With winning TD catch, Eddie Mac is back

DENVER -- Ed McCaffreywaited nearly a year for this moment, and he didn't disappoint.

Overcome by emotion to the point of being breathless in the first quarter, the Denver Broncos wide receiver made a triumphant return Sunday after a potentially career-ending injury.

McCaffrey, who broke both bones in his lower left leg in the season opener last year, caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from Brian Griese with 5:55 left, and the Broncos beat the St. Louis Rams 23-16.

"It felt great just to be back here as part of the team again," McCaffrey said. "Sitting around for a year, every day you're kind of biding your time until you get back on the field. Until you're actually there, you can't realize that dream of coming back.

"Everything wasn't perfect. My emotions were so high in that first quarter I could barely breathe, but finally I settled down."

McCaffrey finished with two catches for 50 yards, and both were big.

He hauled in a 27-yarder to help set up the Broncos' first score in the opening quarter. Then, four plays after the Broncos gambled and succeeded on fourth down, he made a sliding touchdown catch.

Afterward, with the crowd chanting "Ed-die, Ed-die," he lay in the end zone for a few seconds, savoring the feeling.

"It felt great to make a play and to know that it looked like we had a pretty good shot at winning the game at that point," he said.

"That was a heck of a throw by Brian (Griese). It didn't work out exactly the way we had planned. Some of their defensive players didn't do exactly what we anticipated, so he decided to really fire it in the only place where I could catch it and no one else could make a play on the ball."

McCaffrey, who caught 101 passes for 1,317 yards in 2000, felt his overall performance on Sunday was somewhat ragged.

"I made some good plays and I made some I'd rather have back," he said.

Fellow receiver Rod Smith said he was happy to have McCaffrey back on the field.

"That's a huge lift for our team," Smith said.

Noting McCaffrey's tireless rehab that had him ahead of schedule throughout the spring and summer, coach Mike Shanahan said McCaffrey's TD catch didn't surprise him.

"He's been doing it since the beginning of camp," Shanahan said.

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