far to small for the 3-4 scheme , and it didnt seem like he was a fit at safty ,we should try and trade 1 or 2 of them. just looking at it from a numbers point of view i really like moss as a 6-6 255lb. linebacker , and Boss seemed kinda soft to me, not really a 3-4 linebacker either. and because of this i bet we draft D lineman and cornerbacks and safty before linebackers

  • February 20, 2009

    8:25 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    6_is_the_new_7 writes:

    MRBONG
    I know you catch some heat at times, but I almost always agree with what you post. Everybody else says we need LBs. I count 9 pretty good ones on our roster already.

  • February 20, 2009

    8:42 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    jvill writes:

    I'd wager Dumerville is trade bait. His big advantage was the leverage provided by the length of his very long arms. Seems like that would be less useful for an OLB, while Dumerville's lack of size and quickness are likely not going to translate well to the position.

  • February 20, 2009

    11:03 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    den2mke writes:

    Two things about this story...

    First, it's a dicey situation since Champ is an anchor of the team, but I didn't see anything that Boss did before the injury that would indicate he should be part of the mix on defense.

    Secondly, unless there's been some huge progression in the treatment, microfracture surgery is still hugely invasive and a tremendously long recovery. I haven't seen any successful instances where full recovery didn't take more on the lines of 18-24 months (see K-Mart, Amare Staudemire). And the ability to jog isn't where the challenge lies. Those whose careers have survived it talk of the difficulty in cutting and exploding without significant pain--even over a year after the procedure.

    The timing and source (his agent) seems highly suspicious to me--like maybe the Boss camp thought they needed a little positive press at a time when the new regime is clearing out high-priced, unproductive players.

    Still seems highly speculative as to whether he plays again. While hoops players have extended careers with the procedure, I'm not aware of another player who has survived the procedure and been able to withstand the pounding on the football field.

  • February 21, 2009

    11:32 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    7Dave7 writes:

    den2mke you make a lot of sense about the surgery. Terell Davis never recovered from it in time to ressurect his career.

    MRBONG you seem like an insightful guy about football but I want to give you some constructive criticism about your grammar. When you are talking about quantity such as "to many linebackers" or description such as "to small" you need to use the word "too". No offense, just a pet peave of mine. I'm sure I don't have perfect grammar either. Capitals at the beggining of sentences and capital "I" would help at all times as well. Maybe you just type really fast and just want to get the point across. Not trying to be an a--hole.

  • February 21, 2009

    1:33 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    wtnelson writes:

    den2mke, I will disagree with you about Boss. When the guy's on the field, he is an excellent linebacker. Not sure how many games you go to, if any, but it seems like after every play, Alan Roach is saying, "Tackle made by Boss Bailey". He's no Champ, but he is all over the field. He just can't stay healthy.

  • February 21, 2009

    1:42 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    mmorg17 writes:

    We have too many OLB type LB's not many thumper types such as Teddy "I played a mean DT at 'Zona" Bruschi or Ray-Ray " we all forgot you killed someone after a Super Bowl" Lewis. IMHO we definitely need one or two more ILB thumper types, Mauluaga would be an ideal fit, or possibly Bart Scott to pair with Larsen. We have one other in Hardwick? Can't produce his name but, he played a little last year and has basically been a journeymen special team type guy.
    The focus in free agency should be safety and defensive linemen. I liked the idea brought up the other day, Canty and Olshansky, pair them with some younger guys, Crowder and the draft and we then go after a some DT help. Tough to decide on which Free Agent DT's would help as I am not familiar with the different techniques, it does seem though that bigger D-Linemene in general fit better with the 3-4 at DT and DE. At safety, for the interm we go after Sean Jones and Yeremiah Bell, or Gibril Wilson. All three of them would be a mojor upgrade from the M&M brothers last year, also remember Barrett, he played very well, mono y mono against some elite competition i.e. Tony Gonzalez last year. In the draft Eugene Chung would be nice fit if we can get him to become more disciplined.
    If Harrison is jettisoned from the Colts we need to take a look.

    We have 40 million in Cap room and these are all may be pipe dreams, I would bet we are doing some of this cap cutting so that we are in better shape to afford Marshall and Cutler as well as be players next year in the uncapped circus.
    Random Thoughts:
    1.Why not trade Dumerville, while his stock is high, he doesn't fit anymore and he proved last year that he most likely won't be an elite pass rush end in a 4-3. I love the guy but, he may not fit anymore, same with Wilson, Shanahan, and Lynch when the writing was on the wall for them, I love 'em but, eventually it comes down to what's best for the team.
    2. Let's draft a developmental QB. McDaniels has shown an affinity for diamonds in the rough and is anyone really OK with Hackney or Ramsey playing full-time if Cutler gets hurt.
    3. Did anyone else think "I'm lovin this" when McD and Xanders cut the fat this week?
    4. Why does everyone believe the playoffs are such a stretch next year? We are loaded on O, and if Atlanta can turn it around with a rookie QB and Miami can with the only two time comeback player of the year not named Falco, than so can we.

  • February 21, 2009

    3:22 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    Dynamicdave writes:

    mmorg17, why are you "copying and pasting" your same post in every article (3)? I think we got it the 1st time.

  • February 21, 2009

    9:04 p.m.

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    TXBRONC writes:

    I like Boss but the guy just can't seem to stay healthy.

  • February 22, 2009

    10:35 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    Buddy6 writes:

    I will say it again...move Woodyard to SS and let him compete for a starting job. Decent speed, excellent open field tackler and tons of emotion. As for linebackers...? DJ, Larsen, Maulugua, Moss (Dumervil)...which would leave Boss and Webster to back up and special teams!

  • February 22, 2009

    6:11 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    TXBRONC writes:

    Webster would gave to be re-signed and hoping that isn't going to happen.

    If Bailey stays there is very good chance he starts.

  • February 22, 2009

    7:55 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    IAbronco writes:

    Boss is usually hauled of the field due to some kind of injury before he can make a tackle... HAHAHAHAHA!!

  • February 23, 2009

    8:46 a.m.

    Suggest removal

    TXBRONC writes:

    [IAbronco writes:

    Boss is usually hauled of the field due to some kind of injury before he can make a tackle... HAHAHAHAHA!!]

    I guess that's why he averaged 7 total tackles per game when he was able to play.

    I don't see anything funny about guys getting hurt.

  • February 23, 2009

    3:13 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    Dynamicdave writes:

    TXBRONC, agreed, never, ever make fun of a persons injury. They play in a rough sport to entertain us so to laugh when he gets injured is weak. IAbronco needs to take notes. As far as Boss, when he's healthy, he plays well. I'm just wondering if he'll be healthy in time to keep his spot?

  • February 23, 2009

    3:44 p.m.

    Suggest removal

    TXBRONC writes:

    That's a good question Dave. I could see him being on the bubble even if the knee is healthy enough to participate in camp. I say that because it still wont be a full year since the injury occurred and he could still tentative. Any way, time will tell.