Broncos

Moves Baseball ANGELS -- Agreed with OF Torii Hunter on five-year, $90 million contract. Football BRONCOS -- Signed FB Kyle Johnson. Released G Isaac Snell. TITANS -- Signed WR Mike Williams. Hockey BRUINS -- Recalled D Matt Hunwick from Providence (AHL). CAPITALS -- Fired coach Glen Hanlon. Named Bruce Boudreau interim coach. Named Bob Woods interim coach of Hershey (AHL). SENATORS -- Recalled C Alexander Nikulin from Binghamton (AHL). WILD -- Claimed LW Todd Fedoruk off re-entry waivers from Stars.

With the Imus-Rutgers controversy, the Duke lacrosse case and the NFL's verdict on two bad-behaving players, last week was particularly disheartening to fans who look to sports for justice, fairness and positive reinforcement of their values. "Hopefully," Domonique Foxworth said by phone from Denver late last week, "I can help." Foxworth - who grew up in Randallstown, played at Western Tech and Maryland, and now is a cornerback for the Broncos - already has helped. In the case of the NFL's lengthy suspensions of the Tennessee Titans' Adam "Pacman" Jones and Cincinnati Bengals' Chris Henry, Foxworth didn't help directly, but he came close.

FOR THE RECORD Moves Baseball BRAVES -- Agreed with P Jose Ascanio, P Blaine Boyer, P Lance Cormier, P Kyle Davies, P Joey Devine, P Anthony Lerew, P Peter Moylan, P Chad Paronto, P Chuck James, P Macay McBride, IF Willy Aybar, IF Kelly Johnson, IF Tony Pena and IF Martin Prado on one-year contracts. Renewed contracts of OF Jeff Francoeur and P Phil Stockman. DODGERS -- Agreed with IF Wilson Betemit, P Yhency Brazoban, P D.J. Houlton, OF Andre Ethier, C Russell Martin, IF Wilson Valdez, P Eric Stults, OF Delwyn Young, P Mike Megrew, IF Andy LaRoche, IF James Loney and OF Matt Kemp on one-year contracts.

PHILADELPHIA -- These are the times that we live in. We've become hardened, numbed and desensitized to the violence and death that have become an everyday part of our society. Denver Broncos cornerback Darrent Williams was killed early on the morning of Jan. 1, gunned down while sitting in a stretch limousine after leaving a New Year's Eve party. About nine hours earlier, he had played in the Broncos' last game of the season - a shocking overtime loss at home to the San Francisco 49ers that eliminated Denver from the playoffs.

Denver -- Let's start banging down the doors to the Pro Football Hall of Fame for Terrell Davis. Anybody who votes to keep him out does not know the game. Ask yourself this: Needing 3 yards to move the chains on third down in the tense, final minutes of a tied game, who ya gonna call to carry the rock? The No. 5 worn by Paul Hornung, given a Hall pass only because he appeared golden when reflected in the glory of the Green Bay Packers dynasty? Or the No. 30 on the sturdy back of T.D., who twice carried the Broncos to the NFL championship?

Moves Baseball ANGELS -- Placed IF Erick Aybar on 15-day DL. Activated IF Howie Kendrick from 15-day DL. ATHLETICS -- Placed OF Travis Buck on 15-day DL. Recalled IF J.J. Furmaniak from Triple-A Sacramento. METS -- Acquired former Orioles OF Jeff Conine from Reds for SS Jose Castro and OF Sean Henry. ORIOLES -- Activated IF Freddie Bynum from 15-day DL. Optioned IF Brandon Fahey to Triple-A Norfolk REDS -- Recalled IF Jorge Cantu from Triple-A Louisville. TIGERS -- Activated P Joel Zumaya from 15-day DL. Optioned P Aquilino Lopez to Triple-A Toledo.

AFC EastDan Marino of the Dolphins has beaten the Jets 17 times in 28 career decisions. The Jets may have wasted their money when they gave Steve Atwater a three-year, $8.25 million deal after he was cut by the Broncos. The Broncos were pulling him on passing downs last year because he appeared to lose a step, and now the Jets are doing the same thing. Bruce Smith has gone to four Super Bowls with the Bills, but he says this is their best defense. The return of LB Ted Johnson to the Patriots' lineup has stiffened the defense and helped them hold Emmitt Smith to 75 yards last week.

QuestionsWhat's up with Titans RB Eddie George? He's averaging 2.9 yards a carry this season, gained only 26 yards on 15 carries against the 49ers, and has almost as many yards receiving (181) as rushing (222).Are the unbeaten Rams for real? We'll know shortly. They play San Francisco on Sunday and are 1-17 against the 49ers this decade with 17 straight losses.What has happened to Cardinals QB Jake Plummer? In four games, he's completing 48.9 percent of his passes with only two touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

Interviewed twice in the past 12 months for coaching openings in the NFL, Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Gary Kubiak could be introduced as Colorado University's coach as early as tomorrow, the Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News reported yesterday.He would replace Rick Neuheisel, who was hired a week ago by the University of Washington.Kubiak was a candidate for the Dallas Cowboys' vacancy last February, and earlier this month interviewed with Cleveland Browns president Carmen Policy about the coaching job with that expansion team.

MIAMI -- Let's say the Denver Broncos beat the Atlanta Falcons tonight in the Super Bowl at Pro Player Stadium. It's hardly a given, but let's just say they do. What do we make of the Broncos then?They'd want you to believe they're one of the best teams in NFL history, one of only six to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles. And they could be working on their third in a row, a feat no team has accomplished, if they hadn't blown an easy trip to the Super Bowl two years ago with a home playoff loss to Jacksonville.

Ravens run offense vs. Broncos run defense: Ray Rice has been one of the NFL's most explosive runners, with five carries of more than 20 yards. His 6-yard average ranks sixth among running backs with at least 10 carries. The Ravens, though, haven't run the ball more than 18 times during their three-game losing streak. Denver defensive coordinator Mike Nolan added sure-tackling veterans to transform a porous run defense into one of the NFL's best. Denver is third in the league against the run and is allowing just 3.3 yards per carry.

Broncos OLB Elvis Dumervil vs. Ravens OT Jared Gaither Gaither has missed the past two games and has been inactive for three weeks because of a neck injury. He gets to come back against Dumervil (92), one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. Dumervil is more power than finesse. He likes to use leverage and, like most great pass rushers, is relentless in trying to get to the quarterback. Gaither was struggling earlier in the season when he was healthy. The Ravens will have to give him help against Dumervil, at least until the rust comes off. Edge: Dumervil: Broncos CB Champ Bailey vs. Ravens WR Derrick Mason It will be interesting to see how the Ravens handle Bailey (24)

1 Brandon Marshall rips the secondary. The Ravens have struggled to contain big receivers downfield (remember Vincent Jackson, Chad Ochocinco and Sidney Rice?). And Marshall, 6 feet 4 and 230 pounds, might be better than those wide-outs. 2 Denver's pass rush closes the pocket on Joe Flacco. The Broncos are tied for second in the NFL with 21 sacks. Flacco was sacked a season-high three times last game. 3 Broncos continue second-half domination. The Ravens have done an admirable job in the fourth quarter, outscoring teams 66-39.

The Ravens have not contacted the Denver Broncos about disgruntled wide receiver Brandon Marshall, but they are doing their homework on the Pro Bowl playmaker, a team source said Tuesday. It might take first- and third-round draft picks to acquire Marshall, one of the top young wide receivers in the game, but he would immediately shore up an area that is considered a weakness for the Ravens. The Chicago Bears, who traded for Denver quarterback Jay Cutler this offseason, also might be interested in Marshall.

Mike Shanahan became the latest and most stunning victim of the NFL coaching purge, fired yesterday by the Denver Broncos after a late-season collapse kept the team out of the playoffs for the third straight year. Shanahan joined Eric Mangini, Rod Marinelli and Romeo Crennel in the unemployment line after going 24-24 over the past three seasons, including three straight losses to end this season that turned a three-game division lead into an 8-8 record. Despite that, and the 52-21 loss to the San Diego Chargers that ended Denver's season Sunday night, this was a shocker: the ouster of a man who coached the Broncos for 14 seasons and brought two Super Bowl titles to a city yearning for a championship and was considered by many to be "coach for life."

Joseph Turner's 17-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter gave No. 11 Texas Christian its first lead of the night, which the Horned Frogs preserved for a 17-16 victory over No. 9 and previously undefeated Boise State in the Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego. Boise State (12-1) was trying to finish 13-0 for the second time in three seasons. The Broncos took a 10-0 lead on Ian Johnson's 20-yard touchdown run midway through the first quarter, but their high-scoring offense bogged down against TCU's fast, aggressive defense.

The Cowboys are chasing a wild-card berth because they lost QB Tony Romo for three games to a broken finger. But if they miss the playoffs altogether, it'll probably be because of their December tradition of folding. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram pointed out last week that the Cowboys are 18-36 after Nov. 30, including five straight playoff losses, over the past 11 seasons. They haven't won a playoff game since 1996. Their cakewalk over the Seahawks on Thanksgiving Day notwithstanding, the Cowboys have their work cut out if they're going to avoid another December swoon.

Jay Cutler turned Brady Quinn's big night into his own prime-time showcase. Cutler passed for a career-high 447 yards, throwing three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter - the last an 11-yarder to Brandon Marshall with 1:14 left - to rally the broken Denver Broncos to a 34-30 road win last night over the Cleveland Browns, spoiling Quinn's highly hyped debut as an NFL starter. The Broncos (5-4) entered the fourth quarter trailing 23-13, but Cutler, borrowing a page from John Elway's playbook, brought Denver back.

Broncos (4-4) @Browns (3-5) TIME, TV: : 8:15, NFL Network LINE: : Broncos by 3 FANTASY FACTOR: : Denver QB Jay Cutler has four 300-yard passing games, one shy of the club record shared by John Elway and Brian Griese, and is on pace to set club records for passing yards, touchdowns and completions in a season. ... Cleveland has 13 sacks through eight games. Last season, it had just seven at the halfway point. THE BUZZ: : The Broncos have won the past seven meetings dating to 1990. ... Since 1975, Denver is 17-2 - including playoffs - against the Browns.

Broncos (4-2) @Patriots (3-2) Time, TV: : 8:30, ESPN Line: : Patriots by 3 The Buzz: : After scoring 38 points per game in their first three games, the Broncos are averaging only 17.3 in the past three. The Patriots aren't thriving without Tom Brady, but Matt Cassel has been respectable in his first two home games, completing 65.3 percent with two touchdown passes and one interception. Michael Pittman, the Broncos' latest starting running back, is coming off a 109-yard day in a loss to the Jaguars.