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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) -- No. 30 is back for the Denver Broncos. Not spectacular yet, but on his way.
|  | | Terrell Davis had six carries for 24 yards in his first action since a season-ending knee injury last Oct. 3. |
Terrell Davis, the league's MVP in Denver's 1998 Super Bowl season, carried the ball on the Broncos' first two offensive plays
Saturday night in his first action since his season-ending knee injury last Oct. 3.
Brian Griese threw for one touchdown and backup Gus Frerotte
threw for two as Denver beat the Arizona Cardinals 31-17 on a
sweltering night with the temperature at kickoff 101 degrees and
thunderstorms looming in the distance.
Davis played the entire first quarter with the rest of Denver's
first unit. He gained 24 yards on six carries, including a long
gain of seven.
"This was a big step for me," Davis said, "but it's not the last step on this journey. There's still a ways to go, but I definitely made some progress."
Davis said he was a bundle of nerves before kickoff.
"I had a thousand different emotions," he said. "I was extremely nervous and I couldn't figure out how to approach the game, whether as a rookie or a 10-year veteran. I was real
nervous."
That ended when he took a handoff from Griese for a 2-yard gain
on the Broncos' first offensive play.
"It was nice to see Terrell get out there and play and get six
runs and get in there and mix it up in pass protection," Denver
coach Mike Shanahan said. "A lot of people say that it takes a
year to come back, so for him to go out there and play like he did
was very positive."
Griese, playing only the first quarter, was 5-for-8 for 61
yards. Gus Frerotte, playing most of the rest of the game, was
12-for-21 for 134 yards.
The Broncos lost two backup receivers for the season, though.
Chris Doering went out with an ankle injury early in the second
quarter, and rookie Muneer Moore left with a fractured left ankle
early in the third.
Michael Pittman, battling rookie Thomas Jones for the No. 1
running back spot for Arizona, had a strong first quarter. He
gained 51 yards on six carries, including a 20-yard run on the
Cardinals' opening touchdown drive.
Jones, the sixth overall pick in the draft, had a rough night,
gaining 18 yards on eight carries. His longest run of 10 yards
ended when he fumbled the ball away, a turnover that led to Jason
Elam's 39-yard field goal in the third quarter.
"He played like a rookie playing in his first ballgame,"
Arizona coach Vince Tobin said. "I thought he was trying to make
too many moves rather than just making one move and go."
Arizona, which didn't score a touchdown in the first quarter all
last season, got one on a quick opening drive as Jake Plummer
tossed a 39-yard scoring pass to Rob Moore 1:45 into the game.
"That's what we wanted to do, set the tempo offensively,"
Plummer said. "I think you could see what we can be."
Denver tied it 7 on Griese's 18-yard pass to Rod Smith with 3:38
left in the first. The Broncos took the lead for good 14-7 on Jimmy
Spencer's 45-yard interception return 59 seconds into the second
quarter.
Arizona used a fake punt on fourth-and-1 from the Cardinals 35
on the final play of the first quarter for a first down at the 40.
But two plays later Plummer, falling backwards under the intense
rush of blitzing Eric Brown, threw over the middle and was
intercepted by Spencer, who raced untouched to the end zone.
"That's a problem we're trying to eliminate," Tobin said,
"and we haven't eliminated it."
Plummer said he made the correct read on the pass, which was
intended for David Boston. But Boston never looked for the ball.
"It wasn't a poor decision on my part. It wasn't a poor read by
anybody. It was just a miscommunication," Plummer said.
Plummer, who threw an NFL-high 24 interceptions last season, was
3-for-3 for 67 yards on the opening drive and finished 4-for-9 for
77 yards.
Two plays after Plummer's interception, Arizona backup
quarterback Dave Brown was picked off by Eric Brown at the
Cardinals 40. Six plays later, on third-and-goal, Frerotte threw
seven yards to tight end Desmond Clark for a touchdown to make it
21-7 with 11:16 left in the second quarter.
Frerotte also had a 24-yard touchdown pass to Andre Reed to put
Denver up 31-10 early in the fourth.
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ALSO SEE
NFL Scoreboard
Denver Clubhouse
Arizona Clubhouse
Terrell Davis to play Saturday for first time since knee surgery
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