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08-18-2005, 06:31 AM
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Middlebrooks eager to face Broncos
By Roger Phillips, STAFF WRITER
Inside Bay Area
SANTA CLARA — It is a shopworn theme, the newly discarded athlete returning to play against his former team with vengeance on his mind.
Cornerback Willie Middlebrooks won't be seeking vengeance Saturday night when his new team — the San Francisco 49ers — resumes its preseason schedule with a visit to Denver to face his old team, the Broncos.
Nonetheless, the 26-year-old Middlebrooks admits he wouldn't mind giving the Broncos at least a tinge of regret over trading him to the 49ers last month for defensive end John Engelberger.
"If I told you, 'No,' I'd be lying," Middlebrooks said. "You'd know that I'd be telling you (a lie)."
Middlebrook said he realizes it is not the Broncos who need to be convinced of his ability.
"I have nothing to prove to Denver," Middlebrooks said. "Everything I have to prove is to (coach) Mike Nolan and everyone here. ... My job is to go out, play the calls, run what's called, and play solid and compete at the same time. That's what the coaches want to see, and that's what the preseason is all about."
Just a little more than a month ago, Middlebrooks was wondering where he was going to be playing this season, though he had a pretty good idea it would not be in the Mile High City.
The Broncos acquired star cornerback Champ Bailey from the Washington Redskins a year ago, and they used their first three selections in this year's draft on cornerbacks.
A misdemeanor domestic violence charge last year, with a court date still pending, was one more reason Middlebrooks was expendable. The Broncos were actively shopping him this summer, the 49ers needed help in their defensive backfield, and Engelberger did not fit into the 49ers' new 3-4 defensive alignment.
Nolan performed an extensive background check, then swung the deal for Middlebrooks in the hope that, at the very least, he would win the job as the nickel cornerback. But two days into training camp, starting right cornerback Shawntae Spencer strained a hamstring, and Middlebrooks has filled in ever since.
Spencer returned to practice Wednesday, but there's a good chance Middlebrooks will start against the Broncos. Middlebrooks said he has benefited from the chance to practice with the first unit.
"It's helped out a lot when we go out with the (first unit) because I have safeties that talk a lot, and at times when I really don't know the coverage or ... I'm second-guessing myself, we talk back and forth, and that kind of helps out," said Middlebrooks, taken by Denver as a first-round draft pick out of Minnesota in 2001.
Five days ago in the preseason opener against the Raiders, Middlebrooks found himself matched up against Randy Moss.
"It was fun, exciting," Middlebrooks said. "It was just fun to put on a new uniform and come out in a new stadium."
Middlebrooks held Moss to one 11-yard catch, and Nolan praised him afterward for his performance.
But with Spencer back, Middlebrooks soon is expected to return to his original battle, which is for the nickel job.
On Middlebrooks' right arm is this tattoo: "How can you hate the underdog?" And Middlebrooks said it is with the underdog that he identifies most closely as he tries to win a job with the 49ers.
"I've always looked at it that way," said Middlebrooks, a Miami native. "I've always had my back against the wall. I've broken my ankle twice. I've had four surgeries on it. Just growing up where I grew up, there's always that mentality.
"A lot of people are, like, how are you an underdog when you were a first-rounder? Well, I went in the first round with a broken leg. Who goes in the first round with a broken leg? It's an underdog story."
EXTRA POINTS: Nolan said rookie running back Frank Gore, who missed the preseason opener with a shoulder injury, probably will play in Denver. Nolan said Gore may play about 12 snaps, and he is hoping he gets to carry the ball a half-dozen times. ... Guard Justin Smiley (calf), linebacker Derek Smith (quadriceps), and cornerbacks Ahmed Plummer (ankle) and Spencer (hamstring) all were back at practice Wednesday, with Smiley and Spencer returning following extended absences.
Middlebrooks eager to face Broncos
By Roger Phillips, STAFF WRITER
Inside Bay Area
SANTA CLARA — It is a shopworn theme, the newly discarded athlete returning to play against his former team with vengeance on his mind.
Cornerback Willie Middlebrooks won't be seeking vengeance Saturday night when his new team — the San Francisco 49ers — resumes its preseason schedule with a visit to Denver to face his old team, the Broncos.
Nonetheless, the 26-year-old Middlebrooks admits he wouldn't mind giving the Broncos at least a tinge of regret over trading him to the 49ers last month for defensive end John Engelberger.
"If I told you, 'No,' I'd be lying," Middlebrooks said. "You'd know that I'd be telling you (a lie)."
Middlebrook said he realizes it is not the Broncos who need to be convinced of his ability.
"I have nothing to prove to Denver," Middlebrooks said. "Everything I have to prove is to (coach) Mike Nolan and everyone here. ... My job is to go out, play the calls, run what's called, and play solid and compete at the same time. That's what the coaches want to see, and that's what the preseason is all about."
Just a little more than a month ago, Middlebrooks was wondering where he was going to be playing this season, though he had a pretty good idea it would not be in the Mile High City.
The Broncos acquired star cornerback Champ Bailey from the Washington Redskins a year ago, and they used their first three selections in this year's draft on cornerbacks.
A misdemeanor domestic violence charge last year, with a court date still pending, was one more reason Middlebrooks was expendable. The Broncos were actively shopping him this summer, the 49ers needed help in their defensive backfield, and Engelberger did not fit into the 49ers' new 3-4 defensive alignment.
Nolan performed an extensive background check, then swung the deal for Middlebrooks in the hope that, at the very least, he would win the job as the nickel cornerback. But two days into training camp, starting right cornerback Shawntae Spencer strained a hamstring, and Middlebrooks has filled in ever since.
Spencer returned to practice Wednesday, but there's a good chance Middlebrooks will start against the Broncos. Middlebrooks said he has benefited from the chance to practice with the first unit.
"It's helped out a lot when we go out with the (first unit) because I have safeties that talk a lot, and at times when I really don't know the coverage or ... I'm second-guessing myself, we talk back and forth, and that kind of helps out," said Middlebrooks, taken by Denver as a first-round draft pick out of Minnesota in 2001.
Five days ago in the preseason opener against the Raiders, Middlebrooks found himself matched up against Randy Moss.
"It was fun, exciting," Middlebrooks said. "It was just fun to put on a new uniform and come out in a new stadium."
Middlebrooks held Moss to one 11-yard catch, and Nolan praised him afterward for his performance.
But with Spencer back, Middlebrooks soon is expected to return to his original battle, which is for the nickel job.
On Middlebrooks' right arm is this tattoo: "How can you hate the underdog?" And Middlebrooks said it is with the underdog that he identifies most closely as he tries to win a job with the 49ers.
"I've always looked at it that way," said Middlebrooks, a Miami native. "I've always had my back against the wall. I've broken my ankle twice. I've had four surgeries on it. Just growing up where I grew up, there's always that mentality.
"A lot of people are, like, how are you an underdog when you were a first-rounder? Well, I went in the first round with a broken leg. Who goes in the first round with a broken leg? It's an underdog story."
EXTRA POINTS: Nolan said rookie running back Frank Gore, who missed the preseason opener with a shoulder injury, probably will play in Denver. Nolan said Gore may play about 12 snaps, and he is hoping he gets to carry the ball a half-dozen times. ... Guard Justin Smiley (calf), linebacker Derek Smith (quadriceps), and cornerbacks Ahmed Plummer (ankle) and Spencer (hamstring) all were back at practice Wednesday, with Smiley and Spencer returning following extended absences.