Practice Report: Wind Wreaks Havoc

High winds caused Eddie Royal fits, but he was still a focal point of the day. At one point QBs Brady Quinn and Kyle Orton targeted him on five consecutive passes. (PHOTO: MAXDENVER.COM)

The 45-mph breezes that buffeted Dove Valley during Monday’s practice were enough to topple one of the trees beside the field, which meant they would wreak havoc on passes, kicks, and even the players themselves, especially the smaller ones considerably lighter and smaller than the 20-foot evergreen that came crashing down.

“I was lining up and the wind was blowing me off,” said 180-pound wide receiver Eddie Royal. “If it would have been a game, I would have had a few false start penalties.”

If it was enough to tilt receivers and fell trees, the chances of the quarterbacks and kickers getting much of anything accomplished was slim. But it was good practice on the chance that such a day may strike during the season; it’s happened before in the league, perhaps most memorably during a Bears-49ers game in 2005, when 38-mph winds led to a series of bizarre plays, including a 108-yard missed field goal return by Nathan Vasher.

There was no such adventure Monday, only footballs sailing onto rooftops and over receivers’ heads.

“Growing up in Florida, with the hurricanes and all that stuff, I’ve gone out and kicked before storms come, and it wasn’t anything like this. This was constant,” said kicker Matt Prater, whose kicks in the crosswind occasionally curved at angles approaching 60 degrees.

“Kicking that way was awful … “Hopefully we don’t have a game like this, but if we do, I have experience.”

THE WIND MADE PASSING AN ADVENTURE, which was foretold during one of the installation periods, when Tim Tebow looked for Knowshon Moreno up the right sideline and watched as his pass sailed well over the runner’s head and out of bounds after being caught in the stiff breeze that was running horizontally across the field.

During the first seven-on-seven period, Kyle Orton completed two of his seven passes, while Brady Quinn went 2-for-5 with an interception. Tebow completed his only attempt of the first period (to Brandon Lloyd), while Tom Brandstater was intercepted on his only attempt.

In a later seven-on-seven period, Quinn managed to complete three of five passes, with Royal knifing through the breeze and defenders to make each receptions, while Orton was 1-of-5 with a pick.

The quarterbacks fared better in their final period, an 11-on-11 session that saw Orton go 3-for-6, Quinn 2-for-4, Tebow 1-for-2 and Brandstater 1-for-1.

Of the four quarterbacks, Quinn’s passes seemed to hold the best in the air, particularly on one toss down the middle to Matthew Willis during a team period. Quinn’s spirals are generally a little tighter than those of Orton, Brandstater and Tebow; never do tight spirals help as much as on a breezy day.

Only Tebow managed to avoid throwing an interception during team or seven-on-seven work, but he and Brandstater had workloads considerably lighter than their elder teammates.

“They (the quarterbacks) actually did a pretty good job of throwing in the wind; I’ve got to give them credit,” Royal said.

NEVER HAVE I SEEN A DAY LIKE THIS since the afternoon the practice bubble blew down at the start of training camp in 2003. But that was on a stormy, gray afternoon that foretold the trouble to come; these winds were on a morning that otherwise looked gorgeous, with brilliant blue skies and only the occasional cloud.

ALSO OF NOTE:

• Steve O’Neal’s record 98-yard punt for the Jets at Mile High Stadium in 1968 would have been in jeopardy if there was a game Monday, as A.J. Trapasso and Britton Colquitt spent part of the session blasting punts with the breeze at their backs. Their kicks covered 80 to 90 yards in the air.
• Rookie J.D. Walton got all the first-team repetitions at center during team periods. Walton split first-unit work with Dustin Fry a week ago.
• Walton was joined by fellow rookie Zane Beadles, who lined up at first-team right tackle with Ryan Harris sidelined. Josh McDaniels said Harris “will hopefully be out here pretty soon,” with the timetable for Russ Hochstein and Ryan Clady remaining lengthier.
• Running back Knowshon Moreno made a nice move during the team period, catching a pass in the left flat from Orton and quickly bursting up the sideline, leaving Mario Haggan sprawling on the grass.
• Brandon Stokley did not practice, joining rookies Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas on the sideline. Running back J.J. Arrington also remained sidelined.
• Tight end (and potential fullback) Marquez Branson had the grab of the day, a leaping catch in traffic that saw him spin in mid-air to snatch the pass from Brady Quinn.
• In two-tight end sets, Richard Quinn and Daniel Graham got the work with the first team.
• Tony Carter, David Bruton and Darcel McBath each intercepted passes during seven-on-seven work. Carter’s would have been the biggest play in a game situation; he jumped a pass into the left flat from Brandstater to Correll Buckhalter and took it to the end zone.
• Robert Ayers ran with the first team at outside linebacker, moving between the left and right sides. He also remained with the first team on the outside when it went into nickel packages. “He’s one of our top players in our offseason program,” McDaniels said.
• With Justin Bannan not practicing Monday, Le Kevin Smith took some work on the first-team line. Fellow end Jarvis Green sandwiched nose tackle Jamal Williams.
• Baraka Atkins lined up opposite Ayers in the base 3-4; the inside linebackers were D.J. Williams and Haggan.
• Alphonso Smith remained on the first team in its nickel package. “He’s grown a lot; he had some bumps along the way but we all do,” fellow cornerback Champ Bailey said. “He’s stepped it up quite a bit.”

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