Denver Broncos Training Camp – 8/5 AM Practice Report

Mike Nolan is quite literally a 'hands on' coach. (BroncoTalk/Kyle Montgomery)

Denver Broncos training camp… news and notes from the Wednesday AM practice.

With the public restricted from viewing the Wednesday morning workout, the Broncos kicked off their sixth day of practice to the watchful eyes of Media and VIP’s only. A more run-filled practice, the defense stepped up again, the offense continued to struggle but show flashes, and the coaches were as mystic as ever.

Attendance Report

Brian Dawkins was missing from practice after sustaining an injury yesterday, and Head Coach Josh McDaniels expects him to miss a few days. Veterans Daniel Graham, Brandon Stokley, and Casey Weigmann were absent, although they’ve been given this special treatment once before. Coach is taking it easy on the vets. D.J. Williams was out – no word on why, along with Rulon Davis. Of course, to no one’s surprise, Brandon Marshall and Knowshon Moreno were also elsewhere.

Offense

OFFENSIVE MVP: RYAN CLADY. The Big Man showed why he should have been a 2008 Pro Bowler in today’s practice. The right side of the o-line was noticeably struggling, but the left side held strong. With rookie Seth Olsen lining up at LG and Ben Hamilton sliding over to C in Weigmann’s absence, Clady not only handled his own assignments in pass protection, he helped the rookie out a few times as well. I saw Clady stonewall Dumervil on a rush before picking up a corner blitz. In the run game, Clady also showed his mettle. As a whole, the running game got very little going today, as the defense played very well and was aggressive at the line of scrimmage. The only success they had seemed to be on the left side behind the big, hulking Clady.

Ryan Clady, Tom Brandstater and Chris Kuper (BroncoTalk/Kyle Montgomery)

• The backup offensive line bounced back after getting worked yesterday. I liked what I saw from Tyler Polumbus in particular, Clady’s backup at LT. Several times he picked up the blitz and even did well when facing Elvis Dumervil a few times. Elvis has been our best pass-rusher thus far in camp and had even been giving Clady some trouble in practices past.
• Kyle Orton had another strong practice. He threw some of his most powerful throws today. During a nice fleaflicker, Orton targeted Eddie Royal deep and actually overthrew #19. It was a good 40-50 yard toss – I was surprised, didn’t think he had it in him.
• Chris Simms had a strong practice in backup work. During one play he sidestepped pressure and immediately threw a dart to Chad Jackson at the sideline for a beautiful 10-yard completion. Later, with outstanding pass protection, Simms threw a good 25-yarder on a rope to Royal over the middle. Royal made the leaping catch. On top of the big plays, I saw him go through his reads and progressions better today.
• Among what few good runs there were, Ryan Torain‘s looked best. That kid cuts to the inside so quick he makes every defender jump out of their sneakers.
• Rough day for Darius Walker. On a day when no one was running well, Walker looked particularly put out. He had a big dropped ball to boot.

Defense

DEFENSIVE MVP: ANDRA DAVIS. The inside linebacker played in multiple positions today and looked very good, especially in run defense. The ground game hardly got anything going, and Davis was a big reason why. He lined up alongside Wesley Woodyard, who was filling in for D.J. Williams, and showed why his experience as the starter gives him the edge. With Woodyard looking a bit out of place at times, Davis repeatedly snuffed out the back and got in on the action. The coaches also lined him up at outside linebacker a few times – Davis wasn’t spectacular but looked solid everywhere.

Denver Broncos linebacker Andra Davis tosses a football during the team's 2009 training camp. (BroncoTalk/Kyle Montgomery)

• Robert Ayers and Elvis Dumervil are being moved around a lot as the coaches try to determine what works. Ayers played at LOLB with the first team on occasion and played both on the left and right with the second team. At times, Dumervil would put his hand on the ground and play RDE, although he still predominantly sees time on the outside.
• Ayers is a force. He needs to go through the mental reps to tighten up his game and know his assignments, but when his mission is clear in front of him, the guy dominates. Ryan Harris again had his hands full today. Their first meeting saw the rookie make a move that would have burned Harris had he not slipped ever-so-slightly; Harris, being a veteran and pro, took advantage of the split-second mistake and put Ayers on the floor. The next play, Ayers went at Harris with full power and nearly knocked him on his back – there was a noticeable gap between the two players after the impact as Harris stumbled back. The assignments still escape Ayers at times though – he missed a tackle after guessing wrong on a running play and looked lost a few times in coverage. He’s getting it though.
• Vernon Fox had a blazing fast sack on Simms after he came through the protection unblocked. Simms didn’t have a chance.
• Richard Quinn may predominantly be a blocking tight end, but don’t tell Darrell Reid that. The linebacker tossed Quinn around like a rag doll during one-on-one’s.
• Mario Haggan completely blew up a pitch to the right for a big loss.

There’s another practice at 5:30pm this afternoon, this time open to the public.