ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Broncos quarterback Drew Lock and his dozen or so teammates must call off their player group workouts for the offseason.
Last week’s spike of positive coronavirus cases across all sports has caused NFL players’ union medical boss Dr. Thom Mayer to advise against voluntary group practices.
Lock’s player-only workouts consisted of conditioning, weight training and then seven or eight offensive guys working through football drills/plays together for an hour followed by seven or eight defensive guys working together for about an hour.
In honor of the Lock workouts, 9NEWS is testing the knowledge of Broncos fans with this quiz centered around their player-only workouts during the labor lockout of 2011.
Get at least 5 of the 9 questions correct and you’re a Broncos diehard.
4 correct answers earn you a middle bar stool at your favorite sports establishment whenever the governor says it’s OK to belly up.
3 correct answers mean you love your Broncos, but you also do yardwork or house chores on Sundays.
2 or less correct answers mean you must bring the individually packaged cookies to the Broncos’ next game-day party, whenever that may be.
Good luck.
QUESTIONS
1. The Broncos’ unofficial player workouts during the 2011 lockout was called this:
A. Camp Dawkins
B. Camp Landow
C. Camp Judianne
D. All the above
2. This Broncos rookie heard about the veteran players workouts, got in touch with QB Brady Quinn, flew into town and stayed at Quinn’s place and joined the workouts in July:
A. Von Miller
B. Julius Thomas
C. Rahim Moore
D. Chris Harris
3. This Broncos player shamed Tim Tebow into showing up at the player workouts.
A. LenDale White
B. Kyle Orton
C. Russ Hochstein
D. Joe Mays
4. The 2011 player workouts began in May at the “sports bubble” down the street from Broncos headquarters. Where did they finish in July?
A. The sports bubble
B. South Suburban Sports Dome
C. The soccer field outside Valor Christian’s football stadium
D. Regis High School
5. Once the lockout ended on July 23, 2011 and players reported to training camp four days later, the Broncos set out to honor QB Kyle Orton’s trade request that was made before the lockout. Orton didn’t want to sit behind Tebow. New Broncos GM John Elway allowed Orton’s agent, David Dunn, to work out a restructured contract between Orton and another team, only for Orton to change his mind after coach John Fox asked him to reconsider. Which team was Orton nearly traded to?
A. Dolphins
B. Chiefs
C. Bears
D. Cowboys
6. Once Orton was benched in favor of Tebow following the Broncos’ 1-4 start in 2011, the team’s No. 1 receiver requested a trade, which was granted. Who was this receiver?
A. Demaryius Thomas
B. Eric Decker
C. Brandon Lloyd
D. Eddie Royal
7. One of the regular participants in the Broncos’ player workouts of 2011 was Ben Garland, who was about to begin his second year of military service. His final start for Air Force, as a defensive lineman, was in the Armed Forces Bowl in December 2009. How long before Garland started again in a football game?
A. 3 years, 2012
B. 7 years, 2016
C. 5 years, 2014
D. 8 years, 2017
8. After the Landow conditioning work during the 2011 player sessions, this player would lead a group of offensive players through the 2-minute drill:
A. Tim Tebow
B. Kyle Orton
C. Brian Dawkins
D. Brady Quinn
9. This player was one of five offensive linemen who regularly participated in the Broncos’ player workouts in 2011, and is now a Broncos assistant coach:
A. Chris Clark
B. Chris Kuper
C. Zane Beadles
D. J.D. Walton
ANSWERS
1. D. All the above
Brian Dawkins, then the Broncos’ 37-year-old safety, was looking for a professional trainer to keep the players in shape during an offseason in which owners locked out players from OTAs as part of a labor dispute.
Loren Landow was a professional sports trainer associated with the Steadman-Hawkins clinic in Denver.
Judianne Atencio was boss of the ProLinks Sports Agency who served as the marketing rep for both Dawkins and Landow.
2. B. Julius Thomas
A power forward starter for Portland State’s basketball team, Thomas played one year of football before he was drafted by the Broncos in the fourth round.
Understanding he was raw as a football player, Thomas didn’t want to fall behind. Unfortunately, a high ankle sprain that wouldn’t heal kept him from playing in his first two seasons, but he emerged into a 12 touchdown-a-season tight end in 2013-14.
3. A. LenDale White
The local prep star who went on to have great years for USC and the Tennessee Titans, White signed with the Broncos in 2010 but missed the entire season with a torn Achilles. After a player workout in May 2011, White playfully told the media: “Tell Tim Tebow we’re looking for him.”
The football gods then worked against White. Tebow, who was working out on his own, did show up for two or three Landow sessions and went on to have one of the most memorable, magical seasons in Broncos history.
White was cut midway through preseason and never played again.
4. C. The field outside Valor Christian’s football stadium
The move from the sports bubble – officially called the South Suburban Sports Dome – to Valor Christian H.S. was to accommodate Landow’s busy schedule as he got a second side gig that summer working the Ed McCaffrey youth football camp that was held inside the Valor Christian football stadium.
5. A. Dolphins
Miami wanted to restructure the one-year, $8.8 million Orton had left on his contract before completing the trade with the Broncos. But when Orton clearly outperformed Tebow during the Broncos first training camp practice, Fox approached Orton and essentially told him he’d be the starter if he stayed. Orton pulled his trade request and started the first five games of the 2011 season.
6. C. Brandon Lloyd
Lloyd made some of the most acrobatic, pre-sticky-glove catches in the modern-era but was otherwise an underachiever until he and Orton hooked for a career-best 77 catches and league-most 1,448 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2010.
When Orton was replaced by the passing-challenged Tebow, Lloyd asked out. He was dealt to St. Louis, whose new offensive coordinator was just fired Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels.
Lloyd finished strong, registering 51 catches for nearly 700 yards and 5 touchdowns in just 11 games for the Rams.
But Tebow had a run for the ages thanks to his ability to scramble and pass well when it mattered most during late-game comebacks.
Lloyd’s departure opened an opportunity for Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas to step up in more prominent receiver roles.
7. D. 8 years, 2017
Garland’s military discipline and resolve paid off in his football career. After two years serving his military obligation, Garland spent the next 1 ½ seasons on the Broncos’ practice squad learning his conversion to offensive guard before finally getting promoted to the 53-man roster in November 2014 – four years and 11 months after his last game at Air Force.
Released among the Broncos’ final roster cuts prior to the start of 2015, Garland caught on with Atlanta, where he spent another year on a practice squad.
He stuck as a backup guard in 2016 and most of 2017 until he got his first NFL start December 15, 2017 for the Falcons at left guard. Garland was the 49ers starting center in Super Bowl LIV.
8. D. Brady Quinn
The Broncos’ third-string quarterback in the offseason of 2011 became its leader through the month of July when he organized the offensive players into running plays from the team’s playbook – which the players were able to receive from their new coaches during a brief de-certification period.
Quinn became the Broncos’ No. 2 quarterback after Orton was claimed off waivers in week 11 by the quarterback-starved Chiefs. Quinn was in position to replace a late-season-struggling Tebow in the Broncos’ playoff opener against the Steelers. Instead, Tebow played well then set off city-wide fireworks with an 80-yard, game-winning touchdown pass to Demaryius Thomas on the first play of overtime.
9. B. Chris Kuper
The right guard in 2011 was joined by center J.D. Walton, left guard Zane Beadles, invaluable swing guard-center Russ Hochstein and right tackle Chris Clark as the most frequent participants in Camp Dawkins/Landow/Judianne.
Kuper is now the Broncos’ assistant offensive line coach to Mike Munchak as part of Vic Fangio’s coaching staff.
Kuper is the second prominent member of the 2011 offseason player workouts to become a Broncos' assistant coach. The other is Landow, whose work that summer eventually helped him get hired as the team's strength and conditioning coordinator for going on his third season.
