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      Receiver, weakside LB will be major question marks for Broncos in 2010

      August 26, 2010 /
      DENVER - NOVEMBER 23: Defensive end Jarvis Moss #94 of the Denver Broncos leaves the line of scrimmage against the Oakland Raiders during week 12 NFL action at Invesco Field at Mile High on November 23, 2008 in Denver, Colorado. The Raiders defeated the Broncos 31-10. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

      Merry training camp season, everyone. It’s been a long offseason, but football is finally gearing up again and to celebrate I’m rolling out a new series on TSR entitled “2010 NFL Question Marks,” where I discuss one or two of the biggest concerns that teams have heading into the new season. Granted, some teams have more issues than others, but I’ll primarily be focusing on the biggest problem areas. Today I’ll be discussing two potential issues that the Broncos face in 2010.

      I’ve tried to stick with talking about only one position when discussing teams in this question marks series, but it’s hard not to bring up two key issues that the Broncos will face this season.

      Brandon Marshall amassed 101 receptions and 10 touchdowns last season – almost half the number of TDs that Kyle Orton threw (21). The player with the next most receptions on the team last year was Jabar Gaffney, who finished with 54.

      Needless to say, now that he’s in Miami the Broncos’ receivers have their work cut out for them trying to duplicate Marshall’s success.

      The team did well by selecting former Georgia Tech product Demaryius Thomas in the first round of April’s draft. His skill set is off the charts and in time, he could make Denver forget about Marshall and become the Broncos’ go-to guy.

      But he also keeps injuring his surgically repaired left foot and while he should be ready to go by Week 1, will the foot be a problem for him from here on out? How many times do we see a player hampered by an injury all season, even though he’s able to play every Sunday? Receivers have a difficult time making an impact in their rookie years as it is, so it stands to reason that Thomas could struggle this season.

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      External Sports, NFL

      J.R. Smith involved in altercation

      August 26, 2010 /
      Denver Nuggets guard J.R. Smith shoots before the start of the first round playoffs game two at the Pepsi Center on April 19, 2010 in Denver. Denver leads the series 1-0. UPI/Gary C. Caskey Photo via Newscom

      Fanhouse has the details:

      “We did have a report of an altercation that took place at the Denver Nuggets’ practice facility,” Detective John White of the Denver Police Department told FanHouse by phone. “That case was investigated and ultimately presented to the district attorney’s office. … Ultimately, the district attorney’s office, after being presented with the findings by the Denver Police Department, decided not to pursue charges.

      According to White, the player — who sources said lives in the Denver area and played previously with the now defunct Colorado 14ers of the NBA D-League — is “not a member of the National Basketball Association.”

      According to a league source who spoke with one of the people in the gym, numerous players were taking part in drills when members of the Nuggets’ coaching staff told the player who later called police to be physical with Smith.

      “They were just wanting the guy to be physical with J.R., telling the other guys, ‘Hey, body up on the guys and really make them work,'” the source said. “J.R. just lost it. He tried to choke the kid, and the kid called the cops.”

      Smith has a reputation for being something of a nutjob and this isn’t going to help matters. He is an extremely talented player, especially offensively, but he has always had trouble staying on task.

      The incident occurred on August 13, which might explain the trade rumors that surfaced shortly thereafter.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Breaking down the 2010 National League Wild Card race

      August 26, 2010 /
      St. Louis Cardinals Albert Pujols receives high fives in the dugout after hitting his second two run home run of the night in the fifth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on June 29, 2010. UPI/Bill Greenblatt Photo via Newscom

      Before their sweep of the Braves this week, I would have said that the National League Wild Card is a three-team race. But now that the Rockies are putting together a very Rockie-like charge, this is definitely now a four-horse competition in the NL.

      Let’s break down the contenders and make a prediction.

      (Side Note: I’m fully aware that the Phillies and Cardinals still have a great chance of catching the Braves and Reds in their respective divisions, but I’m going by the standings as of Thursday, August 26. In a couple of weeks, I’ll update this list so for now, let’s just call this Version 1.0.)

      Philadelphia Phillies
      Games Remaining: 36
      Games Back: 0
      What I Like About Their Chances: I like the Phillies because quite frankly, they’ve been here before. They know what it takes to play good baseball in the month of September and their roster is chockfull of veteran players. Even though they haven’t shown it of late, the Phils also still have the best lineup 1-8 of any of the four Wild Card contenders and a three-headed monster in Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt (who has been outstanding in the month of August) and Cole Hamels. This is, by far, the most talented team of the four listed…

      What I Don’t Like: …that said, this club isn’t playing very good baseball right now. In their last seven games, they’ve won only two and they were just swept at home by the Astros. Also, despite all of their offensive firepower, they’ve managed to score just 16 runs in those seven outings. They also have six more games against the Braves, who they are just 5-7 against this season. This is a club that seemingly can’t put it all together this season and you just get the sense that something’s missing.

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      External Sports, MLB

      Report: Nuggets to hire Masai Ujiri as GM

      August 26, 2010 /

      Per the Denver Post:

      Former Nuggets scout Masai Ujiri will become the team’s new general manager, according to an NBA source.

      The door opened for Ujiri when the Nuggets were unable to reach an agreement with David Griffin, a former Phoenix Suns director of basketball operations.

      Ujiri, 39, has been a rising star in NBA executive circles. He worked for four seasons in the Nuggets’ scouting department, which included being named director of international scouting for the 2006-07 season. Prior to that, Ujiri worked as an international scout with the Orlando Magic in 2002-03.

      A native of Zaria, Nigeria, Ujiri attended prep school in Seattle, went to junior college in North Dakota and attended Montana State. He played basketball in college and then professionally for six years in Europe.

      Want to know more? David Thorpe knows Ujiri well and discussed his career with TrueHoop.

      One value he definitely brings is that he knows everybody and has no enemies. That’s how deals get done in the NBA. He’s not out late clowning around. He’s very classy. He values character. And I’d bet that one of the biggest things he brings to the Nuggets right now comes in how the team relates to Carmelo Anthony. It’s interesting that the two finalists for that job — David Griffin and Masai — are both from teams that just lost stars in free agency. Going through that is a great learning experience, with tremendous lessons for how to handle the biggest challenge facing the Nuggets in the year ahead. I’m sure Masai will have a very smart approach to convincing Carmelo to stay. He’ll be really good at that.

      If the hire does indeed go through, Ujiri will be the first African-born GM in the NBA.

      The first order of business is crystal clear — Ujiri has to convince Carmelo Anthony to stay put.

      External Sports, Fantasy Basketball, NBA, News, Rumors & Gossip

      Owen Daniels cleared to play

      August 26, 2010 /
      HOUSTON - OCTOBER 04: Tight end Owen Daniels #81 of the Houston Texans at Reliant Stadium on October 4, 2009 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

      There were a couple of pieces of good news for Owen Daniels this week. First, he had an MRI that said he was fully healed. Later, he was cleared to play by the noted sports physician Dr. James Andrews, who was the one who surgically repaired the torn ACL in Daniels’ right knee.

      “Owen’s been cleared; totally healthy,” Kubiak said on Wednesday. “I was out on the practice field during special teams and he called (head athletic trainer Geoff Kaplan) and we talked to Dr. Andrews, and boy, he’s fired up. It’s great for our team.”

      Daniels has been going in the late 7th for the whole month of August, but when you look at his average numbers for the first seven games of the season — 5.6 catches for 71 yards and 0.7 TDs — that’s 17.0 fantasy points per game in a PPR league, which are TE1-type numbers.

      Sure, he’s a risk, and he’s probably not going to come out in Week 1 and tear up the Colts’ defense, but he is a proven player and the doctors are saying that he’s ready to go.

      After Tony Gonzalez and Brent Celek are off the board, I’d start thinking about Daniels in the 6th round. I’ve been targeting Zach Miller in the 8th, and will continue to do so, but Daniels is the more proven player, so it’s a different kind of risk.

      External Sports, Fantasy Football, News, NFL, Rumors & Gossip

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