That's The Sound Of Another "Fire Millen" Sign Being Scrawled.

The FanHouse exists at AOL for a reason: to find the little things that some of the rest of us would completely gloss over in the muck of Peter King's usually mediocre column, and it only matters to me because it concerns my rooting interests. This is how much Mike Shanahan and the Broncos offered Millen for Calvin Johnson, about a month before the draft:

A month earlier Denver had offered two first-round picks, a second-rounder and two third-rounders, plus veteran linebacker Al Wilson, but when the Broncos wouldn't substitute another second-round pick for the injured Wilson, Millen turned them down. With that, the bar was set high.

Wow, that's a lot of stupid -- on both ends. Not only was the Rat Fink willing to mortgage the entire goddamn franchise on Calvin Johnson (never a guarantee, given the way WRs are dropping in value as far as the marquee player list goes), but he was willing to ape what the Saints did to draft Ricky Williams, and inherit the NFL's dunce cap from Millen as far as miserable personnel decisions go.

Yet Millen still said no. Is William Clay Ford, Jr. just a puppet, a marionette controlled by Millen? Detroit fans might just have reasons to consider that possibility.

Welcome To Denver, Mr. Moss.

Say hi to our first-round pick, DE/OLB Jarvis Moss out of the national champion University of Florida Gators. Shanny probably didn't need to trade one of our two third round picks plus a sixth-round pick to the Jags in order to make sure to get him, but I'm happy to have him, nonetheless. We needed a pass rusher, we got one with the possibility of being Jevon Kearse-like, and hopefully with less injury trouble down the road.

251's a little skinny for a 6'6" DE, but if that doesn't pan out there, he would probably make a decent LB, and that's a place where you can always use some back-up there too. I like the pick, as you can clearly tell.

What To Make Of Todd Sauerbrun?

Yeah, yeah. Punter signs with old team after current team botches matching rights paperwork, blah, blah, boring. Bear with me for a minute, though. It's really not so much about Todd Sauerbrun so much as the way he flies under the radar in terms of scrutiny over his prior suspension for use of ephedra, banned by the NFL after Korey Stringer's death.

As far as the errata in the contract, it's kind of surprising to see the Patriots botch one by something so simple as not putting the match offer clause on a separate page. However, the extent to which it was actually necessary to shell out to keep him wouldn't be that much. Punters and kickers don't grow on trees, but they have long shelf lives -- finding a replacement isn't as hard as you'd think as far as punting goes. Field goal kicking -- well, that's another matter. Bill Parcells' career is littered with examples of bad FG kicking -- both in favor of and against the team he's coaching.

If you'll remember, Sauerbrun was part of the investigation of several Carolina Panther players accused of juicing -- while he never was caught or charged on that one, he was suspended for four games last season over that ephedra incident, and it wound up costing him his job in Denver, as he was cut and replaced by Paul Ernster for kickoffs and punts.

Sauerbrun was able to fly under the radar on the fallout, what little actually turned out to be there, because of his position and the perceived nature of it (kickers unathletic, can show up pudgy, etc. Broncos coach Mike Shanahan is even guilty of this, claiming the punter is the one player on the team who can show up fat and he won't care.) Now, the attitude towards roids in football isn't as fucked up as the one baseball has with itself and the recent era, and that's because football these days is not a sport that rides its history very hard, and when you are top dog in the U.S. sporting landscape, you don't have to lean on your past.

If Sauerbrun had been a skill player on the offense or defense, someone would have two shits about his ephedra use. Ask around now and everyone will likely say "Todd who?" We believe most of the offensive and defensive lines are loading up -- they don't make men that big in nature, or so we think; skill positions are the main ones that concern us, the exception being Shawne Merriman, whose sheer dominance made him a star. Kicking deeper downfield and higher in the air for field position isn't high on the concern of abilities that can be improved, neither are attempts ot emergency weight loss.

Sauerbrun's pressures are no different, though, expressing concern about his weight all the time, and saying he had been fined by the Panthers for eating. No matter how good you are at your job, that may lead you to take some measures you would usually be more careful about. He's lucky no one really gives a crap about the punter unless it's fourth down and they're trying to back the opponents into the corner.

Boneheaded Cap Move, Horseheads.

Shanahan and the front office are going to release one of their defensive leaders and the core of their linebackers in Al Wilson, according to reports in ESPN.

What part of four-time Pro Bowler isn't worth keeping here? Yeah, it's probably injury-related, but this makes for a serious need to fill now, and it's going to screw up my accounting for the Broncos in the bloggers' mock draft when we get around to pick #21.

Either way, so long, Al. You held it down in the LB rotation for all seven years you were in Denver, and for that, we thank you.

The Schedule Is Here.

It's the first tantalizing note of the NFL returning -- first the schedule, then the draft, mini-camps, camp, pre-season, and then....oh, how I've missed you, football.

1. Sun, Sept. 9 at Buffalo, 1 p.m. EDT, CBS
2. Sun, Sept. 16, OAKLAND, 2:15 p.m. MDT, CBS
3. Sun, Sept. 23, JACKSONVILLE, 2:05 p.m. MDT, CBS
4. Sun, Sept. 30, at Indianapolis, 4:15 p.m. EDT, CBS
5. Sun, Oct. 7, SAN DIEGO, 2:15 p.m. MDT, CBS
6. BYE
7. Sun, Oct. 21, PITTSBURGH, 6:15 p.m. MDT, NBC
8. Mon, Oct. 29, GREEN BAY, 6:30 p.m. MDT, ESPN
9. Sun, Nov. 4, at Detroit, 1 p.m. EST, CBS
10. Sun, Nov. 11, at Kansas City, 12 p.m. CST, CBS
11. Mon, Nov. 19, TENNESSEE, 6:30 p.m. MST, ESPN
12. Sun, Nov. 25, at Chicago, 12 p.m. CST, CBS
13. Sun, Dec. 2, at Oakland, 1:05 p.m. PST, CBS
14. Sun, Dec. 9, KANSAS CITY, 2:15 p.m. MST, CBS
15. Thu, Dec. 13, at Houston, 7:15 p.m. MST, NFLN
16. Mon, Dec. 24, at San Diego, 5 p.m. PST, ESPN
17. Sun, Dec. 30, MINNESOTA, 2:15 p.m. MST, FOX

Three Monday nighters, a Thursday, and one Sunday nighter (and depending on how both teams look come week 12, that Chicago game could be flexed in for NBC.) That's a lot of prime-time exposure.

I say 3-0 to start, possible loss to Indy even with a better secondary with Dre Bly (we can now cover both Harrison and Reggie Wayne), good shot at beating SD at home, now that they're run by the NORV!!! Pitt might be a toughie, but it's at Mile High. Green Bay = pushover. Detroit stinks. Possible loss to KC on the road, but they're aging and not improving. Travis Henry goes monster on his old team; could go either way in Chicago depending on the Sex Cannon and whether the Bears D is OK. Beat the Raiders twice, beat KC at home. Houston will still suck. Another possible loss to the Bolts; Vikings are not exactly a devastating team. Naturally, this all depends on Jay Cutler stepping up. Saw some good things, saw rookie mistakes, but he has a legitimate franchise back in Travis Henry now, and that will help.

I think this could pan out for a 12-4 season, especially if Shanny drafts someone to buck up that defensive line and get the sack numbers the Horseheads have been missing since Trevor Pryce left. Speaking of the draft, Awful Announcing has set up a Sports Bloggers Mock Draft, and I'm drafting for....surprise, the Broncos. Should be fun. If you have any suggestions for draft picks -- of course, I'm leaning towards a D-lineman or LB, leave 'em in the comments.

"There Are Very Few Problems That Money Can't Fix."

The title is a favorite saying of my dad's, and I'd bet Broncos CB Dre Bly agrees, especially since Shanny just broke him off big large for a five year contract extension here in Denver -- $33 million total, but we always know that total is complete bullshit, so the important number is the $16 million that's guaranteed.

Rumor has it Bly was not particularly happy when he got dealt to Denver, mostly because he wanted to head to D.C. (for what reason, I could not tell you), and there were rumors after the trade was completed that he would be dealt again. Those are quashed for now.

He may not be here five years, but for at least three, that's damn good guaranteed cash, especially when you know your stats are gonna get jacked up because your teammate covering on the other side is one Roland "Champ" Bailey.

ink and wheels #4.

Special Broncos edition, as they're looking to possibly bring in Colts WR Brandon Stokely as a slot receiver with Javon Walker and Rod Smith, according to MJD at the FanHouse, who nabbed a Rocky Mountain News article. You gotta love MJD, reveling in every stereotype of the "possession receiver," and mentioning the much-loved Easy Ed McCaffrey and his years in a Bronco uni.

With the signing of Daniel Graham rather than a catching TE, a better slot receiver becomes a necessity, but I can't help but think that they've got a somewhat talented second year WR in Brandon Marshall who should get the shot at being the third WR, especially before an injury-prone Stokely, who sat out most of last year with knee problems. If they can land him with an incentive laden contract, fine with me. But this off-season has been along the lines of bank robbery for free agents, and it would be nice if Denver didn't fall for it on Stokely.

(I promise I will eventually do a post on the more popular racially, um, loaded euphemisms in sports soon.)

another tight end?

I'm not exactly sure why the Broncos inked TE Daniel Graham today outside of bringing a local boy back home. Good blocking TE, though, but we've got a couple of those in reserve (Stephen Alexander and a guy named Scheiffler, whom Cutler liked throwing to as well.) We're not exactly talking about someone who will compete in a conference wtih the upper echelon of tight ends (SD's Antonio Gates, KC's Tony Gonzalez) as far as catching goes. ESPN had him #5 on the coveted free agent list, saying he was obscured by the Pats' two-TE sets.

If the team's looking to stack the line for Travis Henry, it makes sense, but I'm not sure it makes $15 million guaranteed worth of sense (but then again, the NFL is having an off-season in terms of money numbers that resembles MLB's spending spree post-October.)

Rumor on ESPN is that the Redskins want to pry the recently acquired Dre Bly from us, and if Shanahan and the faceless GM are dumb enough to do, they deserve what they get. You never trade an element of a potentially lock-down corner team.

welcome to Denver, Travis.

The Broncos went out and got the #2 on the list I compiled last night. Again, Travis Henry has had fumble trouble for a good portion of his career, but he's got the capability to be a feature back, and that's really what the team needs at this point rather than trying to compile two or three backs, despite the league trend towards two-back systems.

Again, at least Jay Cutler will have a backfield to go to next year, and while it would have been awesome to pry Willis McGahee from the Bills, the cost probably would have been too high, while a $12 million signing bonus on a five-year deal for a feature back isn't too bad.

who should be the next member of the Factory?

That is, Mike Shanahan's Tailback Factory. The Broncos have addressed the secondary with the Dre Bly deal, but doing so requires nailing down a stud at RB to replace the fumble-prone Tatum Bell -- this is of utmost importance because said RB will be responsible for pounding holes in order to score and take pressure off Jay Cutler to win games with his arm alone. The Broncos have not had a serious feature back since Clinton Portis was dealt for Champ Bailey (and the Broncos got the better of that deal given Portis' injury problems -- if he doesn't get hurt as often, everyone wins.) Most observers note that the Denver O-line can be counted on to produce a 1,000 yard rusher every year, but it's instructive that the team has rarely advanced past the first weekend of the playoffs post back-to-back titles without Terrell Davis (and, of course, John Elway, but we're talking RBs here.)

Ahman Green has inked with the Texans, so he's out. Fortunately, there are five good options possible (old Denver Post article, but mentions these four names)-- two by trade, three* (please see the update/correction below) by free agency. They are profiled in my personal preferred order:

1. Willis McGahee, Buffalo Bills -- if he can be stolen from Buffalo (and the Broncos are willing to ditch lower draft picks), then he's the man to grab for a contract year and try to nail down for an extension. Only 25, with a couple of full seasons under his belt, he's young enough to run as much as the Broncos like to, and still got just under 1,000 yards this season while missing two games. I still question why Buffalo is even shopping him.

2. Travis Henry, cut by Tennessee Titans - 28 with a 3rd 1,000 yard season out of six total years in the league. Suffered bouts of fumble-itis in Buffalo -- part of why Buffalo got McGahee in the first place, but revived himself on the Titans by giving VY a back to go to. Probably the best back currently on the free agent market -- might not be coming cheap.

3. Thomas Jones, Chicago Bears - two straight 1,000 yard seasons, age 27. Probably can thrive as a feature back, but I'm not sure the Bears will take him for an offer that doesn't knock their socks off (likely something requiring a stud defensive player or place where they can draft one), especially because rumor in Chicago is the players prefer him to his tag-team mate Cedric Benson.

4.. Jamal Lewis, cut by Baltimore Ravens - 27, only one season w/o a 1,000 yard season, but yards-per-carry dropped dramatically post 2003-season (well, they had to, 2,000 yard seasons don't exactly come every year). 3.6 yards per carry last year**. Prone to off-field troubles. Ravens probably cut him to try and re-sign him for less money more than anything else.

UPDATE: Forgot one. (**This addition also removes the "lowest yds per carry of the group" from Jamal Lewis.)

5. Dominic Rhodes, Indianapolis Colts -- Has had a 1,000 yd season on his own, but most of last year's highlights belonged to Joseph Addai, and I suspect Indy would be OK with letting him go after his recent DUI arrest. Got 3.4 a carry last year. Not bad with the receiving stats. Should have split the Super Bowl MVP with Addai, but not exactly what you think of when you think of "franchise running back," and despite recent plug-and-play backs in the past few years, the Broncos could use one if they're going to stand a decent chance of another Super Bowl.

If you want someone teaming up with Mike Bell, you probably take a flyer on Lewis first and then try Rhodes. I'm not sure the Bears will get rid of Jones. Henry is visiting soon, and while inconsistent in other venues, the OL turns mediocre backs into 1,000 yard rushers. McGahee is the prize, though.

It's also highly likely that none of them will be a Bronco, as Shanahan may just pluck another back out of the draft and throw him in with Bell.

the pornstache walks away.

Jake Plummer is calling it quits rather than get traded to Tampa Bay -- apparently, he's not interested in being traded some place where he isn't automatically the starter. Great sentiment in terms of looking out for yourself, Jake, but have you looked at your stats the last few years? You are the last person who should be handed a starting job fresh out of the gate and without question.

What makes it worse is that he's giving up already and the guy he'd be going up against for Tampa's starting job is recovering from losing his goddamned spleen. Shave off the mustache and the beard or whatever you've got these days, Plummer, your wussing out means you don't deserve to wear that facial hair.

is there an NFL term for "hot stove league"?

Because the NFL's is on at midnight tonight. The WWL provides a handy-dandy list of the 30 big free agent names for teams to lap up this offseason.

Meanwhile, my Broncos have found their replacement for the dearly and sadly departed Darrent Williams by dealing RB Tatum Bell and OT George Foster to Detroit for CB and ball-hawker extraordinaire Dre' Bly -- one of the few bright spots on those Lions teams. T. Bell is coming off a thousand-yard season, but has problems with fumble-itis and may actually want a semi-fresh start, as Williams was his close friend and teammate going back to their OK State days.

This automatically turns the Broncos into one of the top corner teams in the league, and even though safety John Lynch is getting older and losing steps, he's still one of the nastiest bastards when it comes to hitting. (I was one of those who would bet that D-Will was going to have a monster year in '07, so I thought the Broncos would be a nasty secondary regardless.)

Teams won't want to pass against these guys come next season. Would have been nice to take a stab at the Bills' Nate Clements, but Shanahan likes to get his guys for cheap on the free agent market or through trade and extension signing (see Champ Bailey, Javon Walker.)

Presumably, the departure of Tatum means the starting job is Mike Bell's to lose again, although it's safe to say that the Rat Fink will have a stable of runners for the the Halfback Factory once again.

another Bronco dies this off-season.

Third-stringer and practice squad RB Damien Nash died today suddenly after a charity basketball game.

I remember the run that MJD describes over at Deadspin -- he had an absolutely giant hole from the offensive line and hit it for 50+, and I'm not sure if I recall correctly, but I think he got to finish that drive off himself with a touchdown.

Another sad and sour note for the Broncos offseason, as the organization will now have to handle the deaths of two players long before their times, and the families they leave behind.

Condolences to Nash's family and friends.

so long, Snake.

Jake Plummer, like every other QB who gets replaced mid-season, still thinks he can be a starter in other places and sounds like he wants out, according to the Rocky Mountain News. Teams that could use a quarterback include Houston (yeah, that whole Mario Williams thing worked out real well, didn't it?), Miami, Cleveland, and Tampa Bay.

If the Broncos manage to deal him (cutting him would hack off too much in salary cap), I will miss him, despite his tendency to make me throw things at the television when watching the Horseheads play, mainly for the exquisite facial hair he displayed on a regular basis (except for this year, and that's where I think he went wrong.) Also, we can never forget that until last Sunday, he was the QB of the only team to hand Tom Brady a playoff loss.

He'll never have a ring, but I think Plummer will be one of those QBs who has a Jeff Garcia-like resurgence someplace else, with low expectations. Houston might be the place to do it.