It’s been an eventful off-season, but you know that when they lace ‘em up, the Denver Broncos will be on top of their game, and BroncosLocker.com is right there with them. This is your daily dose of Bronco-mania, from the field to the locker room to the “man on the street.” Get it all right here!
The Broncos have signed 27-year old WR Brandon Lloyd. Lloyd played in 11 games for the Bears last season and he caught 26 passes for 364 yards (14.0 avg) with 2 TD grabs. He has now played in 79 games in his 6-year NFL career and he has caught 156 passes for 2,253 yards (14.4 avg) with 15 TD grabs. After naming Kyle Orton the starting QB this was a nice move to give him someone he’s comfortable throwing to.
Out is Jay Cutler and his backups and they have been replaced by Kyle Orton, Chris Simms and rookie Tom Brandstater. The company line is that Orton and Simms will battle for the starting job but that’s just mumbo jumbo. Kyle Orton will be the #1 QB for the Broncos in 2009. He doesn’t have a great throwing arm but he’s solid on the short stuff and he’s smart with the football. Orton will also benefit from a much better supporting cast than he had in Chicago so he could surprise a lot of people with a very solid 2009 season. Chris Simms is a lefty who is nothing like his father (who was a good NFL QB). Simms doesn’t appear to be much of a leader and he throws the ball where he shouldn’t quite a bit. Simms has a strong arm but he’s just not much of a QB. Rookie Tom Brandstater is a big QB but he’s nothing more than a developmental QB heading into the 2009 season.
PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2009 SEASON: C
The Broncos have signed 29-year old linebacker Nick Greisen to a 1-year deal. Greisen played in 14 games for the Ravens last season and he made 11 tackles. He has now played in 98 games in his 7-year NFL career and he has made 255 tackles, has defensed 13 passes, has 4 sacks, forced 5 fumbles and he has intercepted 1 pass. Greisen will be a special teams ace for the Broncos and he will provide solid depth at linebacker. To make room for Greisen the Broncos have released 25-year old TE Adam Bergen. Bergen has not caught a pass since the 2006 season with the Arizona Cardinals. He has played in 30 games in his NFL career and he has caught 43 passes for 381 yards (8.9 avg) with 2 TD grabs.
UPDATE: The Broncos have placed Nick Greisen on the Injured Reserve List with a knee injury ending his season. This is a shame as he could have got some playing time with the Broncos this season as they are very thin at linebacker.
