A tight end mold before him, Mike Shanahan stepped back and considered it intently.
He stared and he thought until eventually the Broncos coach believed his tight end would look better dirtied up. Gradually, the position was stripped of some glory, replaced by layers of scuff marks and grass stains.
Let there be no doubt, this isn’t Shannon Sharpe’s position anymore. Nor does the Broncos tight end spot belong to any of Sharpe’s disciples. See the surprising offseason release of Jeb Putzier.
When Putzier and his leather-sponged hands were let go March 1, the message was clear: A Broncos tight end must block first, catch second. If not, the alternative may well be Houston.
“Yeah, but that’s every position on this team,” starting tight end Stephen Alexander said. “Even the receivers, the first drill they work on is a blocking drill. The mind-set here is, if you’re not the ball carrier, you’re blocking.”
Alexander is the point man for the tight end transformation in Denver. It makes sense because as he enters his ninth NFL season, Alexander already has made the conversion.
Like many NFL tight ends, Alexander was a receiver first. He had 37 receptions as a rookie for the Washington Redskins in 1998, the same number Putzier had for the Broncos in 2005. Alexander made the Pro Bowl in 2000, when he had 47 receptions.
But after joining the Broncos last season, Alexander suddenly was referred to as the “blocking” tight end, while Putzier went out on pass patterns.
When the offseason forced the Broncos to reset their roster, Alexander stayed and Putzier was gone. For the 2006 season, the Broncos have talked to Alexander about mentoring rookie Tony Scheffler, a tight end from Western Michigan who was drafted in the second round.
What the Broncos don’t want is a repeat of a few years ago, when Sharpe tutored Putzier, presumably on little more than the art of getting open. This time, the hope is Alexander will help develop Scheffler into a more complete tight end, one who can block and catch.
“I’m definitely willing to take him under my wing and teach him everything I know,” Alexander said. “Whether that’s enough to help him become a good player or not, I don’t know.”
The funny thing about a football education is a teacher doesn’t necessarily have to teach but merely be. And the student will learn.
“Just watching the way Stephen carries himself in meetings, I mean that guy takes notes on everything,” Scheffler said. “Word for word. To see that attention to detail is amazing.”
At his NFL start, Scheffler is just like Sharpe, just like Putzier, just like Alexander. He’s a receiver first. Gifted, at that. During the NFL scouting combine in late February, Scheffler whipped Vernon Davis and all other tight ends in the shuttle race and cone drill.
Such explosion and agility is rarely demonstrated by someone 6-feet-6, 254 pounds. Then, on draft day, Shanahan raved about Scheffler’s receiving skills.
Apparently, it’s easier to mold a player with soft hands into a blocker than it is to make a blocker into a pass catcher.
“He’s definitely a natural receiver,” Alexander said. “Catches the ball really well, runs well. But it’s still new terminology to him. There’s still times when he gets lost, which is to be expected. But he’s made some great strides from our passing camp to our team camp.”
It will take time before Scheffler is sculpted into the kind of tight end that satisfies Shanahan. That’s why this week and next, as the Broncos install their running system during team camp, may be more important to Scheffler than the previous two weeks, when the Broncos implemented their passing game.
When the season officially begins with training camp in late July, Scheffler will compete with Wesley Duke and Nate Jackson for the “receiving” tight end job.
Nobody should be surprised if the best blocker wins.
“I came in fully aware of the situation,” Scheffler said. “For me to play in this system, I can’t just catch the ball. I’ve got to block. I mean, the Denver Broncos can run the football. There’s no mystery about it. It’s something I’m going to need to do and get better at.”
Staff writer Mike Klis can be reached at 303-820-5440 or mklis@denverpost.com.
