Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Dealt INJURY BLOW As Caleb Lohner Will Miss OTAs

Starting point is 00:00:00 Broncos tight and Caleb Loner is going to miss some time due to an injury. You are locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked on podcast network, your team every day. Happy Tuesday, Broncos country. Cody Rourke, Sarah Bedinger here for another episode of the show that is brought to you by our friends over there at Fandu. The biggest stage of world soccer is here. Let there be goals on Fandu. Visit Fandu.com to get started. Now Jonah Ellis staying home at the outside linebacker position,

Starting point is 00:00:35 makes things a little more tricky for some of the younger edge rushers that the Broncos have on their roster. But it is a strength when you talk about the overall depth of that room. We'll highlight some young standouts as well as the Broncos get up for week two of OTAs. Plus, Denver's cornerback competition, seemingly that is confirmed by Sean Payton is going to fall under the spotlight here once again as the team builds up towards training camp. We're going to kick things off by talking about the Broncos tight-in room dealing with an injury with second year seventh round draft pick, Caleb Loner, who's generating some buzz from Sean Payton this offseason, he is going to miss the rest of OTAs and minicamp. What's the status and who's getting reps in his absence here?

Starting point is 00:01:14 Sarah, a lot to talk about here on today's show, as Denver reports today for week two of OTAs. We'll be out there this week on Thursday, more than likely, once again. But Caleb Loner, as we found out over the weekend, is set to miss the rest of OTAs and mandatory minicamp. He was one player we did not see last week when we went out to practice, and that was kind of a question mark. Like, wait a minute, like a guy who's generating so much buzz,

Starting point is 00:01:37 how come he's not out there? And of course, we all know, like this portion of the off season is voluntary. But now we know the reason why he had a lower body cleanup procedure, according to our friend over there, Mike Cliss. So now do you think in your opinion that him missing time here, do you think that impacts his optics when the team reports for training camp? Well, I hope it doesn't, but I kind of feel like there's no way. there could be worse timing for an,

Starting point is 00:02:03 I know there's never good timing for an injury, Cody, but I mean, maybe by comparison, like after you've made the roster or after you've kind of showed, hey, in training camp or in the preseason, like I can really compete with all the rest of my peers out here. The fact that Caleb Loner,

Starting point is 00:02:18 after getting shouted out by Sean Payton at rookie minicamp and going into his second season where he already has limited reps, the fact that he's now going to be missing the remainder of OTAs and mini camp, it just, it's really, terrible. I mean, and I'm glad that he's going to be back for camp, and I hope that he's able to pick up where he left off at rookie mini camp, but the timing honestly just couldn't be

Starting point is 00:02:39 worse. It's, it's brutal for him because you want to be able to see him continue to stack those days. You want to see him out there as often as possible with these other guys, especially because the Broncos have brought back Adam Troutman. They have brought back Lucas Krull and Nate Adkins. They traded up to get Justin Jolie. They drafted Dallon Bentley. So, There's already competition for roster spots at that position. And you needed to be able to go out there with those other guys and say, hey, I can stand out even with these other guys on the field at every opportunity possible. So I'm not going to sit here and say, well, it's over for Caleb Loner,

Starting point is 00:03:18 but it definitely is coming at a terrible time. Maybe not the worst possible timing, but certainly arguably at this point, I mean, it's not good. So I feel bad for him, man. I feel like it's just terrible with where he could potentially jump in his second season. I'll play devil's advocate here. I'll disagree. I think that it's not going to impact him too much, I think, from an evaluation step,

Starting point is 00:03:43 because what is the biggest thing right now that Sean Payton, especially for a guy with Caleb Loner's body type, that these tight ends are mainly doing in this offense? I mean, if we're operating on the assumption how Sean had them used last year, is mainly blocking. I mean, really right now these guys can't really do. that because there's no physical contact allowed. The only thing I would say that would maybe hurt loaner, like, for example, we don't know specifically what happened with him.

Starting point is 00:04:07 Like, we just know lower body. So is that leg, is that like a muscle? Is it a ligament? Is it a bone issue? That's unknown right now. We won't speculate. We just know lower body cleanup procedures. So whatever that may be is up in the air.

Starting point is 00:04:20 But I will say this, the ideal scenario for him is like where the real evaluation happens, Sarah is going to be in training camp. That's where things really heat up. Like all the stuff that we're seeing in OTAs. And I go back to what Sean said in an interview we just did with my good friend, Trey Wingo, he's saying, you know, right now, like all of this, there's no rush. There's no, there's no pressure on quarterbacks. You know, when we talk about this guy had a great day, it's, you know, what is the context of that player's job?

Starting point is 00:04:47 I think for loaner in this specific situation, I think this is if you're going to miss any time, this is the time to do it. Now, if he misses training camp, then that's going to, I think, really hurt him. But I'd say from the obstacle standpoint of him coming off this cleanup procedure where it may impact him, I think negatively is if there's a slower turnaround when he comes back to the field and training camp, right? Like if he's got like this mental barrier of saying, I don't know what it is. Let's say it was a knee or an ankle, you know, things like that you think about as you're trying to get back on the field and doing things. But if that's something that is causing him to hesitate or he's just not fully comfortable coming back from it yet,

Starting point is 00:05:22 that could impact him, I think, from a performance standpoint. So I think regardless, he had a hard road to make the roster. I don't think this is going to impact his roster status negatively. I mean, that's just my personal opinion, considering where we're at in the offices. Now, if OTAs involved pads and whatnot, then I'd say, okay, hey, like him missing this, this is big. But it's also an opportunity, I think, for them to bring Dallin Bentley along, I think, for Justin Jolie and seeing what these guys can do.

Starting point is 00:05:49 And that's exactly what we saw last week at OTAs because there was a time where, you know, what's the start, not the starting offense, but the ones, you had a majority of the ones in on offense. You had out of entrapment who was in line. Then you had Bentley who was offset off the ball as kind of another tight end here. And they can do some things with him. But so much of that position of what they're going to do in this offense is going to be blocking and setting things up. And you can't really do that. You can't manhandle or I'd say, what is the word? Not blind side block, but you cannot pancake guys during these things. So I think that's the one saving grace here to the timing of loaners injury.

Starting point is 00:06:23 Yeah, and I think what you just mentioned is kind of where my mind goes the other direction, right? It's the young players getting these reps in his absence. That allows them the opportunity to really step up and say, hey, loaner's not going to be out here for OTAs. He's not going to be out here for mandatory mini camp. We won't even see him until training camp. So in these practices that we now have, you have a chance to go out there and start stacking up days. I know there's no pads on and blocking does matter obviously tremendously at this position. But let's just say for, you know, we're, we're building out there in the universe.

Starting point is 00:06:57 Let's say Justin Jolie has a number of big time receptions at the one available practice that media can watch this week. And then let's say at mandatory mini camp where media gets to watch three practices, the main takeaways are like, dang, Bentley, Jolie, those guys have some serious hands, like they run really good routes. They're making contested catches, even without pads on. And I feel like the competition aspect of all of this for those bottom end of the roster spots, like that's where to me every day really matters heavily because you're fighting against

Starting point is 00:07:32 not only the veterans, Evan Ingram, Adam Troutman, but you're now fighting against the young guys who are coming in with, you know, the brand new draft contracts and they're the more recent picks. And so that's where I feel like now you are going to have to hit the ground running when training camp rolls around. If you're Caleb Loner who, you know, Sean Payton was the one who threw out the Jimmy Graham name, right? The basketball stuff makes him so intriguing. Less than 60 snaps in college makes him so intriguing, adding weight this off season, flashing his athleticism at rookie minicamp. That all comes to a screeching halt during OTAs. And to me, that's where,

Starting point is 00:08:12 okay, now, like you said, if you can't come back at the beginning of training camp with a, But all systems go full steam ahead. That's where this really becomes an issue. Because, yeah, it's the bottom of the roster. But it's still, I mean, this is a guy that you drafted. This is a guy who has really fascinating past catching abilities and had only scoring plays when he caught passes at the college level, right? Four touchdowns and a two point conversion or two point conversions. I can't remember how many it was.

Starting point is 00:08:43 But those are the only passes he caught. And he blocked a field goal attempt at one point. So it's like the little things that he was able to do, you're fascinated by. The growth that Sean Payton said he saw, now we're really intrigued. And then all of a sudden it's like, we're cutting that off until training camp. That's tough. And it's brutal timing. But like you said, he has a chance to bounce back when training camp rolls around.

Starting point is 00:09:06 Yeah. And I think with Denver going out and drafting two guys this year, I even think that just kind of put his roster spot really into question anyways. because Justin Jolie plays that Evan Ingram type role. Dallin Bentley is going to play that Troutman type role. And right there, I think Bentley's obviously, he's somewhat considered a project, but he's got more proven college production in the more recent year than obviously Caleb Loner had in all of his NCAA career. And the Broncos, they drafted Loner on the basis of what you said, like,

Starting point is 00:09:33 hey, this guy's got some surprising traits. Like, can this guy turn into something? And we all forget to as well. I think sometimes Julius Thomas wasn't who he was right away. He was a player that took a few years to become. who he was. And then after he left Denver, it was just kind of downhill from there. I think it's, you know, what can you do when you're playing with Peyton Manning? You can tap into another level of greatness there.

Starting point is 00:09:51 But we will see what happens with Loner when he returns to the field for training camp. That is the expectation for him here. Broncos country, let us know your thoughts on the Broncos tight in position and how Loner's injury might impact that in your perspective here. But coming up next, we're going to dive deeper to the Broncos cornerback competition. Sean Payton confirmed that Jada, Baron is going to have an opportunity to compete for the outside cornerback job. Well, what might that look?

Starting point is 00:10:13 like if he's not yet participating in team drills. We'll look at that position and so much more here on today's episode of the show. Today's episode of the show is brought to you by our friends over there at Square. Square is the business platform that helps sellers become neighborhood favorites, whether you're gearing up for a busy season or you're just trying to keep up with everyday demand. Square keeps your business running smoothly from payments to online orders, inventory, staff, and so much more. You get that all in one place so you can focus on your customers, not your to-do list.

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Starting point is 00:11:15 That's SQUARE.com slash go slash locked on NFL. Get started with Square and build a setup that works the way you do. Week two of Denver Broncos OTAs and the outside cornerback position competition is just getting started. Heating up Broncos' Crunch. We're going to talk about that. Jada Barron and what he can do as he continues to work his way back to full strength. What about team activities, full 11 on 11, 7.7. Seven on seven stuff. How much more are we going to see him this coming week? We're going to talk about that and much more coming up on today's episode of the show.

Starting point is 00:11:49 But Broncos country, once again, we appreciate you so much for making lockdown Broncos your first listen of the day every single day. And you can get your Denver Broncos fix completely ad free by joining the everyday or club today. You can start a seven day free trial even right now and get closer to the Broncos without any interruption. So click the link in the show notes or check out lockdownbroncos.com. Cody, let's talk about this cornerback competition. If there's going to be competition on the outside, we know that Pat Sertan's job is not available. So it has to be, as we've discussed previously,

Starting point is 00:12:24 Riley Moss's job that could potentially be available. There's a tension right now, a big time tension for the Denver Broncos. You have a player who started for two seasons, who tied for the NFL lead last year with 19 passes broken up, and you have a first round pick who has the ability to play a versatile role for your defense, but certainly you envision him being a full-time starter for you when you take him in the first round. There's that tension, even in week two of OTAs, even with no pads.

Starting point is 00:12:53 What do you think we can expect to see this week at OTAs with Jadae Barron, Riley Moss, and that outside cornerback competition just continuing to heat up? Yeah, I think it's going to be a little bit more of the same what we saw last week where Jidei is not participating in team or seven on seven. because he is one of those players. It is coming off an off-season procedure. So the Broncos, they're trying to be smart with players like he, J.L. Skinner. Obviously, Jonathan Cooper was in that category last week as well because he had an off-season procedure.

Starting point is 00:13:25 They're very specific with guys that are coming off of something that they're not getting them really into team or seven-on-seven. So realistically, last week at this position, Chris Abrams-drain, Pastor Tan was not doing it as well. He was off on the side watching and observing, not doing any of the team. stuff, but he did participate in individual drills, which for those you don't know what individual is, that's position-specific drills. So backpedaling, opening up, working on ball skills, you know, things with the Doug Belk and obviously Robert Livingston at the secondary. But for Jaday, do wonder if maybe could this be the week, he does get some on-field reps because right now

Starting point is 00:14:01 it's Chris Abrams-drain playing opposite of Riley Moss on the outside. And then obviously, Jayquan MacMillan getting reps inside the nickel primarily there, at least with the ones that we saw this past week. really was kind of undisputed. They weren't rotating anybody else in, at least with the ones there, it was Riley and Abrams Drain. And both those guys, I thought, played pretty well. Riley Moss, as we talked about last week after an OTA recap,

Starting point is 00:14:24 had a couple of reps against Jalen Waddle. He had a pass breakup on an in-breaking route that Jers did him through to him, and he tipped it up into the air, played it perfectly. And then Chris Abrams Drain had a couple of good coverage reps as well for Denver here. Jayquon's role, obviously, undisputed. But then you get your other guys rotating in. Jaden Robinson was not participating as well. well, he was also spotted on the side without a helmet and was just observing practice.

Starting point is 00:14:47 So that obviously factored into something. So you got to see some Paul Manning. You got to see some Brent Austin getting reps there. And Reese Taylor, who was on the roster last year for Denver. So I think there's a lot of stuff going on right now. But part of me is wondering if we don't see Jaday, at least doing some of the team stuff here in OTAs or mandatory minicamp. Next week, my question is like, okay, they're saving him for training camp. And that's really where things are going to begin.

Starting point is 00:15:09 But I would say, you talk about tension. It didn't seem like Riley Moss was feeling any of that tension based on how he was performing, at least in OTAs. That's one thing I like about him. He's calm, cool, and collected under pressure. And if he's facing it, we are not seeing it, at least from a body language standpoint. But it is worth monitoring, especially at that position here with all these guys getting reps, in particular Chris Abrams, Drane getting a ton right now. And I think getting some clarity even from Sean Payton will be helpful as well because I know he was asked pretty directly about,

Starting point is 00:15:41 is Jaday going to be able to compete at outside corner? And he's like, yeah, yeah, absolutely, right? So I think maybe the more direct question is, is Riley Moss's job up for grabs? I mean, and I don't know if anybody's going to ask him that, Cody. I don't know if that's an appropriate question to ask at this point. I don't know if he would say, I don't know what he would say to that. But I think that is the question that we're all wondering. The implication of saying that Jaday can compete at outside corner is that Riley's job is up for grabs, right?

Starting point is 00:16:10 But I think even to hear Sean say that or acknowledge that could be helpful for maybe easing that attention. Or if he would say, you know what, that's Riley, that's Riley's job to lose. I don't know how he would word that. I don't know what everyone's kind of thinking in terms of what we're going to see with that. If it's going to be every other day or if Pat Sartan gets veteran days off and that's kind of how they, you know, make this on-field direct comparison between the two guys. I don't know. I don't know what that looks like. We saw, remember last year in the season, Cody, they were rotating guys at that position

Starting point is 00:16:44 because they were like, hey, we got too many good players. These guys have to play. We want to keep them fresh. And so I think we'll see plenty of that. But this is one of those, to me and maybe to others that are listening, this feels like a situation that's bubbling beneath the surface, whether or not, I mean, Riley is a competitor. He's out there. He has to take care of his job.

Starting point is 00:17:06 There's people who are in charge of putting together the roster. and the depth chart and taking care of being stewards of the future of the team who have to now look into, okay, we're reaching this crossroads or this fork in the road where we have to decide, are we going to build around which guys, like who opposite Pat, who's going to be there long term, in the slot, who's going to be there long term? How many corners can we realistically pay along with our D line, along with our pass rushers, our safeties? How much can we realistically invest in this position group?

Starting point is 00:17:38 with a first round draft pick who's playing a sort of jack of all trades role that's not that's not common first round picks play cody regardless of position unless you're a quarterback sitting behind a future hall of famer first round picks need to play so i know there's no it's not like a written rule or anything but in terms of like the investment that you make in a guy that to me is what's really bubbling beneath the surface here for the broncos yeah and and ultimately i don't think they have to make that decision this year. I think it all boils down. What is the answer to this question right here? When you're going through in your evaluating trending camp practice, preseason, you're in a Super Bowl. You're going to a Super Bowl. You're goals to win a Super Bowl this

Starting point is 00:18:21 year. Who gives you the better shot opposite of Passer Tan to win a Super Bowl? Is it Riley Moss? Is it Jaday Barron? I think that's the simple question that Denver has to ask themselves when they are evaluating this competition. And I obviously know Riley's in the last year of his deal. And it's like, we don't know what the markets can necessarily be like for a cornerback to going into the next year. But is Riley that guy or is Jaday better suited to play this other role? And also like figuring in with J-Quan, Jayquan's role this year is untouchable. But after this season, he is set to become an unrestricted free agent. So is the Broncos plan here, you know what? We're going to ride it out this year with the guys that we have. We're going to have

Starting point is 00:18:56 some competition. But ultimately, how this competition goes, doesn't need to force us to make any kind of decision here or there in terms of disbanding the group. I think naturally that'll take place going in the next season based on the roster because I do feel like can you only pay one of those two guys? And if you pay both those guys, then that answers our question. And then the bigger question is, well, now what do you do is Jide Baron going forward? And I think you can look at that a multitude of ways. I think a lot of Broncos fans, they want to see a lot more from Jada and I understand that.

Starting point is 00:19:26 But I also think that people labeling him a bust this early on is crazy to me. He played pretty well as a rotational player considering the circumstances of Denver's depth. So I think anyone's saying that he's a bust. I think you should never listen to anybody who is saying that about him right now. He did flash. He did do some things really impressive last season. And there's still room for him to grow as a young player. But he didn't play bad by any means.

Starting point is 00:19:49 I think there are some people out there that are trying to peddle that he played bad last year. And I simply disagree with that. But I'm curious, sir, this is like, as Sean Payton said, the $6 million question, How does this position go for Denver this year? How does competition at this position and this room ultimately play out? And then factoring Chris Haberner's train in this whole conversation as well. He's very much a wild card here. So that's definitely something we'll be watching this week as we go to Broncos OTAs.

Starting point is 00:20:14 More than likely, I think we are going to be viewing things on Thursday again. So we'll see what we can do when it comes to this cornerback position. Who's participating? I'll have my handy dandy notebook with me at practice. I'll be writing every little detail down for all of you in. and Broncos country. But what that said, coming up next, the Broncos edge rush room, it was already loaded as is.

Starting point is 00:20:33 Now, with Jonah Ellis staying there makes it a lot harder for some of the younger and surprising pass rushers that the Broncos certainly have at that position group. We'll talk about it here on today's episode of the show. Fan Duels and sponsor of today's episode, locked on Broncos, the biggest stage in world soccer is here. And every match feels like it has the potential for a memorable moment. One goal can completely change the energy of a game. It can shift the momentum and it can alter the outcome in an instant.

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Starting point is 00:21:35 Visit Fandu.com to get started now. Jonah Ellis staying at the outside linebacker position changes everything for the outlook of some of the younger players at the edge rusher position for the Broncos this off season. Thank you so much to everyone in Brockos country. All the everydayers for tuning in making us your first listen here on the Lockdown podcast network, the number one sports podcast network and the country plus where you know it's your team every day. Sarah, obviously we all got the news from Sean Payton last week at OTAs that Jonah Ellis is playing too well to be moving to off ball linebacker.

Starting point is 00:22:06 There will be some packages that the Broncos could deploy with him at that position, but primarily his home is outside backer. And that changes everything because now we look at the rotation right now of Nick Benito, Jonathan Cooper, is the two projected starters here at this position. Now you factor in, probably Jonah Ellis being that third guy. And then there's Dondre Tillman and Q Robinson who obviously make up the other room. Now, if Jonah was going to off ball, we were like, hey, Dondre and Q were going to be the third and fourth guys here at this position. Well, then there's Johnny Walker Jr.

Starting point is 00:22:38 There's Drew Sanders. There's undrafted rookie free agents as well getting into the mix. This is a loaded room for the Broncos going into training camp. This makes, this is why I love watching the preseason. Cody, you know this. I've said this many times before every year. I'm like, I can't wait to watch the pass rush. in the preseason because I feel like it's always been the golden opportunity for players on

Starting point is 00:23:01 the roster to stand out, whether I think wide receiver and pass rush are the two positions where you can really stand out the most, maybe running back during the NFL preseason and the Broncos are absolutely loaded. And let's let's maybe just get a couple of things out of the way as well, Cody. We understand and we know of the Jonathan Cooper situation of the facts that are out there at this point. And people have, you know, started throwing stuff out. there like, well, the Jonah Ellis move was a response to the Jonathan Cooper. That's not the case whatsoever, everybody. So we'll await to really give any thoughts on Jonathan Cooper situation until all the facts are out there until the NFL or the Broncos make any sort of decision accordingly.

Starting point is 00:23:41 But I think the rest of the position group, regardless of his situation, is worth monitoring throughout the course of the off season because like you mentioned, Jonah is making his home off the edge. And we know the Broncos are motivated to get him on the field more. So regardless of what Cooper has going on off the field, I think we are going to see more Jonah Ellis this season. I think we are going to see more Q Robinson. The team is motivated to get those guys more reps. The question is, is how do they manage all of that if everybody is available, right?

Starting point is 00:24:12 That is the $6 million question once again at this position. And you have the unknowns that are Johnny Walker Jr., who flashed a little bit at week one of OTAs. and Drew Sanders, who we've seen him flash in the past. And if he's fully healthy, man, he adds an interesting wrinkle. Desaan McCullough, one of the highest priced undrafted free agents this team brought in. So there's so much intrigue off the edge. I know Sean Payton says, the closer you are to the ball,

Starting point is 00:24:44 the more difficult it is to sort of evaluate when it comes to not having the pads on. But still, I can't help but think every single practice, this is a position group that folks are going to have their eyes on simply because of the overload of talent that the Broncos have right now. No, and I think you're right on that, Sarah, too. I mean, the Broncos have a good problem on their hands. And when you evaluate a player like Johnny Walker, who's coming off of an injury last year, like what is the optics for him? And two, you mentioned Drew Sanders competing in what could be a make or break summer for him. I think ideally with how deep this room is, it leaves plenty of room for the Broncos to have really good talent at this.

Starting point is 00:25:22 position on their practice squad. Because ultimately, I don't think they're going to carry six guys at this position. I'd be shocked. Five guys seems to be the theme, right? Let's, you know, we're going to wait the whole, as you mentioned with the whole Cooper thing, right now, let's operate on the assumption because nothing has changed with his roster status yet. That is he and Benito this upcoming season as the two guys.

Starting point is 00:25:40 Jonah, I think we can assume is the third probably off the edge is the main guy coming off the bench to rotate in. The bigger question is, who's going to get the first looks? It's going to be Dandre or Q, considering they want to see. more. Is this a year where the Broncos could actually keep all the players at outside linebacker active on the game day roster for them? I think that's a very distinct possibility considering you, Jonah, Dondre, those guys will probably play special teams and they could be some of your better special teams players. It really makes, I think, the roster gymnastics

Starting point is 00:26:10 at other positions a little bit more interesting this upcoming season. It could impact off ball linebacker because of the fact that Sean said they can have packages for Jonah at this position. Does that mean that Denver's going to carry a lot? less off ball linebackers, are they going to carry six corners, five safeties, six safeties, five corners. I mean, this is really where things get a little interesting, especially when we know the depth of the defensive line. I think that's probably going to be the same number they had last year.

Starting point is 00:26:35 Does this impact an offensive position? I think that there are so many wrinkles to be thrown out here that the Broncos, they're probably going to let this one just play out. But I think it's safe to say, Jonah's going to be the top dog off the bench here for Denver at this position, Dandre and Q, I'm very curious to see, is there competition there? for the next set of reps or could the Broncos keep guys like Benito and Cooper right now fresher in terms of what we saw last year in terms of numbers snaps? Are we going to see a reduction for those guys and an overall promotion of snaps for

Starting point is 00:27:05 the other guys? I think that's a valid question. And as OTAs and the offseason program and training camp roll along, I think we can also expect that the Broncos are going to get calls about this position because, I mean, when you set a franchise record two years in a row in the Sacks department, all of a sudden, I think teams are now going to be looking at the guys that you bring in and everybody that you're developing and they're going to say, all right, what are the Broncos getting right that we might be getting wrong? And how can we get these guys into our program? I mean, we've already seen like the Dallas Cowboys poached away BT Jordan to help upgrade their pass rush.

Starting point is 00:27:39 The Broncos, you know, whisperer, the pass rush whisperer, you know, from from last couple of seasons. I know Jamar Kane is still there, which is huge for Denver to still have him around. But, man, teams want a piece. The Buffalo Bills hiring Jim Leonard. They want a piece of that because they saw that pass rush firsthand in the playoffs. So teams are going to be looking and trying to pick apart that Broncos roster, which does impact the way that you assemble your initial 53. It does impact when you send guys to the waiver wire. You have to understand when the Broncos send one of these pass rushers or multiple of these pass rushers to waivers, they ain't coming back.

Starting point is 00:28:20 likely. I mean, and if they do, it's a huge win. And I know that every year there's players that's like, well, you know, the fan base romanticizes certain guys and every team has their version of, you know, a Johnny Walker or somebody like that. But that's not going to be the case with the Broncos specifically because people want around the league a piece of that Denver pass rush. So whatever the Broncos do, I hope, Cody, that they can get the best value out of it. I hope that they can find ways to get all these guys on the field, have them be active on game days, because it really just feels like a waste to have Q Robinson in a track suit on the sideline when we saw what he could do in the AFC championship game, especially.

Starting point is 00:29:00 No, I agree with you too. And I would even say, too, in terms of like these pass rushers, I also think any defensive linemen, the Broncos, have to put through waivers, prime candidate for Buffalo, prime candidate for Dallas. Those are going to be the two spots you're going to have to keep it on. And maybe even as well, I mean, you look at Baltimore because Joe Lombardi, obviously the ties there. Joe's a guy that obviously saw this defense in practice and say, hey, you know, he may give that information to Jesse Minter saying, hey, like, this guy we saw him, he could come in

Starting point is 00:29:26 and plug and play, could be a rotational piece for us. Like, you have to look at the ties that bind here. But I think it's also a great sign of the Broncos having enviable depth. Like, you know, it's, you can't keep everybody, but you want to try to. And if you can on the practice squad, then as you mentioned, it is a win. It is something that you obviously want to build off of, but it's something that other teams around the league are going to pay attention to. They are going to take advantage of and you are going to lose some players. And you may even lose players as well who get cut that don't want to come back. Remember Elijah Garcia a couple of years ago is one of those guys we really liked.

Starting point is 00:29:58 The Broncos had to wave him, but then he didn't want to come back. He's like, you know what? I'm going to go get an opportunity else where he ended up going and playing for the New York Giants instead turning down the opportunity to come back to Denver. Who was the wide receiver? Seth Williams. Seth Williams had an opportunity a few years ago to come back after initially being weight and he's like, nah, I'm going to go elsewhere.

Starting point is 00:30:18 And unfortunately, that hasn't worked out for him. Because I think he's now in the UFL, if I'm not mistaken. So just goes to show, you know, teams, this is a good problem to have. And the Broncos, I think they're prepared to lose some good players, but they don't want to lose players. They feel like can play for them at some point. They may lose some developmental guys that they feel like could play two or three years from the down the road or contributing to special teams.

Starting point is 00:30:37 But it's the nature of the beast here. And we'll have to see how it all plays out here. But Broncos country, Sarah and I aren't done previewing OTAs. These are just three storylines. take a look at tomorrow. We're going to dive a little bit deeper into maybe some of the wide receiver roles here now that Davis Webb is the play caller, how that gets perceived and so much more. Tomorrow's episode, Lockdown Broncos.

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