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The thing that had me scratching my head about Darrien Gordon was he still had a lot of gas left in the tank. He played for several more seasons, and was named all pro in 2001 when he played for Atlanta. I remember the 1999 home game against the Raiders as after the game I saw Gordon sprinting after def. coordinator Greg Robinson and was held back by a few players. I thought whoa, WTH is going on here? That was the game where the snowballs were tossed and Raider offensive tackle Lincoln Kennedy got hit in the eye with one of them and went into the stands after the guy. A real ugly scene.
With Atwater the Jets offered him crazy money to sign, can't remember the figures but they were crazy. The reason I say that was by 1999 Atwater was running on fumes and by the last few weeks of the season he wasn't even starting. He retired after the season was over.
Dale Carter? The first in a series of bad personnel decisions by Shanahan. No more needs to be said there!
One thing to keep in mind though. During the time all this went down in the 1999 season Denver was having cap problems. In order to get guys like Neil Smith, Darrien Gordon, Bill Romanowski, Howard Griffith and a few other key players, John Elway was deferring his salary down the road so the Broncos could sign those players. You also had Terrell Davis in the mix as he got his big reward after the 2000 yard season he had in 1998. Then he tears up his knee. Sad.
Everytime I think of the 1999 season I start feeling ill!
The thing that had me scratching my head about Darrien Gordon was he still had a lot of gas left in the tank. He played for several more seasons, and was named all pro in 2001 when he played for Atlanta.
No doubt. He was only 28 when we cut him loose. He was a much bigger contributor on those Super Bowl teams than anyone gives him credit for. He came up especially big in the 1998 with two interceptions and a crucial 36 yard punt return in the AFC Championship. He also had two picks in the Super Bowl and set the record for interception return yardage, although I think it's been broken since then.
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I remember the 1999 home game against the Raiders as after the game I saw Gordon sprinting after def. coordinator Greg Robinson and was held back by a few players. I thought whoa, WTH is going on here? That was the game where the snowballs were tossed and Raider offensive tackle Lincoln Kennedy got hit in the eye with one of them and went into the stands after the guy. A real ugly scene.
I remember that game, but don't remember the incident between Gordon and Robinson. I wonder what that was all about.
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With Atwater the Jets offered him crazy money to sign, can't remember the figures but they were crazy. The reason I say that was by 1999 Atwater was running on fumes and by the last few weeks of the season he wasn't even starting. He retired after the season was over.
Atwater was still under contract with us though, and he was even willing to take a paycut to stick with the team. Even though his play had clearly slipped, he was chosen to the Pro Bowl in 1998.
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Dale Carter? The first in a series of bad personnel decisions by Shanahan. No more needs to be said there!
It took several years to fully remove that cancer from the locker room.
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Everytime I think of the 1999 season I start feeling ill!
That team was actually alot better than they get credit for. We lost alot of players to injury that year and several of the 10 losses were by 4 points or less. We did have some excitement though, notably the 31-10 ass kicking of Green Bay and the overtime win against Seattle.
To start with, all of our captains were gone; Elway to retirement, Atwater to the Jets, and Keith Burns to the Chicago Bears I believe to free agency.
By week two we lost Alfred Williams. The next week Terrell Davis in the Jet game. And after that John Mobley and Shannon Sharpe in the first Raider game. All out for the season. That's what I meant about feeling ill, I think there are three other players got knocked out by the halfway point of the season, can't think of those others right now.
Atwater! Hmm, more money by the Broncos? I'm sure you're right, maybe it was the signing bonus the Jets offered that tilted it in their favor, will have to look that up too!
To start with, all of our captains were gone; Elway to retirement, Atwater to the Jets, and Keith Burns to the Chicago Bears I believe to free agency.
By week two we lost Alfred Williams. The next week Terrell Davis in the Jet game. And after that John Mobley and Shannon Sharpe in the first Raider game. All out for the season. That's what I meant about feeling ill, I think there are three other players got knocked out by the halfway point of the season, can't think of those others right now.
Atwater! Hmm, more money by the Broncos? I'm sure you're right, maybe it was the signing bonus the Jets offered that tilted it in their favor, will have to look that up too!
We lost Mobley in week 2 against the Chiefs. Williams played in seven games in 1999, so he wasn't lost until later in the year. That was a very bad year for injuries though.
Denver actually released Atwater after the 1998 season. Had we not done that he never would have been on the market.
From Wiki...
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Atwater left the Broncos following the 1998 season, signing with the New York Jets as a free agent for his final season in 1999. In his book Think like a Champion, coach Mike Shanahan wrote about Atwater's departure:
"The toughest decision I've ever had to make as a head coach happened a mere two weeks after we beat the Atlanta Falcons in the Super Bowl. We were getting ready to leave for the annual college scouting combine in Indianapolis...when our eight-time Pro Bowl safety and defensive captain Steve Atwater dropped by our training complex. He visited our defensive coordinator, Greg Robinson, and defensive back coach, Ed Donatell, inquiring about his future. Steve was smart enough to know that we were scheduled to pay him $3 million in 1999 and that we were pressed up against the NFL-imposed salary cap...He asked Greg and Ed 'Am I going to be here? What's my status for next year?'
"In all honesty, our initial plan was to wait until March 1st, when we would have asked Steve to take a salary reduction to give us more flexibility under the salary cap...but the more I thought about it, and the more I agonized over it, the more I realized that...it could not wait, not when Steve had brought the issue to a head... It would have been so simple to temporarily sweep the problem underneath the rug. It certainly would have made things easier on me and the organization for a while. But that would not have been fair to Steve. So, in what was the most difficult decision I've had to make...I decided to cut Steve.
"...the decision was best for all parties. We saved money we needed, Steve had a chance to shop himself as an unrestricted free agent, and he wound up signing a three-year, $8.2 million contract with the New York Jets. Is it easy picturing Steve in green and white...? No. Was it the right thing for him and our team? Absolutely."
Atwater played for the New York Jets for one season, which was marred by injuries, then retired. He signed a one-day ceremonial contract with the Broncos before announcing his retirement from football. "This is the way I wanted to go out," Atwater said "I bleed orange and will always bleed orange and blue." Atwater left as one of the most popular Bronco players in the history of the franchise. His jersey remains one of the most popular items among Broncos memorabilia and can frequently be seen at Broncos games and in the Colorado area.
Thankfully the Champ Bailey situation is done. Thankfully.
The contract signed a couple days ago is for four years, 43 million. Not sure of the up front guaranteed money, will post that later.
John Fox was interviewed this afternoon, I saw a little glimpse of it on the NFL Channel. He has Kyle Orton as the #1 quarterback for now, Tim Tebow #2, Brady Quinn #3. No surprise there.
So, with Elway in the office do the Broncs come ripping back? Who is starting at QB next year in your opinion?
I am glad we have John Elway involved again, it seems like it will be helpful.
The starter next year should be Orton. Our problem was never putting up points, it was keeping the opponents from scoring more.
I like Tebow a lot, but after his performance last year Orton deserves to start, he is a pretty darn good QB. With a proper defense and a running game I have no doubts that Orton could lead the team. We should let Tebow mature some more and learn from Orton. (He has the exact playing style Tebow is lacking, if Tebow learned how to play the pocket like Orton, yet play outside the pocket like Tebow, Whoa man, whoa.)
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Originally Posted by DOUBLE H
Bringing the thread up to date.
Thankfully the Champ Bailey situation is done. Thankfully.
The contract signed a couple days ago is for four years, 43 million. Not sure of the up front guaranteed money, will post that later.
John Fox was interviewed this afternoon, I saw a little glimpse of it on the NFL Channel. He has Kyle Orton as the #1 quarterback for now, Tim Tebow #2, Brady Quinn #3. No surprise there.
I held my breath soooo long over the Champ Bailey situation, I am so glad we get to keep him!
I am glad the order of QB's has not changed. See above.
Tight end Daniel Graham has been released by the Broncos today. He was scheduled to make a little over 5 million in salary this year so this move isn't a huge surprise to me.
Quote from John Elway: "We are thankful to Daniel for all his dedication to the Broncos and this community, and we wish him all the best."
If I'm not mistaken he was originally signed for 4 years-25 mil. This would have been the last year of his contract, having been signed in 2008. His production last year totaled 18 receptions, no touchdowns.
Tight end Daniel Graham has been released by the Broncos today. He was scheduled to make a little over 5 million in salary this year so this move isn't a huge surprise to me.
Quote from John Elway: "We are thankful to Daniel for all his dedication to the Broncos and this community, and we wish him all the best."
If I'm not mistaken he was originally signed for 4 years-25 mil. This would have been the last year of his contract, having been signed in 2008. His production last year totaled 18 receptions, no touchdowns.
I saw this coming, he dropped way to many crucial passes. He is a good blocker but we need another Tony Scheffler, someone who will catch those open balls and still have an aptitude for blocking.
I mean how many wide open first down catches did we watch him bounce off of his hands this year?
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Another senior moment!
