After losing Game 1, the Broncos may have to play Game 2 without Elvis Dumervil, Champ Bailey, Brandon Lloyd and Knowshon Moreno.
So how’s your year going?
“I think it’s all about adjusting,” coach John Fox said Tuesday during a conference call. “Guys get hurt and you adjust during the season. Guys get dinged during games and you have to adjust. Both teams have to do that. You make do the best you can and go on to the next week.”
Fox said he wouldn’t discuss specific injuries until today. He is doing his best to not bring up the difficult position he is confronting as he begins his Denver coaching era.
Already, the Broncos have been playing without defensive tackle Ty Warren and weakside linebacker D.J. Williams because of injuries. Think the Broncos’ defense couldn’t have used those two players as they flailed against the run Monday in their 23-20 loss at Sports Authority Field at Mile High to Darren McFadden and the Oakland Raiders?
Next up are the Cincinnati Bengals, another run-first, physical team. They play here Sunday. The Broncos may have to play without Dumervil, their best pass rusher who aggravated a strained shoulder against the Raiders; Bailey, their best cornerback, who suffered a hamstring strain while chasing down McFadden in the fourth quarter; Lloyd, their No. 1 receiver, who suffered a strained groin; and Moreno, their starting tailback, who strained a hamstring.
Sticking with Orton.
One player the Broncos will have for their next game is Kyle Orton.
“Kyle is our starting quarterback, and I don’t think too many guys are firing all their guys because their team happened to lose in Week 1,” Fox said.
A portion of the home crowd chanted for QB Tim Tebow during the fourth quarter Monday.
“I couldn’t actually hear that part,” said Fox, who wears a headset on the sideline. “I thought our crowd was great. I thought it was electric. I thought it was as good as I’ve ever been associated with. All my feelings for the fans, the crowd and the home field were tremendous.”
Elam has company.
Jason Elam, the best kicker in Broncos history, graciously made room in the 63-yard club for Oakland kicker Sebastian Janikowski.
On the final play of Monday’s first half, Janikowski hit a 63- yard field goal that tied him with Tom Dempsey, who set the NFL record in 1970, and with Elam, who tied the record at Mile High Stadium in 1998.
“The podium got a little more crowded,” Elam said of Janikowski. “I congratulate him. He did a great job on it.”
Elam was watching from his home in Soldotna, Alaska, when Janikowski made his big kick.
Elam’s only surprise is that no one has ever kicked an NFL field goal longer than 63 yards.
“I remember even back in ’98 when I made mine, I was thinking it would fall the next week,” Elam said. “I’m sure if you asked Tom Dempsey, I’m sure he’s still shocked that no one’s beaten it after 41 years.
“At the same time, there are a lot of things that have to go well to make a kick like that. It’s not an easy thing by any stretch, but I think there are 32 kickers in the league that have the ability to make that kick.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the record fell this Sunday.”
Footnotes.
Denver worked out former Hawaii safety Mana Silva this week. . . . The Broncos will remain No. 2 in the NFL’s waiver claim order until Sept. 26, the day after they play the Tennessee Titans in Week 3. At that point, the waiver claim order is determined by current records — with strength of schedule as the tiebreaker.
Mike Klis, The Denver Post
