Time is the one opponent no athlete can escape. Eventually the clock will run out.
Father Time is catching up to Champ Bailey, a 12-time Pro Bowl selection who is in his 15th NFL season.
On the final drive Sunday, with the Denver Broncos leading the Kansas City Chiefs by just seven points in a pivotal AFC West matchup, Bailey was benched in favor of rookie Kayvon Webster and little-used veteran Quentin Jammer.
"I've got to get my mind back right, got to get my body back right," Bailey said, per The Denver Post. "That combination, plus being 35, it's tough. It's a tough game. It's a young man's game."
Bailey missed the previous four games. Interim coach and defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio said the Broncos came in with a plan to keep Bailey on a pitch count.
"We knew we weren't going to try to play him 80 snaps on the first day back," Del Rio said. "The plan was to rotate him through and not have him play too much in the first game back in (six) weeks."
It's smart for the Broncos to keep Bailey -- who's missed nine of 12 games this season -- on a snap count, but don't let Del Rio fool you. If Bailey were his old self, he would have been on the field for the crucial drive.
There were questions in the offseason about Bailey moving to safety. Those questions will multiply this season, if the cornerback decides he wants to play a 16th season.
*The latest "Around the League Podcast" recapped every Week 13 game. *
