Beadles out to start as a rookie

Football Betting Lines

08/28/2010 -

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) - Rookie hazing didn't spare Zane Beadles, whose mop of hair earlier this month was reduced to stubble by the Denver Broncos' veteran players.

``It still shocks me every time I walk in front of the mirror,'' Beadles said.

Nearly as startling: the second-rounder's rise to prominence as an offensive guard this summer.

An offensive tackle at the University of Utah, Beadles has spent the bulk of his first NFL summer learning the finer points of playing in more confined spaces in the pros, though his practice repetitions have increased at tackle since the official end of camp.

``It's been difficult at times,'' Beadles said, referring to his transition to guard. ``There's definitely some differences in all aspects of the game. And it's been an adjustment getting there but I'm getting more comfortable every single day. I've just got to keep working and I'll get there eventually.''

While he is again expected to start Sunday night in Denver's third preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Invesco Field, he may actually do so at tackle. Broncos coaches still are trying to gauge whether Beadles can be a viable option there, too.

Coach Josh McDaniels said Friday that there have been ``no decisions made on who's going to be our starting left guard as we start the season,'' adding that first-year player Stanley Daniels still has a chance to unseat Beadles.

Daniels will get early snaps at left guard against the Steelers, perhaps with Beadles playing alongside him, given that All-Pro left tackle Ryan Clady (knee) isn't ready for game activity just yet. Beadles also will play at left guard on Sunday.

``It just means both players are competing and competing hard to be that player,'' McDaniels said when asked whether his public pronouncement is a referendum on Beadles' play to date. ``I think both players understand that they're not where we want them to be - or probably where they want to be, either - as far as their consistency and level of play all the time.''

Beadles started the first two preseason games and played almost the entire time.

He's attempting to become a franchise rarity: a first-year offensive lineman starting the regular season opener. Only Claudie Minor (1974), Tom Glassic (1976), Mark Cooper (1983), Russell Freeman (1992) and Ryan Clady (2008) have done so previously for Denver.

Center J.D. Walton, a third-round pick out of Baylor, is virtually assured of joining that group. If Beadles plays alongside him in Jacksonville on Sept. 12, it means the training-camp roommates will become the first pair to start in the offensive trenches for the Broncos in a Week 1.

``We definitely get excited and look forward to going out there and playing,'' Beadles said. ``And it's nice to have someone there who's going though the same things as you that you can study with and bounce things off of. We've had a lot of fun with it so far and we've gone over things each day, 'Let's try to work on this.' It's been great so far.''

EXTRA POINTS: Several players sat out Friday's preparations for the third preseason game, including WR Brandon Stokley (groin); S Darcel McBath (forearm); NT Jamal Williams (undisclosed); TEs Richard Quinn (ankle) and Daniel Graham (undisclosed); WR Demaryius Thomas (foot) and DE Ben Garland (Air Force service commitment). ... ILB D.J. Williams is expected to make his preseason debut Sunday. He missed most of camp with an undisclosed injury and when he practiced he wore a non-contact jersey. Williams is practicing fully now. ... RBs Correll Buckhalter (neck/back) and LenDale White (leg) are practicing this week but it's a long shot that either plays Sunday, particularly Buckhalter. The team wants to proceed cautiously with the pair, although coach Josh McDaniels didn't completely rule them out.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Horse Betting

(This is an update of a sportsbook for the May 4th issue of ESPN The Magazine).

The Kentucky Derby's post-position draw happened on Wednesday. And, as is always the case, shortly afterwards, a buzz raced around Churchill Downs. It was a low rumble at first, nothing that the squares in the mint julep crowd pick up right away. But by the time the sun set over the twin spires, the chatter was impossible to ignore. Everyone -- sharps, trainers, owners -- was talking about one thing: the wise guy horse, the pre-draw long shot us mopes didn't have on our radar until it was too late.

"You think you're hearing the scoop," says handicapper Lane Gold. "Then you get to the window, the odds are short, and you missed it."

Recognizing a wise-guy horse early is as hard as picking a Derby bonnet. That's because handicappers don't like hype (see ya, I Want Revenge). They want Thoroughbreds who look good losing prep races like the Santa Anita Derby. They eye horses who ate up the field after starting wide or made an easy transition from synthetic tracks to dirt. They look for ponies who showed muscle gain race to race and those who ran hard after several weeks' rest.

"A wise guy," says John Avello, a bookmaker at Wynn Las Vegas, "looks for a horse who can improve."

When I first wrote Horse Betting for The Mag, which I turned in a three weeks before Wednesday's draw, I predicted these three horses had wise guy potential:

CHOCOLATE CANDY (15-1 in mid-April, currently 20-1 according to Avello): His second-place finish at Santa Anita, following a seven-week layoff, proved two things: He can run after resting, and -- by losing a high-profile prep race -- he wouldn't be overhyped.

DESERT PARTY (15-1; 15-1): He was upset in the UAE Derby by a horse he had beaten twice. The public remembers his loss, but the wise guys his wins.

PIONEEROF THE NILE (8-1; 4-1): The big favorite at Santa Anita struggled to win, so he initially got less hype than Quality Road and I Want Revenge.

You may have noticed that the odds on Pioneerof the Nile have been cut in half, from 8-1 to 4-1. Which means the wise guys took a shine to him long before the post-position draw. But, to be honest, this is one of those years with four elite horses getting everyone's attention, squares and sharps alike.

"You're not gonna get a lot of chatter about a horse that isn't in that group, which includes Pioneer, I Want Revenge, Dunkirk and Friesan Fire," Avello told me Wednesday. "We don't have a group of horses behind those top four who look like real legit contenders."

Come Derby week, the final two elements in picking a wise guy horse are how he's working out and what gate he's coming out of.

(By the way, picking a Preakness favorite is a whole different bale of hay, partially based on how horses finish in the Derby. You can see my analysis of who has the best shot at Pimlico on Insider Sunday morning.)

Well, early in the week I Want Revenge, Pioneerof the Nile and Friesan Fire were working out better than anyone. Some thought Friesan Fire, currently 6-1, might have run too fast, burning a five-furlong run in :57 4/5. "When you are running that fast you have the sense that it took something out of him," says Gold. "The Derby is longer than any horse has run, and if they need that extra surge you worry they won't have it because they burned it in the workout."

But, Gold points out, Friesan Fire's trainer is Larry Jones, Two years ago his horse Hard Spun did a five-eighths workout in :57 3/5 and then went on to finish second, behind Street Sense, in the Derby. "Every trainer has different methods," says Gold. "And clearly he knows what he's doing."

Now, as for starting position, Gold says to remember this: Churchill Downs traditionally has 14 starting gates. For the Derby, it brings out auxiliary gates and between the original 14th gate and the new 15th gate, there is a little more space than there is between gates 1-14. "That 15 position will give you a precious second or two to sort out what's happening to your inside," says Gold. "Sixteen is also okay because you can follow the horse in front of you."

Dunkirk, one of the race favorites, is coming out of gate 15. In 16 is Baffert's Pioneerof the Nile. I Want Revenge drew 13, where Smarty Jones won from in 2004, and Friesan Fire picked the sixth position. "He doesn't have a lot of speed to the inside of him," says Gold. "So he will get a clear shot to be near the front."

All the jibber-jabber means this: Pioneerof the Nile has leapfrogged from 8-1 to being the second favorite, along with Dunkirk, behind I Want Revenge. Meanwhile, Friesan Fire, with a good trainer, a strong week of training and a decent post position, is still at 6-1. "By Saturday, it's possible he could go from fourth to the favorite," says Gold.

In other words, meet Friesan Fire, your 2009 wise guy horse.

"Now," says Avello, "it's time for action."

To visit this horse betting site go to MySportsbook.com for all your horse racing betting needs.