Good Morning, Broncos fans! After their many hours, weeks, and months of tireless work, it's often the days that follow the draft when NFL scouts and personnel execs lose their jobs.
Generally these changes are reserved for the franchises that have fared worst on the field and in procuring talent.
Neither has been the case with the Broncos, but they still have decided to move on without director of pro personnel Keith Kidd, whose contract has not been renewed after four years with the team. Kidd was brought to Dove Valley in 2009 by then-head coach Josh McDaniels, with whom he'd previously worked when both were in New England.
He's worked in the league for 18 seasons, with other stints with Arizona and Cleveland, and a three-year term working with Scouts, Inc. and ESPN prior to his arrival in Denver.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! In his latest mailbag, Mike Klis thankfully eschews assigning a grade to Denver's recent draft.
Of course, that didn't stop his colleague Jeff Legwold from doing so, but one out of two ain't so terrible, right?
Back to Klis, he says the selection of QB Zac Dysert (which we predicted in Kreskin-like fashion) is about prodding Brock Osweiler's development along, but not about providing him real competition. Obviously, that could be the outcome, but it's not the intent. Where each player was selected should speak volumes about what Denver thinks of them, were it not already clear.
As for the matchup safety Ted's been begging for, Klis says the team was enamored with LSU's Eric Reid, and he suggests that an impressive showing from Kayvon Webster could push either Champ Bailey or Chris Harris to safety.
Continue reading "Dysert is third string, end of story Lard"
Good Morning, Broncos fans! According to Jeff Legwold, Denver expects Sly Williams to be an instant starter, next to Terrance Knighton.
Meanwhile, after months of beating the running back drum, he now hedges his bet by hilariously calling the Montee Ball selection a "luxury" pick that eschewed a greater need.
Leggy goes on to display some even poorer logic by suggesting the decisions facing good teams amidst the draft are somehow different than what the bad ones deal with:
But teams such as the Broncos, coming off a playoff season, always have to make a choice as they pick at the bottom of each round. Do they want to jump a little early to get the player they want, or wait and hope the player will still be there when they pick at the bottom of the next round?
So, did anyone know that the 32-pick wait for good teams is more long and painful than it is for bad teams? Surely, I did not.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! When asked why a team chose to draft or sign one player over another, it's not often that an executive gives a reason beyond we liked him better, or he was the top guy on our board.
There's a dual purpose served there - of covering one's ass, while also not wanting to malign the unsigned/unchosen player, especially since one might want to sign him at a later point.
So although we didn't think much of it earlier, John Elway's public statement that Denver preferred Montee Ball over Eddie Lacy due to medical reports was actually somewhat notable.
This is especially true as more information begins to leak out regarding Lacy.
According to Ed Bouchette of the Post-Gazette, the Steelers and several other teams passed on the Alabama running back because what had been termed turf toe in the past is actually a fused toe in Lacy's case.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! Ever since the Dumervil departure debacle, fans and writers had been clamoring/predicting for Denver to land a pass rusher either via veteran free agency for big bucks, or highly in the draft.
Denver didn't have to replace Elvis with one player, though, and will instead do so with Robert Ayers, new signee Shaun Phillips, and possibly fifth-rounder Quanterus Smith, who led the nation in sacks per game in 2012.
It's easy to like the signing of Phillips on its surface, and from a pure football standpoint. But when it comes to the financial aspect, the move appears a stroke of brilliance.
Originally reported as a $3M deal, Phillips actually got just a $1M salary for 2013, plus incentives that could push his total compensation to that $3M figure. According to Mike Klis, those incentives don't kick in until he reaches the eight-sack plateau, a level he's achieved four times in his nine seasons.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! I'm going to keep today's Lard relatively brief, as I've instead spent much of the morning updating my story on the selection of Montee Ball.
After further research and thought, I've come to realize that many prolific college backs have gone on to have long, great NFL careers, so while the heavy use of Montee up in Madison should be kept in mind, it's not necessarily a major concern.
As for Kayvon Webster, I'll also soon add any links specifically about him to my story on his selection, what with the draft resuming shortly.
With that, let's get to the news.
Happy Friday, Broncos fans! Now in this third offseason running the show, John Elway's tenure has been defined by the acquisitions of Peyton Manning and Von Miller.
It's a pretty good start to a front office career, adding your team's two best players in your first two years on the job. Naturally, there's still work to be done this week and in the coming months, but the Dumervil debacle aside, this has been a stellar offseason for Elway and the Broncos.
They shored up the offensive line's interior with the addition of Louis Vasquez, gave Manning another dynamic weapon in Wes Welker, and provided Jack Del Rio a familiar big ugly in Terrance Knighton.
Already in his tenure, Elway had ended the Broncos' lengthy and elusive searches for his own successor at quarterbacking greatness, an electric return man, and quality depth in the defensive backfield.
Continue reading "Elway answers another long-term question Lard"
Good Morning, Broncos fans! With the NFL draft set to kick off in just a few hours, now's as good a time as any to ponder one of the most basic of questions regarding the event:
Why should we even have one?
Defenders of the draft always point to the need to maintain competitive balance in the league, but as Patrick Hruby reminds us, the teams that routinely pick at the top of the draft don't seem to benefit as much as this theory would suggest.
The whole point of the draft, also noted by Hruby - both in its inception and its current state (hello, CBA) - was and is to keep player salaries down.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! If you weren't fortunate enough to catch last night's 30 for 30: Elway to Marino on ESPN, you can find the times it will re-air here.
For a Broncos or Dolphins fan, it's an exceptional documentary, based almost entirely upon the notes of Marvin Demoff, the longtime agent for both John Elway and Dan Marino. Considering the preponderance of factors that led Elway to Denver, we should all consider ourselves particularly fortunate for that gift which continues to give, to this day.
To any Raiders, Cowboys, Colts, Bears, Patriots, Steelers, Jets, or Chiefs fan, we imagine it's an infuriating reminder (or lesson) of the circumstances and forces that kept those teams from landing either legendary quarterback.
Good Morning, Broncos fans! Thursday's first round of the 2013 NFL Draft is quickly approaching, and we at IAOFM are ramping up our coverage of it accordingly.
Ted's hard at work on his annual Rational Actor Mock Draft, and we expect to have it for you sometime today. It will be even more involved than in previous years, and here's where we remind you that the 2012 version had the Broncos trading back and selecting Derek Wolfe, whom no non-IAOFM reader, Jeff Legwold inclusive, knew about prior to Denver's selection of him.
Unfortunately, John Elway & Co. did not also follow Ted's advice and take a matchup safety to cover tight ends, and we all know how that worked out for them (Dennis Pitta's 24-yard reception on 3rd-and-13 from the Baltimore three-yard line in overtime comes to mind).
