Ayers admits rookie season didn't go as planned

Photo by Amy Smotherman Burgess

Robert Ayers participates in a drill during ProDay workouts.

DENVER - As a senior at the University of Tennessee in 2008, Robert Ayers made a name for himself as a dominant defensive end.

A relative unknown by NFL scouts before his senior year with the Vols, Ayers' breakout season led to him being the No. 18 overall pick in the 2009 NFL draft. The Denver Broncos selected Ayers, with the idea that he would bolster the pass rush on a defense severely lacking in that area.

If Ayers is to be the player the Broncos project, however, he's got work to do.

"Some people come in and blow it up their first year and go on to great careers, but not everybody does that," the 6-foot-3, 274-pound Ayers said. "That's what I have to understand, that not everybody comes in their first year and just dominates. I'm one of the guys that didn't and it's a lot to learn from."

Used mostly as a reserve during the 2009 season, Ayers finished with just 18 tackles.

He didn't have any sacks.

"I didn't accomplish any of the things I wanted to do as a person and as a team, but it's definitely a learning experience and I definitely have a lot of things to improve on to get better," he said.

From the time he was drafted, Ayers has been learning. After playing as a defensive end in the Vols' 4-3 defense, Ayers was asked by the Broncos to be an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense.

The shift to the 3-4 was new for all the Broncos, not just Ayers, so he said he wouldn't use the change as an excuse.

"When you're drafted that high, you get those expectations that have to be met and I feel that I didn't meet my expectations of myself and also of where I got drafted," he said.

"I didn't do what I needed to do and I didn't work the way I needed to work and I didn't make the plays and help the team the way I wanted to."

Ayers did make one rather large play. During a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, he picked up a fumble and returned it 54 yards for a touchdown.

For the most part, Ayers spent his rookie year behind starters Elvis Dumervil and Mario Haggan on the depth chart. While Ayers didn't have the impact he wanted, Broncos coach Josh McDaniels said he wasn't disappointed in Ayers' season.

"Robert played basically every snap in our nickel packages and played a lot of football for us," McDaniels said. "He did a lot of things that we asked him to do."

However, Ayers didn't do enough, in his opinion, and he's intent on changing that during his second year.

"I'm just going to use what I've learned to become a better pro," he said. "The things that got me to where I am, I'm going to do those, but I'm going to do it harder. There's little things I've learned about being a pro that I'm going to do . . . but I'm just going to get back to what got me here - working hard, being coachable and just getting after it."

Brian Howell is a freelance contributor.