texan279
Hall of Fame
From www.denverbroncos.com
Not long after he broke the huddle with the offensive unit for the first time at training camp, Bailey took off on his route, stopping and starting to freeze cornerback Willie Middlebrooks just after he got past the line of scrimmage. With that little bit of separation, Bailey zipped by and sprinted downfield, catching a pass from Jake Plummer in perfect stride, as if the two had connected hundreds of times before.
With that catch and some others during Tuesday afternoon's practice at the Broncos' facility, Bailey achieved a dream of which he spoke at his introductory press conference on March 4.
"I'm not shy about wanting to play offense," Bailey said in March. "I'm not shy about telling (Head) Coach (Mike) Shanahan that I want to do it. I will say it everyday that I want to do it, but it's up to him (Shanahan) to give me that opportunity. All I can do is take advantage of it. All I look for is the opportunity, and if he presents me with that, then I will take advantage of it."
Bailey then reiterated that sentiment a national television audience on ABC's Monday Night Football on Aug. 9, expressing once again a desire to reprise the two-way role at which he excelled at the University of Georgia.
Monday afternoon, the opportunity to do so arose.
"(The coaches) said they were going to do it, but you never actually know what you're going to get until they give you the packet, which they gave me about a week ago," Bailey said as he walked off the field following practice. "I've just been studying, trying to figure out what I'm going to do."
Bailey's efforts proved he'd been taking notes and doing his homework. He went long for that pass to beat Middlebrooks, but also did well going short for a pass from Plummer in front of rookie cornerback Roc Alexander.
He doesn't consider the offensive work to be a mere lark.
"Why waste your time? I don't think we're wasting any time," Bailey said. "They know I can play. They know I can do it, so they're not going to put me out there, and get my hopes up. I told them I wanted to it. They put me in there. We're going to do it."
Bailey last saw extensive action at receiver during the 1998 season at Georgia, his final campaign for the Bulldogs. He amassed 47 catches for 744 yards with five touchdowns during that year, one in which he participated in an average of 79.8 plays per contest.
But he only has three NFL receptions in five years. All came during the final four weeks of the 2000 season, with one grab for 24 yards at Dallas and then two catches for 54 yards in the Redskins' season-ending game against the Arizona Cardinals. He hopes more such opportunities are forthcoming.
"Hopefully (the work) will increase as time goes by, but I've got to get productive as time goes by, but I've got to get productive first," Bailey said. "I've got to get some catches first."
Not long after he broke the huddle with the offensive unit for the first time at training camp, Bailey took off on his route, stopping and starting to freeze cornerback Willie Middlebrooks just after he got past the line of scrimmage. With that little bit of separation, Bailey zipped by and sprinted downfield, catching a pass from Jake Plummer in perfect stride, as if the two had connected hundreds of times before.
With that catch and some others during Tuesday afternoon's practice at the Broncos' facility, Bailey achieved a dream of which he spoke at his introductory press conference on March 4.
"I'm not shy about wanting to play offense," Bailey said in March. "I'm not shy about telling (Head) Coach (Mike) Shanahan that I want to do it. I will say it everyday that I want to do it, but it's up to him (Shanahan) to give me that opportunity. All I can do is take advantage of it. All I look for is the opportunity, and if he presents me with that, then I will take advantage of it."
Bailey then reiterated that sentiment a national television audience on ABC's Monday Night Football on Aug. 9, expressing once again a desire to reprise the two-way role at which he excelled at the University of Georgia.
Monday afternoon, the opportunity to do so arose.
"(The coaches) said they were going to do it, but you never actually know what you're going to get until they give you the packet, which they gave me about a week ago," Bailey said as he walked off the field following practice. "I've just been studying, trying to figure out what I'm going to do."
Bailey's efforts proved he'd been taking notes and doing his homework. He went long for that pass to beat Middlebrooks, but also did well going short for a pass from Plummer in front of rookie cornerback Roc Alexander.
He doesn't consider the offensive work to be a mere lark.
"Why waste your time? I don't think we're wasting any time," Bailey said. "They know I can play. They know I can do it, so they're not going to put me out there, and get my hopes up. I told them I wanted to it. They put me in there. We're going to do it."
Bailey last saw extensive action at receiver during the 1998 season at Georgia, his final campaign for the Bulldogs. He amassed 47 catches for 744 yards with five touchdowns during that year, one in which he participated in an average of 79.8 plays per contest.
But he only has three NFL receptions in five years. All came during the final four weeks of the 2000 season, with one grab for 24 yards at Dallas and then two catches for 54 yards in the Redskins' season-ending game against the Arizona Cardinals. He hopes more such opportunities are forthcoming.
"Hopefully (the work) will increase as time goes by, but I've got to get productive as time goes by, but I've got to get productive first," Bailey said. "I've got to get some catches first."
