Orchard Park, N.Y.
Have yourself a merry little notes column. …
First, Dwayne Carswell, an offensive tackle. Now Wesley Duke, a college basketball player who before Saturday night hadn’t played a down from scrimmage in the NFL.
Will the list of unlikely red-zone heroes for the Broncos never end?
Duke, a rookie from Mercer University, scored on a 1-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter to give the Broncos the lead for good against the Buffalo Bills. It was Duke’s first NFL catch and first touchdown. For the record, he’s now 674 catches and 54 touchdowns behind Shannon Sharpe, whose uniform number he wears, on the list of Broncos’ record holders.
“I just want to be the next Wesley Duke,” Duke said. “I feel like it’s a starting point. I’ve still got a lot of progress and a lot of work to do. I’m just going to continue to work hard.”
The score was tied at 7-7 when Duke caught the pass from Jake Plummer. The play had been in the Broncos’ playbook for a few weeks, but there was a slight problem that prevented them from running it.
“He hasn’t always dressed,” Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said. “It’s hard to run a play when he’s not dressed.”
How nervous was Duke as the ball was sailing toward him? Less than you might think.
“It (the play) had been in for a couple of weeks, and I was real nervous then. But this time I just relaxed. I had a lot of confidence in myself.” …
If it wasn’t official before, it is now. The Broncos don’t just want to win the AFC West. “We want a first-round bye,” Trevor Pryce said. “That’s officially the goal. Get a home playoff game, then you go to the AFC championship game. That’s what you want.” …
A Broncos fullback in the Pro Bowl? “Don’t look so surprised,” Nick Ferguson said. Come to think of it, Kyle Johnson does have some impressive credentials. “He runs well, he blocks well and he has six touchdowns,” Ferguson said. “How can you overlook that? You can’t just say, ‘This is a young guy who hasn’t been there before.’ You can’t just go by popularity. The whole thing is about stats, right? So it wouldn’t be fair to not include him in that. It just wouldn’t be right.” …
Johnson, who turned 27 on Thursday, is hardly a household name around the NFL, having started three games in his career before this season. But he does have those six touchdowns – five receiving, one rushing – which are five more than the Chiefs’ Tony Richardson, last year’s AFC Pro Bowl fullback. …
History isn’t on Johnson’s side, either. Fact: The Broncos have never sent a fullback to the Pro Bowl. Detron Smith made the AFC team in 1999, but it was as a special-teamer. Then there’s Cookie Gilchrist, who played in the 1965 AFL All-Star Game, back when fullbacks carried the ball. …
Johnson on his Pro Bowl chances: “I’ve been getting compliments from my peers, and that’s really what I care about. One of the best I’ve received was from Tony Richardson. He said, ‘You’re doing good. I’m watching film, and you’re making plays.’ Howard Griffith has also been talking to me. Those are guys I’ve watched for years, guys I want to be like. For them to recognize what I’ve done, that’s exciting.” …
The Browncos, the horde of defensive linemen the Broncos imported from Cleveland, crossed a threshold last week. None had ever won more than nine games in the NFL. Said Gerard Warren, “This is the best situation I could have come into. That’s all I ever wanted, to be part of something special. When you take the field here, it’s not are you going to win, it’s how many points are you going to win by?” …
Three straight Saturdays? Welcome to the books-and-tuition part of the Broncos’ schedule. Not that that’s a bad thing. Far from it. The Bronx have won six straight on Saturdays. In those six games, they’ve outscored their opponents 200-69. …
Memo to the Hall of Fame voters: What’s wrong with this picture? The Broncos, who have made six Super Bowl appearances and won two, have one Hall of Famer (John Elway) and one certain Hall of Famer-to-be (Shannon Sharpe). The Bills, who have made four Super Bowl appearances and won none, have five Hall of Famers (Jim Kelly, Joe DeLamielleure, Billy Shaw, O.J. Simpson and coach Marv Levy) and one certain Hall of Famer-to-be (Bruce Smith). … And, while he’s not a lock, I’d bet Thurman Thomas will land in Canton, too. …
By the way, season’s greetings from ex-Broncos tight ends coach Brian Pariani, who visited the team hotel Saturday afternoon. Pariani, now Greg Robinson‘s offensive coordinator at Syracuse, suffered through a 1-10 season in his first year at the ‘Cuse.
“Bad record, but a good experience,” said Pariani. “We’re going to get it done.” …
Just wondering: Where would the Bears, proud owners of the best D in da league, be if Plummer hadn’t turned down their free-agent deal three years ago? …
Let me see if I’ve got this straight. NFL people have questioned whether Vince Young can play quarterback on Sundays, and Kyle Boller is starting for the Ravens? Dude couldn’t win the Maryland Punt, Pass & Kick competition. …
Darn good coach, Dan Hawkins. But now we see whether he can attract elite African-American athletes to Boulder. Back in the day, when CU was a factor in the national championship picture, Bill McCartney had five black assistants among the nine on his staff. And yes, says Mac, “That was by way of design.” …
Three million bucks for Gary Barnett, 700 grand to buy out Hawkins’ contract and another couple of hundred grand to pay off Barnett’s assistants. Forget the poinsettia. Mike Bohn needs a money tree. …
And finally, happy birthday to Jake Plummer, who turns 31 on Monday. What to get for the man who has everything? A razor wouldn’t be a bad start.
Catch Jim Armstrong from 6-9 a.m. during “The Press Box” on ESPN 560 AM, Colorado’s ESPN radio. He can be reached at 303-820-5452 or jmarmstrong@denverpost.com.
