Jttsaz
#40 Never Forget
http://www.denverbroncos.com/page.php?id=334&storyID=3814
Monday, January 10, 2005
Shanahan: 'No Question' About Plummer's Future in Denver
By Andrew Mason
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- When it comes to quarterback, the Broncos' future sits in Jake Plummer's hands.
BRONCOS TV: BRONCOS FALL DOWN EARLY, TUMBLE OUT OF PLAYOFFS
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: MIKE SHANAHAN SEASON WRAP
"No question about that," Head Coach Mike Shanahan emphatically stated at his season-ending press conference Monday afternoon.
"I'm very happy with Jake," Shanahan said. "Jake played extremely well. He had a stretch in there of four games -- one touchdown, eight interceptions -- that he didn't play well. I'd like to throw those four games out. But I can blame myself probably more than Jake because I think sometimes I put him in situations that I shouldn't have put him in. So I think when I assess someone's year, you can't just go to stretches. You have to say, 'Hey, did he get the job done for you or didn't he?'"
In Shanahan's eyes, Plummer did, particularly in late-game scenarios.
"When the pressure was on him in Jacksonville, what did he do? He took us all the way down the field," Shanahan said. "He missed the handoff (to Quentin Griffin), or maybe I should have kicked the field goal, but he got us in position to win the football game. That's a plus. Not a lot of guys do that.
"Against the Raiders (at home on Nov. 28), what did he do? He made a throw on third-and-10 that not many people make. We didn't get it done, but he still gets us in position to kick a field goal. He handled the pressure extremely well, and that's what quarterbacks are asked to do.
"Against Atlanta, we're down. All of a sudden, he's got a fourth-and-10. He hits another receiver right there, perfect pass," Shanahan continued, referring to a pass that rookie Darius Watts dropped. "We've got three timeouts with three minutes left and we're down by six points. That's what you ask a quarterback to do."
GETTING CLOSE: Denver's season ended in the wild-card round for a second consecutive season and third time in the past five years.
But when Shanahan looks at his team, one that was the only club to boast an offense and defense that ranked in the league's top five in total yardage, he sees a team that sits at a championship level.
"I think we were there this year," Shanahan said. "You don't finish fourth defensively and fifth offensively without being pretty good. For us to lose three defensive linemen, three defensive backs, two starting running backs and still be pretty competitive and have a chance to win 12 or 13 games, I thought we were right in the hunt."
Close, but short of their goal of returning to the Super Bowl, and short of a playoff win that has eluded them since Jan. 31, 1999.
"You go back and you say, 'Why didn't you get it done?' The bottom line is you get it done or you don't," Shanahan said. "But for people to say we're a long way away from playing at that (championship) level, without some of the guys we were counting on, I think they don't know what they're talking about."
That doesn't mean he won't seek to fill in any missing pieces.
"There's always missing pieces. That's the nature of this game," Shanahan said. "There's not a team in the National Football League that doesn't have a missing piece. What you try to do is put as many pieces to the puzzle as you possibly can on your football team, and you're hoping that you can stay fresh, stay healthy and play your best football when it counts.
"It's not always that case. And if it's not that case, you've got to find a way to win and get it done. The way we had a chance to get it done (against the Colts on Sunday) was to play the first half like we did the second half on offense. You play like we played in the first half -- seven possessions, 0-for-6 third downs -- you're in for a long day."
RECOVERY TIME: Every Monday,Shanahan spends the first part of his press conference reciting the litany of injuries the Broncos face in a particular week.
But this time, the injuries will have more time to heal than just a few days.
A pair of Broncos will undergo surgery in the coming days -- safety John Lynch on his left thumb and guard Dan Neil on his left knee.
Lynch is scheduled to start for the AFC All-Stars in the Pro Bowl on Feb. 13, and Shanahan believes that the 12-year veteran will heal in time to play and represent the club alongside cornerback Champ Bailey.
"The doctor believes that he'll be able to play in the Pro Bowl," Shanahan said.
As for Neil, the recuperation will take a while longer.
"It should be about a three-month recovery," Shanahan said. "It should be a full recovery."
Cornerback Jeff Shoate could join Neil and Lynch under the knife; Shanahan said "there's a good chance" he'll undergo knee surgery.
REHABILITATION: The end of the season offered Shanahan an opportunity to provide updates on the status of the various Broncos on injured reserve.
Defensive tackle Luther Elliss and running back Quentin Griffin are among the players who will continue their rehab work at the facility.
"(Elliss' injury is) very similar to Trevor Pryce; he has a low back (injury); a disc that was operated on," Shanahan said. "It should be about six to eight weeks there."
As for Griffin, he continues to work back to full speed after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament at Cincinnati on Oct. 25.
"(Griffin) should be fully recovered by the time we start the offseason conditioning progam in April," Shanahan said ...
... Like Elliss and Griffin, wide receiver Nate Jackson continues his work; he fractured his left ankle at San Diego on Dec. 5. Shanahan expects him back for the commencement of offseason workouts ...
... Tight end Jeb Putzier and wide receiver Ashley Lelie will each have "a couple of weeks" of rehabilitation work as they recover from ankle injuries incurred Sunday at Indianapolis ...
... Cornerbacks Lenny Walls and Willie Middlebrooks each face more rehab work as they recover from shoulder and leg injuries, but both should be fully recovered by offseason workouts ...
... Running back Mike Anderson (groin), defensive tackle Dorsett Davis (finger), wide receiver B.J. Johnson (left ankle), running back Brandon Miree (torn ulnar collateral ligament in his thumb) and cornerback Jeremy LeSueur have all completed their rehabilitation work from the injuries that sidelined them. All went on injured reserve during the preseason.
Monday, January 10, 2005
Shanahan: 'No Question' About Plummer's Future in Denver
By Andrew Mason
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- When it comes to quarterback, the Broncos' future sits in Jake Plummer's hands.
BRONCOS TV: BRONCOS FALL DOWN EARLY, TUMBLE OUT OF PLAYOFFS
PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO: MIKE SHANAHAN SEASON WRAP
"No question about that," Head Coach Mike Shanahan emphatically stated at his season-ending press conference Monday afternoon.
"I'm very happy with Jake," Shanahan said. "Jake played extremely well. He had a stretch in there of four games -- one touchdown, eight interceptions -- that he didn't play well. I'd like to throw those four games out. But I can blame myself probably more than Jake because I think sometimes I put him in situations that I shouldn't have put him in. So I think when I assess someone's year, you can't just go to stretches. You have to say, 'Hey, did he get the job done for you or didn't he?'"
In Shanahan's eyes, Plummer did, particularly in late-game scenarios.
"When the pressure was on him in Jacksonville, what did he do? He took us all the way down the field," Shanahan said. "He missed the handoff (to Quentin Griffin), or maybe I should have kicked the field goal, but he got us in position to win the football game. That's a plus. Not a lot of guys do that.
"Against the Raiders (at home on Nov. 28), what did he do? He made a throw on third-and-10 that not many people make. We didn't get it done, but he still gets us in position to kick a field goal. He handled the pressure extremely well, and that's what quarterbacks are asked to do.
"Against Atlanta, we're down. All of a sudden, he's got a fourth-and-10. He hits another receiver right there, perfect pass," Shanahan continued, referring to a pass that rookie Darius Watts dropped. "We've got three timeouts with three minutes left and we're down by six points. That's what you ask a quarterback to do."
GETTING CLOSE: Denver's season ended in the wild-card round for a second consecutive season and third time in the past five years.
But when Shanahan looks at his team, one that was the only club to boast an offense and defense that ranked in the league's top five in total yardage, he sees a team that sits at a championship level.
"I think we were there this year," Shanahan said. "You don't finish fourth defensively and fifth offensively without being pretty good. For us to lose three defensive linemen, three defensive backs, two starting running backs and still be pretty competitive and have a chance to win 12 or 13 games, I thought we were right in the hunt."
Close, but short of their goal of returning to the Super Bowl, and short of a playoff win that has eluded them since Jan. 31, 1999.
"You go back and you say, 'Why didn't you get it done?' The bottom line is you get it done or you don't," Shanahan said. "But for people to say we're a long way away from playing at that (championship) level, without some of the guys we were counting on, I think they don't know what they're talking about."
That doesn't mean he won't seek to fill in any missing pieces.
"There's always missing pieces. That's the nature of this game," Shanahan said. "There's not a team in the National Football League that doesn't have a missing piece. What you try to do is put as many pieces to the puzzle as you possibly can on your football team, and you're hoping that you can stay fresh, stay healthy and play your best football when it counts.
"It's not always that case. And if it's not that case, you've got to find a way to win and get it done. The way we had a chance to get it done (against the Colts on Sunday) was to play the first half like we did the second half on offense. You play like we played in the first half -- seven possessions, 0-for-6 third downs -- you're in for a long day."
RECOVERY TIME: Every Monday,Shanahan spends the first part of his press conference reciting the litany of injuries the Broncos face in a particular week.
But this time, the injuries will have more time to heal than just a few days.
A pair of Broncos will undergo surgery in the coming days -- safety John Lynch on his left thumb and guard Dan Neil on his left knee.
Lynch is scheduled to start for the AFC All-Stars in the Pro Bowl on Feb. 13, and Shanahan believes that the 12-year veteran will heal in time to play and represent the club alongside cornerback Champ Bailey.
"The doctor believes that he'll be able to play in the Pro Bowl," Shanahan said.
As for Neil, the recuperation will take a while longer.
"It should be about a three-month recovery," Shanahan said. "It should be a full recovery."
Cornerback Jeff Shoate could join Neil and Lynch under the knife; Shanahan said "there's a good chance" he'll undergo knee surgery.
REHABILITATION: The end of the season offered Shanahan an opportunity to provide updates on the status of the various Broncos on injured reserve.
Defensive tackle Luther Elliss and running back Quentin Griffin are among the players who will continue their rehab work at the facility.
"(Elliss' injury is) very similar to Trevor Pryce; he has a low back (injury); a disc that was operated on," Shanahan said. "It should be about six to eight weeks there."
As for Griffin, he continues to work back to full speed after tearing an anterior cruciate ligament at Cincinnati on Oct. 25.
"(Griffin) should be fully recovered by the time we start the offseason conditioning progam in April," Shanahan said ...
... Like Elliss and Griffin, wide receiver Nate Jackson continues his work; he fractured his left ankle at San Diego on Dec. 5. Shanahan expects him back for the commencement of offseason workouts ...
... Tight end Jeb Putzier and wide receiver Ashley Lelie will each have "a couple of weeks" of rehabilitation work as they recover from ankle injuries incurred Sunday at Indianapolis ...
... Cornerbacks Lenny Walls and Willie Middlebrooks each face more rehab work as they recover from shoulder and leg injuries, but both should be fully recovered by offseason workouts ...
... Running back Mike Anderson (groin), defensive tackle Dorsett Davis (finger), wide receiver B.J. Johnson (left ankle), running back Brandon Miree (torn ulnar collateral ligament in his thumb) and cornerback Jeremy LeSueur have all completed their rehabilitation work from the injuries that sidelined them. All went on injured reserve during the preseason.
