Griese Out at Least Three Weeks

Thursday, November 16th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

DENVER (AP) â€” While Brian Griese is sidelined for at least three weeks with a separated throwing shoulder, the Denver Broncos have no plans to add another quarterback to the roster.

Coach Mike Shanahan said Wednesday the team will go with just two quarterbacks: veteran Gus Frerotte, who inherits the starting job, and rookie Jarious Jackson.

``We've got a couple of guys in mind if we were to lose a quarterback, but we'll go with two,'' Shanahan said.

``I really believe Gus will come in and play extremely well for us. He's done a great job since he's been here. He is well prepared, and he is very familiar with defenses in the NFL.''

Jackson doesn't have much experience, but has played well, Shanahan said. ``He's a young guy who can make plays.''

The Broncos confirmed Wednesday that Griese has a third-degree shoulder separation, the most serious kind.

``Optimistically, we're looking at 3-to-4 weeks,'' Shanahan said.

Dr. Richard Hawkins, an orthopedic surgeon and team physician, said Griese, 25, sustained an ``accordion-type injury'' of the shoulder where the ligaments are damaged and the outer end of his collarbone ``sticks up in the air a little bit.''

Given the extent of the injury in Monday night's game against Oakland, Hawkins termed Griese's play ``amazing.'' Griese took a painkilling injection and returned to the game, engineering a 27-24 victory.

``That's sort of encouraging because if we took away his pain and he performed so well with this injury, then when his pain settles down, maybe he can perform at that level again,'' Hawkins said. ``So we're optimistic that maybe in three or four weeks, he'll be able to throw again effectively.

``If he cannot, and we judge over 4-to-8 weeks that he's not recovering, then we might talk about doing something surgically. But most of these injuries are treated non-surgically. Most athletes do very well with this injury, even without an operation.''

Frerotte has started 53 games in his seven-year NFL career, including 16 with Washington in 1996.

He started once this season, against Kansas City, after Griese tore the cartilage in his shoulder. Frerotte was 18-of-31 for 208 yards and an interception in a 23-22 loss.

Frerotte has gotten more repetitions in practice than most No. 2 quarterbacks because Griese has skipped practice each Wednesday to ease the strain on his shoulder, which originally was injured in the third game of the season.

``That gives him a chance to work with the first unit extensively on Wednesdays, and that really helps a lot,'' Shanahan said. ``Besides that, we always give our second-team quarterback at least two or three reps out of every series.''

Frerotte said he was eager.

``I'm ready to go,'' he said Wednesday. ``I feel I have a pretty good grasp of the offense.''

Frerotte, who started six games for Detroit last season when Charlie Batch was injured, signed a one-year contract with the Broncos last March. So his new role with Broncos gives him a chance to showcase his talents.

``It's an opportunity for me to keep our team on track to where we want to go â€” to get us to the playoffs,'' he said. ``And it's a positive situation for my career and where I want to go. But first and foremost is that I keep this team on the right track and we win games.

``It's important for my career, but only if I play well. So that's what I'm focusing on. We have great talent around me. Hopefully, I can get the ball in the right hands and let the guys make plays.''