Thank you lord, for giving us OTA’s

The wait is finally over!  Soon we’ll have some real Broncos news flowing out of Dove Valley as the Broncos begin their first OTA today.  Organized Team Activities (OTA’s) are comprised for 14 days of on-field training/practice, one 3-day ‘mini-camp’ and, of course, Training Camp. 

Most NFL teams schedule their mini-camp soon after the draft as a way to initiate the rookies into their program.  The Broncos, instead, use their mini-camp in July right before their main Training Camp.  With the current OTA schedule, once they begin their practice days, there are far fewer weeks off in between the OTA’s — which hopefully translates into more productive training periods. 

“I think it’s smart the way Mike schedules (OTA’s).  We are the last team in the league to have a minicamp; it keeps it kind of fresh in your mind rather than taking a whole month off before camp.”

— John Lynch 7/6/06

Don’t be confused by the title… 

“Quarterback Camp” is  just the name the Broncos use for these OTA days – everyone attends.  That means we should also hear quite a bit about our newest Broncos, as both free agents and draftees will get their first reps with their new teammates this week.

“It’s always nice to get the draft choices in and obviously get a practice going, with a lot of free agents. We got a lot of good work done today. We weren’t out here for a long time, but we did get in some quality work.”

— Mike Shanahan 5/16/07

We should also get updates on some of our personnel that were injured last season.  Some of the bigger names we’re waiting to hear news on are Matt Lepsis, Nick Ferguson, Sam Brandon, Brandon Stokley and Rod Smith. 

Most exciting is one of last year’s highly anticipated rookies, Domenik Hixon.  Domenik, who sat out all of last season on the injury reserve, says he is ready to impress this year beginning today (Full DenverBroncos.com Story).

“I’m excited!  Just to get out there and actually run around and catch footballs from everybody — I can’t wait.”

— Domenik Hixon 5/15/07

And if you’re wondering who’s that wearing the #56 Jersey, Andrew Mason has give us a great list of the new (or changed) player numbers — Thanks, Andrew!  :)

Changed in the Off-Season:

RB Mike Bell: #20 changed to #30

WR/KR Brian Clark: #19 changed to #86

TE Nate Jackson: #89 changed to #81

Newly acquired (or re-acquired) veterans of at least one training camp:

CB Dré Bly: #32
FB Troy Fleming: #34
QB Darrell Hackney: #4
TE Daniel Graham: #89
DE Carlos Hall: #98
RB Travis Henry: #20
CB Eric Hill: #36
LB Warrick Holdman: #56
G Montrae Holland: #70
LB T.J. Hollowell: #57
LB D.D. Lewis: #54
WR Glenn Martinez: #17
DT Alvin McKinley: #99
LB Eddie Moore: #51
QB Patrick Ramsey: #8
OT Jacob Rogers: #69
FB Paul Smith: #26
WR Brandon Stokley: #14
WR David Terrell:#13 (his old # from the 2005-06 offseason)

Draft picks:

DE Tim Crowder: #96
OT Ryan Harris: #74
DE Jarvis Moss: #95
DT Marcus Thomas: #77

Undrafted rookies:

OL Mark Fenton: #65
DT Steven Harris: #68
WR/KR Marquay McDaniel: #16
PK Brandon Pace: #2
S Roderick Rogers: No number issued yet
RB Selvin Young: #35

**A full list of the roster (and jersey numbers) can be found on the official website HERE.