Some catching up to do

ENGLEWOOD - Denver Broncos receiver Ashley Lelie expects big things from himself this season.

"To get to the Pro Bowl," Lelie said. "Seriously."

The Broncos may not need Lelie to be a Pro Bowl player this season, but they are relying on him to be better than he was in 2003, a season he said was disappointing.

The Broncos' offense lost Clinton Portis, Shannon Sharpe and Ed McCaffrey in the offseason, and Denver could be in some trouble if Lelie doesn't play to his ability. Unlike last season, when he disappeared at times after a fantastic training camp, Lelie said he's going to be more productive.

"I'm going to get the opportunity to make more plays," Lelie said. "Last year I didn't have as many opportunities because Shannon and C.P. and Ed (were in the offense), but now those guys are gone. So who's next in line?"

Lelie was out of practice Tuesday with a bruised lower back and hip. Coach Mike Shanahan said Lelie had a magnetic resonance imaging test that showed no major problem. Shanahan said Lelie shouldn't be out of practice too long.

The Broncos need Lelie because they have little proven depth.

Last season Lelie started fairly well, with a pair of touchdowns through four games and a 108-yard game against Oakland in Week 3. But he didn't score another touchdown and had only 37 catches despite more playing time at receiver than any Bronco other than Rod Smith.

"It all comes down to me," Lelie said. "I got to make the plays."

Lelie needs another good start to help his confidence and the team's confidence in him, and he can't afford long droughts like last year.

"A guy like Rod (Smith), he already had my respect before I got here, but a guy like Ashley has to get my respect in games," quarterback Jake Plummer said. "They got to make those plays. Early in the year last year, (Lelie) did. He had a couple of plays he could have made for us later in the year. I think everybody knows Ashley's situation."

The Broncos continue to promote Lelie, just like last season. Shanahan, who in his season wrapup in January said Lelie played worse last season than he did as a rookie, said at the start of training camp Lelie "is going to have a heck of a year" because of his offseason strides.

Lelie said he was a regular at headquarters a month before offseason workouts started and he had 100-percent attendance in the offseason workouts, which has helped make him stronger.

"It's just not a six-month job; it's a yearlong job and I think Ashley has grown to understand how tough it is to compete at this level," Shanahan said.

Lelie made a couple of big plays late last season to show some promise. He made a 46-yard catch in the final seconds of regulation to set up the tying field goal in an overtime win against Cleveland on Dec. 14. The next week he caught a 60-yard pass in the first quarter at Indianapolis to set the tone of a 31-17 playoff-clinching win.

"There have been some (firstround picks) who have (played) and didn't know what they where doing, and they were called 'busts,' " Smith said. "He's nowhere close to that.

"He's still the guy who made the big catch down the sideline when we needed to get to the playoffs against the Colts, he's the guy that caught the big bomb down the sideline against Cleveland in a close game when we needed to get to the playoffs. So it's not like the ability is not there."

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