Josh Barrett dives for Patrick Crayton Oct. 4, 2009 (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey).

As Brady Quinn begins his first full-day as a Denver Bronco Adam Caplan of Scout.com is reporting that restricted free agent safety Josh Barrett has been re-signed by the club.

Barrett was drafted in 2008 by the Broncos in the seventh round (228th pick overall), in the NFL combine he was touted as the biggest, fastest safety available.

Shortly after preseason finished in 2008 Barrett was signed to the Broncos practice squad, he was placed on the active roster in late November and recorded his first career interception two weeks later against Jake Delhomme then of the Carolina Panthers.

In 2009 he participated in fourteen games, starting none, accumulating ten tackles (nine solo) and participating on special teams.

Barrett becomes the second Broncos restricted free agent to sign with the team. Terms for the contract are not immediately confirmed, but it is believed to be a one year deal. [scout.com]

As draft day approaches, we will be giving you game tape highlights of some of the bigger (and smaller) names around the draft.  Based off of the Broncos working him out last Thursday, today we showcase UMass Left Tackle / Guard Vladimir Ducasse.

Ducasse is a standout left tackle for the UMass Minutemen.  In the first video you will see highlights/lowlights of Ducasse from the Senior Bowl, mainly because scouts only want to see the lineman perform on a larger stage against better competition than he typically faced during the season coming from a smaller college.  You will notice that Vlad is playing at left tackle for the duration of the first video, this isn’t quite as important to focus on (especially in regards to the Broncos) as pro scouts have recently labeled Ducasse a guard at the NFL level due to his poor position performance at the Senior Bowl.

Toby Gerhart #7 of the Stanford Cardinal breaks through the line on his way to scoring his first touchdown against the California Bears at Stanford Stadium on November 21, 2009 in Palo Alto, California.

News has been coming out today of private workouts being held for Broncos coaches and scouts along with a slew of other teams.  Chris Steuber of Scout.com has reported that Denver will be working out Boston College center Matt Tennant and Stanford running back Toby Gerhart.  In the case of Tennant, it’s interesting that the Broncos are looking to fill the huge hole at center with the player ranked 3rd at the position on most team’s boards behind Maurkice Pouncey and J.D. Walton.  Perhaps they see something no one else does to make a deeper selection?  The Broncs may have to fight it out with the Falcons who will visit BC later this month to workout the Rimington Trophy finalist.

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

The writing was on the wall the moment the Broncos traded for Brady Quinn Sunday. Quarterback Chris Simms was released on Monday, the Denver Post reports.

Simms was called to duty once in his one-season career as a Bronco, starting for three series but struggling against the San Diego Chargers before being benched for the injured Kyle Orton.

Finding a backup quarterback — one that could even compete with Orton for the starting job — was one of this offseason’s priorities, and the Broncos fulfilled that with the trade for Quinn. That left no space on the roster for Simms.

Broncos cut quarterback Chris Simms [Denver Post]

Mind still blown about this whole Brady Quinn trade? Here’s some links to sooth the noggin.

• Brady Quinn wasn’t the only first round pick that the Browns ousted to the AFC West yesterday. Kamerion Wimbley was sent to the Raiders for a third round pick. [SFGate]
• Marla Ridenour does a great job giving an insightful overview of yesterdays events. [Boston Herald]
• With a $2.54 million base salary this year, is a Chris Simms cut looming? [RotoWorld]
• Kyle Orton isn’t exactly shaking in his boots about the Quinn trade. [DPO]
• Between all the chaos of the Quinn trade and Jake Delhomme signing, Peter King asks a great question. “Where’s the love for Donovan McNabb?” [SI] Click here to read the rest of this entry »

The Denver Broncos shocked the NFL today when they traded for Notre Dame alumnus Brady Quinn. This news so recent, that most Denver fans are left in such a state of disbelief that they haven’t been able to formulate an opinion yet. Wouldn’t you like to know what Brady Quinn is thinking? Well now you can. Thanks to an exclusive interview conducted by the Plain Dealer today we can now read about Brady Quinn’s thoughts on being traded. I just wish he asked him what number he wants to take.

Quinn on whether he expects to be the starter

* (On starting in Denver?) “At this point, I’m just looking to create a role for myself on the team. Anytime you’re in a situation like this, that’s all you can really do is just go in there and learn the system, get to know your teammates and coaches, everyone else and that’s really my focus right now. All of those things will take care of themselves in the end.” Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Well, do I really need to cite a source? All I can say is wow. Denver has given up Peyton Hillis (essentially a 7th round pick), a 2011 6th round pick, and a conditional 2012 pick for well you know, Brady Quinn.

I cannot even begin to process an opinion, because I’m full of questions. What does this mean for Kyle Orton? Is Quinn a backup or is he going to compete for the starting job? What are the details of the conditional details? Adam Schefter reports that the conditional pick is a late round draft pick.

Right now I don’t consider this to be too much of a compromise. Peyton Hillis didn’t really pan out in the offense and I wasn’t a fan of his fumble-itis, a 6th round pick all that big, and if the conditional pick isn’t higher than a 5th rounder it could work out well.

Question!: What number do you think Brady Quinn will take as a Bronco?

As draft day approaches, we will be giving you game tape highlights of some of the bigger (and smaller) names around the draft.  Today we showcase Tennessee Defensive Tackle Dan Williams.

The first clip is the highlights and lowlights reel from Williams’ 2009 season.  Notice that Williams is the anchor on the d-line, more often that not he appears to be the last line of defense against the run.  With that said, he also seems to leave his gap many times to rush into the backfield allowing running backs to blow by.  He seems very good at holding the point of attack and stopping the runner where he stands.  He shows good ability to rush the passer for a DT, not great.  Always a split second from making a hurry, bad pass, or sack.  The second video is Dan’s combine workout video and the third is a single play highlight of Williams blocking a game winning field goal against Kentucky.

Today brings much needed closure to the family of Darrent Williams and the Denver Broncos community.  A jury has convicted known gang member Willie D. Clark on two counts of First Degree Murder.  One for the shots that killed Williams and the other for murder with “extreme indifference”.  Clark was being tried for a total of 21 charges and was found guilty on all 21.  Included in those charges were 16 for attempted murder, one for each of the survivors inside of the hummer limousine that was fired upon.  The defense requested a confirmation by each juror, they all replied with the same guilty vote.

There were no comments provided by the Clark family.  Defense attorney Darren Cantor also declined to comment on the verdict.  He was overheard in the courtroom stating to the sobbing Clark family members: “Try to breathe, OK? That’s what appeals are for.”  The prosecution’s key witness, Daniel “Poneytail” Harris has been denounced by the defense multiple times as pegging Clark as the scapegoat and even being accused as the actual gunman.  Sentencing has been set for April 30th.  Clark still must stand trial for the murder of a key witness, Kalonniann Clark. Pat Bowlen released the following statement shortly after verdict was read:

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

In a shocking move today the Denver Broncos have released inside linebacker Andra Davis. Since there has been no additions to the linebacker squad this comes as a huge surprise.Vic Lombardi tweets:

VicLombardi Wow…this one’s a bit of a shocker. Broncos release LB Andra Davis today.

Davis performed very well in his first year in Denver’s defense posting 90 tackles and 3.5 sacks. Having said that, Davis did wear down in the stretch. It is surprising that Denver would not try to keep him as a backup. The inside linebackers on the squad to replace Davis are Nick Griesen, who spent all year on injured reserve, and Wesley Woodyard who is smaller than some safeties at 222 pounds, and plays mostly in nickel packages. Click here to read the rest of this entry »