NFL Capsules - AFC: Colts hoping 'dirty dozen' make defense better
ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) — Look out, NFL. The defending AFC champion Colts finally have their dream defense — fast, experienced, deep and getting better.
For only the second time in Peyton Manning's career, the Colts are returning all 11 defensive starters. Add a healthy Bob Sanders and a newly signed Deshea Townsend to the mix, and Indy could open the season with the rare luxury of having 13 Super Bowl starters on the roster.
"It's so big because when you get a tight-knit group like ours, and mix it all together, you come to work ready to do your best," linebacker Clint Session said. "We play off one another and we want to get better."
Indy already knows it has a winning combination.
In Larry Coyer's first season as defensive coordinator, the defense ranked eighth in points allowed (19.2) and played a major part in helping the Colts win their second AFC title in four years.
There's also plenty of room for improvement after yielding 126.5 yards rushing, 24th in the NFL; finishing in the middle of the league in sacks (34); and 15th in interceptions (16). Indy also had 92 defensive penalties, the most since 2005, and couldn't stop the Saints in the second half of the Super Bowl.
With one full season — and a second full offseason — to learn Coyer's aggressive system, the Colts have confidence and continuity.
"When you're on the field, just being comfortable with everyone goes a long way," defensive captain Gary Brackett said. "It goes right to the success of your team. I think we should develop a little more in the system, and it's like coach (Tony) Dungy always said, the second year is when you increase your football IQ."
It's not just smoke and mirrors.
Indy, long known as an offensive powerhouse, has made a huge investment in its defense recently.
Six players — Brackett, Antoine Bethea, Dwight Freeney, Kelvin Hayden, Robert Mathis and Sanders — have signed contracts worth a combined $242.5 million since 2006. The deals for Sanders and Freeney also were the most lucrative at their position at the time.
Now the Colts are hoping it will pay off, though the tough part will be finding a spot for everyone.
Cornerbacks Jerraud Powers and Jacob Lacey combined to make 21 regular-season starts in 2009 and were impressive as rookies, but they'll vie for the starting job opposite Hayden. Whoever winds up as the backup may also have to contend with Townsend, a 12-year veteran, for playing time.
Bethea is coming off his second Pro Bowl season and just signed a $27 million contract, and former undrafted free agent Melvin Bullitt has established himself as a legitimate play-maker in Indy's secondary.
Coyer's job is devising ways to use Sanders and keep the big-hitting safety healthy. Sanders has started only eight regular-season games since being named the 2007 NFL defensive player of the year, but has practiced all week. It's the first time Sanders hasn't opened training camp on the physically unable to perform list since 2007.
"He's our leader back there, and you could say he's the most battle-tested guy in the secondary," Hayden said. "He doesn't do a lot of talking, but when he leads, he leads by example and we need that."
The secondary isn't the only area making adjustments.
Indy's booked end pass rushers, Freeney and Mathis, both went to the Pro Bowl the last two seasons, rank first and second in sacks in franchise history and are No. 1 and No. 2 among all NFL players in forced fumbles since 2002.
If healthy, they won't lose any playing time.
But after taking another speedy pass rusher, Jerry Hughes, in the first round of this year's draft, the Colts are working on some new options.
Coach Jim Caldwell has said the Colts are experimenting with packages that would put all three on the field together. One possibility would make Hughes a standing rusher, a role the departed Raheem Brock played last season. Or Hughes could line up as a 3-4 linebacker, allowing the Colts to dial up more blitzes. Some teams actually projected Hughes as a linebacker.
All three linebackers — Brackett, Session and Philip Wheeler — are back, too, and second-round pick Pat Angerer will likely get some action behind Brackett in the middle.
What does it mean? Well, the Colts believe this could be the defense that could bring them another Super Bowl crown.
"We've got guys who know what they're doing," Session said. "We're ready to make plays. We made a lot of plays last year, but we left a lot of plays, a lot of interceptions on the field, too. We definitely want to improve on all those areas this year, and we'll do whatever it takes to win games."
Lightning forces Colts to cancel night practice
ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) — Lightning has forced the Indianapolis Colts to cancel a night practice at Anderson University and revise Thursday's schedule.
In place of the late Wednesday practice, the Colts will have a short special teams workout Thursday morning. They'll also hold a full-squad practice Thursday evening.
Originally the Colts were going to have only one workout with special teams Thursday afternoon.
Thunder and lightning moved into the area just about the time Indy started kicking field goals. About 10 minutes later, with lightning stretching from the sky to the ground, team officials sent players inside because of lighting and advised fans to seek shelter.
On Tuesday morning, another thunderstorm forced the Colts to stop practice about 30 minutes early.
Titans avoid heat with scheduled night practice
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Jeff Fisher already had practice scheduled for under the lights. The Tennessee Titans coach's timing couldn't have been much better.
The temperature in Nashville hit 101 degrees, and the field hit more than 120 degrees when gauged Wednesday afternoon. By the time the Titans hit the field at night, it had cooled off to a balmy 98.
The Titans worked in full pads for the first time in training camp. They also had the help from NFL officials, including referee Ed Hochuli. The officials will be with the Titans through Saturday as they learn the league's rule changes.
"The umpire is now on the other side of the line of scrimmage," said Fisher, co-chairman of the NFL's competition committee.
"They need the work. This is their first opportunity to get live reps. We told the team we asked them to throw the flag and explain the infractions and the fouls. We're continuing to do that. We have to clean some line of scrimmage things up, but so far things have gone well."
Tennessee kicker Rob Bironas helped put on a bit of a show for the biggest crowd yet at camp. He kicked three footballs onto the roof of the team's headquarters.
"We'll figure that out. I'll leave that up to Rob," Fisher said.
Thursday's forecast is more of the same in Nashville. The Titans will be practicing in the heat of the afternoon. Fisher said they won't be in pads, so the players should be fine.
NOTES: RB Chris Johnson finished up the night early, sitting out the final period. ... DT Jason Jones also was pulled early, taking off his shoulder pads and watching from the sideline. He spent the offseason recovering from shoulder surgery.
-- Teresa M. Walker
Pola's departure has Titans coaches working harder
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Promotions usually mean celebrations, at the least dinner with the family or friends.
Craig Johnson and Dowell Loggains simply haven't had time.
Coach Jeff Fisher promoted both two days before the Titans reported for training camp after Lane Kiffin lured away Kennedy Pola to Southern California.
One week into the new jobs, Johnson has spent hours switching from coaching quarterbacks to assistant head coach-running backs. Loggains has gone from a quality control assistant for offense to working closely with Vince Young.
The moves happened so fast none of the new titles are in the team's media guide.
"My friends keep telling me, 'You don't seem very excited,'" Loggains said. "Well, I have a big challenge ahead of me."
Fisher lost Pola, his running backs coach, exactly one week before the Titans' first practice of training camp. Kiffin insists he explained the timeline on how he hired Pola, but the Titans sued Southern California and Kiffin for breaching the assistant's NFL contract that required written permission to talk to someone else about a new job.
Needing to fill the job, Fisher looked at his own staff.
Johnson has been with him since 2000 and coached quarterbacks since 2002. He also helped coach running backs at Army in 1985 and was running backs coach at Rutgers between 1986 and 1988. Johnson helped the late Steve McNair share the MVP award in 2003 and coached Young to Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2006.
"I was elated when he elected to accept the challenge," Fisher said of switching jobs. "He's going to do a great job. I had players come to me hoping that would be the route that we take. And so I'm not concerned about the transition."
Among those lobbying for Johnson? Fullback Ahmard Hall, who called Fisher's decision a great move.
"Craig's one of the first coaches I got to know when I got here five years ago. He's got a great hold of the offense. Coaching quarterbacks, the quarterback has to know everything about the offense," Hall said.
Johnson has spent "a lot of hours" in the past week dealing with his new responsibilities.
"The assignments are not as big. I have a very good understanding of the assignments, the techniques and how you accomplish your goals as a runner is a little different than obviously how you accomplish that as a quarterback. Even though I've been in this offense forever, I kind of know what to do to get them right and their assignments right," Johnson said.
The biggest challenge for him? Getting that shorthand between assistant and players down since each coach does it in their own way.
"There's a lot of little details ... You've really got to stay on top of that," Johnson said.
With this move, Johnson went from coaching Young, who's 26-13 in his first four NFL seasons, to coaching Chris Johnson, the running back who has rushed for 3,234 yards in his first two seasons. The running back already has set busting Eric Dickerson's single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards among his goals for 2010.
Johnson the coach said the great ones are never satisfied and can always get better.
Johnson the running back? Well, he only met Pola once since he stayed away from the Titans' offseason program and likes his new position coach except for one thing.
"I got to talk to Craig and get it through his head, like let him know he's coaching running backs and not quarterbacks. With quarterbacks, you've got to be so detailed and tell where receivers are going and every single person. In the running backs room, you don't have to tell so much. I've got to get that through to him," Chris Johnson said with a laugh.
Loggains has it a bit easier.
A quarterback in college at Arkansas, he was a scouting assistant in 2005 with the Cowboys and joined the Titans in 2006. He worked his way up to offensive quality control coach in 2008 and now to quarterbacks coach. His biggest challenge? Making sure the quarterbacks, all 6-foot-4 or taller, hear the assistant whose head comes to the top of their shoulder pads.
But Loggains has been around offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger long enough to make sure the techniques, fundamentals and drills are run the right way.
"Dowell, he's a very smart guy," Young said. "He knows the offense. ... Just seeing him as a quarterbacks coach today getting his notes in and making sure we're up to date with what coach Heimerdinger wanted, uptempo, work on the snap count, things like that. It's funny though seeing him in there. We're happy for him."
NOTES: Richie Wessman was moved up to Loggains' old job. ... Fisher already had scheduled a night practice for Wednesday. His timing couldn't have been better with the temperature hitting 101 and feeling like 110 in Nashville for the hottest day of training camp at the time the Titans have been on the field in the afternoon.
-- Teresa M. Walker
Jaguars want 'Pot Roast' leaner in training camp
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — While many of his Jacksonville Jaguars teammates were headed home after meetings Wednesday morning, Terrance Knighton was running sprints in 90-degree heat.
He was tired, drenched in sweat and ready for a break.
He wasn't done, though. Not even close.
The Jacksonville Jaguars are putting the 346-pound defensive tackle through intense conditioning workouts, trying to get the player nicknamed "Pot Roast" a little leaner. It's no easy task.
Knighton, who started 16 games as a rookie last season, admittedly let himself go during the offseason. A steak-and-potatoes guy, he ate too many carbs and spent too many hours lounging around on the couch. It didn't help that his focus shifted toward moving his mother and three younger brothers from Hartford, Conn., to Jacksonville, and taking in a 22-year-old cousin.
"It was my first offseason. People make mistakes. My priorities were a little messed up, but I'm on the right track now," Knighton said.
The Jaguars hope so. They need Knighton to shed the extra weight and get back to playing the way he did last season.
A third-round pick from Temple, Knighton was one of the few bright spots on a defense that ranked last in the league with a franchise-low 14 sacks and, at times, looked confused trying to tackle.
Knighton finished with 53 tackles, 1½ sacks and a forced fumble. He was at his best against the run, clogging up the middle and funneling running backs outside.
"He's a big guy. We want him big. I don't want him to become a skinny guy," coach Jack Del Rio said. "But he's got to get his weight where we want it. He knows what that is. He's working at it and so we'll just keep working him.
"The one thing about it that's amazing is his footwork is as good as it is. For a big man, he really has great feet. He's very natural with his hands and leverage and he's got great feet for a big man. So I don't think this should be a story about anything other than he's here working his butt off and he's doing a nice job for us."
His work ethic has been questioned, though.
Knighton begged out of a pass-rushing drill Sunday and has been relegated to running with the second-team defense. The potential season-ending injury to rookie D'Anthony Smith (Achilles' tendon) and the arrival of first-round draft pick Tyson Alualu should put even more pressure on Knighton to perform.
"You can always build on your rookie year," said Knighton, who was nicknamed "Pot Roast" when he ordered the meal on a charter flight to Seattle last season. "The level's a lot higher now and the expectations are a lot higher. You can feel the difference with the team, you can feel the difference with the defense."
Coaches are waiting to see a difference in Knighton's physique.
Knighton acknowledged that moving his family south this spring and then eating his mother's cooking on a regular basis was part of the problem.
Rochelle Knighton gave birth to a 9-pound, 10-ounce baby boy in July 1986, then raised Terrance as a single mother who worked tireless hours to provide for her family.
"Being a young mom, it's just fast food, quick stuff," she said. "Broccoli? Yuck! Now, it's like let's buckle down and do what we have to do."
Rochelle Knighton wasn't around all the time last season, so Knighton mostly stuck to what the Jaguars put in front of him. But things changed when mom arrived in early April.
"When I did get here, it was like, 'I need to feed my baby,'" she said. "I am mostly to blame."
His favorite food was homemade macaroni and cheese — heavy on the cheese, of course.
Terrance started to balloon a bit before minicamp in May and looked somewhat lethargic during organized team activities. That's when strength and conditioning coach Luke Richesson stepped in. Richesson started keeping Knighton around the facility for two meals each day and then brought him home for dinners cooked by his wife, former Olympic gold medalist swimmer Anita Nall. Richesson also sent a nutritionist to the grocery store with Rochelle.
"I still get a little steak here and there, but I cut out the potatoes," Terrance Knighton said. "A lot of vegetables. I've come a long ways. In the offseason I got a little heavy, had too much fun. ... I'm mature from that. I know how to handle my body now. I learn from things and move on."
Del Rio would like to see Knighton lose at least another 10 pounds. Until then, he'll have to continue spending extra time running sprints.
"He's just working his way into the player that we need him to be for us this year and working hard every day in doing the things that we're asking him to do," Del Rio said. "I'm sure he'll continue to fight his way and be where we need him when it's all said and done."
-- Mark Long
In second year, Sanchez embraces role as Jets' leader
CORTLAND, N.Y. (AP) — Mark Sanchez's path to becoming a leader began back in the second grade.
When his class lined up for school field trips, his parents insisted he make sure he was at the front.
If there was trash on the floor, he was the one who would pick it up and toss it.
Guess who was raising his hand when the teacher needed someone to pass out papers?
"That's the way I've been taught by my parents," the New York Jets quarterback said between practices Wednesday. "That's just the way it was."
And, it's still that way for Sanchez.
He has been different for a while, a special person and talent — something the Jets raved about after they made him the fifth overall pick in last year's draft. Now in his second NFL season, Sanchez is channeling that second-grader on the football field.
"Now, it's, 'This guy's tired,' and I'll pick up his pads for him," Sanchez said. "'You need some water?' or, 'Give these guys a 30-second break,' and really having that awareness to try and read other guys. When they do a great job, you've got to let them know. And, when they do something wrong, you've got to let them know. And that's probably the toughest part, trying to find your way in there."
Sanchez spent much of last season doing just that, making plenty of mistakes along the way. He came on strong down the stretch, though, and helped the Jets reach the AFC championship game.
The 23-year-old quarterback's development will play a key role in whether the Jets can make a run to the Super Bowl. And it all stems from confidence, something offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer drilled into him this offseason.
"One of the goals this year that I talked with Schotty, is, 'This is my team. This is my offense. And, you need to own it,'" Sanchez said. "He looked at me and I looked at him, and that's what we said."
The face of the franchise was fully embracing his role as the team leader.
"It's about on and off the field, being the quarterback," he said. "When we go out to dinner, when we're in meetings, how do you act? How do you carry yourself?
"When you walk into the room, people should know: That's the quarterback, that's our guy."
There's no doubt about that among his teammates or coaches. He spent much of his time at the team's facility in Florham Park, N.J., this offseason while rehabilitating following knee surgery. Long days turned into late nights — and training camp was still months away.
"With all the preparation, he knows — and the team knows — nobody works harder than he does," coach Rex Ryan said.
"Physically, I feel great," Sanchez added. "That's a huge step for me."
While many NFL players spent time before training camp on vacation, Sanchez gathered several of his wide receivers in Southern California for a week in July. The "Jets West Camp" — which included customized T-shirts designed by Sanchez — gave the quarterback a chance to work even closer with the receivers.
"Things are a lot slower for him now," wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery said. "He's got a year under his belt. He's taking hold of that leadership role and he's in and out of the huddle. He's been doing a great job with that."
Sanchez has also been working on his presence at the line of scrimmage, with his cadence in particular. He drew defensive players offsides in three consecutive practices.
"Last year, it was like, nobody's falling for anything," Ryan said. "He's learning how to use his voice, and use that cadence to his advantage."
Sanchez said both recently signed veteran Mark Brunell and Schottenheimer have helped with that.
"Talking about which syllables, which number, colors to emphasize, and then going back and kind of listening to myself in my head in the quarterback-center exchange," Sanchez said.
With all the talk about taking a lead role, Sanchez laughed when he was asked it means having to pay for more dinners with his teammates.
"Sometimes it takes a dent out of your pocketbook," he said, "but that's all part of it.
NOTES: DT Kris Jenkins (hamstring) practiced for the first time since starting camp on the active-physically unable to perform list. He sat out in pass drills as the team eases him back in after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last season. ... DE Shaun Ellis was held out of the morning session with a hip flexor, but returned in the afternoon.
-- Dennis Waszak Jr.
At first glance, Steelers' run game hasn't changed
LATROBE, Pa. (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers' running game went from very good to very average so quickly, even team president Art Rooney II became alarmed.
And when a man named Rooney becomes concerned with a Steelers' deficiency, it often gets fixed in a hurry.
Watch a Steelers training camp practice, however, and it doesn't appear as if an offense that was ninth in passing but only 19th in rushing last season — normally in Pittsburgh, it's the other way around — is changing much at all.
Ben Roethlisberger is throwing better than he ever has in camp. Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians is expecting another 4,000-yard passing season by his quarterback, even though Roethlisberger will be suspended for at least one-quarter of the season.
And a team that was one of the last in the NFL to regularly use a traditional fullback has one player listed at that position, and he was added only this week.
Beyond Rashard Mendenhall, who gained 1,108 yards last season, the Steelers' running backs include an experienced player coming off a disappointing season (Mewelde Moore, whose rushing yardage dropped from 588 in 2008 to 118) and a bunch with little or no experience (Jonathan Dwyer, Isaac Redman, Frank Summers).
So what has changed in the running game? To wide receiver Hines Ward, a lot.
During the first week of training camp, the Steelers are emphasizing short-yardage and goal-line situations, two of their biggest weaknesses a year ago. For example, they ranked 22nd in rushing inside an opponent's 10-yard line.
"We're working more on technique," Ward said. "We're concentrating on situational football. We weren't really a good third-down team or red-zone team. And, definitely, on third-and-short we were just not very good at all."
The Steelers didn't score a touchdown last year on third down with 2 yards or fewer to go. Their short-yard deficiency was one reason why they lost five times after leading in the fourth quarter and another time when tied, leading to a 9-7 record that left them out of the playoffs a year after they won the Super Bowl.
"It's not about being more of a running team or more of a passing team for us. We want to be a great situational team, and I think if we can do that everything else will follow," Ward said. "On the goal line, we tried to run the ball and we got stopped or lost yardage. And even if we passed the ball, we couldn't get into the end zone."
While Mendenhall was a 1,000-yard back, he gained about one-third of his yards in two games, rushing for 165 yards against San Diego and 155 against Denver. Beyond those performances, he had a single 100-yard game.
Opening up the passing game for Roethlisberger, as Arians has done, may have created a side effect of de-emphasizing a running game that was the NFL's fourth best during the 2004-07 seasons but was only 21st overall during the past two seasons combined.
Given the Steelers' history of being an exceptional running team — they have rushed for nearly 5,000 yards more than any other team since the 1970 NFL merger — Rooney's offseason proclamation that they must run more effectively was viewed as a sign major changes were coming.
To date, the biggest personnel move was signing right tackle Flozell Adams, a move necessitated not by the running game's shortcomings but by Willie Colon's season-ending Achilles' injury. They drafted Dwyer, but only in the sixth round.
"Who knows if we'll be a running team or a passing team?" Ward said. "But we're going to strive to be a better short-yardage, red-zone and third-down team. And when you convert those, you can get more plays."
Even if they are more passing plays.
"I think what we're interested in is running the ball more effectively," coach Mike Tomlin said. "Our emphasis really hasn't changed whatsoever."
-- Alan Robinson
Oher sees bright future protecting the Blind Side
WESTMINSTER, Md. (AP) — As a rookie with the Baltimore Ravens last season, Michael Oher spent plenty of time talking about the blockbuster movie, "The Blind Side."
This year, his primary concern will be to protect the blind side of Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco.
Oher has been working at left tackle during training camp after lining up on both sides of Baltimore's offensive line during his first NFL season.
"He's looked great, he really has," Ravens coach John Harbaugh said Wednesday. "His body, the work he's done, you can see it when he comes out here. He's moving really well. When a guy is here every single day throughout the offseason, getting all that work and all those reps, it shows."
Oher's rise from the streets of Memphis was documented in Michael Lewis' 2006 book, "The Blind Side," which became a hit movie in 2009 starring Sandra Bullock as Leigh Anne Tuohy, who adopted the homeless teenager into her family.
The job of the left tackle is to protect the blind side of the quarterback. Oher started five games at that position last season, moving from the right side to replace injured tackle Jared Gaither.
Oher is now atop the depth chart at left tackle. But he's also been practicing on the right side because Gaither has missed a portion of camp because of cramps and lost too much weight (nearly 30 pounds) during the offseason.
"Basically I'm just playing football, trying to be comfortable on both sides," Oher said. "When the season gets here, I'll be prepared for everything."
Everything, perhaps, except talking about the book and the movie. Oher seems relieved to be past that.
"I'm just here to play football," he said. "I just want to be the best player I can be. I'm here to work every day and play in the NFL as long as possible and be great at what I do."
He got off to a great start last year, starting all 16 games and twice in the postseason after being drafted 23rd overall in the first round of the 2009 draft.
Left tackle, right tackle, it doesn't matter to Oher, who excelled at both as a rookie.
"These guys took a chance on me and drafted me. I'm going to do what they tell me to do and play football," Oher said. "I love the game and have much respect for it."
Moving from one side to the other requires more than merely lining up in a different spot in the huddle. Learning both positions means spending extra time studying the playbook and altering blocking technique.
"You get used to one position and have to go do something else, it's a big difference," Oher said. "Say you have a basketball player who's right-handed and he's got to go play the game left-handed. It takes time to get used to it. Everything's just backward. You have switch your mind and keep working."
Ravens center Matt Birk is confident Oher can handle the challenge.
"Mike can play anywhere. He works hard on fundamentals, he wants to do everything perfect," Birk said. "But at the end of the day, the guy is just a football player. Anywhere on our line I like him. He's a great player and a great guy."
-- David Ginsburg
Browns WR Robiskie confident in second pro camp
BEREA, Ohio (AP) — Brian Robiskie believes finding a comfort zone at the Cleveland Browns' training camp can help get him into the end zone, too.
The second-year wide receiver from Ohio State did both Wednesday. He looked perfectly at ease grabbing a 45-yard touchdown pass from new quarterback Jake Delhomme to finish the first practice of two-a-day drills performed in high humidity.
"It feels great," Robiskie said, sweat still dripping off his face after 15 minutes of signing autographs following the two-hour workout. "That was our 2-minute drill. You score, it's over. That's the way you always want to end."
Robiskie faked left, ran right and got open in the corner. He held off a late challenge from defensive back Mike Adams and made a nifty over-the-shoulder catch.
"It will be good to watch that one on film," Robiskie said. "More importantly, I want to look at three or four plays I didn't get right. I've got to see what went wrong, go back out and do it right."
Robiskie had almost forgotten what the end zone looked like. After scoring 24 touchdowns among his 127 career catches in college and being a highly touted second-round draft choice, he did little as the Browns started 1-11 a year ago. He had just seven catches in 11 games, and four of them came in a 30-23 loss to San Diego in December.
"The good thing about all the bad stuff is that last season is over," Robiskie said. "It's done, finished. We're all here working on a new season and with a real positive attitude."
The son of former Browns head coach Terry Robiskie is well-schooled on the game's finer points, but discovered the transition from college star to professional player is not a snap.
"It helped that my dad told me things, but until you experience it yourself you just don't know," Robiskie said. "I've learned a lot. I'm more comfortable. I also know I'll never quit learning and can always get better."
New team president Mike Holmgren believes the slender receiver has gained mental strength from his rough rookie season.
"High draft choices, rookie receivers, it's a different world for most of them," Holmgren said. "You'll see a lot of fine college receivers drafted high, come in their first year and kind of putz it around a little bit. Then the second year, bang, because now I get it. Brian has a chance to be someone like that."
Coach Eric Mangini isn't sure why Robiskie didn't catch on immediately, though he likes what he's seen early in camp.
"Sometimes it takes guys a year to really get a sense of the system, get a sense of the league, get a sense of requirements, all those things," Mangini said.
Veterans Delhomme and Seneca Wallace were brought in at quarterback to replace Derek Anderson and Brady Quinn, who were jettisoned after last season's offensive debacle when. The Browns scored fewer than 10 points in seven of their first 10 games.
"These two guys have a lot of insight," Robiskie said of his new passing partners. "Whenever the quarterbacks give you an opportunity, you want to help them out. You get excited. Every receiver wants to get the ball. We've changed our offensive schemes and that should help."
One new wrinkle on display has nothing to do with Robiskie, yet looks promising.
The athletic Wallace and all-purpose speedster Josh Cribbs, a quarterback in college, lined up in the backfield. The defense didn't know which man would take the long snap — or whether he would run, pass or flip it to the other guy.
"I like the progress we are making in some of our speedball stuff," Mangini said.
Robiskie has been Delhomme's favorite target in traditional sets. The former Carolina Panthers starter also found tight end Ben Watson and Cribbs several times Wednesday.
"Brian's a very precise route-runner," Delhomme said. "He does extremely well locating the football in the air. He has a great sense of timing and body control to catch deep balls."
Robiskie is more concerned with getting the Browns to break out of the pack in the AFC North than having a breakout season.
"I just feel like I am making progress," he said. "I think it comes from seeing progress from the entire team. Everybody is more comfortable, more confident."
Chiefs hoping for big things from big man
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — Tyson Jackson's first season as the main building block in Kansas City's new defense can be described in three short words: one paltry sack.
There was precious little production from the LSU star the Chiefs drafted third overall in 2009 and projected as the prototype defensive end in their new 3-4 scheme.
Was he overrated? Lazy? Did the new regime of Scott Pioli and Todd Haley repeat the mistakes their predecessors kept making and blow a high pick on an underachieving defensive lineman?
Or will Jackson make a giant leap forward from year No. 1 to year No. 2? Judging from how hard he's working at training camp, that seems to be a possibility.
"Tyson is in the early stages of an NFL career playing a very difficult position against grown men," said Haley, the Chiefs' second-year head coach. "I'm encouraged with where Tyson is right now. He's finding out what playing in the five- and four-technique for a 3-4 defensive lineman is all about. He's working his butt off and I think he wants to be part of a good team, part of making us a good team."
He's not playing a position expected to get a lot of sacks. But one? And against the run, the defense was 31st.
One problem Jackson grappled with was the "sticker shock" of seeing NFL-type bodies hurling themselves at him every play.
"Linemen are not seeing consistently the grown NFL men on a weekly basis that they are going to see when they get here, and that's an adjustment," Haley said. "The more you talk to those guys they come through that first year, that's what you hear. These are grown men every day, every week."
At 6-foot-4, 300 pounds, Jackson has the size to go with the quickness. He's also getting special attention from new defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel and new defensive line coach Anthony Pleasant.
"It's the first time I ever had a coordinator who works with the defensive line a lot," Jackson said. "He's a real good coach. He shows us different techniques, and every now and then he tries to show us tips to get better."
Jackson has no trouble admitting the NFL was a bigger adjustment than he expected after dominating in the SEC.
"Year one, you just get smashed by a whole lot of stuff, going from college to the combine to minicamp, stuff like that. You never have that time off to relax," he said. "But year two or three are more slower. Guys get their feet under them and start understanding football at the NFL level. You get a better grasp of everything."
If the New Orleans native never comes close to meeting expectations, it will probably mean Pioli's first draft as general manager was almost entirely a bust. There is still time for some others to develop, and Pioli came from New England with the reputation as a personnel whiz.
But so far, the only member of the 2009 class who has performed well is kicker Ryan Succop, the last man taken in the entire draft.
As a high draft pick, does Jackson have to prove he can't play, where a fifth-round pick has to prove that he can?
Haley's jaw tightens at the mere suggestion.
"Once they're in here, and I cannot stress this enough — I don't care how they got here," he said. "I really don't. I think my time in the league, that's been proven in the places I've been and the players I've been around. Once they're here and once I'm coaching them, I don't care if there is one pulling up in a van right now that was mowing a yard."
Jackson insists he feels no special pressure to live up to being the overall No. 3 pick.
"It all depends on how you look at it," he said. "I've just got to keep going out there and put my talent to work, continue to work hard. From there, just let everything else play out."
Haley, while encouraged, is making no predictions of Pro Bowls in Jackson's immediate future.
"I think that he learned a lot last year," Haley said. "He survived. It wasn't always perfect, but he came back for more and he's hungry. We'll know more about that down the road as we start to get into games and real games. I've got a strong feeling that he'll probably be around here when we're playing games. And he's got to be better than what he was."
-- Doug Tucker
Broncos WR Eddie Royal moves on from trying season
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — Eddie Royal is so confident he'll bounce back from a mostly forgettable 2009 season that he's going to pick himself No. 1 in his upcoming fantasy draft.
"Of course, how bad would it look if I didn't?" he said.
The Denver Broncos also have faith that the diminutive wide receiver will come up big this year.
Royal largely disappeared from the Broncos offense last year, missing the last two games with a neck injury and finishing with just 37 catches and no touchdowns.
That was a far cry from his rookie year in 2008, when he hauled in 91 passes and had fans believing what he's always felt — he indeed was worth a high pick in fantasy drafts.
Royal chalked up his sophomore slump to learning coach Josh McDaniels' complicated offense and not getting in complete sync with quarterback Kyle Orton.
So far in training camp, the chemistry between the two has been quite apparent. Orton threw a deep TD strike to Royal on Wednesday down the left sideline.
Just like it was drawn up.
"He's just such a versatile player, which in this offense is huge," Orton said.
Royal hopes he can replicate the kind of success in the slot this season that New England's Wes Welker had when McDaniels was running the Patriots' offense.
To help facilitate that, Royal spent the offseason studying film of Welker, trying to see how the Pro Bowler goes about his business of getting open.
Like Welker, Royal is a small target with sticky hands.
"In the slot, it's not always about being the fastest guy," Royal explained. "It's about being patient — knowing how to set up routes and knowing the entire offense. It's a lot of different wrinkles you've got to learn."
The Broncos have vowed to make Royal a more integral part of the offense in Year 2 of McDaniels' system. He won't disappear from game plans or be the overlooked wideout.
That promise will be easier to keep with Brandon Marshall no longer around to gobble up grabs. Royal is definitely in the running for the title of No. 1 receiver, along with Jabar Gaffney and Brandon Lloyd.
Not only that, but another third-year wideout, Matthew Willis, is making a strong push for a big role as well.
The team also drafted two highly touted receivers, taking Demaryius Thomas in the first round and Eric Decker in the third.
But those two are still digesting an elaborate playbook, a plight Royal knows all too well.
"I see the same looks in their eyes as I had," Royal said, grinning. "I kind of pull them to the side and calm them down a little bit. I know things are going real fast for them right now."
Thomas and Decker are big targets for Orton, while Royal relies on speed to work his way free of coverage.
His preference remains to play outside and he bristled at being typecast as simply a slot receiver.
"I don't like to be labeled as a slot guy," said Royal, a second-round pick out of Virginia Tech who's listed very generously at 5-foot-10. "But I do feel comfortable in there."
With Marshall in Miami and clear of the picture, there will be plenty of passes to go around for Royal & Co. Not that he's viewing the situation quite like that.
"Whoever catches the ball, catches it," Royal shrugged. "We know that they (Broncos coaches) are not picking out one guy to throw the ball to. A lot of times it's based on the coverage."
Royal never really meshed into the Broncos' plans last season. Sure, he caught 10 passes against New England on Oct. 11. But his next best outing was five catches and he had 11 games where he caught three passes or fewer.
While he struggled at receiver, Royal still made a mark on special teams. He became just the second Broncos player to return a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns in the same game, a feat he accomplished at San Diego on Oct. 19.
Over the offseason, Royal dedicated himself to improving his already blazing speed. He eschewed extra work in the weight room in favor of running sprints on the track and going through hill workouts.
His reasoning was this: Come the fourth quarter, he will still be fresh.
He also has a better comfort level with the offense now, another factor weighing in his favor.
"I know what every position is doing in the field, as far as the receivers — the ins and outs of it," he said.
He's still not completely sure why he regressed so much under McDaniels after setting rookie team records for catches, yards receiving (980) and touchdowns (five) the year before.
"It's hard to put your finger on one little thing," Royal said. "You're running completely different routes, different scheme, different quarterbacks. Everything was completely different. It's hard to even compare the two.
"But we're on a new page, a new start. We're ready to get going."
NOTES: McDaniels said NT Jamal Williams might make his training camp debut Thursday. ... Several veterans, including CB Champ Bailey, S Brian Dawkins and LB D.J. Williams, sat out the morning practice session Wednesday.
-- Pat Graham
Gallery holds the key to Raiders' line issues
NAPA, Calif. (AP) — After an injury-filled couple of seasons, Oakland Raiders' left guard Robert Gallery is eager to stay healthy and on the field.
Gallery missed 10 games last season after breaking his right leg early in Week 2 and a back injury sidelined him for the final three games of 2009.
Add to that the first two weeks of training camp Gallery missed last year after undergoing an emergency appendectomy.
"I think I'm good for probably another five years," Gallery said. "It was just one thing after another. They were both freak things. It wasn't because I was out of shape or anything like that. Hopefully that's it for the duration."
The Raiders hope so too.
Gallery, the No. 2 overall draft pick in 2004, is the anchor of Oakland's offensive line after having made a successful conversion from tackle to guard early in his career.
Coach Tom Cable calls Gallery "arguably (our) best player."
With Gallery in the lineup, the Raiders averaged 289.1 yards in total offense and allowed 2.8 sacks a game in 2009. In the 10 games he was injured, the offense fell to 252.3 yards while the sacks were at 3.2 per game.
It wasn't just the stats that suffered either.
Left tackle Mario Henderson and center Samson Satele, who line up alongside Gallery, both struggled without their left guard.
"I think that's a fair statement," Cable said. "Every position has someone that's the glue to it, especially in the offensive line where you have that many people who need to be on the same page every snap, down after down. When you take arguably your best player out of that mix I think it does affect the people around them.
"Robert is a really fine, fine player and he's proven that. Last year the injury didn't (give) him the opportunity for him to show it."
The 6-foot-7, 325-pound Gallery, whose long stringy hair and tattoo-covered forearms make him easy to spot in a crowd, underwent surgery in the offseason after injuring his lower back in a Week 13 win at Pittsburgh.
Doctors fused three vertebrae together and removed some cartilage in Gallery's back. Before the surgery, Gallery wondered if his career might be over.
"That was worse than anything," Gallery said. "Once we figured out what it was and they could fix it, we went with it. It was frustrating because I've been doing that same stuff my whole career, the same things I did when I got hurt. There's a week where you're upset about it, but then you have to get healthy and then get back."
Notes: WR Darrius Heyward-Bey was given a day of rest, according to Cable, though the move was likely cautionary after Heyward-Bey collided with safety Michael Huff in practice. ... As predicted by several observers, rookie Lamarr Houston was involved in the first fight of camp. The fiery defensive lineman and second-year tight end Brandon Myers had to be pulled apart after tussling during a team scrimmage. ... Rookie cornerback Walter McFadden took reps with the starting defense in place of incumbent starter Chris Johnson.
