Broncos ready for revenge on Oakland Raiders

When the Denver Broncos faced off against the Oakland Raiders at home in 2010 the result was an embarrassing 59-14 defeat. On Monday, both teams will face off again in Denver on ESPN's Monday Night Football double header.

This time, things will be different.

A lot of things have changed in Denver since last season. Legendary Broncos quarterback John Elway returned to the team as the Vice President of Football Operations before the team hired defensive minded John Fox as Head Coach and Dennis Allen as the defensive coordinator.

Denver then brought in players to upgrade the rushing attack (e.g Willis McGahee and offensive tackle Orlando Franklin); the home stadium was renamed Sports Authority Field at Mile High and perhaps above all, 2nd overall draft pick Von Miller will be joining defensive end Elvis Dumervil as the team's top two pass rushers.

With all that said, the Broncos still haven't forgotten what happened last season.

"You definitely don't want that to happen again," said cornerback Champ Bailey. "And I guarantee that won't happen again."

The Raiders agree with Bailey.

“They are playing with so much excitement and one thing I’ll say about their defense — they run to the ball very well. You’ll see one guy make a tackle and then there are six or seven blue shirts in there around the ball," said Oakland quarterback Jason Campbell It’s a tough challenge because you look at them on defense and they are totally different.”

Without a doubt, things will be different this year, including several jersey numbers.

On Thursday, Broncos defensive end Jason Hunter switched to No. 90 -- a more defensive lineman-esque number which will precede fellow DE's Robert Ayers (91) and Elvis Dumervil (92) numerically -- and linebacker/special teams captain Wesley Woodyard switched to No. 52 (previously worn by Hunter). Woodyard said it marks a new beginning for him.

Former Broncos running back Terrell Davis will be featured during the game's coin toss and will be on-hand to see what Denver's new two-back tandem of shifty Knowshon Moreno and powerful Willis McGahee are capable of.

McGahee, in honor of Davis, wants to bring back the Mile High Salute, which was popularized when Davis was with the team in the 1990's.

"We've got to bring back the 'Salute,'" McGahee said on Wednesday. "We have to represent for the running backs, Terrell Davis and those boys. When those guys were there we knew Denver was coming in and running the ball. That's got to be our mindset - running the ball against whoever, whenever, whatever they put up. We're ready."

Kickoff is just four days away, get ready for the return of Broncos Football!

Broncos name Team Captains; Preparing for Oakland

Denver Broncos Head Coach John Fox announced four team captains on Thursday, as voted by their teammates.

On the offensive side of the ball, quarterback Kyle Orton and guard Chris Kuper will be the captains with cornerback Champ Bailey and Brian Dawkins the defensive leaders.

The special team's captain will be linebacker Wesley Woodyard, who held such honors the previous two seasons. Fox will also name another captain week-to-week. On Monday, defensive end Elvis Dumervil will be that captain.

Denver has been preparing all week for their Week One rivalry against the Oakland Raiders on Monday Night Football, and are eager to kick off the 2011 season. There are tickets still available to the game, which will sell out.

How do you pronounce...

Still wondering how you properly pronounce "Demaryius"? Wondering if you are saying "Moreno" correctly? We've got you covered.

• Knowshon MORENO (mo‐RAY‐no)

• LONIE Paxton (LAH‐nee)

• Elvis DUMERVIL (DOO‐mur‐vill)

• Matt Prater (PRAY‐ter)

• DEMARYIUS Thomas (duh‐MARE‐ee‐us)

• Russ HOCHSTEIN (HOKE‐stine)

• Mitch UNREIN (UN‐rhine)

On the injury front, there is good news out of Dove Valley. According to Lindsay Jones of the Denver Post, defensive tackle Brodrick Bunkley was back at practice Thursday, and will hopefully be ready to go in the team's season opener.

Meanwhile, defensive tackles Ty Warren and Marcus Thomas sat out practice and will miss the season opener, along with linebacker D.J. Williams who will miss a few months with an elbow injury.

Monday's game will be nationally televised on ESPN and broadcast locally on the Broncos Radio Network, KOA Radio (850 AM). Kickoff is scheduled for 10:15 pm (ET).

Over 2,000 Tickets Still Available To Broncos' Opener

As of Monday, September 5th, there are 2,226 game tickets still available to the Broncos Monday Night season opener against the Oakland Raiders on our TiqIQ widget. The Broncos will kick off the 2011 season on Monday, September 12th at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium against the rival Raiders, marking the 15th time the team's have faced off on MNF (the longest of such streak).

Tickets to the game are starting at $73, with the average ticket price coming in at $196, an average which is just $9 dollars more than the average price of a ticket to an NFL game this season. Dating back to 2000, the Broncos have won 11 straight home openers, the longest such streak in the NFL.

The game will kickoff the Broncos 52nd season, and could be an historic one. Second overall pick Von Miller (SLB), Rahim Moore (S) and Orlando Franklin (RT) are all expected to start, which would be the first time since 1973 that Denver has opened the season with three rookie starters. Meanwhile, veteran Brian Dawkins, who is entering his 16th season, will be joining Paul Krause and Eugene Robinson as the only other players in league history to play the safety position in 16 NFL seasons.

The Broncos own a 21-27-2 record against the Raiders at home, but have lost the past three and haven't beaten Oakland at home since 2007. Under new Coach John Fox, the team looks to turn that streak around. Denver owns a 20-10-1 Monday Night record at home and are aiming to make it 21-10-1 next week.

The game is sure to be an important one for the Broncos, who are looking to start the year off on the right foot. To see a complete list of tickets available to the game and ticket prices, see our TiqIQ page.

Broncos Busy With Labor Day Weekend Transactions

Happy Labor Day, Broncos Country. We trust you are having a great day, considering the Broncos Monday Night season opener is just one week away!

The Broncos have had a busy weekend with many transactions, kicked off on Saturday when the team released/waived 24 players to reach the 53-man roster. A day later, the team signed former New England Patriots cornerback Jonathan Wilhite and waived former second round draft selection Darcel McBath, a fellow defensive back. Finally, the team assembled it's eight-man practice squad.

Quarterback Adam Weber, running back Jeremiah Johnson, wide receiver Eron Riley and safety Kyle McCarthy highlight the squad, with each of the four players coming off stellar preseason performances. The players may practice with the team and can be added to the active roster during the regular season to fill the roster.

For up-to-the-minute updates on every Broncos transaction, 'Like' our Facebook page.