Last modified: Sunday, January 11, 2009 1:23 AM EST Foxboro native Tom Nalen fashioned quite a career with the Broncos. (ASSOCIATED PRESS) FARINELLA: Nalen reaches twilight BY MARK FARINELLA SUN CHRONICLE STAFF Most likely, there will be no "formal" announcement. Tom Nalen will be much more likely to just file the paperwork and head off into the sunset than to stage a farewell press conference to close out a 15-year NFL career. It's not that he wouldn't deserve one. Nalen, 37, has been the anchor of the Denver Broncos' offensive line at center for more than twice the time that most linemen play at a level worthy of starting. The former Foxboro High School standout was little more than an afterthought when he was selected in the seventh round of the 1994 NFL Draft, but he proved that his personal commitment to self-improvement, and skills taught by Jack Martinelli and his staff at Foxboro High and polished to a brilliant shine at Boston College, could be the foundation of greatness. Let's not forget that Bill Parcells picked two centers for the Patriots before Nalen was selected in the '94 Draft, and neither panned out. Neither got out of training camp with the team, in fact. Tom Nalen, undersized and unheralded as he was, went to five Pro Bowls, won two Super Bowls with John Elway taking his snaps, and led one of the best offensive lines of his era - one that helped pave the way for six different running backs to become 1,000-yard rushers. But all good things come to an end, and the time has apparently come for Nalen to hang up the No. 66 jersey he has proudly worn as a Bronco. His 2007 season ended after five games because of a torn biceps muscle, he rehabilitated the injury and was determined to play out the last year of his contract, only to have soreness develop in his left knee during a preseason minicamp - and the soreness just never went away. Through two arthroscopic surgeries, one just before training camp and another in August, Nalen battled valiantly to return to the lineup. Finally, in late September, the Broncos put him on injured reserve to end his season. Broncos' coach Mike Shanahan said in October that the decision to return would be Nalen's, and that the door would be open for a comeback attempt. But Shanahan is now gone, the Broncos are moving in a new direction, and Nalen is battling a bone-on-bone condition in his knee that would make further attempts to play excruciating, even for a man of his obvious toughness. One report out of Denver said that Nalen has already lost considerable weight from the 286-pound frame he maintained as a Bronco - still small by today's standards, but perfect for the agility and mobility needed to execute the zone-blocking schemes that made the Broncos so successful at what they did. The time appears right to move on. A recent report on ESPN.com said that Nalen hasn't formally retired, but has begun the process of assembling the paperwork. That's probably the extent of the publicity that will surround his departure. It's a shame, but that's the way Nalen will want it. He's a private person, not particularly enamored with the football media or needy of its attention, so it comes as no surprise that he would prefer to just fade into the background with his wife and three children. Needless to say, I dashed off an e-mail the other day to Jim Saccomano, the long-time media relations director of the Broncos, asking for help in reaching Nalen for one last interview conducted by the hometown writer who covered the Foxboro native's high school career. I was told that they would try, but they couldn't guarantee anything because Nalen has made his wishes clear to keep the media at arm's length. During the heyday of the Broncos' success in the late 1990s, Nalen was one of the ringleaders of the silent treatment the Denver offensive line gave to all media members. Often imitated since then, the Denver linemen were among the first to enact an all-out ban upon speaking to reporters, and they assessed fines to each other for violations of the unofficial edict. Yet in my many trips to Denver during his career, Nalen would always make an exception to speak to me. Once, in the cramped locker room in the end zone of the old Mile High Stadium, Nalen had to shout to his linemates, "It's OK, he's from my hometown paper!" when I approached him. Later, during the inaugural season of Invesco Field at Mile High (2001), he graciously spent a lot of time with me after a 31-20 win over the Patriots to chat about his team's new home, his adaptation to Brian Griese as the Broncos' new quarterback, how much longer he might play and the roots his family was putting down in the Denver suburb of Littleton. My last lengthy interview with Nalen came during the offseason before the 2003 season. He had suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the seventh game of the previous season, but the Broncos showed their support for him by reworking his contract to make it more salary cap-friendly and include more guaranteed money. With that business concluded, he was determined to make it back to the playing field as good as new. "I knew it was going to be tough to miss football and not be involved in it," he said in the telephone interview. "Now, I think I have even more of an appreciation for it. I knew it was going to be hard for me to just watch football, and I knew I had to get back." He not only made it back, he played every game of the next four seasons before the injuries became too persistent to overcome. And in the process, he may have elevated his status from being one of a team's all-time greats to one of the best ever to play in the NFL. I've maintained for many years that Nalen should be a candidate for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The Pro Bowls, the Super Bowl rings, the success of the Denver running game and his pure grit are credentials enough. Centers are also the point where every play begins. They have to recognize the formations and call out the blocking schemes. They have to be smart and tough. Bill Belichick was a center, by the way. Tom Nalen has been all that, and more. But centers just aren't "sexy." There are only 10 centers in the Hall of Fame out of 247 enshrined individuals, and five of them come from the two-platoon era. It's tough to get the voters to consider them, and unfortunately, I don't have a vote. No doubt, the Broncos will immortalize him at Invesco Field by adding his name and number to those of the other greats listed on the stadium's Ring of Fame. The only concern is whether Nalen will want to show up for the ceremony. Beyond that, can you imagine what he'd think of having to give a speech at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio? It's a dilemma I hope he'll have to face. Maybe he'll give me a call sometime in the future, but if not, I'll understand. At the very least, I hope this column will find its way to Colorado so I can simply offer one of the most successful athletes ever to hail from this area my thanks - thanks for the effort, thanks for his commitment and the example he set, and thanks for representing this area so well for so long. MARK FARINELLA may be reached at 508-236-0315 or via e-mail at mfarinel@thesunchronicle.com. Read Farinella's blog, "Blogging Fearlessly," at thesunchronicle.com/farinella.