Jeff Goodman has been named Assistant General Manager of the Denver Broncos, the team announced Friday.Goodman will assist General Manager Ted Sundquist in all duties associated with the position. He enters his third season with the Broncos, having spent the previous two years as a college scout evaluating the Southeast region for the franchise.

Before joining the Broncos, Goodman gained considerable experience in contract negotiations during three years as an associate in the law firm of Balch & Bingham LLP in Birmingham, Ala. In that capacity, he worked in the firm’s litigation section and its sports agency and regulation practice area.

A former wide receiver at the University of Florida, Goodman earned a bachelor’s degree from Florida in business management in 2000 and a juris doctorate degree from Florida State University in 2003.

A graduate of Holmes County High School in Bonifay, Fla., Jeff Goodman is the son of Broncos Director of Player Personnel Jim Goodman. Jeff is married to Marissa, and the couple resides in Birmingham, Ala., with their daughter Savannah Brook Goodman.

Goodman is young and on the fast track in the Broncos organization. He was in charge of scouting in the Southeast region – funny how our two first round picks in his tenure have come from the SEC. A name to watch in the years to come.

It appears that Jason Elam has joined the blogosphere. And not a DenverBroncos.com blog (which are awesome, by the way). His blog can be found at MondayNightJihad.blogspot.com.

Elam has spent the past week or so in Iraq and Kuwait, visiting the troops and spreading the word on his professional – football – player – turned – secret – agent terror novel Monday Night Jihad. Reading his posts, it sounds like he’s having a lot of fun.

Ok, I’ll admit it. There are definitely some advantages to being an NFL player, and this time specifically to being a Denver Bronco.

There I was standing on the tarmac in Kuwait donning my body armor and Kevlar helmet, all in preparation for our C-130 Herc departure to Baghdad. Suddenly, the captain of the plane, who is from Colorado Springs and is a big-time Bronco fan, came out and asked if I’d like to sit up in the flight deck for departure. Without thinking twice I told her “You bet!” and left my tour comrades behind. What an unbelievable experience it was taking off in the cockpit of this huge four-engine turboprop!

Good to hear he’s back home safely. Now to deal with that pesky contract situation…

• The AFC West sure isn’t what it used to be. [Denver Post]
• Pedro Taylor, father of Sean Taylor, is at the Pro Bowl this week, and wants to get in touch with the family of Darrent Williams. [Denver Post]
• Part of me really agrees with Herc here. The other part of me just doesn’t want to dig all that up. [Orange Bucksnorts]
• What a scary bullet the NFL and all of its fans dodged this weekend. [Colorado Springs Gazette]

The books are out. The odds for each team to win Super Bowl XLIII in 2009 in Tampa, FL have been set, and, not surprisingly, the Patriots are the favorites.

New England’s set at 3:1 odds to come away with next year’s Lombardi Trophy, with our rival San Diego Chargers coming in second at 11:2 odds. They’re followed by the Colts (12:1), Cowboys (14:1), and Steelers (20:1).

The Broncos are given a respectable 40:1 odds for next year, good for 12th in the league. AFC West rivals Oakland Raiders and Kansas City Chiefs are among the bottom 3.

Complete list of Super Bowl odds for each team after the jump (courtesy Houston Chronicle):

Click here to read the rest of this entry »

Eleven months ago, Justin Tuck was picturing himself in an orange and blue jersey.

In March of last year, the Giants were prepared to trade Tuck (along with a 4th round pick) to the Broncos in return for Al Wilson. The now-infamous trade was ultimately negated after Wilson failed his physical.

I still remember at the time being livid about the whole thing. I was insistent that the compensation did not match what we were trading in Wilson. Looking back, I’m forced to eat some humble pie.

Tuck had a phenomenal year, particularly in the playoffs. He was unstoppable in the Super Bowl, tallying two sacks and a clutch forced fumble, leading many to believe (including myself) that he was the true Super Bowl MVP.

The Giants recently rewarded Tuck’s work with a megabuck contract extension, and deservedly so.

The offseason is the perfect time for If Only’s, and the thought of Tuck on the Broncos defensive line last year and beyond is a nice little fantasy. If anything, it reaffirms my belief that Mike Shanahan has this whole personnel issue under control, and has an eye for talent that far outshines my own.

• Wilson Trade Talks Heat Up [BroncoTalk]
• …And Then Cool Down? [BroncoTalk]
• Justin Tuck Deserved to Be MVP [AOL Fanhouse]

• Champ Bailey says Bob Slowik should have been the Broncos defensive coordinator a year ago. [Denver Post]
• While still undecided on his future, John Lynch knows he loves him some Pro Bowl. [CBS4 Denver]
• Jack Elway, son of John, made good on his commitment to Arizona State by signing with them yesterday. [Predominantly Orange]
• You may have heard of Stefan Fatsis. He spent last training camp kicking with the Broncos for material for his book, A Few Seconds of Panic, set to release in July. Fatsis discusses Bill Belichick‘s crazy decision not to kick a 49-yard field goal during Super Bowl XLII. [Deadspin]

With the long offseason ahead, BroncoTalk begins its look forward to the 2008 season by looking at the current state of the Broncos roster, position by position. We’ll take a look at the players signed through 2008, and give you our opinion on the need this position represents for the Broncos this offseason. Today we’re looking at linebacker. Enjoy.

Historically, the Denver Broncos have always had elite linebackers. From Randy Gradishar to Karl Mecklenburg; from Bill Romanowski (yeah, I said it) to Al Wilson, the tradition of Broncos linebackers has carried on for decades. With Wilson’s injury and subsequent release last year, the Broncos found themselves weak at linebacker for the first time since D.J. Williams was drafted in 2004.

For the Broncos, however, the conversation on where we go from here starts with Ian Gold. If he stays, Williams will have the chance to improve on the 2007 middle linebacker experiment. It would also mean less change and overhaul before 2008. If the Broncos are planning to part ways with Gold, I imagine they have an answer in mind. Whether that means the drool-inducing choice of bringing back Al Wilson or not remains to be seen. Since everything hinges on Gold’s fate, we’ll start right there.

Ian Gold

Contract Status: Signed through 2009

Ian Gold is not a bad linebacker. He is a great fit with the Broncos, and I’ve always felt that he got a bad rap from the fans, mostly for moving D.J. out of his natural weak side spot when the Broncos brought him back in 2005. That being said, 2007 may have very well been his worst year, particularly when it ended with him on the bench. He had his bright spots, too – for a good stretch of the season, he was outperforming both Williams and Webster, holding his lanes and playing disciplined, if not flashy, football.

In 2007: Up and down. Much like the Broncos, Gold was inconsistent. At times he was disciplined, holding his lanes and making good stops when they came. At other times, he was getting beat in coverage and completely failing to shed blocks.

In 2008: Unless the Broncos have a blockbuster solution in mind (first round pick, Al Wilson…), I think they’re much better off keeping Gold. He would need to restructure his deal, though, as his salary cap figure is quite large. If he’s not willing to take a pay cut he’ll hit the market.

D.J. Williams

Contract Status: Signed through 2008

Williams has played in every linebacker position in his short career. He was good at strong side, good to great in the middle, but superb at weak side in his rookie year. Many fans hope he’ll return to that position soon. I don’t want to see that happen unless the Broncos have a real answer at Mike (or if Gold is released or traded).

In 2007: The inside backer experiment concluded with mixed results. A whopping 141 tackles ranked among the best in the league; as many are quick to point out, a lot of those tackles were yards after the opponent crossed the line of scrimmage. He had several great games though, most recently against the Chargers in Week 16, where he made big stops on several consecutive plays. Click here to read the rest of this entry »

• Jarvis Moss has been wearing a walking cast for 3 months now. Now that the cast is off, he should begin jogging in 4 weeks, and hopes to join his teammates in the offseason conditioning program in late March. [Rocky Mountain News]
• Champ Bailey is planning to use the Pro Bowl as an opportunity to prod John Lynch‘s brain on his future.  [Denver Post]
• You hear the discussion all the time.  Which team was the NFL’s greatest?  Was it the Steelers of the 70’s?  The Bears or 49ers from the 80’s?  The Cowboys of the 90’s or the Patriots of this decade?  Why, oh why, are the 1996-1998 Denver Broncos never in the mix?  [Denver Post]
• Sean Taylor‘s number will be allowed to be worn by his teammates in Honolulu.  While I think it shows a lack of class that the NFL didn’t allow the same last year with Darrent Williams, I think this is more the NFL fixing a wrong than valuing one person over the other.  [Denver Post]
• The 1985 Bears allowed 198 points in 16 games.  The 1977 Orange Crush Denver Broncos allowed 148 points in 14 games.  Yet no one from that Broncos team is in the Hall of Fame Shame.  [Denver Post]

If you didn’t see Chris Berman‘s audition for greatest YouTube video ever last week, go check it out pronto. At least now we know what set him off:

Opposing offensive linemen could rarely block Randy Gradishar. No one could. The linebacker played before my time, but as I grow as a Broncos fan I find myself watching the team’s history more and more. The more I watch, and the more I learn, the more I see that the seven-time Pro Bowler was unstoppable.

It’s cruel irony that someone so dominant on the field, someone who couldn’t be ignored, someone who absolutely required the opposing offense’s attention at all times, could so easily be cast aside by the Hall of Fame voters. Now Gradishar finds himself among the senior candidates, where the list is much longer, and the hopes slimmer.

The excuses have all been said already. “He was an inside linebacker in a 3-4.” The obvious response is Harry Carson, who was inducted two years ago, who’s career is remarkably similar to Gradishar’s, if not as statistically impressive.

Where Carson had the Super Bowl ring, Gradishar had the statistics. Over 2,000 tackles in his 10-year career. Yes, over 200 tackles per season on average. Over 200 tackles per season.

“But he played in Colorado, where the spotlight rarely shines.” There is definitely truth to this statement, particularly before John Elway forced the spotlight on the Rocky Mountains. This, more than anything else, is the reason Gradishar is not preparing to be enshrined in Canton, OH this August.

That being said, even that tired excuse is not good enough. Gradishar’s accomplishments thrust the Denver Broncos, and himself, into that aforementioned spotlight. He was the leader of the Orange Crush defense, leading the Denver Broncos to their first franchise Super Bowl. He followed the next year by winning the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award. The national media was made aware of Gradishar in the 1970’s and 1980’s – it’s the modern writers who have failed to pay attention.

One need look no further than Dr. Z of Sports Illustrated, who talked about the preliminary Hall of Fame ballot this past November, for an example of the modern voters’ ignorance of Gradishar:

Randy Gradishar is someone everybody else likes better than I do. And I’m talking now about scouts and longtime personnel people who explain to me why he was so good. OK, I’ll buy it. Obviously I was missing something, but I’d really like to see the whole thing presented to me as a film study.

Yes, Dr. Z, you were missing something. Not only that, but I get the feeling from your quote that you’re not the only voter on the Hall of Fame who has a lacksidasical approach to the whole thing.

Unfortunately for Gradishar, he played for the Broncos, before Elway and Mike Shanahan and the unstoppable Super Bowl teams in the late 1990’s. Unfortunately for Gradishar, he retires with only 7 Pro Bowls, a Defensive MVP title, a lost Super Bowl, 10 years without missing a game, 2,000 tackles, and a Broncos Ring of Fame honor to show for it.

Through all of this, the Pro Football Hall of Fame has become a joke. Had Randy Gradishar played for the New York Giants, or the Chicago Bears, or the Oakland Raiders, or even the Super Bowl-less San Diego Chargers, he would have undoubtedly long since been enshrined. In the end, it’s the Hall of Fame, and not Gradishar, that has the egg on its face.