ENGLEWOOD - Special teams in Denver this season will be less redux and more redo.

Four men have overseen special teams in a dozen previous seasons under coach Mike Shanahan, with three switches since 2000. Yet while the bodies have been in motion, the principles of the third phase with the Broncos had remained fairly static.

"The playbook never changed," said Keith Burns, a longtime Broncos special teams captain and now part of the staff overseeing that realm.

Not anymore.

Change is at hand, and not just at the top.

Scott O'Brien, known as one of the premier special teams coaches in the NFL, is directing things. And with his arrival comes a completely revised playbook.

"We do things a little bit different," O'Brien said. "But it's done that way to help the players do their job better and give them a chance at doing it."

O'Brien's attention to detail has been evident from the jump in training camp.

Kicker Jason Elam, who has played under Richard Smith, Rick Dennison, Frank Bush and Ronnie Bradford before O'Brien, marveled earlier this week when the Broncos, in their third practice of camp, sprinted onto the field in a live, two-minute field- goal drill.

"We didn't even do field-goal team then," he said of his past experiences. "I'm not even sure if guys knew who was on field goal."

But under O'Brien, the game within the game and situational drills are a regular occurrence.

On Tuesday morning, the Broncos worked on a hurry-up scenario in which they were two points down, and with the clock ticking and not enough time to have the quarterback spike for a final three-point try, the field-goal unit rushed on and holder Paul Ernster took the snap, then spiked the ball.

"There's more intensity. And there's more time devoted to special teams now," Elam said.

On the sideline, the players have to be alert for quizzes on what-if scenarios from O'Brien instead of shooting the breeze.

O'Brien is fixed on leaving no stone unturned and makes sure players are thinking that way, too. He not only has Burns helping him get his points across, but assistants Jimmy Spencer and Ryan Slowik have, too.

"If we're not doing it, we're talking about it," said punter Todd Sauerbrun, who previously played under O'Brien with the Carolina Panthers from 2001 to 2004. "No matter how tedious and how minor it is, we're going to be prepared for every situation that will probably never even come up in games."

Even Burns, who made a nice living for more than a decade in the NFL on special teams, admitted he basically is learning his speciality "all over again" because of the new techniques, terminology and playbook revisions he's experiencing.

"He's a coach who takes the same approach that I did as a player," Burns said of O'Brien. "Whatever the circumstances, the approach is we can - and will - win with special teams."

O'Brien's teams historically have done that. His special teams units have accounted for 31 scores other than field goals and extra points in his 14 NFL seasons with the Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens and Panthers.

He has had at least one player reach the Pro Bowl on special teams in eight seasons, including Sauerbrun three times.

"They've got new rules about spiking the ball, where you can't spike the ball, and it applies to returners, too, or blocking a punt or kick. I'm good with that," O'Brien said. "But I want them to spike the ball. I want them to get to the end zone, and once you get there, you can spike the ball all you want."

The Broncos recently have taken a more passive approach to special teams. Last season, they ranked 31st in kickoff coverage, 31st in start after kickoff, 26th in gross punting and 23rd in penalties and didn't score by a return or block.

The team previously finished in the bottom eight in seven of 19 special teams statistical categories in 2005 and resided in the lower half in nine of 19 areas in 2004.

That's why Shanahan finally brought in someone with O'Brien's pedigree. Even so, it takes more than experience at the top - it requires players to execute properly.

"We have to have guys out there that want to get it done. And. I think, coming from upstairs, that's the mentality," Burns said.

It's Burns' contention there wasn't the full commitment necessary from some players during the past couple of seasons. Too many players outside the top 22 on offense and defense were worrying about their chances of cracking those units or lamenting infrequent snaps instead of embracing their special-teams contributions.

"I don't think it'll be a problem this year because I know what I'm looking for. I know what Scott is expecting out of them. So I figure you put my mentality with his, there shouldn't be too many cracks in there," Burns said.

The front office has been cognizant of special-teams contributions in building the roster, whether with the additions of players such as Steve Cargile and Quentin Harris last year or D.D. Lewis and Paul Smith this year.

So far, O'Brien has kept an open mind in assigning specific positions on the various units to players. He has gauged their skills and shuffled them around as needed to come up with the best mix. It's all part of his strict attention to detail.

"He knows everything. It's amazing," safety Curome Cox said. "It's almost like he's a mastermind when it comes to it. He'll tell you why. He'll tell you how. He knows exactly what it's going to take. And we're going to follow it."

Fixer-upper

Some rankings in major special-teams categories during the past three seasons by the Broncos.

Category 2006 2005 2004

Kickoff returns 22.0 20.7 21.2 23rd 25th 19th

Kickoff coverage 26.9 25.3 24.0 31st 29th 30th

Start after kickoff 23.5 25.5 26.8 31st 28th 29th

Opponents' start 27.1 28.1 28.1 after kickoff 17th 13th 12th

Gross punt 41.7 42.7 39.9 average 26th 15th 27th

Opponents' 43.8 44.9 44.7 gross punt avg. 21st 28th 32nd

Source: Stats Inc.

rasizerl@RockyMountainNews.com

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