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Game-time decision Shanahan won't announce starting QB ahead of time
DENVER (AP) -- With Brian Griese's playing status still uncertain, the Gus Bus is revved up and ready to roll. Gus Frerotte, 4-2 as a starter this season, is eager to lead the Denver Broncos in their playoff opener Sunday at Baltimore if Griese is unable to play because of continuing problems with his right throwing shoulder. "You want to be out there. I feel like I've been in the battle with those guys and I'm pretty close with all the guys," Frerotte said. "To not go out there in the biggest game of the year so far for us would be pretty tough. But if I have to stand on the sidelines and do my job there, I'd be happy to do that also." Griese, the NFL's top-rated quarterback, practiced Thursday for the second day in a row, but head coach Mike Shanahan said he does not expect to decide on a starter until the hours before kickoff. Shanahan closed practices to the media this week, so it was impossible to tell how much progress Griese has made since aggravating his shoulder injury in the first quarter of Saturday's regular-season finale. He missed the previous five games with a separated shoulder. "We don't want to overdo it, but he's feeling better," Shanahan said. "We felt if we overwork it, we might set it back. The good part about it is he got a lot of work last week. He got all the reps and got back in the flow of things." Even if Griese does play, there is little guarantee he will survive the hazards of facing the NFL's second-ranked defense. Frerotte, who has grown accustomed to his on-call role, said coming off the bench has its psychological advantages. "It's not the same pressure on you before a game as if you were starting and everything's going through your head," he said. "When you're thrust in a game in the middle of a game, as you go along, you get warmed up and it all hits you. But you're already in the middle of a game before you realize what's happening." Meanwhile, the Broncos remain hopeful that running back Terrell Davis can return to the field this postseason. Davis missed the season's final six games because of a stress reaction in his lower left leg. He is wearing a protective boot but could be available if Denver (11-5) advances to the AFC championship.
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