To get an idea of the array of talent available to the two-time defending Super Bowl champions, just check them out from one end of the line to the other

Behind a wall of the ablest blockers in the NFL, Davis has rushed for 5,296 yards over the past three seasons.   Jeff Carlick/Endzone

The king is retired and peddling automobiles; long live the king. With John Elway an ex-Bronco, the question is not whether Terrell Davis is ready to carry the team to an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl. (TD had a perfect attendance record at off-season workouts, and he says he's in the best shape of his life.) The question is, can the guys in front of him keep opening the holes?

Are the men behind the Man up to the job? We turn our attention to one Matt Lepsis, a mild-mannered 25-year-old from Frisco, Texas, in whose crew cut the odd gray hair can already be discerned. You would age prematurely, too, if you were seen as a potential weak link in an otherwise airtight unit; if you came to work every day for Alex Gibbs, the Broncos' line coach whose motto is: Dumb guys get you fired.

The NFL's best offensive line relies heavily on timing, synchronization and communication. That's why Gibbs professes to dislike playing a tenderfoot, grumbling, "Let somebody else get them through their growing pains." Perhaps Denver fans should be less concerned about how Bubby Brister will fare in Elway's stead and worry more about the fact that last year's starting right tackle, Harry Swayne, signed a free-agent contract with the Ravens. His replacement is the callow Lepsis, a third-year player and former Colorado tight end who sat out his rookie season with a knee injury and has never started an NFL game. Will Swayne's departure become an obstacle to the three-peat?

The truth is, the Broncos' brass is looking forward to seeing the gifted Lepsis in action. While it was the pass-protection skills he demonstrated in college that caught the attention of Denver coach Mike Shanahan, the ex-Buffalo can also open holes. Filling in at right tackle for 21-2 quarters against the Dolphins in last year's divisional playoff, Lepsis helped pave the way for 250 rushing yards in the Broncos' 38-3 rout. If Lepsis falters, Gibbs can plug in Trey Teague, a second-year tackle out of Tennessee the club is also high on.

It seems almost unfair that at the same time it has the NFL's finest running back, Denver should be so loaded on the line, for now and seemingly well down the road. The Broncos have four returning starters in center Tom Nalen, 28; right guard Dan Neil, 25; left guard Mark Schlereth, 33; and left tackle Tony Jones, 33. The newcomer, Lepsis, is only one of a half-dozen immensely talented young linemen the organization has stockpiled since '94, when it drafted Nalen. He became a starter a year later, played in the last two Pro Bowls and has emerged as the leader of this unit. In April '97 the Broncos gave up four picks (a third-rounder, two sixths and a seventh) for the right to select Neil in the third round; the former Texas lineman was superb in starting every game last season. Gibbs, who even raves about backups Teague and K.C. Jones, predicted last January that his group could turn out to be the best offensive line of all time.

However, Nalen somewhat irreverently suggests that Gibbs enjoys a bit of turnover in his core group. "I think it keeps things interesting for him, challenging new players," Nalen says.

Shanahan disagrees. "There's nothing boring about returning five starters," he says. "It's just that nowadays it's hard to do."

Which leads to the larger question looming over the defending champs: Will success on the scale Denver has enjoyed lead to complacency? Not if Shanahan has anything to say about it. In the victorious Super Bowl locker room last January, Shanahan's final words to the team were, "Off-season workouts start tomorrow, 'cause we're going for three!"

Attendance at those workouts was better than ever. "You've got to give Mike credit," says offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak. "He signs a guy like Dale Carter" -- the former Chief was the finest cornerback on the free-agent market -- "which tells our guys, we're not interested in being as good as we were last year, we want to be better."

Schlereth, who continues to play at a Pro Bowl level despite undergoing his 23rd and 24th surgeries in the off-season (both were on his left elbow), says complacency isn't an issue. "John's not here, that's a challenge. Three in a row, that's a challenge. We've got new challenges," he says. "It's not like we're sitting around saying, 'Oh yeah, we've won two Super Bowls, been there, done that.'"

With all due respect to Elway, his former teammates seem poised to go there and do that again.

-- Austin Murphy

Fast Facts

1998 RECORD: 14-2 (1st in AFC West)
     NFL rank (rush/pass/total): offense 2/7/3; defense 3/26/11

1999 SCHEDULE STRENGTH (rank): 4 (tie)
     Opponents' 1998 winning percentage: .535; Games against playoff teams: 6

Player to Watch

Steve Atwater is with the Jets in part because the Broncos' brass felt it had a capable replacement in Eric Brown, the latest in Denver's line of molar-rattling free safeties. The six-foot, 210-pound, second-year pro out of Mississippi State is a former high jumper who now specializes in jumping receivers who encroach on his turf. "This guy blows people up," says defensive coordinator Greg Robinson. Brown started 10 games at strong safety last season, then disappeared from the lineup after annoying coach Mike Shanahan. Brown came back from a groin pull too soon and reinjured himself but didn't tell Shanahan, who benched him for the rest of the season. Now Brown's back in the lineup, drilling opponents like a young Atwater.

Other Info

1999 Team Schedule
Team Depth Chart