RMN Day 1 Report

[SoCalBronco]

Broncos camp report, July 30
By Jeff Legwold, Rocky Mountain News
July 30, 2005

Today at camp

The Broncos will practice twice today at their Dove Valley complex. Their morning practice will begin at 8:30, with gates opening at 7:30.


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Their afternoon practice will start at 3:50, with gates opening at 2:50.

Admission to the practices, and parking on the west side of the team complex, is free.

Day in review

The Broncos, who took their off-season workouts deeper into the summer than any other team in the league with a mini-camp July 6-8, were back on the field Friday for their first two-a-day workouts of training camp.

The crowd on hand for the morning practice was most interested in the one-on-one drills between wide receiver and defensive backs, especially when 21-year veteran Jerry Rice was involved.

Rice battled several of the team's young defensive backs.

"I'm from the old school. I got a lot in the Rolodex," Rice said. "I've got a lot of tricks. I'm going to win some battles, they're going to win some battles, but overall, we're going to make each other better."

[SoCalBronco]

But at points in the practice, it was clear this was just the first day of what will be several weeks of work before the team plays its regular-season opener Sept. 11 in Miami.

There were some linemen on both sides of the ball jumping before the snap as well as some dropped passes.

Things went a little more crisply in the afternoon as the defense took away the ball from the offense five times during team periods. Rookie cornerback Darrent Williams stripped the ball from running back Maurice Clarett and made an interception as well.

Turning heads

Nothing turned heads on the first day quite like quarterback Danny Kanell's head.

Kanell, an eighth-year veteran, showed up with bleached blond hair, so bleached that veteran wide receiver Rod Smith dubbed Kanell "Jonny Quest" after the blond cartoon character of the 1960s animated series.

"He even put a picture in my locker," Kanell said.

Kanell said his wife, Courtenay, talked him into the hair change, "but, hopefully, it grows back the other way."

Injury report

The Broncos reported no injuries after their first day of two-a-days but gave defensive end Ebenezer Ekuban and Rice the afternoon practice off.

Head coach Mike Shanahan said several players would be held out of one of two practices today to rest.

Reserve defensive tackle D.J. Renteria was not on the field for either practice. Renteria tore an anterior cruciate ligament while playing in NFL Europe this spring and is continuing to rehabilitate the injury.

Meet . . . Ron Dayne

[SoCalBronco]

Yes, meet Dayne - again. He won the Heisman Trophy at Wisconsin, after all, and ended his career with the Badgers as the all-time leading rusher in NCAA Division I-A history (6,397 yards).

But like many Heisman winners, Dayne has found the NFL to be a difficult riddle to solve. He started three games in his past three seasons in a Giants uniform, having been named an inactive for all 16 games in 2003.

Last year, he had 52 carries for 179 yards.

But Dayne said he has found Denver to be the boost he was looking for, that simply getting a legitimate look in training camp has been a long time coming.

"Just being out there, getting another opportunity to play - that's what I hoped for because I felt like I didn't get an opportunity to play in New York," Dayne said. "Coming here, it just felt like I was coming out of college again. In New York I maybe got in 12, 13 times last year, and the year before I didn't even dress."

Dayne finds himself in a crowded backfield, but he has been a regular at the team's off-season workouts and has shown himself to be committed, happy for another shot at kick-starting his career.

"It's like I haven't even played football," Dayne said. "So I'm grateful for the opportunity that I can play ball, that it wasn't me. Definitely good to feel that way again, just being able to run and hit guys again, pick up blocks. It's been fun already."

[Crushaholic]

This jackass wants to talk about Kanell's hair, while Kaylore wrote how the players actually played. Game. Set. Match. Khan... :yep:

[watermock]

No kidding. Our clan has better reporting/analysis than major outlets...at least some of us...

I love the in depth analysis of Danno's hair.