DENVER (AP) -The Denver Broncos aim to bottle up not only Cleveland Browns kick returner Joshua Cribbs on Sunday, but also the magic of their ``Immaculate Deflection'' in Cincinnati.

Both may prove elusive.

The Broncos (1-0) believe they can milk Brandon Stokley's 87-yard touchdown with 11 seconds left in their stunning 12-7 win over the Bengals into momentum when they face the Browns (0-1).

``We should have momentum coming out of that game,'' Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton said. ``We got a win opening week on the road, which is tough.''

Orton and his teammates insist they didn't let the nature of their shocking victory cloud a collection of poor plays and detrimental decisions that nearly made Josh McDaniels' coaching debut a distressful dud.

``It is always better to come to work after a win,'' McDaniels said. ``And I think that our guys understand that there are a lot of things that we want to fix and a lot of things we want to improve on, which, I think, is really where most teams in the league are right now. You are never at your peak after Week 1. Our players saw that on the film on Monday, and we have got to get better.''

They know they can't sputter on offense this week against a Browns team smarting from a loss to Minnesota in their first game under new coach Eric Mangini.

Orton has to pass better, Brandon Marshall has to be more productive, Knowshon Moreno has to hit the holes this time and the offensive line has to fend off pass-rushers more effectively.

And they can't allow their defense or their special teams to lose track of Cribbs, either.

``He is the best in the league, in my opinion,'' McDaniels said. ``He and (Chicago's Devin) Hester are certainly guys that when they touch the ball - I don't care if it is on offense or in the kicking game - you have got a chance to score if you are on their sideline.

Cribbs has seven career touchdown returns, one shy of the franchise mark held by Eric Metcalf.

``If you are playing in tight games and that guy is back there returning kicks, it could be one play and that changes the result of the game,'' McDaniels said. ``He is one of the most dangerous players we will play all year, no doubt about it.''

Although these teams are in different divisions, they know each other well.

Browns quarterback Brady Quinn made his first career start against Denver last year, and Broncos linebacker Andra Davis played seven seasons in Cleveland before joining the Broncos as a free agent this offseason.

Plus, McDaniels and Mangini are both saplings off the Bill Belichick coaching tree.

McDaniels has roots with all three of the Browns' coordinators. He worked with Browns offensive coordinator Brian Daboll at Michigan State before following him to New England, where he worked with Rob Ryan, now Cleveland's defensive coordinator, and Brad Seely, the special teams coordinator.

``Obviously, Eric and I worked together for a number of years before he went to the Jets,'' McDaniels said. ``I am very familiar with all of those guys, very good coaches. I know they are going to be well prepared and well coached because that is how those guys work.''

Asked if he ever had to make a food-run for Mangini while working for him in New England, McDaniels cracked: ``I never had to go get pizzas for him, but I know he's had a few in his day.''

The two remain good friends even as they become adversaries Sunday.

While McDaniels was taking heat in Denver over the winter for chasing off Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler and retooling a roster that had sunk into mediocrity, he got an encouraging phone call from Mangini, who had just joined the Browns from the Jets.

``I called him in the offseason, because I think he did a lot of good things in terms of the people he brought in,'' Mangini said. ``I wanted to let him know. I know sometimes as a first-time head coach, you don't get those calls as much. You make the decisions that you think are best at each moment and everybody has a different opinion and you respect that.''

The call came at a good time for McDaniels, whose free agent signings were being overshadowed by his feud with Cutler. That hit rock bottom when Broncos owner Pat Bowlen ordered his new coach to trade the franchise quarterback before he even had a chance to call their first play together.

``I appreciated that (call from Mangini),'' McDaniels said. ``He had said that they had looked at some of the guys that we signed in free agency and some of the guys that we drafted. It was just a nice conversation and phone call to get from a fellow head coach and say, 'Hey, things look like they are going in the right direction.'''

Mangini said he saw McDaniels' acumen long before he caught Bowlen's eye as a 32-year-old wunderkind.

``He's a really smart guy, a really hard-working guy. I think he's got excellent instincts,'' Mangini said. ``Even when he first started out and we'd be in staff meetings, or defensive staff meetings, he was willing to share his ideas as a young guy. I can tell you the ideas were usually very good. You could see from the start that he was going to have an outstanding career.''

One that got off to an amazing start, thanks to a heads-up play by Stokley.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.