WEDNESDAY INJURY/PRACTICE REPORT — Denver Broncos wide receiver Eddie Royal fully participated in practice on Wednesday. Royal had missed most of last week’s practice session and Sunday’s game with a bruised ankle bone. While it hasn’t been officially announced, the fact that he is already listed as “full participation” is a great sign that he’ll be ready for the upcoming Monday Night Football game against the New England Patriots (preview).

Meanwhile, rookie running back Ryan Torain saw his first snaps at practice on Wednesday. He’s been sidelined with an elbow injury all season long. Torain was listed under “limited participation” on Wednesday. Unless he practices fully in the next few days, I’d expect him to remain inactive Week 7 and wait until after the bye to make his pro debut.

Other Broncos weren’t so lucky – LB Boss Bailey and WR Brandon Stokley did not participate with an ankle injury and concussion respectively. TE Tony Scheffler and RB Selvin Young were limited with groin injuries suffered against Tampa Bay in Week 5. They’ll need to see more of the practice field by the end of the week to crack the lineup on Monday.

Jay Cutler took the league by storm during the first three weeks of the 2008 NFL season. Leading the Denver Broncos to a perfect 3-0 record, Cutler was poised, well-protected, and downright deadly. The Broncos offense scored over 30 points each game, and Cutler started the season with a monster 110.6 quarterback rating.

Fast forward three weeks, and things aren’t looking quite as pretty for Cutler. Take a look:

Jay Cutler Comp Att Pct Yds Avg TD Int Rate Record First 3 games 73 108 67.6 914 8.5 8 2 110.6 3-0 Last 3 games 73 120 60.8 780 6.5 4 3 80.5 1-2 Total 146 228 64.0 1,694 7.4 12 5 94.8 4-2

Cutler’s tallying less impressive stats across the board, barely edging out the 80-rating mark in the past three weeks. Not coincidentally, the Broncos went 1-2 in that stretch. He’s still playing well enough overall, but there’s obviously something different between Cutler Weeks 1-3 and Cutler Weeks 4-6. So what happened to throw the NFL’s Three-Week Golden Boy off course? Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Ex-Bronco Jason Elam nails the game-winner for Atlanta. (Getty Images)

Your wittiest, most cleverest captions in the comments.

Friday’s winner – Mark:

Shanahan does his best Donald Trump impersonation: “You’re fired.”

Remember to leave your caption for the top photo. Happy captioning!

From the Associated Press (via ESPN) —

Brandon Stokley acknowledged Monday that he actually suffered his 10th career concussion on his first catch against Jacksonville, not on the third one, when he lost his balance and fell to his knees.

In between, he scored his second touchdown of the season.

“It happened on my first catch, I got my head slammed,” the Denver Broncos’ slot receiver said. “And then the touchdown, I got head-butted a few times from some teammates. So, that didn’t help.”

What? Noooo…

AP Photo

Oops.

(Just having fun. That is a picture from Sunday’s game, though. LOL. Get better Stokley!)

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Broncos (4-2) vs. Patriots (3-2)
Gillette Stadium
Mon, Oct 20, 2008
8:30 PM EDT ESPN

Preview | Scouting Report | Predictions
Injury Report | Weather | Tickets

Looking to enter their bye week on a winning note, the Denver Broncos (4-2) visit the New England Patriots (3-2) this week for a Monday Night Football contest at Gillette Stadium. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m. EDT.

Denver is coming off a difficult 24-17 loss to Jacksonville, while New England is fresh off a 30-10 beating courtesy the Broncos’ AFC West rival San Diego Chargers. San Diego’s win put them within a game of Denver, who holds the AFC West lead at 4-2.

The loss snapped the Broncos’ league-leading six-game home winning streak, as well as the opportunity for the organization to earn its 400th franchise win. They’ll get another chance to reach that landmark on Monday against the Patriots. Click here to read the rest of this entry »

WEATHER REPORT – Denver Broncos at New England Patriots – MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL – Monday, October 20, 2008.

The weather report is early at this point, but it looks like a wet and chilly night in New England. Stay locked to this page for updates throughout the week.

More on the game…

@
Broncos (4-2) vs. Patriots (3-2)
Gillette Stadium
Mon, Oct 20, 2008
8:30 PM EDT ESPN

Preview | Scouting Report | Predictions
Injury Report | Weather | Tickets

Shanahan has a word with the ref. (AP Photo)

Your wittiest, most cleverest captions in the comments.

Friday’s winner – BradenM:

“Very well…Choose any cheerleader your heart desires. All we need is two questionable calls against the Broncos.”

Remember to leave your caption for the top photo. Happy captioning!

The Denver Broncos appear to be finally weaning themselves off the committee approach to running the football.

Head Coach Mike Shanahan announced on Monday that running back Michael Pittman was designated the “full time” starter for Sunday’s game, and he didn’t see any reason to change that.

“I thought Michael did a great job. He ran the ball extremely well and passed protected well,” Shanahan said during Monday’s press conference. “He took advantage of his opportunity. Everything that you want him to do, he did. If you play like that, you get the opportunity to have more playing time.”

Shanahan indicated his impressive performance against the Buccaneers in Week Five had a lot to do with his playing time this past weekend. “One of the reasons he got as much playing time as he did is because of the way he played last week. He sure didn’t hurt himself in this game.” Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Stokley scored the first touchdown of the game before suffering a concussion in the first half. (Getty Images)

Talk about adding injury to insult. The Denver Broncos not only endured a tough 24-17 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, they suffered a scary injury to one of their biggest playmakers, too.

WR Brandon Stokley suffered a concussion in the first half of the game and did not return. The ninth year player had three catches and the game’s only touchdown when he left the field. “I got slammed to the ground and the back of my helmet hit the ground,” Stokley said after the game. “I still don’t feel good. When you have a brain injury like that, time is the only thing that can make it heal.”

Stokley joins an increasing number of Broncos missing in action due to injury. Tony Scheffler and wide receiver Eddie Royal both missed the game with groin and ankle injuries respectively. Running back Selvin Young also missed the game with a groin injury.

Broncos coach Mike Shanahan was hopeful some or all of these players would see the field next week in New England. “Hopefully we’ll have them back. [WR Brandon] Stokley had a concussion and we’ll see how serious that is. Hopefully [WR] Eddie [Royal] can come back next week. He’s got a bone bruise, and hopefully that will clear up.”

All of our weapons underneath were missing in this second half. Scheffler, Royal or Stokley in the slot, Young out of the backfield… it was pretty much Brandon Marshall and Glenn Martinez out there running routes, with an occasional tight end mixed in, that’s it. If only our bye was this week… hopefully a few of these guys will be ready for Monday Night Football against the Patriots. Hopefully Stokley feels better from his concussion and it’s nothing season-threatening.

Broncos DT Kenny Peterson nearly sacks Jaguars QB David Garrard. The Jaguars would hold on for a 24-17 win in Denver. (Getty Images)

The Denver Broncos (4-2) came into this game against the Jacksonville Jaguars (3-3) full of confidence. Last year, these two teams squared off for a game in which Broncos Head Coach Mike Shanahan said the Broncos were “manhandled.” The Broncos were hoping their improved squad would fare better in 2008.

They weren’t manhandled this time, but they blew opportunity after opportunity. QB Jay Cutler had another shaky performance, RB Maurice Jones-Drew scored two touchdowns, and the Jaguars got a little help to hold on to a 24-17 victory in Mile High.

With the loss, the Broncos’ league-leading six-game winning streak at home comes to an end.

The defense did its part; I place the blame on another lackluster offensive showing… and, hate to say it, awful officiating. Let’s break down where the opportunities were blown. Click here to read the rest of this entry »