The Broncos released their initial Depth Chart of 2008, in preparations of their game against the Houston Texans on Saturday Night.  See Below -

There were a couple surprise in my opinion. 

It does make me wonder just how effective a defensive line can be with John Engleberger as a starter at end, and what the hell has happened to Tim Crowder to be listed as the 3rd string LDE.

Another slight surprise is Michael Pittman who comes in listed as the 3rd string FB, while not being listed at all as a HB.

Not a surprise to me was the meteoric rise of Eddie Royal who sits behind Brandon Marshall at WR.  If the reports we hear are true and Marshall is suspended, that would put Royal in line to start Week 1 in Oakland.

Also of little surprise is Nate Webster starting at MLB.  It was obvious to me that Webster was the better player and deserved to get the nod over Niko Koutouvides.

Things are likely to change over the next month, but it sure is fun to talk about stuff on the field, isn't it?!?

The Broncs are still trying to replace Sharpe

The Broncos have always enjoyed strong Tight End play during the Mike Shanahan era.  Sure, having a Hall of Fame player at the position for let's say, a decade, substantially increases productivity, but even without Shannon Sharpe the Broncos have been able to utilize their Tight End's in their offensive sets.  A look, however, at the production coming from the position the past 5 seasons shows a disturbing trend downward -

2002 - 61 rec. / 686 yds / 3 TDs
2003 - 62 rec. / 770 yds / 8 TDs

2004 - 58 rec. / 770 yds / 3 TDs
2005 - 58 rec. / 651 yds / 1 TD
2006 - 43 rec. / 518 yds / 6 TDs

In the stats above, 2002 and 2003 were Sharpe's last two seasons as a Bronco.  After he retired, the Broncos went to more of a platoon scenario at tight end.  In 2004 it was Byron Chamberlain and Jeb Putzier.  2005 saw Putzier joined by Stephen Alexander.  In 2006, incredibly, the Broncos had 4 different tight ends make catches, rookie Tony Scheffler, Alexander, Nate Jackson and Chad Mustard.  Sure, the TD production went up, but the number of catches and yards dropped significantly.  Also suffering was the Broncos ground game.  2006 saw the Broncos finish 8th in the League in rushing, their lowest finish in the 5 years studied.  Their rush total, 2152 yards, was their lowest of the period and nearly 400 yards worse than 2005 when they finished 2nd in the League, behind only the Atlanta Falcons.  One could easily come to the conclusion that 400 yards over a 16 game season can be the difference between 13-3 and 9-7.

Things got better in 2007, with Broncos' Tight Ends combining for their best season since Sharpe retired, a subtle sign that the health of the Broncos short passing game might be starting to improve -

2007 - 71 rec. / 891 yards / 8 TDs

The running game, however, continued to decline - 1957 yards - but that number can be misleading. The Broncos averaged a healthy 4.6 yards per carry, easily enough to be successful on the ground. Being behind, forced to throw the football to stay in games, was a major factor.

For the Broncos to be successful in 2008, the Tight Ends must play well in both facets of the game. If 2007 was any indication, the Tight End position is one of strength for the Broncos heading into Training Camp. Let's take a look at each and talk about how they'll impact the roster in '08.

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