Broncos' early moves starting to make sense

DENVER (AP) -- Maybe it's true that the Denver Broncos have been a team playing under the radar this season. At the beginning, though, they sure were drawing some attention -- and lighting up the laugh-o-meter.
That's what happens when a coach who insists his team is close to the Super Bowl tries to take the next step by:
UDrafting a malcontent running back.
UTrading for a punter with alleged steroid issues.
USigning an aging superstar receiver.
UMaking a variety of moves to bring in the entire set of linemen, along with the position coach, from a team that ranked last in the league in rushing defense.
Indeed, Denver's locker room resembled a three-ring circus to many five months ago. But now, the Broncos are a win away from the Super Bowl. Mike Shanahan is looking like a genius for the chances he took and, not surprisingly, the snickering has stopped.
Taking chances
"It's taking chances," Shanahan said in a recent interview. "What I do is, if someone's got a checkered past, I'm not afraid to talk about their checkered past. I let them know I don't care about their past, I just care about what they do when they come to this football team."
Some guys made it, some didn't.
Jerry Rice got his tryout, but couldn't beat out Darius Watts, who has since fallen to fifth on the Denver depth chart. Rice announced his retirement and is now appearing in ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" and will be a judge in this weekend's Miss America Pageant.
Clarett was a mistake
Maurice Clarett got his chance, too. A surprise third-round pick, Clarett was a bust pretty much from the day he reported to Dove Valley. Hurt, not able to fit in with the team, Shanahan let him go in the first round of cuts. Clarett is waiting to see if a grand jury will indict him on aggravated robbery charges.
But for every mistake Shanahan made this season, there was a success -- or two, or three.
Start with punter Todd Sauerbrun.
He was considered poison after his final season in Carolina. This season, he's been solid and quiet.
Nearly lost in all the laughter was Denver's low-profile decision to sign Ron Dayne to a free-agent contract. A bust with the Giants, he only made third string in Denver. But he had a key role in winning two of the team's 13 games this regular season -- in Week 2, when he ran for 38 yards during the late, game-winning drive, and in Week 12, when his 55-yard run in overtime set up the winning score against Dallas.
Signed Browns defenders
Then, the crown jewel: The decision to bring on -- in four separate transactions -- all four starting defensive linemen from last year's Cleveland Browns, along with the man who coached them, Andre Patterson.
The Browns were ranked last in the NFL in rush defense last season. In the preseason, Patterson and the linemen -- Courtney Brown, Gerard Warren, Ebenezer Ekuban and Michael Myers -- kept insisting there was more to those stats than meets the eye. Over 17 regular- and postseason games, it turned out they were right.
While their stats have not been overly impressive -- Denver's 28 sacks were third-fewest in the league -- their overall production has. With the line creating pressure, if not sacks, the Broncos created 36 turnovers this year, fourth most in the league and 16 more than in 2004.
"In Cleveland, we were always talking about rebuilding, winning the next game," Warren said. "Here, they talk about winning a championship from Day 1. That's a big difference, and it's why I like being here."
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