>> this is 9news. >> one gesture by one player is creating a fire storm in the nfl. san francisco 49ers quarterback colin kaepernick chose to sit his game last night. he cited recent social issues as his reason but the way he took a stance may cost him. nick mcgill has the story. >> reporter: it is the move making headlines across the country. colin kaepernick sitting down during the national anthem telling reporters he refuses to show pride in a flag in a

more educated about the issues and this, as controversial as it is, is the way he felt he needed to take a stand. >> reporter: across social media, a fire storm. some praising kaepernick for standing up against social injustice while others are slamming him saying he is disrespecting the american flag. >> so for an athlete of his stature or actually sit down in the tradition of rosa parks, to >> reporter: kaepernick's move is not one of disrespect to the flag he says, but rather advocating for the higher values it stands for. >> he was taking a stand directly related to some of the issues happening in society today. particularly, black and brown people. >> reporter: denver, of course, is no stranger to these types of moves. >> it is surprising.

nuggets star refused to stand during the national anthem saying it conflicted with his islamic beliefs. he would eventually work out a compromise with the nba but it eventually damaged his career. something kaepernick should also be aware of. >> he says he is all in. maybe he doesn't understand the magnitude of what is coming his way, but he said he has the spine and the backbone to deal him. in denver, nick mcgill, 9news. >> the statement of the nfl is we recognize an individual's right to choose to participate. denver police have arrested a man for assaulting a woman on the high line canal trail.

as he walked away. demarcus bookhart was identified as a suspect. he faces charges of second degree assault. seven people were taken to the hospital after a crash in parker involving three cars and a motorcycle. the crash happened around 7:00 tonight at parker road and jay morgan boulevard. south fire metro rescue says at least three people were trapped inside vehicles. we don't know how serious the injuries are. the cause of the crash is still under investigation. the colorado ng alert earlier today is in custody tonight. officers in colorado springs were on the hunt for jonathan port beatty. he threatened to kill the mother of his son and the baby during a domestic dispute this morning. when she called the police, he left with the baby. the search lasted hours. police arrested him around 4:00 this afternoon. denver police shot and killed a man they say was armed with a knife early this

morning. officers tried to arrest the man on a warrant at a home near ellsworth avenue and fox street. the suspect had a knife and refused to drop it. officers tried a stun gun on the man but said that didn't work. officers say when he continued to come at them with a knife, they fired their weapons. the man died a the hospital. a teen accused of shooting his brother is on the loose in larimer county. it has prompted a warning to areas in police should be on the lookout for the suspected shooter. he was last seen wearing shorts with blood on them presumely belonging to his brother. he shot his brother after the two got into an argument. it happened on southover land trail. the teen suspect is considered armed and dangerous. dozensover fish were killed after a tanker tipped over and spilled fuel in fountain creek in colorado springs. the truck crashed early yesterday morning.

8,000 gallons of gasoline and diesel. an estimated 5,000 gallons spilled into the water. floating looms were set up to capture the fuel. the trucking company will have to pay for the cleanup. a small brush fire burned in douglas county. five different agencies responded and had it contained within an hour. no one structures were threatened. the cause of the fire is not known. jill stein is campaigning in colorado hoping to win over bernie sanders supporters since he won the democratic caucus here in april. we have seen this strategy before when minor candidates hope discontent will help them at the polls. stein had events in colorado springs and denver. she will be at the mercury cafe tomorrow afternoon and then go

the smell of funnel cake is in the air. it's state fair time. this is opening weekend for the fair which is in its 144th year. it was marching band day. all band members had to do was show up in their uniforms to get in for free. you can wear your regular clothes to the fair. they have rodeos, cookie baking. a few big stars are set to perform as well. the fair runs until september 17. >> looks like that will be a lo well, colorado is no stranger to the rodeo community, but, it is unusual to see the kind of competition being held at the county fairgrounds. we sent noel brennan to check out this national competition. >> let's go boys! >> reporter: there's a name for a competition of skill. held on county fairgrounds where everyone seems to wear the same hat. >> those hard hats are pretty

unusual event. >> come on guys! >> reporter: colby vallejo says this is still a rodeo. >> we are in beautiful colorado. enjoying the sunshine. we have a gas house rodeo going on. >> reporter: it is the national gas rodeo hosted by xcel energy. all the competitors are utility workers. >> these are the guys who keep us warm and keep our hot showers going. >> go, go, go, go, go! >> reporter: 55 teams from all th cameras and a crowd. it's pretty exciting stuff. >> well, if you are a gas person it is. >> come on guys. >> reporter: especially if you are a member of the gas house gorillas. >> yeah! come on! >> we have two teams from springfield, missouri. we are all rookies. we have never done this before at all. >> reporter: they might be rookies but they build gas meters all the time. just not under this pressure.

you can bet ... >> good job guys! >> reporter: this won't be their last gas rodeo. >> now that we are here, i don't know how you could watch it and not get excited. it's awesome. >> reporter: noel brennan, 9news. >> fun times out there. the crews are competing in two other events this afternoon. but it kind of messages, be sure you call. watch out for the gas lines. >> there's a serious message. it makes me think hey, if my are the guys i'm going to call. let's talk to danielle grant about the weather now. we know people are going to want to know what they wake up tomorrow. will it be cooler? warmer? danielle? >> i'm juggling it all. hey, you know what? today was fantastic. what a perfect start to the weekend. we were watching temperatures in the mid 80s this afternoon. a bit of sunshine. at the broncos game, the crowd was just roaring out there. people starting to slowly move

spectacular evening. the storms were at bay. you can see a couple of light radar returns across the san juans. 12, 13,000 feet. a little bit of snowfall. just gorgeous. here in downtown denver, looks pretty quiet. as we head toward the rest of the evening we will watch the clouds push into the city overnight. about 6:00, 7:00 a.m. for all you early birds we will be watching the clouds early in the morning. they start to break apart slightly warmer temperatures as well. temperatures back to the 60s so it is kind of cool. folks winding down the evening. upper 60s in sterling. 71 in lamar. mid 40s in leadville and upper 60s in grand junction. so, look at this. the next couple of days, looking pretty nice. we will be back in the mid to upper 80s . pretty seasonal this time of year. we will watch for a couple more thunderstorms on tap thunderstorm afternoon.

as far as labor day weekend is concerned, i think you guys will love it. especially folks who will be out there going to the high country. thinking about doing some camping. mother nature, so far, anyway, really looks like she will be cooperating quite nicely with all of us. >> that's good! because she does not always cooperate. >> no. she does not. we will have a little bit of sunshine. temperature ins the 80s . we will go over that extended forecast. >> looking forward to that.

>> 25 years ago, a sports arena was transformed into the buell theater for the phantom of the opera. now, the phantom is back in denver and it has a familiar face for those of you a fan of the voice. chris mann was a finalist on

he plays the phantom and says one moment on the voice completely change first-degree way he performs. >> i will never be as nervous as i was for that audition. it was very unusual a circumstance to be thrown out there to this crazy situation and you are hoping someone turns around for you. then i was lucky enough to be on that premier episode and millions of people tuned in and things changed overnight. me having that first blind audition makes everything else pretty simple. not that you can't get nervous in an exciting way. but it will not make me go throw up in the corner. >> coming up later in the newscast, we will tell you how the you can meet the cast in denver while you are here. they want to hear from the locals.

we want to reopen this show and welcome all the broncos fans. >> this is 9news. >> all right, now, welcome back to all of these fans who have been watching the broncos game. they are probably celebrating right now. >> because they wan 17-9. rod mackey has been at the rod, give us the latest. >> reporter: okay guys, thanks. we are here in the broncos locker room with trevor story trevor siemian. >> got it in a flow. in a rhythm. there are some things we need to cleanup as well. >> reporter: the positive thing is you guys started slow. but in the second to last drive, everything really started clicking for you guys. >> yeah, i think we got it

especially up front. we knew we would have our hands full early on. they had us on our toes. >> reporter: c.j. anderson was talking about the passing game opening up the run and he had a couple of big runs. >> c.j. ran the ball really well. i think we got a couple of good blocks and sprung them free. and he's a good back and he will run the green grass for us. >> turns out demaryius thomas only needs one hand to the football. >> yeah: i think those guys did a good job. him an emanuel. it is nothing new for them. >> reporter: we spent the last six months asking who will the qbs be. are you glad the question will be over soon and do you feel confident about what you have shown the coaches and the team? >> again, not reading too much into anything. it was good to get reps tonights and play. there are things we need to work on, but there are things

for the carolina game? ready to see the rematch of the super bowl? >> i think so. it will be good to look forward to that. we have more work ahead of us. >> trevor, appreciate your time. back to you guys. >> all right, thanks rod. it is drew soicher and chad brown in the south end zone following a 17-9 broncos victory over the los rams. broncos improve to 2-1 now on the preseason. but much more importantly, this quarterback competition thing seems to finally be settled. some five months after peyton manning announced his retirement. it appears by all accounts that trevor siemian has won this thing and will start the season. that's the good news. the bad news is nobody, not siemian, not lynch, not sanchez, seems to really grab this thing by the throat. >> i was going to push back when you said won the job. we talk about how more games

trevor siemian didn't lose the job, but he didn't grab ahold and win it. >> so you are saying mark sanchez lost this job. which makes sense he came in as the presumptive starter. >> he lost the job and trevor siemian inherited. >> so you are a former star. a defensive player in the nfl. what are you thinking if you are the carolina panthers defense and you have to face trevor siemian on opening night on national they are celebrating the championship? >> it was a neil down. this guy hopefully has defense. we will be able to take advantage of. he hasn't had all the exotic blitzes. he will be shown things he has not seen before. he will have to react live to them. >> reporter: what in the world should we read into the fact that mark sanchez never took his baseball cap off tonight? >> i'm afraid the broncos are

there. and if he is hurt as a vested veteran, he would be on the team. so i don't expect him to play next week. he will be cut. >> they are certainly not resting him for opening night. >> making sure he stays healthy so they can release him. >> let's go back to rod mackey with bradley roby. >> we spent so much time talking about the offense. last year, it was all defense all the time. we are coming here to talk to you guys. was it nice for you to see on the surrendered in the end. you didn't allow them in the end zone. >> it doesn't matter who is out there. we have the same expectations. you know, so, for them to hold at the end of the game when it doesn't mean much. that was huge. you know, we were all hyped on the sideline. coaches were hyped. so, it was good to see. >> one thing we have seen, there is so much depth.

sack after sack. there are players on this team. >> yep. we have guys on every position. it's great coaching. you see the product, you know, on saturdays and sundays. >> how excited are you to get the preseason over with? i know you have one more game in arizona. are you ready for the panthers? >> definitely. i look forward to that game. it will be exciting. you know. they have a big chip on their shoulder for sure. it will be a baying game. the nfl op >> and how excited are you to have us not come up to you and say hey, who's is quarterback going to be? >> it kills us when you ask us that. >> you play against them all the time. you probably know better than most. >> at the end of the day, it's the coach's decision. we will be full force behind them. >> very good, we will talk to you against carolina. appreciate it. thank you very much.

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>> drew soicher and chad bettis live in denver where the broncos defeated the rams 17-9. first meeting with the los angeles rams in 22 years. if the defense is as good as it was last year, historically great, which is a long shot, but they could does it really matter who the quarterback is? >> it will always matter who the quarterback is. quarterback need to be smart and clean with the football. but, defensively, you wasn't people to feel those. hold the starting rams offense to one over seven in third down conversions. it almost doesn't matter. >> it should matter who the running back is. ronnie hillman is standing by with rod mackey. >> very good drew, appreciate it. depth on that running back position.

you got in busted some moves. you have to feel good about the way you played. >> yeah. just came out here and did my job. and contributed. >> let's talk about the depth. there is a tremendous amount. they only have four of you here. >> yeah, you know, when you have c.j. and buck, and capri. you have to do something to separate yourself. just had to come out and make an impression. >> last year kind of felt the same way. like i don't know what is going to happen to ronnie. then you lead the team in rushing. i guess you like it when people start saying negative things and doubting things about you. that is when you play your best football. >> i try to keep the outside noise out. and, you know, just play ball. and you know, it does actually feel a lot better. you see the guys, the reports.

they come up to you and ask how good of a job you did. so you know, it is just cool to come out here and just compete. >> it is about getting opportunities. we haven't seen you get on the field and have a chance to do stuff. >> just the opportunity to come out and contribute like i said. and you know, try to do something. >> thank you ronnie. appreciate the time. back to you drew. >> all right, thanks rod. chad, it is anderson is going to be the starting lb . on the team. had 50 yards tonight. the big battle is for backup running back. devonte booker the rookie seem to have that entrenched and then ronnie hillman who a lot of people had given up on looked good tonight. >> we in the media think he

not as big of a hole as c.j.. >> back into the locker room. rod mackey is with paxi. >> we came up with the football a little bit. wish we could have scored a couple more touchdowns. but we played well overall. >> were you having fun out there? >> yeah. like i said, you want to score a touch on every drive and when you don't, played good even though we dent score a lot of touchdowns. as a team we played very well. i didn't know until we went into the locker room and came out. before we went out, he told me i would go on in the second half. [ unintelligible ] >> obviously, i was excited. i didn't know how many reps i was going to get. i was taking the reps as i could get them.

>> right. i mean, obviously ... as a rookie, a young guy. that's good for you. get the reps as you can get them. but like i said the whole time, i'm taking the reps as i get them. no matter who it is against. you have to play against them every time. >> what do you think about going up ... [ unintelligible ] >> no, not really. i mean, i was focused on the other hand what we had to take with on [ unintelligible ] >> uh, i mean yeah. obviously, i think i could play. i don't think i'm where i'm going to be later on down the road when i have a full grasp of the offense. i will do what i have to do. >> we have seen the improvement week by week. do you feel your confidence growing week by week? >> ti do.

you start out a little slow. it gets you thinking you can't place a little bit. we will go wash the film. like i said, we played good as a team and we got the win. >> can you quantify the offense right now? >> i mean, i can't really put a tab on it. how much i know and how much i don't know. but, you know, from when i first got here, i feel like, you know, leaps and bounds from when i first got here. >> how many games do you think it would take you to feel starter ready? >> i mean, you know, that's e obviously. just because i can't tell if i'm going to say three games into the season. i'll be a full 100% comfortable. i can't really answer that. like i said, i'm preparing to play when i need to play. >> fast one rod. >> with that thinking, you talk about how you played. you talk about how you play better when you can go out and throw the football and not worry. are you getting more comfortable with that? >> definitely.

calls like the back of your hand, you go out there and cut it loose a little bit. i'm getting the reps i'm getting and moving on from that. i need to get where everything

>> so all of denver in such a great mood because the broncos won. >> it is time for a party. we hope you have great night and thanks for joining us for 9news tonight. >> and of course, more on channel 20 because we can't stop talking about the win. >> you have to keep celebrating. though it is preseason. >> we have to get ready for the big opener. so have a good night everybody. >> captions by:caption colorado, llc 800-775-7838