Broncos Invade Valley Ranch III
Folks, this will be the last day of live practice blogging until the off-season activities. No practice tomorrow, and we only get to see the first 30 minutes of practice (read: stretching) the rest of the season. Technology willing, I plan on going out with a bang this morning and afternoon.
I'd like to thank the majority of you for your unconditional love during this experiment. For those who have pointed out that my work has suffered since leaving the Alamodome, I aplogize for not being as efficient occasionally kneeling in the grass as I am sitting comfortably in a press box. One helpful fella suggested Belo spring for a air-conditioned golf cart, but I'm not in a position to ask for anything after turning in a record-setting expense account upon my return from San Antonio.
I know you have a lot of options for live Cowboys practice updates, and I'd like to thank you for choosing this here blog despite the recent bumpy ride.
Oh, wait. That's right. I'm the only guy giving this kind of coverage. Well, in that case, follow the jump and refresh for fun Cowboys-Broncos stuff you can't get anywhere else.
9:07 -- Ahhh ... a nice, overcast day.
9:12 -- Rookie WR Isaiah Stanback is practicing. I assume the trainers just don't want him practicing twice a day. Will find out for sure during Wade Phillips' press conference. ... Flozell Adams and Marc Colombo are sitting out the morning practice again.
9:15 -- No T.O. sighting at this point. Perhaps his hammy or back is sore again. Or maybe he's watching tape of himself leaving Champ Bailey flat-footed with a double-move in 1-on-1s yesterday.
9:22 -- Or maybe T.O. just got stuck in traffic. He's out here now, sporting black spandex with a white pinstripe up the leg and stretching with strength coach Joe Juraszek. Everybody else is doing position drills.
9:30 -- Jerry just chatted with the refs on the sideline. Didn't see any cash exchange hands, but Jerry might have made some promises.
9:34 -- About to start Broncos vs. Cowboys stuff. No Jason Ferguson today. He might just be taking the morning off, which is the right of a veteran who gets hit every play.
9:36 -- Remi Ayodele is working with the starters at NT in inside run drills. ... Also have 7-on-7 going. Nice break by Terence Newman to get hands on crossing route to Javon Walker.
9:38 -- INT by Joey Thomas on a poor pass by Jay Cutler. Thomas had good coverage on Brian Clark's fade route, so the only chance Cutler had was to loft the ball to the corner. He tried to zip it in there, and Thomas caught it cleanly. ... Isaiah Stanback beat Champ Bailey deep. Stanback also just burned Dre Bly for another TD. WRs have the edge in 1-on-1 drills, but it's very encouraging nonetheless. ... Boise State hero Jerard Rabb just beat Bailey on a crossing route.
9:42 -- Denver WR Brandon Marshall, a 6-4, 230-pound second-year guy who reminds some folks of a raw, young T.O., did a nice job using his body to shield Terence Newman for a TD on a fade route. ... South Garland's Quincy Morgan beat Anthony Henry and Domenik Hixon beat Aaron Glenn on fades, too.
9:44 -- Excellent job by Joey Thomas breaking up a fade to Marshall, who got up high to snatch the ball with both hands but had Thomas jar it loose on the way down. ... Great tippy-toe catch in back of end zone by Broncos WR David Kircus over Glenn.
9:46 -- Thomas ended what had been a great 1-on-1 session for him by getting beat badly on a slant. Thomas guessed fade and had no chance. The Denver scrub WR dropped the pass, though. ... Couldn't see much inside run stuff, which happened on the other end of the field behind a wall of players. ... Now working on field goals.
9:50 -- FB Oliver Hoyte has joined the group of guys working out on the side. Will let you know when I find out what's wrong with him.
9:56 -- Radio analyst extraordinaire Babe Laufenberg, who had back surgery Friday, has returned to Valley Ranch. Babe is on his feet watching practice and looks fine. He says he'll sit out this week's game and return to the booth next week in Houston. Moose Johnston, who is filling my chair on Ch. 52's Southwest KIA Sportstalk today, will fill in Saturday for Babe.
9:58 -- We kinda, sorta had a fight, depending on how soft you are with your definition of fight. Broncos CB Bill Alford, who I've never heard of, was working as a gunner on punt coverage. He took offense to Sam Hurd slapping him upside his head and exchanged pushes with Hurd and Damarius Bilbo.
9:59 -- Isaiah Stanback is rotating with Patrick Crayton and Terence Newman catching punts. Stanback looks comfortable and has fielded every one cleanly, but he knows he's not going to get hit. Newman is giving Stanback pointers in between plays. ... Ooops. He muffed one that he had to run up to catch. It bounced right back to him, but the bounce won't often be so lucky. ... Found it interesting that Wade Phillips said yesterday he didn't see Stanback as a pure punt returner, though that's one of the roles the Cowboys brass mentioned for Stanback after drafting him.
10:03 -- 7-on-7 started with TE Daniel Graham beating Roy Williams on an out route. Just reporting the facts. ... T.O. dropped a pass on a short crossing route, but Tony Romo threw it a little behind the target. ... Not supposed to be hitting, but Jason Witten and John Lynch butted heads at the goal-line after Witten caught an out and turned upfield.
10:05 -- Anthony Henry broke up a deep ball to Javon Walker. Walker had a step or two on Henry, but the ball was underthrown. Henry did a nice job getting in the air and fighting for the ball. ... Seventh-round FS Courtney Brown showed impressive athleticism with an over-the-shoulder pick on a post route.
10:07 -- Nice catch in traffic by T.O. for a 20-yard TD from Romo. T.O. beat Champ Bailey on a crossing route. ... Push-up time for LB Kevin Burnett after dropping a pick. Great coverage on a TE out route.
10:09 -- Denver LB Nate Webster broke up a Romo slant to Anthony Fasano. Cowboys are calling for defensive holding. ... Denver WR Brandon Marshall caught ball between Bradie James and Akin Ayodele at goal-line. ... Gonna walk down to other end of field to see some pass-rush drills.
10:28 -- Sorry for the delay. Got to chatting with ex-Cowboys DT Tony Casillas, who is working the pre- and post-game show for ESPN 103.3 FM this season. Will share his thoughts on the Cowboys D-line in a separate post later. ... Marcus Spears had no trouble getting by a Broncos backup OG I've never heard of, but didn't see much else before pass-rush drills ended. ... T.O. just caught about a 10-yard TD over Dre Bly in team drills. ... DE Chris Canty got his big paws up to tip a Jay Cutler pass. ... Cutler hit TE Tony Scheffler over Pat Watkins in the end zone. ... Another nice PBU by CB Joey Thomas on a fade route.
10:32 -- Good job by Anthony Spencer, Bradie James and Anthony Henry of not letting Travis Henry turn the corner on a stretch play. Spencer and James held their ground to string the play out, and James would have made the tackle near the line of scrimmage after good pursuit.
10:33 -- This Brandon Marshall kid is impressive. Just made an easy TD catch over Aaron Glenn. Hope nobody in my fantasy football league is reading this, because Marshall will make a heck of a late-round pick.
10:37 -- Watching Cowboys D 3s vs. Broncos O scrubs in red zone. Nothing too exciting. Would rather watch Cowboys' offense, but they're on other end of field behind wall of players. Couldn't see much, but tackles were Pat McQuistan (left) and James Marten (right). ... And that's it for the morning practice. Not sure if you folks have submitted questions, but I'll answer any filed by 10:45 after Wade Phillips' early-afternoon press conference.
Posted by Tim MacMahon at 9:02 AM (E-mail this entry) | Comments (41)
I'd like to thank the majority of you for your unconditional love during this experiment. For those who have pointed out that my work has suffered since leaving the Alamodome, I aplogize for not being as efficient occasionally kneeling in the grass as I am sitting comfortably in a press box. One helpful fella suggested Belo spring for a air-conditioned golf cart, but I'm not in a position to ask for anything after turning in a record-setting expense account upon my return from San Antonio.
I know you have a lot of options for live Cowboys practice updates, and I'd like to thank you for choosing this here blog despite the recent bumpy ride.
Oh, wait. That's right. I'm the only guy giving this kind of coverage. Well, in that case, follow the jump and refresh for fun Cowboys-Broncos stuff you can't get anywhere else.
9:07 -- Ahhh ... a nice, overcast day.
9:12 -- Rookie WR Isaiah Stanback is practicing. I assume the trainers just don't want him practicing twice a day. Will find out for sure during Wade Phillips' press conference. ... Flozell Adams and Marc Colombo are sitting out the morning practice again.
9:15 -- No T.O. sighting at this point. Perhaps his hammy or back is sore again. Or maybe he's watching tape of himself leaving Champ Bailey flat-footed with a double-move in 1-on-1s yesterday.
9:22 -- Or maybe T.O. just got stuck in traffic. He's out here now, sporting black spandex with a white pinstripe up the leg and stretching with strength coach Joe Juraszek. Everybody else is doing position drills.
9:30 -- Jerry just chatted with the refs on the sideline. Didn't see any cash exchange hands, but Jerry might have made some promises.
9:34 -- About to start Broncos vs. Cowboys stuff. No Jason Ferguson today. He might just be taking the morning off, which is the right of a veteran who gets hit every play.
9:36 -- Remi Ayodele is working with the starters at NT in inside run drills. ... Also have 7-on-7 going. Nice break by Terence Newman to get hands on crossing route to Javon Walker.
9:38 -- INT by Joey Thomas on a poor pass by Jay Cutler. Thomas had good coverage on Brian Clark's fade route, so the only chance Cutler had was to loft the ball to the corner. He tried to zip it in there, and Thomas caught it cleanly. ... Isaiah Stanback beat Champ Bailey deep. Stanback also just burned Dre Bly for another TD. WRs have the edge in 1-on-1 drills, but it's very encouraging nonetheless. ... Boise State hero Jerard Rabb just beat Bailey on a crossing route.
9:42 -- Denver WR Brandon Marshall, a 6-4, 230-pound second-year guy who reminds some folks of a raw, young T.O., did a nice job using his body to shield Terence Newman for a TD on a fade route. ... South Garland's Quincy Morgan beat Anthony Henry and Domenik Hixon beat Aaron Glenn on fades, too.
9:44 -- Excellent job by Joey Thomas breaking up a fade to Marshall, who got up high to snatch the ball with both hands but had Thomas jar it loose on the way down. ... Great tippy-toe catch in back of end zone by Broncos WR David Kircus over Glenn.
9:46 -- Thomas ended what had been a great 1-on-1 session for him by getting beat badly on a slant. Thomas guessed fade and had no chance. The Denver scrub WR dropped the pass, though. ... Couldn't see much inside run stuff, which happened on the other end of the field behind a wall of players. ... Now working on field goals.
9:50 -- FB Oliver Hoyte has joined the group of guys working out on the side. Will let you know when I find out what's wrong with him.
9:56 -- Radio analyst extraordinaire Babe Laufenberg, who had back surgery Friday, has returned to Valley Ranch. Babe is on his feet watching practice and looks fine. He says he'll sit out this week's game and return to the booth next week in Houston. Moose Johnston, who is filling my chair on Ch. 52's Southwest KIA Sportstalk today, will fill in Saturday for Babe.
9:58 -- We kinda, sorta had a fight, depending on how soft you are with your definition of fight. Broncos CB Bill Alford, who I've never heard of, was working as a gunner on punt coverage. He took offense to Sam Hurd slapping him upside his head and exchanged pushes with Hurd and Damarius Bilbo.
9:59 -- Isaiah Stanback is rotating with Patrick Crayton and Terence Newman catching punts. Stanback looks comfortable and has fielded every one cleanly, but he knows he's not going to get hit. Newman is giving Stanback pointers in between plays. ... Ooops. He muffed one that he had to run up to catch. It bounced right back to him, but the bounce won't often be so lucky. ... Found it interesting that Wade Phillips said yesterday he didn't see Stanback as a pure punt returner, though that's one of the roles the Cowboys brass mentioned for Stanback after drafting him.
10:03 -- 7-on-7 started with TE Daniel Graham beating Roy Williams on an out route. Just reporting the facts. ... T.O. dropped a pass on a short crossing route, but Tony Romo threw it a little behind the target. ... Not supposed to be hitting, but Jason Witten and John Lynch butted heads at the goal-line after Witten caught an out and turned upfield.
10:05 -- Anthony Henry broke up a deep ball to Javon Walker. Walker had a step or two on Henry, but the ball was underthrown. Henry did a nice job getting in the air and fighting for the ball. ... Seventh-round FS Courtney Brown showed impressive athleticism with an over-the-shoulder pick on a post route.
10:07 -- Nice catch in traffic by T.O. for a 20-yard TD from Romo. T.O. beat Champ Bailey on a crossing route. ... Push-up time for LB Kevin Burnett after dropping a pick. Great coverage on a TE out route.
10:09 -- Denver LB Nate Webster broke up a Romo slant to Anthony Fasano. Cowboys are calling for defensive holding. ... Denver WR Brandon Marshall caught ball between Bradie James and Akin Ayodele at goal-line. ... Gonna walk down to other end of field to see some pass-rush drills.
10:28 -- Sorry for the delay. Got to chatting with ex-Cowboys DT Tony Casillas, who is working the pre- and post-game show for ESPN 103.3 FM this season. Will share his thoughts on the Cowboys D-line in a separate post later. ... Marcus Spears had no trouble getting by a Broncos backup OG I've never heard of, but didn't see much else before pass-rush drills ended. ... T.O. just caught about a 10-yard TD over Dre Bly in team drills. ... DE Chris Canty got his big paws up to tip a Jay Cutler pass. ... Cutler hit TE Tony Scheffler over Pat Watkins in the end zone. ... Another nice PBU by CB Joey Thomas on a fade route.
10:32 -- Good job by Anthony Spencer, Bradie James and Anthony Henry of not letting Travis Henry turn the corner on a stretch play. Spencer and James held their ground to string the play out, and James would have made the tackle near the line of scrimmage after good pursuit.
10:33 -- This Brandon Marshall kid is impressive. Just made an easy TD catch over Aaron Glenn. Hope nobody in my fantasy football league is reading this, because Marshall will make a heck of a late-round pick.
10:37 -- Watching Cowboys D 3s vs. Broncos O scrubs in red zone. Nothing too exciting. Would rather watch Cowboys' offense, but they're on other end of field behind wall of players. Couldn't see much, but tackles were Pat McQuistan (left) and James Marten (right). ... And that's it for the morning practice. Not sure if you folks have submitted questions, but I'll answer any filed by 10:45 after Wade Phillips' early-afternoon press conference.
Posted by Tim MacMahon at 9:02 AM (E-mail this entry) | Comments (41)
posted by The Gryphon at 7:48 PM
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