| By Andrew Mason
DenverBroncos.com
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver continued the process of tweaking its roster on the fly Tuesday afternoon, adding former San Diego Chargers cornerback Ryan McNeil just five days before the Broncos and Chargers duel at INVESCO Field at Mile High.
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The ballhawking cornerback has been out of football since San Diego waived him prior to the start of the regular season. In the first 10 seasons of his career, McNeil notched 31 interceptions, including nine in his two seasons with the Chargers -- eight of which came in 2001, a year which saw him earn a starting slot for the AFC All-Stars in the Pro Bowl.
With 157 games of experience, the 11-year veteran cornerback immediately becomes the second-most senior member of the Broncos' defense, and the oldest Broncos defensive player whose duties involve just playing. Player/coach Jimmy Spencer is the only Denver defender with more NFL experience; he has played in 170 games during a career that has spanned 12 seasons.
McNeil has spent the vast majority of his career as a starting cornerback. After starting only two games in his rookie season with the Lions, he started 13 in 1994, notching 58 total tackles and an interception. Since then, McNeil has posted over 50 total tackles each year, posting a career high of 101 (including 73 solo stops) with the Dallas Cowboys in 1999. He has also posted at least one interception in all but one of his seasons in the league; the only year without a pick was 1999 with Cleveland, although he did recover a career-best four fumbles that season.
Up until last year, McNeil had proven to be a remarkably durable player. After missing a pair of 1994 games with a sore ankle, McNeil played in the next 130 consecutive games. That streak ended last year -- coincidentally enough, against the Broncos, when a fractured arm forced him to sit out the Chargers' overtime win of Dec. 1, 2002. He returned one week later, but the Chargers released him at the final cutdown this past August.
The last two-plus months mark the first time that McNeil has been out of pro football since he joined the league 10 years ago as a rookie from the University of Miami. McNeil spent four seasons with the Detroit Lions (1993-96) before moving on to St. Louis to play the 1997 and 1998 campaigns with the Rams. Since then, McNeil has played for three different teams: the revived Cleveland Browns (1999), the Cowboys (2000) and the San Diego Chargers (2001-02).
McNeil takes one of two open roster slots. The spaces on the 53-man squad were created by last week's decision to place linebacker John Mobley on injured reserve and the league-mandated, four-game suspension of Mike Anderson, which was officially announced early on Tuesday.
The 11-year veteran becomes the second former Chargers cornerback added to the Broncos' roster in less than a month. A month ago, the Broncos added eight-year veteran Scott Turner, who concluded his San Diego tenure at the end of the 2001 season before spending the following fall out of the game.
Denver also made a pair of moves on its practice squad, releasing guard/center Chris Watton and adding center Blane Saipaia. Saipaia is an alumnus of Colorado State University who spent the 2000 season with the New Orleans Saints on their practice squad before bouncing to the Tennessee Titans, the Barcelona Dragons of the NFL Europe League and then onto the Raiders, from whom he was released this past August. Saipia earned first-team All-Mountain West Conference honors during his 1999 senior season at CSU. | |
