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Plummer finds a late touch
Broncos QB shakes off early struggles on a raw fall night
By Pat Rooney, Special to the News
October 10, 2006
It was an ugly game on an ugly night, so it is understandable why Broncos coach Mike Shanahan preferred to play to the conditions in regard to his team's passing game.
Shots down the field were taken sparingly. But, surprisingly, the conditions improved slightly instead of worsening Monday night as the Broncos game against the Baltimore Ravens plodded toward the fourth quarter.
Coincidentally or not, quarterback Jake Plummer and the Broncos' passing game came alive late after a game marked by overthrown passes, underthrown passes and turnovers, as the team made just enough plays during its final two drives to pull away for a 13-3 victory.
"It's always tough to play in those conditions," Shanahan said. "I think Jake would like to have a couple of them back, but you have to find a way to do it when it counts, and he did it. I'm very proud of the way he fought through it."
The Invesco Field boo-birds were beginning to chirp at Plummer before the team's final two drives, during which he completed several key passes that led to the Broncos' final two scores, including a 4-yard touchdown on a brilliantly executed fade pattern by veteran Rod Smith that sealed the victory with 1 minute, 55 seconds remaining.
Until those waning minutes, though, Plummer struggled with the wet conditions and the speedy aggressiveness of the Ravens defense.
Plummer was only 3-for-8 for 6 yards at halftime and had hardly improved by the end of the third quarter, finishing the first three quarters with a 9-for-18 mark for 58 yards, - 6.4 yards per completion.
More glaring than the numbers was the manner in which Plummer produced them. Several times he threw behind his receivers on simple slant patterns. After an effective play fake on a first-down play early in the third quarter, Plummer underthrew a streaking Smith on what should have been a long gain.
Another ball that was severely overthrown toward receiver Javon Walker on the Broncos' second possession ended in an interception for Ravens cornerback Samari Rolle.
"I threw it just a little too far and I was supposed to underthrow him, actually. I kept it out there a little too far," Plummer said. "We don't want to have any turnovers, but after the turnovers we had, our defense held strong for us. And in the end we made plays."
Plummer's fourth-quarter resurgence began with a timely 9-yard pass to Smith on third-and-6 that gave the Broncos a first down and helped produce just enough yardage for Jason Elam to boot a tie-breaking 44-yard field goal.
Plummer was even more efficient on the Broncos' final drive, opening the possession with a 27-yard pass to Walker before hitting Walker again two plays later for 8 yards and another first down.
Plummer went 4-for-6 for 48 yards in the fourth quarter.
"You can't remember the plays that happened before, the ones you missed, because that is going to happen," receiver David Kircus said. "Especially in games like this when the conditions are bad and against a good defense. You have to keep pushing and fighting, and the coaches did a great job of reading what they were doing early in the game and adjusting to them at the end. That's one of the biggest reasons why we were so successful on the last couple of drives."
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/nfl/article/0,2777,DRMN_23918_5055434,00.html
Broncos QB shakes off early struggles on a raw fall night
By Pat Rooney, Special to the News
October 10, 2006
It was an ugly game on an ugly night, so it is understandable why Broncos coach Mike Shanahan preferred to play to the conditions in regard to his team's passing game.
Shots down the field were taken sparingly. But, surprisingly, the conditions improved slightly instead of worsening Monday night as the Broncos game against the Baltimore Ravens plodded toward the fourth quarter.
Coincidentally or not, quarterback Jake Plummer and the Broncos' passing game came alive late after a game marked by overthrown passes, underthrown passes and turnovers, as the team made just enough plays during its final two drives to pull away for a 13-3 victory.
"It's always tough to play in those conditions," Shanahan said. "I think Jake would like to have a couple of them back, but you have to find a way to do it when it counts, and he did it. I'm very proud of the way he fought through it."
The Invesco Field boo-birds were beginning to chirp at Plummer before the team's final two drives, during which he completed several key passes that led to the Broncos' final two scores, including a 4-yard touchdown on a brilliantly executed fade pattern by veteran Rod Smith that sealed the victory with 1 minute, 55 seconds remaining.
Until those waning minutes, though, Plummer struggled with the wet conditions and the speedy aggressiveness of the Ravens defense.
Plummer was only 3-for-8 for 6 yards at halftime and had hardly improved by the end of the third quarter, finishing the first three quarters with a 9-for-18 mark for 58 yards, - 6.4 yards per completion.
More glaring than the numbers was the manner in which Plummer produced them. Several times he threw behind his receivers on simple slant patterns. After an effective play fake on a first-down play early in the third quarter, Plummer underthrew a streaking Smith on what should have been a long gain.
Another ball that was severely overthrown toward receiver Javon Walker on the Broncos' second possession ended in an interception for Ravens cornerback Samari Rolle.
"I threw it just a little too far and I was supposed to underthrow him, actually. I kept it out there a little too far," Plummer said. "We don't want to have any turnovers, but after the turnovers we had, our defense held strong for us. And in the end we made plays."
Plummer's fourth-quarter resurgence began with a timely 9-yard pass to Smith on third-and-6 that gave the Broncos a first down and helped produce just enough yardage for Jason Elam to boot a tie-breaking 44-yard field goal.
Plummer was even more efficient on the Broncos' final drive, opening the possession with a 27-yard pass to Walker before hitting Walker again two plays later for 8 yards and another first down.
Plummer went 4-for-6 for 48 yards in the fourth quarter.
"You can't remember the plays that happened before, the ones you missed, because that is going to happen," receiver David Kircus said. "Especially in games like this when the conditions are bad and against a good defense. You have to keep pushing and fighting, and the coaches did a great job of reading what they were doing early in the game and adjusting to them at the end. That's one of the biggest reasons why we were so successful on the last couple of drives."
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/nfl/article/0,2777,DRMN_23918_5055434,00.html