Draft Scout Snapshot: A closer look at the Broncos' picks: Round 2/58 -- Montee Ball, RB, 5-10, 217, Wisconsin...Four days after declaring Willis McGahee the "big back" and Ronnie Hillman the "change of pace back," Elway and Fox drafted Ball, and immediately dubbed him the "three-down back." The all-time leader in touchdowns among Division I backs, Ball proved remarkably durable in spite of a massive workload. His arrival puts last year's team-leading rushers, McGahee and Knowshon Moreno, on notice. Although the Broncos don't have to cut one of them immediately, one won't be on the roster when the 2013 season begins, and whoever remains might be as insurance in case Ball falters. - The Sports Xchange
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Draft Scout Montee Ball News
04/29/13 - A closer look at the Broncos' picks: Round 2/58 -- Montee Ball, RB, 5-10, 217, Wisconsin...Four days after declaring Willis McGahee the "big back" and Ronnie Hillman the "change of pace back," Elway and Fox drafted Ball, and immediately dubbed him the "three-down back." The all-time leader in touchdowns among Division I backs, Ball proved remarkably durable in spite of a massive workload. His arrival puts last year's team-leading rushers, McGahee and Knowshon Moreno, on notice. Although the Broncos don't have to cut one of them immediately, one won't be on the roster when the 2013 season begins, and whoever remains might be as insurance in case Ball falters. - The Sports Xchange
04/29/13 - Alabama running back Eddie Lacy was an option for the Broncos at the 58th selection, but they passed on him in favor of Montee Ball because of health concerns, particularly about a troublesome toe that has been bothersome since 2011. "Bottom line is we looked at the medical," Elway said. "It really came down to the medical side and that's what tilted the scales to Montee." Lacy dealt with toe problems throughout his career at Alabama. Ball was heavily used at Wisconsin, posting six 30-carry games in his last 17 there. But he didn't miss a game in his last two seasons in spite of racking up 663 carries in the 2011 and 2012 seasons. "At the end of the day, when a running back stays healthy, I think that's a good sign, not a bad sign," Fox said. - The Sports Xchange
04/29/13 - When the Broncos selected Wisconsin running back Montee Ball with the 58th overall pick in the second round, the future of their veteran running backs became murky. Although 2012 third-round pick Ronnie Hillman appears to have a place in the mix as what executive vice president John Elway termed a "change of pace" back, it appears that at least one of the other returning veterans must go from a group that includes Willis McGahee, Knowshon Moreno, Lance Ball and Jacob Hester. Hester could end up keeping his spot because he can line up at fullback, but there might not be room for Moreno and McGahee. Elway said McGahee was the team's big back "right now" at an April 22 pre-draft press conference, but letting him go would be less damaging to the salary cap and create less dead money than releasing Moreno, even though Moreno is in the last year of his contract.
But if the Broncos wanted to create salary-cap room elsewhere, they could cut linebacker Joe Mays, who is out of the mix at middle linebacker after being the season-opening starter last year. That would give Denver the option of keeping all of their running backs, then letting the natural attrition process weed at least one of them out during training camp. "We've got a great stable of guys there. We went through a few of them, too, throughout the season," said Broncos coach John Fox. "This game, you know, you bring guys in and let them compete and the guys that play the best you let them play. So, it's a good position to be in and we think he can definitely help." - The Sports Xchange
03/07/13 - 2013 Wisconsin Pro Day: Wisconsin running back Montee Ball said a sinus infection contributed to his pedestrian 40 time at the NFL Scouting Combine last month, when his 4.66 was 19th out of 33 tailbacks who worked out Feb. 24 at Lucas Oil Stadium. Ball improved his time dramatically at Wednesday's workout, posting times ranging from 4.46 to 4.51 on handheld stopwatches of scouts for 25 teams, including Packers general manager Ted Thompson. Thompson took a moment to visit with Ball. "I knew I was capable of getting under a 4.50, but 4.46? I was very proud of myself," Ball told reporters.
Ball, projected as a third-round pick after his junior season, returned to Wisconsin despite the loss of key offensive linemen - including 2012 second-round pick Peter Konz and first-rounder Kevin Zeitler - and quarterback Russell Wilson to the NFL. He rushed for 1,830 yards as a senior, finished with 83 career touchdowns, an NCAA record, and 5,140 career rushing yards. "Really, what I wanted to show them (is that) my weaknesses, I'm going to keep working on," Ball said. "My weakness has always been top-end speed. Hopefully, I showed today I've been working on that."
Ball said Thompson praised him for the good things he has seen from evaluting Wisconsin's game tape and told him "you know how to play football." The Packers don't know how to run the football, averaging 3.9 yards per carry as a team. Alex Green led Green Bay in rushing with 464 yards but averaged 3.4 yards per carry. Ball said he isn't thinking about being drafted by the Packers, or in the first round, even. "I would love to go first round, but honestly, I just want to get drafted," he said. - Jeff Reynolds, The Sports Xchange
03/07/13 - 2013 Wisconsin Pro Day: Montee Ball impresses at Wisconsin’s pro day...Representatives from 28 NFL teams - including Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson - gathered in Madison for Wisconsin’s pro day on March 6, where six players from Wisconsin, one from Minnesota-Duluth and another player from Wisconsin-Platteville worked out. The pro day was held indoors and 40-yard dash times were considered fast due to a special surface installed for the event.
Montee Ball, RB (5-foot-10 3/4, 210 pounds) - Ball ran the 40-yard dash in 4.51 and 4.49 seconds. He had a 4.31-second short shuttle and a 11.26-second 60-yard shuttle. Ball’s 40 times were considerably faster than the 4.66 official time he posted at the NFL Scouting Combine, but a fast running surface could be partly responsible for that improvement. Ball - the Football Bowl Subdivision record-holder for most career touchdowns (83) - looked very good in his workout, and could be the second running back off the board in the 2013 NFL Draft. - Gil Brandt, NFL.com
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