Rahim Moore reacts to a defensive stop late in the second quarter against the San Diego Chargers. (Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE)

With Brian Dawkins retiring, second-year safety Rahim Moore is getting his shot, a second shot.

Moore began the 2011 season as a starter, but was inactive by the end of the season thanks to a slew of missed tackles, missed assignments, and untimely penalties.

“Experience is the big key,” Moore said after Monday’s practice. “That’s what I had last year, good and bad, so this year I’m ready, I’m hungry.”

Moore has been inserted back into the starting lineup in camp, playing starting safety with veteran Mike Adams. He had a big hit on Lance Ball during Monday’s practice, letting people know that this second round draft pick (No. 45 overall) out of UCLA is just waiting to break out.

“A lot of times with tackling, it comes with experience of knowing which back you’re playing against, the team you’re playing against, the film,” Moore said.

Moore rounded out his rookie year with 31 tackles and an interception. His total would have been much higher had the learning curve not been so great.

“Just knowing how to relax and calm down,” Moore said of the benefit of being a second year player. “I think when you’re a rookie, you’re trying to make some plays, you want to get some respect. You’re too fast for your own good and that’s when missed tackles come in, missed opportunities, missed picks…No matter how many tackles you make, you’re going to miss some. It’s like a receiver dropping the pick, a quarterback missing a play, dropping  a pick. Nobody is perfect, but how you work on it is just work on it. Simple as that.”

Moore will miss more tackles. That’s just the nature of the game. They key is how he recovers from those mistakes. That’s when it becomes mind over matter. For Moore, who will be the Broncos last line of defense, developing his mind is just as important as developing his skill.

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The Denver Broncos will get training camp started at Dove Valley on July 26th. (Credit: Ron Chenoy-US PRESSWIRE)

The release of the 2012 Denver Broncos Training Camp schedule means the final countdown to football season is officially on.

Camp will begin on Thursday, July 26th and runs through Friday, August 17th. Preseason games start on August 9th, and the date we all have circled on our calendars is the nationally televised Sunday night regular season opener against the Steelers on September 9th.

It’s going to be one of the most exciting preseasons in the history of the franchise and there will be no shortage of storylines. Dove Valley will once again be the unofficial home for a large continent of the national media in 2012. Every Broncos storyline will of course center on Peyton Manning, but there are plenty of other things I’m going to be watching very closely during camp.

Here are my top storylines (aside from Manning) to watch for during the 2012 preseason, in no particular order:

•  Knowshon Moreno and the running back situation. This may be the last chance Moreno has to make it in Denver, let alone the NFL. He’s largely underachieved during his time with the Broncos and he’s struggled to stay healthy. With Willis McGahee establishing himself as the starter and the rookie Ronnie Hillman looking to be a difference maker this season, this is the biggest training camp of Moreno’s career.
• The growth of Demaryius Thomas and Eric Decker. Thomas introduced himself to the nation in a big way during the 2011 playoffs, and with Manning coming aboard this should be the season where he vaults himself into the elite group of NFL wide receivers. Decker should also make a much bigger impact, and this underappreciated wide receiver group has a good chance of proving a lot of doubters wrong in 2012.
• The new tight ends Joel Dreessen and Jacob Tamme. I can’t wait to see a Denver tight end making a big impact on the field once again, and we have a good chance of seeing both of these guys become prolific members of the offense. It will also be very interesting to see how production is split between these two.
• Von Miller’s return from injury. The reigning defensive rookie of the year should be an absolute terror once again this season, and now he has two healthy hands to work with. Philip Rivers, Matt Cassel, and Carson Palmer will be having nightmares about Miller in a few short months.
• The revamped secondary. The defensive backfield has quickly become one of the deepest groups on the team with the additions of Tracy Porter, Mike Adams, and Drayton Florence. But they will also have to deal with the loss of team leader Brian Dawkins.
• Derek Wolfe. The Broncos need someone to come in and make a big impact in the interior of the defensive line. If Wolfe turns into a big time playmaker, he could be the missing piece of the puzzle to the roster overhaul that has greatly improved almost every other position.
• How the defense deals with the D.J. Williams suspension. I’m curious to see how Jack Del Rio will adjust the lineup during the time that Williams misses. Hopefully someone steps up and makes a name for himself.

I’m going to take some time off prior to the start of the preseason, but I will be back and better than ever for training camp. Go Broncos!

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Denver Broncos cornerbacks Syd'Quan Thompson and Joshua Moore are part of a very deep secondary for the Broncos (Ron Chenoy - US PRESSWIRE)

It’s easy to forget how incredibly dichotomous the Denver Broncos were in 2011.  At times they looked (and probably were) simply unbeatable.  Other times the team was left exposed, giving up big play after big play.  Pinning the inconsistencies on the quarterback situation is the simple explanation, of course.  A peek at the roster, however, reveals the problem was in the depth chart.

Last year the Broncos were shredded when the defense lined up in the nickle formation.  When emotional leader Brian Dawkins was out with injury, the safeties struggled to make critical tackles.  At one point early during the season, the team was so depleted at wide receiver that Tim Tebow ran routes on a handful of plays.  Fullback?  Just have a tight end fill in.  Tight ends?  Didn’t really utilize them anyway.

2012 is shaping up quite differently and fans can look at cornerback for a model of what the Broncos are trying to do.  Champ Bailey, Tracy Porter, Drayton Florence, Chris Harris, Syd’Quan Thompson, and Omar Bolden are all players who could make substantial impact on any team.  The Broncos’ only real problem is going to be deciding which of these players sees the field…minus Bailey, obviously.

The running backs benefited greatly from the option offense last year, but one flaw was that when Willis McGahee was dinged up, there wasn’t really a proven alternate.  Lance Ball did a decent job as a sidekick when Knowshon Moreno tore his ACL.  Both will return this year looking to compete, likely as the third down back.  Jeremiah Johnson and Mario Fannin (who could be a very pleasant surprise after spending last year on injured reserve) also return with the addition of third-round pick Ronnie Hillman.

Ask anyone what the Broncos’ Achillies’ heel has been over the past few years and almost universally the answer is, “defensive tackle.”  When the Broncos can’t dominate at the line of scrimmage, opposing teams run wild and their quarterbacks have easy looks to receivers.  No doubt that the revolving door at defensive coordinator hasn’t helped, but the presence of a players’ coach in Jack Del Rio should help matters.  So should the return of injured veterans Ty Warren and Kevin Vickerson, along with the second tour of duty for Justin Bannan.  They’ll be joined by second-round draft pick Derek Wolfe who is expected to have the kind of motor and presence that the Broncos have struggled to find from an interior lineman.  Barring an injury, this squad could be the one to erase the recent history of defensive tackles in Denver.

Of course, Peyton Manning was the Crown Jewel of the free agent signings this offseason.  Along the way, the Broncos have also been able to develop a depth chart that shows improvement to the previously mentioned positions as well as to the offensive line, tight ends, and receiving corps.

Perhaps this is the new NFL trend: build a depth chart that is virtually bottomless, draft well, grab a few stars along the way, and win tough games.  It worked out well for the 2011 New York Giants.  The Broncos will look to model that formula in 2012.

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