SPEAK UP: Little News Items that Make Me Smile

So, I’m back from my family vacation in Florida (mental note: 11.5 hours in a car with both a six & a two year old makes for a VERY long drive).

I tried to keep up with all the Denver Bronco news and there are a couple of little items I’ve read or seen in video coverage of Denver’s OTA days that brought a smile to my face…

1. The Emergence of Foxworth
With Bly sidelined with an injury (hamstring), it appears there’s been some talk about how DB Domonique Foxworth is pushing Bly for the starting corner spot opposite Champ. The Denver Post mentioned it in passing this week and I thought it was noteworthy. Foxy has been a big part of our defensive backfield, and I have always liked him. However, he was (apparently) not considered adequate to start after we lost D-will as evidenced by Shanahan bringing in Dre’ Bly from Detroit.

Although fans and the media may have been a bit underwhelmed by Bly, he had a strong year. He started all 16 games and registered 59 tackles (44 solo), a sack and 16 pass deflections. He also had a team-hign 5 interceptions (9th in the league). So, I’m interested to learn what camp observers have seen (besides Foxworth lining up in place of Bly) that has them buzzing about this. Until then I’ll just be happy that we have enough talent in our backfield to generate this kind of competition.

2. Royal Treatment
I know there is a honeymoon period for any player, but WR Eddie Royal has received some nice praise from both Mike Shanahan and Jay Cutler. What I like about their comments is what they haven’t mentioned. Let me explain…

Both Shanahan and Cutler have applauded his speed coming out of his breaks and his ability to run clean routes. Cutler went on to discuss his great hands – saying he hadn’t dropped a ball. What has me excited is that neither of these two items were his number one attribute in every scouting report – his ability to make people miss and get yardage after the catch.

Maybe I’m reading too much into all these kind words, but I’m totally stoked to see what happens when the pads go on and we can see Royal not only running a great route and making a great catch, but also eluding the defense and gaining some YAC.

3. Peyton Hillis Spotting
I’m not sure what Mike Shanahan really means when he says rookie FB Peyton Hillis is “one heck of an athlete.” It seems pretty vague to me. Now, I understand that these first few OTA days have been mostly installation of the play book and unit drills with very little contact (if any), so evaluating any fullback at this point would be very silly.

What has me excited then?

Well, Hillis has always had good size and great hands, but his biggest scouting report knock was his lack of skill as a lead blocker. Since I can’t see us keeping a FB that can’t blow up defenders in that lead blocker role, I would love to see our coaching staff working with Hillis on this area of concern. I would also love to see indications that Hillis is eager to learn and is working hard to develop his game.

So, it gave me a warm fuzzy feeling to see Hillis’ #48 jersey still on the field working with Bobby Turner after practice last week (this can be seen in the background of the denverbroncos.com video interview of O-lineman Wiegmann on Friday).

These were a couple of small news items that made my day a little bit brighter. I’d love to hear what you think!

What players have caught your attention so far? Have you seen footage of a player that surprised you? Have you read a news story or background info about a player that has moved you? Who are you pulling for early in these camp sessions?