dragondawg
10-05-2006, 02:38 AM
Cutler in no rush to start like Leinart, Young
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer
Denver is hoping Quincy Morgan, playing at New England, can give its return game a lift. (Getty Images / Elsa)And the best shall be last.
At least the Broncos believe they have the best of the Big Three rookie quarterbacks in Jay Cutler.
The other two, Vince Young and Matt Leinart, are now starting quarterbacks in the NFL. Cutler still hasn't taken his first NFL snap as he's watched Jake Plummer direct every offensive play for the Broncos this season.
"It's a long process," Cutler said. "Hopefully we're all in the league a long time and have successful careers, but I'm in no rush right now. I'm sitting and watching Jake and hopefully we'll keep winning."
Young, the No. 3 draft pick out of Texas, made his starting debut last weekend for Tennessee. Leinart, the No. 10 pick out of Southern California, will make his first NFL start Sunday for Arizona against Kansas City.
Young and Leinart are playing for teams that have a combined 1-7 record. Those teams are playing for the future. Cutler, the No. 11 pick out of Vanderbilt, is playing for the 2-1 Broncos, who will carry championship
aspirations into their game Monday night against the Baltimore Ravens at Invesco Field at Mile High. Apparently, it's the performance of the respective teams, not the play of the respective quarterbacks, that has determined which highly touted rookie quarterback plays first. Otherwise, Cutler might have been the first to showcase his skills. He easily had the best preseason of the three, posting a 108.3 quarterback rating. Leinart recorded a 95.5 rating while Young had an unimpressive 69.1 rating.
"We're a good team, we're trying to get to the Super Bowl this year," Cutler said. "Jake is experienced, he knows what's going on and right now I'm just watching and learning."
Return to nowhere
And the Broncos' returners shall be last.
In the 32-team NFL, the Broncos rank 32nd in kickoff returns with a 13.1-yard average - 6.3 yards behind 31st-place Philadelphia.
"That can be changed," said Quincy Morgan, the Broncos' newly signed kick returner, who had just one muffed return for 12 yards in his debut at New England on Sept. 24. "All it takes is one good return. You've got to remember, the defense has been so good, we haven't had many chances to return."
Indeed, the Broncos have attempted just seven kickoff returns, one more than San Diego, which has the league's fewest returns.
But how then to explain the Broncos' punt returns? Again, they rank 32nd, this time with an embarrassing 1.0 yard per return.
"We've been terrible," said Broncos punt returner Darrent Williams. "These first three games, teams have been trying to kick me into a corner. I've got to be more patient. I had a lot of early success last year. I've just got to calm down."
On paper, Baltimore figures to have a huge advantage in the return game Monday as B.J. Sams ranks second in kickoff returns (30.9 average) and ninth in punt returns (10.8).
Sams was arrested Tuesday for driving under the influence, his second such offense in 14 months. And while Sams may eventually serve a four-game suspension for violating NFL policy, he is expected to play Monday.
The Broncos drafted Williams in the second round last year primarily as a return specialist, but after quickly emerging as a starting corner, his role was reduced to just handling punts. He averaged 8.7 yards a punt return last year, but has just 4 yards on five returns this year.
Williams was so desperate in the Broncos' last game at New England, he tried returning a punt from his 6-yard line, only to retreat until he was nearly tackled for a safety.
"I didn't say a word to him," said Broncos coach Mike Shanahan. "Here's a guy trying to make a play - and I'll take that any day of the week as opposed to a guy who runs away from the ball. We just have to keep working at it. We know what Darrent's capable of doing. He's got a big-time upside. And Quincy's done it before. Hopefully, he'll do it for us."
Footnotes
On the injury report, Broncos running back Cedric Cobbs (ankle) is out for the Baltimore game and defensive end Courtney Brown (knee) is doubtful. The Ravens have two significant defensive players, Terrell Suggs (thigh) and Adalius Thomas (neck), listed as questionable. ... How tough is the Ravens' defense? In four games, it has allowed just three points - count 'em, three - in the second half.
http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_4442901
By Mike Klis
Denver Post Staff Writer
Denver is hoping Quincy Morgan, playing at New England, can give its return game a lift. (Getty Images / Elsa)And the best shall be last.
At least the Broncos believe they have the best of the Big Three rookie quarterbacks in Jay Cutler.
The other two, Vince Young and Matt Leinart, are now starting quarterbacks in the NFL. Cutler still hasn't taken his first NFL snap as he's watched Jake Plummer direct every offensive play for the Broncos this season.
"It's a long process," Cutler said. "Hopefully we're all in the league a long time and have successful careers, but I'm in no rush right now. I'm sitting and watching Jake and hopefully we'll keep winning."
Young, the No. 3 draft pick out of Texas, made his starting debut last weekend for Tennessee. Leinart, the No. 10 pick out of Southern California, will make his first NFL start Sunday for Arizona against Kansas City.
Young and Leinart are playing for teams that have a combined 1-7 record. Those teams are playing for the future. Cutler, the No. 11 pick out of Vanderbilt, is playing for the 2-1 Broncos, who will carry championship
aspirations into their game Monday night against the Baltimore Ravens at Invesco Field at Mile High. Apparently, it's the performance of the respective teams, not the play of the respective quarterbacks, that has determined which highly touted rookie quarterback plays first. Otherwise, Cutler might have been the first to showcase his skills. He easily had the best preseason of the three, posting a 108.3 quarterback rating. Leinart recorded a 95.5 rating while Young had an unimpressive 69.1 rating.
"We're a good team, we're trying to get to the Super Bowl this year," Cutler said. "Jake is experienced, he knows what's going on and right now I'm just watching and learning."
Return to nowhere
And the Broncos' returners shall be last.
In the 32-team NFL, the Broncos rank 32nd in kickoff returns with a 13.1-yard average - 6.3 yards behind 31st-place Philadelphia.
"That can be changed," said Quincy Morgan, the Broncos' newly signed kick returner, who had just one muffed return for 12 yards in his debut at New England on Sept. 24. "All it takes is one good return. You've got to remember, the defense has been so good, we haven't had many chances to return."
Indeed, the Broncos have attempted just seven kickoff returns, one more than San Diego, which has the league's fewest returns.
But how then to explain the Broncos' punt returns? Again, they rank 32nd, this time with an embarrassing 1.0 yard per return.
"We've been terrible," said Broncos punt returner Darrent Williams. "These first three games, teams have been trying to kick me into a corner. I've got to be more patient. I had a lot of early success last year. I've just got to calm down."
On paper, Baltimore figures to have a huge advantage in the return game Monday as B.J. Sams ranks second in kickoff returns (30.9 average) and ninth in punt returns (10.8).
Sams was arrested Tuesday for driving under the influence, his second such offense in 14 months. And while Sams may eventually serve a four-game suspension for violating NFL policy, he is expected to play Monday.
The Broncos drafted Williams in the second round last year primarily as a return specialist, but after quickly emerging as a starting corner, his role was reduced to just handling punts. He averaged 8.7 yards a punt return last year, but has just 4 yards on five returns this year.
Williams was so desperate in the Broncos' last game at New England, he tried returning a punt from his 6-yard line, only to retreat until he was nearly tackled for a safety.
"I didn't say a word to him," said Broncos coach Mike Shanahan. "Here's a guy trying to make a play - and I'll take that any day of the week as opposed to a guy who runs away from the ball. We just have to keep working at it. We know what Darrent's capable of doing. He's got a big-time upside. And Quincy's done it before. Hopefully, he'll do it for us."
Footnotes
On the injury report, Broncos running back Cedric Cobbs (ankle) is out for the Baltimore game and defensive end Courtney Brown (knee) is doubtful. The Ravens have two significant defensive players, Terrell Suggs (thigh) and Adalius Thomas (neck), listed as questionable. ... How tough is the Ravens' defense? In four games, it has allowed just three points - count 'em, three - in the second half.
http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci_4442901