Emmanuel Sanders grew up around the rodeo in Texas. His relatives rode bulls. Sanders drives a Lamborghini. He embraces danger.
So perhaps it should come as no surprise he’s looking forward to returning punts for the Broncos. When Sanders arrived in Denver, he vowed to do anything to bring a championship to the city. He begins following through on the promise in Sunday’s season opener against the Baltimore Ravens.
“It’s a chance to make more plays,” Sanders said. “Punt return is dangerous. You just have to be cautious and not make stupid mistakes by trying to catch everything. You have guys running down trying to knock your head off, so you have to play it smart.”
The Broncos considered using Sanders late last season after rookie Isaiah Burse struggled, but settled on Wes Welker. Sanders has not returned punts regularly since his senior season at Southern Methodist in 2009. He boasts a career high of nine returns for 93 yards for Pittsburgh in 2012 when he shared duties with Antonio Brown.
“If he can do it, why can’t I?” said Sanders, who missed the preseason with a hamstring injury which has healed. “I want to be back there. I feel like I can do really good.”
The Broncos averaged 7.2 yards per return last season, ranking 20th in the league. Worse, there were no explosive plays. Denver boasted a long return of 22 yards, tied for second-worst overall.
GM John Elway gets his wish with this move. He prefers Sanders in the role, and coach Gary Kubiak agrees.
“He’s very explosive,” Kubiak said. “You weigh (the risk-reward), but I think you also look at touches. That’s the most important thing when you have a dynamic player.”
WATCH:
Smith moves up. Veteran defensive end Antonio Smith overcame a slow start in training camp to reach the top of the depth chart. The 33-year-old will start at defensive end, sharing time with Vance Walker. The ability of Smith and Walker to be effective takes on added importance with Kenny Anunike’s availability uncertain. Anunike is returning from knee surgery and did not practice Monday.
“I am like a caged dog just waiting to get let loose,” Anunike said. “I am doing everything I can to play Sunday.”
Ball bounces. Montee Ball made the Broncos on Saturday as their 53rd best player. When the waiver wire featured tight end Mitchell Henry and center James Ferentz, Ball became a former Bronco.
The Atlanta Falcons are among the teams to express interest in Ball.
Kubiak said the Broncos’ ability to keep former Colorado State star Kapri Bibbs on the practice squad figured into the decision.
Welcome Henry, Ferentz. Henry, who played three preseason games with a broken left middle finger, tried to make sense of his journey on Monday. He was minutes away from signing on the Green Bay Packers practice squad when the Broncos claimed him.
“It was a win-win,” Henry said.
Kubiak said Ferentz impressed the Broncos when they played the Texans in the preseason.
Footnotes. The Broncos rounded out their practice squad with tight end Arthur Lynch and offensive tackle Kyle Roberts. … Former Broncos landing on practice squads: receiver Nathan Palmer (Patriots), linebacker Lamin Barrow (Bears), quarterback Zac Dysert (Texans) and tight end Marcel Jensen (Falcons).
Eye on …The Ravens
Baltimore Ravens at Broncos, 2:25 p.m. Sunday, KCNC-4
For the record: The last time the Ravens played in a real game, they gave the New England Patriots all they could handle. If not for a couple of a gadget plays, including a touchdown pass by Julian Edelman, Deflategate might have never transpired. The Patriots rallied twice from 14-point deficits to reach the AFC championship game.
Streaking: The Ravens have reached the playoffs in two of the last three seasons, including last year with Gary Kubiak as their offensive coordinator. Baltimore replaced Kubiak with Marc Trestman, the former Chicago Bears coach. The Ravens remain Super Bowl contenders, but they don’t have a history of starting out well away from home. Their last road opening victory came in 2010 against the New York Jets. The Broncos crushed Baltimore 49-27 in 2013 as Manning threw a career-high seven touchdowns.
Who’s hot: Justin Forsett bounced around before landing in Baltimore, his fifth team. With Ray Rice gone, Kubiak turned to Forsett, who ran for 1,266 yards on 235 carries last season. The Ravens will lean on Forsett to give quarterback Joe Flacco some breathing room.
Who’s not: Flacco earned a $120 million contract based on his breathtaking playoff performances. During the regular season, he has been ordinary on the road, going 27-29 with 70 touchdowns and 55 interceptions. He’s 45-11 at home.
Key stat: The Ravens allowed 19 sacks last season, second fewest to the Broncos’ 17.
FYI: Terrell Suggs and Elvis Dumervil combined for 29 sacks last season. In eight games against the Broncos, those two have three sacks.
Troy E. Renck, The Denver Post
