The Denver Broncos on Thursday traded guard Montrae Holland to Dallas in exchange for a fifth-round choice in the 2010 NFL Draft, Head Coach Mike Shanahan announced.

Holland, a sixth-year player, joined the Broncos as an unrestricted free agent on March 5, 2007, after spending his first four NFL seasons (2003-06) with New Orleans

The door to the Shanahan Dog House is a small one and like I said last night during MHR Radio, I wouldn't be surprised if Holland were to be cut.  Well, he wasn't cut, but the Broncos surely sent a message by trading him away.

A 5th Rounder?  Is that enough for you??

Oh, and, I do have to mention that I said during last night's MHR Radio that Holland would be the surprise cut of this Training Camp.  Shanahan is nothing f not consistent, and this is another example.  He'll pay you for your production, but you better keep up the hard work or you'll be gone.

via extras.mnginteractive.com

Moving forward, this move has to be considered an indictment on how impressive Ryan Harris has been this Training Camp.  After a rough start, Harris surely has been solid.  It also proves Chris Kuper is ready for prime time, despite playing all of pre-season with a cast on his hand.  Kudos to Kuper as well!

I look for the Broncos to take a serious look at guys like Kory Lichtensteiger and Mitch Erickson tomorrow night, and don't be surprised if they comb the cut lists this weekend.

   @  

  Denver Broncos 16      @       Houston Texans 19

August 9th, 2008 - 6:00pm MST
Reliant Stadium - Houston, TX

General Notes

* - With their 19-16 loss in Houston tonight, the Denver Broncos' all-time preseason record against the Texans stands at 4-1. The defeat was only the Broncos' third in a preseason opener under Head Coach Mike Shanahan (1995-Pres.), whose record in those games with Denver is 11-3 (.786).

* - Broncos T Ryan Clady, a 2008 first-round pick from Boise State University, became the first rookie in franchise history to start a preseason opener at either tackle position. Clady started the game at left tackle.

* - Broncos WR Eddie Royal, a 2008 second-round pick from Virginia Tech University, became the first rookie in franchise history to start a preseason opener at the wide receiver position. Royal made his NFL debut a play earlier, taking the game's opening kickoff back 21 yards.

* - Broncos LB Boss Bailey, S Marlon McCree and C Casey Wiegmann made their debuts with the club in the starting lineup.

Broncos Rookies

WR Eddie Royal - Took the game's opening kickoff 21 yards and stayed in the game for the Broncos' first offensive play.

T Ryan Clady - Started on the Broncos' first-team offensive unit.

S Josh Barrett - Made his debut on the first-string punt team unit (first quarter). He started at safety to open the second half.

FB Spencer Larsen - Debuted on the kick return unit (first quarter).

CB Jack Williams - Debuted on the kickoff unit (first quarter). He tackled Texans WR André Davis on the return at the 29-yard line with 0:49 remaining in the first quarter for his first tackle. Williams started the second half on defense.

P Brett Kern - Made his debut as K Matt Prater's holder on an extra-point attempt (and make) in the first quarter. His first punt came in the third quarter, a 42-yarder.

RB Anthony Alridge - Had a 23-yard kickoff return on his first play in the second quarter with 9:33 remaining.

LB Wesley Woodyard - Debuted on the punt coverage unit in the second quarter, making the tackle on Texans P Matt Turk on a fake punt. Woodyard stopped Turk short of the first down at midfield.

WR Lorne Sam - Made his debut on the kickoff return unit in the third quarter.

T Tyler Polumbus - Debuted at right tackle on offense with 9:34 remaining in the third quarter. Polumbus recovered a fumble by Alridge on his second play.

G Mitch Erickson - Debuted at right guard on offense with 9:34 remaining in the third quarter.

C Kory Lichtensteiger - Made his debut at right guard on offense with 6:57 remaining in the third quarter.

GAME NOTES

* - Broncos QB Jay Cutler started the game and saw time in Denver's first two offensive possessions (15 total plays) before he was replaced by QB Patrick Ramsey. Cutler completed 8-of-10 passes for 59 yards (91.2 rtg.) and scored on a 15-yard touchdown run.

* - The Broncos' first scoring drive of the game (15-yd. Cutler TD run) covered 74 yards on 12 plays and lasted 6:09. Cutler completed passes to four different Broncos (2-20 to RB Selvin Young, 2-13 to Royal, 1-7 to TE Daniel Graham and 1-10 to TE Nate Jackson) on the drive and completed 8-of-9 passing attempts for 59 yards before his 15-yard touchdown run.

* - Patrick Ramsey played in five series, completing 6-of-11 passes for 32 yards with two interceptions. One of his interceptions was thrown on a Hail Mary pass as time expired in the first half.

* - QB Darrell Hackney replaced Ramsey with 2:54 remaining in the third quarter and finished the game, completing 4-of-7 passes for 62 yards. He led the Broncos on an 8-play, 72-yard scoring drive that resulted in a 26-yard, game-tying field goal by Prater with 5:50 remaining in the game.

* - Denver held a significant time-of-possession advantage in the first half, leading 19:22 to 10:38 in that category.

* - Alridge (4-20 rushing, 3-20 receiving, 1-23 kickoff returns), a University of Houston product, averaged 7.9 yards per play (8-63) for Denver.

* - Woodyard posted a game-high eight tackles (all solo) on defense and added one stop on special teams.

* - LB Jordan Beck and CB Christian Morton each had one sack for Denver, which did not allow a sack on offense.

* - Eleven different Broncos caught at least one pass, including TE Tony Scheffler (3-47).

* - Turnover Ratio: The Broncos finished the game with a -1 turnover ratio (1 takeaway, 2 giveaways). FB Cecil Sapp had Denver's lone takeaway on a fumble recovery on a punt return while Ramsey threw two interceptions.

INJURIES

LB Boss Bailey (sprained right ankle, 13:08 1st qtr., did not return), LB Louis Green (neck injury/concussion, 9:06 1st qtr., out-taken to local hospital). Green was released from the hospital and accompanied the Broncos on their flight back to Denver.

The Denver Broncos on Monday signed center Kory Lichtensteiger, whom they selected in the fourth round (108th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft from Bowling Green State University. As per club policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Lichtensteiger (6-foot-3, 295 pounds) was honored with All-Mid-American Conference accolades during each of his four seasons at Bowling Green State. He was a four-year starter for the Falcons, tying their career record with 48 starts (48 games played).

In 2007, Lichtensteiger started all 13 games and was a finalist for the Rimington Trophy (nation's top center) in addition to receiving first-team all-conference accolades. His blocking helped BGSU rank second in the MAC in passing offense (278.9 ypg.).

After spending his first two seasons at guard, Lichtensteiger played center for the first time in his collegiate career as a junior in 2006. He started all 12 games that year, earning first-team All-MAC honors.

A first-team All-Northwest Conference pick as an offensive and defensive lineman at Crestview High School in Convoy, Ohio, Kory Lichtensteiger was born on March 22, 1985.

With Lichtensteiger's signing, the Broncos have signed six of their nine selections from the 2008 NFL Draft.

Nalen's health will be a huge question in '08

Under Mike Shanahan, the Denver Broncos have been known for a couple things. A strong running game and a solid, if a bit too quiet, offensive line. A group that has been synonymous with imposing their will, despite their lack of pure beef up front, the Broncos' O-Line was an area of the football team that fans could hang their hat on. Over the past several years, however, injuries and age have started to take their toll. Let's look at two different areas that are an indication of O-Line performance. Are these hardened rules when it comes to evaluating an O-Line? Of course not, but I like to keep it simple and let you guys and gals decide.

First, we'll look at sacks allowed, and where the team ranked from 2003 through 2007 --

Sacks Allowed --

2003 -- 25 Sacks -- #6
2004 -- 15 Sacks -- #3
2005 -- 23 Sacks -- #3

2006 -- 31 Sacks -- #13
2007 -- 32 Sacks -- #16

The space between 2005 and 2006 indicates the entrance of Jay Cutler at quarterback, and there is no doubt the combination of youth, and Cutler's style as more of a pocket passer than Jake Plummer had a negative effect on the O-Line.  Need proof?  Cutler was sacked 13 times in the 5 games he started in 2006.  Plummer had been sacked 18 times in his 11 starts.  On average that is a sack a game more with Cutler.  In 2007, that number got even worse, though in my opinion this was more attributed to injuries and youth on the O-line as much as it was to Cutler's "never say die" attitude in the pocket.

How about the running game?  The Broncos have seen a dip that that area, too, during the past 5 years --

Rushing Yards --

2003 -- 2629 yards - 164.3 ypg - #2
2004 -- 2333 yards - 145.8 ypg - #4
2005 -- 2539 yards - 158.7 ypg - #2

2006 -- 2152 yards - 134.5 ypg - #8
2007 -- 1957 yards - 122.3 ypg - #9

Again, there was a lot of consistentcy until 2006.  There are a lot of reason for that, but for the sake of keeping it simple other teams simply stacked the line of scrimmage and forced, at first Jake Plummer, then the rookie Jay Cutler, to beat them.  The Broncos defense wasn't very good either, thus the Broncos were forced to play from behind.  But anyone who watched the games will also admit something was definitely missing from the Broncos running game.  While functional, it wasn't dominant.  Make no mistake, while Mike Shanahan likes to create shock and awe with the passing game early, he wants to smash it down a team's throat late.  Unable to do that, the Broncos offense has sputtered, especially in the red zone and short yardage.  The O-line, with age and injury, has been part of the cause. 

The winds of change are blowing through Dove Valley, however, and the Broncos are addressing their O-Line.  High draft picks(Clady and Harris) along with solid free agent acquisitions(Holland) have injected youth and talent.  Will it be enough to make a difference in '08?  Let's take a look at who will need to move the pile....

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This post is an historic one for me as it is my 100th since joining Mile High Report almost a year ago.  I am currently working on several different upcoming posts and I was wondering if I should make a certain one my historic post, but then I thought I should just stick to what my original schedule was.  This was planned to be my next post, therefore, it will have to be my 100th post. 

I recently posted my positional comparison for the defense along with grading the performance of the 2007 group and also applying a preliminary grade for what I see as potential upgrades or downgrades for each position.  I felt incomplete not having done the offense as well, so here it is.

The 2007 offensive group had a solid core surround by a couple of glaring deficiencies.  The story of our season was told best by a series of posts called “NPTB” or No Points Left Behind that can be found all over the MHR Community during last season.  Our offense racked up the yardage without scoring very many points. 

The Quest for the offense this season is about one thing, getting into the end zone!

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