Todd Sauerbrun - Articles - Zimbio

Member?: The Denver Broncos Wait Until The Fourth Quarter To Come Alive

Thu, 7 Nov 2008 14:00:00 GMT

posted by carnitas
Whas happened in sports last night.

NFL: Denver's Jay Culter ruined Cleveland's Brady Quinn's first NFL start by coming alive in the final frame of last night's Monday night game. Culter threw for 447 yards and three touchdowns in the fourth quarters as the Broncos squeaked by the Browns in the fourth quarter to stay atop of the AFC West. Broncos 34, Browns 30 [Denver Post]
NFL News: Last night's game was the first of eight NFL Network games simulcast over Sprint phones. The future is now! [WSJ.com]
Soccer News: A collection of the best Soccer Snapz from the past week. [LA Times]
MLB News: Major League Baseball released their annual list of the best hands in baseball, of course other than those owned by the organist at Dodger Stadium. She's the best. [ESPN]

Fatsis: Inside the Mind of Mike Shanahan

Mon, 1 Jul 2008 03:50:48 GMT

posted by broncotalk

Writer Stefan Fatsis has an excerpt from his book “A Few Seconds of Panic: A 5-Foot-8, 170-Pound, 43-Year-Old Sportswriter Plays in the NFL” up in an article on the Wall Street Journal. You might remember we originally covered the book here last week. It’s Fatsis’ story of joining the Broncos during their 2006 training camp as a backup kicker to see what it was like to endure an NFL training camp and get a behind the scenes book. You also might be interested to know that Broncotalk has secured an interview with Mr. Fatsis and we will be doing a review of the book to go along with it.

This article gives a fantastic look at Broncos training camp, all of the things you don’t see and hear about. It has me even more excited about getting my hands on this book. It goes into Shanahan’s meticulously detailed playbooks for every season he’s coached the Broncos. Of course he refers to the 97′ and 98′ binders the most. It proceeds to follow Shanahan into a press conference at training camp. “As a rule, Shanahan gives the media enough to file their stories but not enough to create distractions for himself or his players, or to draw attention to himself.”

The excerpt details Shanahan’s past as a QB, assistant coach at college, the pros, and finally a head coach of the Raiders and Broncos. It also has an interesting tidbit about Shanny coaching the Raiders and a mistake with an agenda he’ll never push again. Makes you wonder if this was one reason he didn’t go over well with the organization. Especially hearing Mike explain what he wanted to get and knowing the past history of that team. I’ll leave that nugget to Fatsis.

This article also shines a good spotlight on Denver’s torrid affair with Todd Sauerbrun. It becomes all the more relevant after recent events. Here is the discourse after Todd tested positive for Ephedra:

Shanahan tells me he found out about punter Todd Sauerbrun testing positive for the banned stimulant ephedra three days ago, on July 4, and summoned Todd to his office the next day. “You say, `Dumbs—. What are you doing? You know they’re looking at you. Why are you putting ephedra in your body?”‘ Under the NFL’s drug-testing rules — which are posted on a magnetic bulletin board next to a 32-inch Samsung flat-screen just inside the front entrance to the locker room — all players are subject to random testing up to six times between the final game of the season and the start of training camp. Because of an arrest for driving while impaired when he played for the Carolina Panthers (he pleaded guilty, was fined $100, and received a year’s probation), Todd can be tested year-round up to 24 times.

Shanahan says that Todd initially told him he had taken ephedra, available in any vitamin store, to lose weight. “Dietary thing,” Shanahan says. “Give me a break.” Rather, I learn from Broncos players and officials, Todd took the stimulant to increase stamina and endurance while weightlifting. For Shanahan, the suspension is a bureaucratic and media headache, and potentially a competitive one, too. But it’s not a new headache, and not one that especially upsets him. Steroids, marijuana, felony arrests, attitude problems — Shanahan has seen it all. “When you’re younger, it’s life and death: `Oh my God, how could this happen to me?’ ” he says. “When you get older, you understand it’s part of the profession and you deal with it.”

Good stuff there, I’m already mightily impressed with the juicy details Stephan was able to extract from training camp. This is almost as good as if the Broncos were to be featured on Hard Knocks. So without me relaying the entire article to you, read it for yourself.

Inside the Mind of Mike Shanahan [Wall Street Journal]

How Many Chances did Todd Sauerbrun Expect?

Wed, 29 May 2008 18:26:51 GMT

posted by broncotalk

Take every apology Todd Sauerbrun ever gave to fans and teammates, and every promise he made to coaches to stay on the straight and narrow, and throw them out the window.

Todd Sauerbrun doesn’t get it, never did, and apparently never will.

Yesterday the former Denver Broncos punter pleaded guilty to charges stemming from an altercation with a taxi cab driver that took place near the end of the 2007 season. The incident led to his release, upon which the Broncos claimed his belligerent behavior toward the police had more to do with his departure than anything else.

Outside of the court room Wednesday, Sauerbrun was quick to call out his former team, claiming that the Broncos didn’t do right by him.

“The Broncos didn’t give me a fair shot. I don’t think they did me right,” Sauerbrun said after being sentenced to 24 hours of community service for disturbing the peace. “I do feel ill about it.

“And their new motto about character guys? The guys I’ve seen them pick up, you’re going to tell me those are good character people? I think not.”

First, the Broncos did much more than give him a fair shot. They gave him two - and I’d venture to say both were much more than fair for the player. The first time around, the Broncos were willing to overlook Sauerbrun’s DWI arrest and steroid allegations that saw him kicked out of Carolina. Sauerbrun showed his thanks by earning a 4-game suspension for using the banned diet supplement ephedra. He was cut after his four-game suspension concluded in 2006.

(more...)

Denver Kicker Todd Sauerbrun Tries To Live Up To Our Feature On NFL Violence

Tue, 12 Dec 2007 17:00:00 GMT

posted by carnitas
When we ran our feature on NFL Violence last week, one of the players we highlighted was Giants kicker Lawrence Tynes, who once broke a bouncer's nose. Todd Sauerbrun must've laughed at this because he's now playing up the ante with all the kickers in the league. This past weekend, the Bronco-who was once suspended from the NFL for violating its banned substances list-decided to get into a little skirmish with a cabbie. We wonder if it was Michael Schumacher.

"He was cited for a municipal ordinance violation of simple assault that stemmed from an altercation with a cab driver," Detective John White, a police spokesman, told The Associated Press. "So Sauerbrun was not arrested, but he was transported to a local detox facility."

When he gets out, the troubles don't stop. He might be ex-Bronco Todd Sauerbrun by then.

Sauerbrun returned to Denver on a one-year, $1.4 million contract after being granted his release from the Patriots in the spring, and Broncos coach Mike Shanahan admonished him upon his return: "Just stay clean, just stay out of trouble."

Is a kicker really worth that much trouble? That's something you tell Tank Johnson before signing him to a game-to-game contract because he can stop the run, not the guy hitting 17-yard chip shot field goals. Earlier: NFL Violence Special Feature: Don't Blame The Player, Blame The Game Broncos' Sauerbrun faces assault charge [Sporting News] Image [Deadspin]

Sources: NFL suspends ex-Broncos P Sauerbrun

Fri, 2 Aug 2008 07:00:06 GMT

posted by nflmonday
Free agent punter Todd Sauerbrun has run afoul the NFL again. Two sources close to the situation said Sauerbrun has been suspended by the league for

8 Vote(s)