ENGLEWOOD, Colo.—Broncos linebacker Jason Hunter has quickly gone from learning on the fly to leading by example.
Brought in at the end of training camp after being released by Detroit, Hunter was so far behind, he would seek out instructions in the huddle before a play.
Now, he has a firm handle on his role and become an integral part of the defense.
The way fellow linebacker Mario Haggan sees it: the Lions’ loss has turned into the Broncos’ gain.
“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. That happens in the NFL every day,” Haggan said. “Guys get cut and go to different teams and play better than the previous team they were with. Jason’s a hard worker. I don’t think we’ve seen the best from him yet.”
Hunter, a fifth year pro out of Appalachian State, started nine games for the Lions last season, but was cut in the middle of camp. He wasn’t sure what would happen next.
“I knew I still had some football left in me,” Hunter said. “I was just hoping that I could land with a team I could be productive for.”
He didn’t have long to wait as the Broncos signed him three days later, in part out of necessity. The team had just lost NFL reigning sacks leader Elvis Dumervil to a season-ending chest injury and were looking for depth at linebacker.
At first, Hunter was overwhelmed with the intricacies of the defense, which was to be expected given his late arrival. He asked for advice on the field, from teammates in meetings, just little tips to help along his studies.
But those impromptu tutorial sessions didn’t last long as Hunter did his homework, learning the nuances of the system.
“Sometimes you don’t have time to say, ‘Hey, what do I have to do?'” Hunter said. “You have to be able to know what you have to do and the react and move quickly.”
By the first game of the season, Hunter was up to speed, earning the starting spot over players such as first-round pick Jarvis Moss, who missed time in camp with a broken hand.
Hunter picked off his first career pass last weekend against the New York Jets, stepping in front of an errant Mark Sanchez throw.
It’s a story he doesn’t mind retelling.
“Dropped back into a zone. Mirroring the quarterback. As he wound up to throw the ball, I just saw it and reacted,” he said. “Fortunate enough to get the pick.”
This has been quite a whirlwind fall for Hunter, one he hasn’t had time to fully digest.
“Probably once the season’s over,” Hunter said. “I’m just trying to learn as much as I can right now.”
———
ON THE MARK: Matt Prater has been so perfect on field goals lately that even his misses feel good.
After striking the ball on a 49-yard attempt in a 24-20 loss to the New York Jets on Sunday, Prater glanced up, fully expecting it to be right on target.
But the ball traveled slightly wide right, ending his streak of 18 straight conversions, one shy of Jason Elam’s team mark.
“Kind of followed through exactly where I kicked it,” Prater explained. “Wish I could have that one kick back.”
To him, that miss clouded his 59-yarder as time expired in the first half. It was the second-longest field goal in team history, behind Elam’s 63-yarder in 1998.
“It’s not a huge deal,” Prater said, “because we didn’t win the game.”
Still, the equipment personnel tracked down the ball and presented it to him after the contest. Prater plans to store it in his trophy case back home in Fort Myers, Fla., joining other mementos and trinkets he’s acquired over the years.
As for the botched snap by long snapper Lonie Paxton on a 28-yard field-goal attempt in the first quarter, Prater chalked that up to “just bad luck.”
“I still think of him as one of the best by far,” Prater said.
———
BANGED-UP BRONCOS: The Broncos were missing quite an ensemble of players at practice Wednesday, including defensive backs Brian Dawkins (knee), Andre’ Goodman (thigh) and Champ Bailey (ribs). Receivers Eddie Royal (groin) and Brandon Lloyd (non-injury) also sat out of practice.
“That does not mean they won’t play in the game,” Broncos coach Josh McDaniels said.
In all, nine players didn’t practice. Pass-rushing linebacker Robert Ayers (foot) and defensive lineman Kevin Vickerson (groin) also were sidelined.
———
QUIPPY QUOTE: With his team off to a 2-4 start this season, McDaniels was asked how this version stacked up against the squad that began 6-0 in 2009.
“We had four more wins,” McDaniels responded. “Other than that, we really haven’t thought that much about where we were in terms of our improvement or our status.”
———
SCRAMBLING ORTON: Not known for being all that mobile, Kyle Orton said he can make plays with his feet when needed. Orton is averaging 3.9 yards a carry this season, the highest mark among the backs.
“I’m not going to run it for 40 yards or anything, but I think I do a pretty good job of knowing where the sticks are and getting the 7 or 8 yards to move the chains,” Orton said.
