Young Broncos offense picks up speed at camp – despite some slowdowns

Denver just dusted off on Day 4 of training camp, and every reason Broncos Country was excited and nervous about 2020’s potential is coming to fruition.

Defense dominates and offense is still finding out.

But there is still a lot to love so far.

“We’ll say Jerry is pretty good. We’re going to put it that way, ”sophomore quarterback Drew Lock said of first-round talent Jerry Jeudy after Monday’s padded first practice session.

Although head coach Vic Fangio called it “just OK” overall in his traditional minimization of all that is good in football, he still left a good impression of the rookie wide receiver after the first. day of training camp. last week.

“He rides good roads. He’s got a good change of direction, good hands, ”Fangio said, noting Jeudy’s“ polite ”in his race. “It was nice to see him play a few pieces today.”

Security Kareem Jackson definitely had some thoughts on these rookie polished routes.

“He ran a few [awesome] routes. He’s that type of player, ”Jackson said of fellow alum Crimson Tide, who Jackson has watched on Saturdays for the past few years. “For him being a rookie, his pace and his routes – the way he can change his pace and the way he sells things is very rare. … it will pose a challenge for other defenses.

Cornerback AJ Bouyé, who came to Denver as a free agent, loves playing Jeudy and another fast wide receiver KJ Hamler.

“I saw a lot of newbie receivers come in and it seems they just didn’t get it,” Bouyé said of Jeudy and Hamler. “You can look at these two and say – whether it’s in the offseason, the coaching they’ve had away – they’re really polite in the routes, especially Jeudy. He never gives you the same look every time, and I love going against him. It will keep me true to my technique.

While viewing of training camp practices was limited, Jeudy didn’t disappoint the cameras either.

But of course, Jeudy is not the only one to turn heads. His quarterback isn’t perfect in every game, but he’s showing improvement over last season and is definitely the leader on the pitch.

Just ask running back Melvin Gordon who is new to the squad and to a young quarterback.

“I love him. Like I said, he’s a fiery quarterback. He wants to be awesome. He wants to learn and he’s tough on himself,” Gordon said, adding Lock is a perfectionist. and that he’ll make a play on the sidelines if he doesn’t pass during the drill. gonna give us that.You like being run by guys like that.

Inside linebacker Todd Davis was also impressed.

“He looks really good,” Davis said. “I love the way he takes changes and tries to place balls in narrow windows. I love how quickly he gets the ball out of his hands when he sees the road or sees the game develop. … I like what he shows us. I can see where he’s going to take him in the future. It’s going to be phenomenal.

Lock and the general offense struggled in practice on Tuesday, but the coach thought he had done “well” from his point of view.

Especially on a scrambling game for a toe touchdown in Courtland Sutton.

“Obviously we will never know if [the defense] would have obtained [Lock] before taking off, but its mobility and jamming capacity are important. This is an additional dimension to any offense. It’s part of his game that we love, ”Fangio said. “We encourage him to use it when the opportunity arises or when required. I know he’ll play with it when he hustles.

While the tendency with camp reports is to worry about every interception by a young offense, it’s important to stress that this means strength in defense – which is a good thing.

Seeing Bryce Callahan and De’Vante Bausby bounce back from last year’s injuries with a ball peddling style is what Broncos Country should be hoping for.

After Fangio called Monday’s first padded practice “just OK”, a big defense day on Tuesday was needed.

Bouyé certainly thought so.

“You have to enjoy every rep and every workout because as soon as you know it, Monday night is approaching,” he said. “Yesterday was our first day in padel and it didn’t go the way we wanted. It wasn’t really a message, it was just Vic coming in, showing us our keys, what we need to look for, how we need to play certain things and we just implemented it.

The former Jaguar was also one of the defensive stars on Tuesday, coming up with an INT that might have been questionable – depending on who you asked – but was most definitely a big game.

“I think it was an interception. We said we were going to watch it on film, ”Bouyé said with a laugh, adding that Brandon McManus gave them a hard time because they gave him one on the special teams. “The coaches have done a great job from day one emphasizing that we need turnover no matter where we are. If it’s in the red zone, it happens in a big way. Being in the top five by revenue is going to help our team get to where we need to be and that’s one of our goals.

To do this, Bouyé says the key is to pay attention to small mistakes in the attack – a knocked down ball, a poorly held ball, etc.

“When we play tight cover, they’ll take catches, but the ones we might take out are like tips or spilled balls. We just always have to have an eye on the ball to make these plays, ”he said. “There’s a lot of ways to do turnovers, cover, sacks – when Von Miller and Bradley Chubb and all those guys come around sacking and things like that, we just have to take advantage of it and put our offense into a good position on the ground. . “