Mercifully, the preseason ends tonight. After tonight, Broncos fans can cheer for football that matters. After tonight, everyone can stop debating which players look better in shorts and t-shirts. All of that can happen after tonight.
The fourth preseason game is an afterthought in the minds of most football fans. It gets crumpled up and tossed aside as if it were a piece of scrap paper. Doing that tonight would be a mistake.
It’s true that very few (if any) of Denver’s starters will see the field against Arizona, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a reason to watch. Gary Kubiak and John Elway have more than one riddle to solve tonight.
Will the second unit on the offensive line be filled with veterans or rookies? Can Kapri Bibbs beat out Montee Ball? Is Trevor Siemian going to sneak into the final 53? And, who is going to fill in for Derek Wolfe?
Wolfe is suspended for the first four games of the season and most people assumed Denver would use training camp to shore up the situation behind him. That certainly didn’t happen.
Antonio Smith was thought to be the logical solution. As a Raider, Smith had an impressive 2014 season, registering three sacks and a forced fumble for an atrocious defense. Since arriving at UC Health Training Center, he has been anything but impressive. Smith has basically been invisible since training camp started. Tonight, Smith needs to earn a roster spot because there is a black hole behind him.
After Smith sits Kenny Anunike, who looked good early this preseason until being sideline with a knee injury. Anunike has earned a roster spot, but no one knows when he’ll be ready to play after having his knee scoped. Does that leave the door open for Vance Walker or Chuka Ndulue. Who? Exactly. Behind Wolfe, Denver is thin.
Smith probably has the inside track to the job, but he has to show something tonight. Otherwise, his lack of performance, combined with the heavy baggage hanging over his head, would make him an easy cut.
In all likelihood Smith makes the roster by default unless someone else makes the numbers game tough on Elway. Siemian might be that guy.
The Northwestern product is playing for someone’s job. As the third quarterback, Siemian’s roster spot would be a waste. He’ll never make an impact for this team, and if he sees the field things will have gone terribly wrong, but Siemian has been a nice surprise this offseason – maybe the biggest surprise. He has played well enough to catch the attention of other teams. If Elway and Kubiak don’t think he’ll clear waivers they may be forced to stash him on the 53-man roster, costing someone a job. Someone like Ball.
Ball has plummeted down Denver’s depth chart. Not only has Ronnie Hillman passed him, but it also looks as though Juwan Thompson has done the same. Denver’s investment of a second-round pick in Ball looks extremely poor at this point. He has done nothing to prove he belongs on this team. But will Elway actually cut him? That’s doubtful. What Elway really wants is for Ball to increase his trade value so they can make him another team’s problem.
The most intriguing battle tonight will be between youth and experience. The backups on offensive line are an interesting mix of both, but there aren’t enough roster spots for everyone.
Shelley Smith and Gino Gradkowski have a ton of experience. Max Garcia, Michael Schofield, Dillon Day and Kyle Roberts don’t, which begs several questions. Does Kubiak trust rookie Ty Sambrailo and first year player Matt Paradis enough to roster rookies as their backups, or are veterans needed as a fallback? Has Schofield proven he’s finally worthy of a contributing role?
Two other factors are in play when it comes to the offensive line: Money and Elway’s unwillingness to cut his own draft picks.
Elway has been very good at avoiding dead money. Shelley Smith represents a $1 million dead money cap hit if released. It’d be shocking if Elway willingly ate that. But, Schofield, Garcia, Roberts and Day are Elway’s guys and his guys usually have the edge.
Tonight’s battle along the offensive line should be fascinating, because something has to give. Will the rookies outperform the vets and force Elway to burden the team with dead money? Or will the vets outshine the rookies, forcing Elway to admit he was wrong?
There is more on the line than the job of a placekicker or the gunner on the punt coverage unit against the Cardinals.
Denver needs to find a fill-in for Wolfe. Denver needs figure out what to do with Ball. Every player on the bubble needs to hope Siemian doesn’t shine too brightly. And, someone on the offensive line is going to test one of Elway’s philosophies.
Don’t make the mistake of turning the page on the preseason just yet. There is plenty on the line in tonight’s game that’ll determine the direction of the Denver Broncos tomorrow.
