By Mike Klis Denver Post Staff Writer Article Last Updated:11/24/2006 01:15:47 AM MST
Kansas City, Mo. - For starters, Jake Plummer had benchwarmer burned into his psyche.
Go get 'em, Jake. Win one for the clipboard and the baseball cap. Oh, and by the way: Mind holding for those Jason Elam extra points?
Prior to the Broncos' 19-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs here Thanksgiving night before a raucous, overflow Arrowhead Stadium crowd - but hardly a national television audience - speculation was rampant that win or lose, Good Jake or Bad Jake, Broncos coach Mike Shanahan had decided Plummer had started his last game as Broncos quarterback.
The conjecture was hardly surprising given Plummer's erratic play this season and the talent of his apparent successor, rookie Jay Cutler.
A bit baffling was why Plummer was left twisting amid such speculation before such a crucial divisional game.
"I'm the starter right now," Plummer said. "If Mike feels he wants to put Jay in there, then my play doesn't warrant him to not do it. So whatever he wants to do is what I have to go with."
Shanahan opened his postgame news conference with a statement. He then asked for questions. When the uncomfortable media throng hesitated to ask the question about the rumors swirling around Plummer, Shanahan walked off the podium. The media's pause was roughly 1 1/2 Mississippis. Shanahan's departure was immediate.
When approached later in the locker room, Shanahan said he was prepared to handle any questions at his news conference, but would not answer them individually.
The furor of the inevitable quarterback switch may have initially affected both the quarterback, who was shaky until a 3-minute drive near the end of the first half, and the team, which didn't exactly come out punching the Chiefs in their chinstraps.
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