Locked On Broncos - Daily Podcast On The Denver Broncos - Denver Broncos Defense SHARPENING Bo Nix, Broncos Offense In Training Camp

Starting point is 00:00:00 For the dog days of summer, Broncos training camp has been ultra competitive, but the defense, they've been making the offense a lot better. You are Locked on Broncos, your daily Denver Broncos podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Happy Monday, Broncos country. Cody Roach, Sarah Beninger here for another episode, Locked on Broncos. Today's episode is brought to you by friends over there at Fandu. Join all the action at Fandu.com to play daily dingers and make your free pick on who's

Starting point is 00:00:34 hitting a homer. MLB season. We got a lot to break down as the Broncos is gearing up for day 11 of training camp here today. It's game week. Broncos country. The NFL preseason is here. We'll go through everything we expect this week as the Broncos prepare for a Friday preseason game, what you should look for in these next couple days of practice. Pat Bryant, star-studded training camp campaign continues. You'll hear from Davis Webb in this episode specifically about a guy they call Patty Ice. We're going to kick things off by talking about how the Broncos defense is helping Bo Nix and the Broncos' offense. get right. It is truly iron, sharpening iron here at Morocco's training camp. There are a lot of pieces

Starting point is 00:01:11 to break down, Sarah. Let's get into it, right? Because obviously as we go through these training camp practices and the general theme that we always look for is who won the day? Well, the defense, everyone is keeping track of home on the scoreboard. They're like, okay, the defense has won more days than the offense. And I think often at times when we get into these conversations, people hear, okay, the defense won the day are like, oh my gosh, the offense is terrible. It's not like that, especially in a training camp setting. There's a lot of competitive periods. And ultimately, I think there are some secret ingredients that we have to talk about in

Starting point is 00:01:43 today show. I kind of dispel some of that. But the Broncos defense, this unit is helping the Broncos offense get right. And there's a lot of notes to my good friend, Jeff Legwald. I was talking to him about this. He's from ESPN just the other day. And he said, man, that 2015 team, even 2014, that no-fly zone defense, they gave Peyton Manning a lot of gripe during practice.

Starting point is 00:02:05 This is a good sign here for the Broncos that they get a go against this defense every day. Yeah, I mean, Cody, I was actually there during that turn in camp back in 2015. I was one of the ones that I actually got to be there in person for. And I'll never forget, I think I've told the story before. But after leaving practice, I was with the media. This was one of the few times I was able to do that. My dad and my brother were watching practice from the old berm out there. and when we left practice after a day,

Starting point is 00:02:33 both of them were like, who the heck is number 13 out there? He was the best quarterback on the field. And that was Trevor Simeon at the time. The reason why Trevor Simeon looked like the best quarterback on the field was because of the no-fly zone dominating during practice. So to your point, I mean, it's not like, okay, well, wait a second. Wasn't the 2015 offense like really bad?

Starting point is 00:02:54 Well, you had kind of the corpse of Peyton Manning getting dried around out there by that team that year. So, I mean, to be fair, it was a different context and everything like that. But if you can move the ball on this defense for the Broncos this year in 2026, you're going to be able to move the ball on anybody. That's the case. And so we know that this Broncos defense is elite. We know that they are gunning for the all-time sack record. We know that they are emphasizing takeaways.

Starting point is 00:03:20 We know that a lot of these players have gotten better. There are breakout players on the defensive side of the ball. There are superstars at every level of this defense. And so when the Broncos offense is able to break something, not like a blind squirrel finds a nut, you know, or a broken clock is right twice a day. But I think that when you move the ball in any way, shape or form like the two-minute drive we talked about after Friday's practice, right?

Starting point is 00:03:45 When you're able to do that, it gives you the confidence to be able to do that against anybody else in this league. Yeah. And when Bow next test in PS2, that's going to be great for a guy like Bo who's going against other corners. and he's going to face some good corners this year. You're going to throw against some guys this year. But going against PS2 every day is going to help.

Starting point is 00:04:04 Going against this pass rush that we know has led the NFL in back-to-back years and Sacks is going to help. And you mentioned they're gunning for that record. I mean, this is a pass-rush unit. I think if they can stay healthy, they have a really, really good chance based on what we've seen here in camp. But I also want to go through the hitting context of these training camp practices that a lot of people forget when we talk about the who won the day.

Starting point is 00:04:25 Often at times, right, the Broncos have team periods. it will be 12 plays. And often at times in those early periods, it's not a move-the-ball emphasis. It is a scripted first and 10 ball on the right hash, second-in-eight, second-and-15 ball on this hash, right? Like they're scripted plays down in distances just so they could put the offense in situations, just so it could put the defense in certain situations. And also, I think people forget these guys, they have two practices a day. They have your regular practice and they have the walk-through practices in the evening.

Starting point is 00:04:55 They line up and they, the defense. is smart enough by now when they're lining up against certain formations. They're like, okay, I know exactly what plays come. They know the plays. They know the front that they're going against two. And that's why I think when you look at how these practices go and it feels sometimes that it's one-sided to the defense. Everyone's like, oh my gosh, like I'm really concerned about the offense. It's like no, like the defense, they know exactly what Denver's running. Right. And Bo Nicks, there are things that he's doing that I think are exciting because now you're seeing him counter some of these things that this defense has certainly mastered. They understand.

Starting point is 00:05:27 certain plays based on the formation. So for Bo, he knows what's coming. He knows the pass rush is coming. And so for him, it's okay, when I diagnose the coverage, can I hit my guys where they need to be? Can my footwork marry up with the timing of the routes versus the pass rush and how those things can maybe change,

Starting point is 00:05:43 either speed up or slow down certain processes offensively. That is where we are talking about iron sharpens iron hair. And that's why this defense is helping them. And I think one of those things, too, Davis Webb, We talked to him on Saturday. He talked about going against Vince Joseph's defense every single day. It's awesome. We get to see a top five NFL defense every single day of the week.

Starting point is 00:06:03 So it's a blessing from the first level to the second level, to the third level to go against those guys. And to see the growth of Chris Abrams trained, Pat Sertan, obviously. Alex Singleton has been hustling everywhere. He's been noticeable. Our D-lines getting after the QB. So, yeah, we get to go against a great defense every day

Starting point is 00:06:19 and that will benefit us throughout the season. It was great to hear from Davis Webb as well, Cody. I mean, obviously he gives great. insight into the players and things like that. But you can also tell why a lot of teams wanted him. He's just got that kind of poise up there when he's speaking. He's very intelligent, exactly. I think, you know, to this point about the defense making the offense better every

Starting point is 00:06:42 single day at practice, what are you seeing in terms of, I know the run game has had a little bit of an uptick lately. I know that the scrimmage over the weekend. That was kind of maybe something that stood out, especially like Jonah Coleman. We talked about him on Friday's episode of the show. He continues to stand out. I think that's the area where you and I kind of maybe circled that earlier on in training camp of saying, hey, if the defense is getting after the offense when it comes to dominating in the trenches,

Starting point is 00:07:09 the offense needs to punch back and figure out a way to get something going on the ground. And it sounds like they've been able to do that. Yeah, they have. And I think it's just more reps, you know, the more comfortable you get going out here lining up and trying to execute yourself. Like, for example, we've reiterated here on the show throughout the last week and a half. The Broncos defense isn't necessarily going through an install. They're ready to rock and roll.

Starting point is 00:07:32 I mean, they're adding a couple of things here and there. But this is a defense that with everybody back, they're running stuff that they were running last year. They're at a level right now that, you know, they simply weren't out in training camp at this time last year. Whereas the Broncos offense, they're going through the install process right now. And so much for them is, okay, we saw how the defense lined up against us when we came out in this today. Well, now, okay, this is our. counter. We go back on the film. Okay, we need to try these things versus just letting a defense dictate what you want to do offensively. And that's where you start to, I think, mix different

Starting point is 00:08:02 guys skill sets into it, right? Like J.K. Dobbins, patient runner. I think very valuable in the, in the poll game when you're trying to get your offensive lineup to the second level. Jonah Coleman, for example, different skill set, good pass protection, what's about him. But for some reason, he seems to be the most comfortable right now in these handful of two weeks of practice of running in between the tackles and getting kind of that north-south vibe. And there's this level of, I don't want to say, like, he's fearless, but you can just tell he doesn't think he just goes. He's a downhill guy. He finds the hole and he goes.

Starting point is 00:08:33 That is a benefit here for this Broncos team. And now it all culminates to three practices here this week, including one here today, tomorrow and Wednesday before the team travels on Thursday to take on the Atlanta Falcons. We're excited about all that. We're also excited to tell you about Pat Bryan, his continuous ascension here in camp, what we've seen. And now maybe projecting what his role will be in 2026. Today show is brought to you of our friends over there at Fanduil. Baseball fans, if you think you know who's hitting a home run today, well, FanDul, they're giving you a free chance to call your shot with Daily Dingers.

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Starting point is 00:10:09 That's what he's dominating. He's dominating the headlines right now. Couldn't be better Broncos country. Second year wide receiver Pat Bryant, the star of training camp, and potentially the breakout star for this team in 2026. We're going to talk about that and much more coming up on today. episode of the show.

Starting point is 00:10:25 But before we talk more about Patty Ice, want to say thank you to every single one of you that makes Lockdown Broncos your first listen of the day. Every single day, it's officially game week, Broncos country. So my goodness,

Starting point is 00:10:36 what a long journey it's been to get to this point, but we're finally back. So, Cody, I absolutely love that Davis Webb nicknamed Pat Bryant. I guess I don't know if he came up with it, but he revealed that that's Pat Bryant's nickname

Starting point is 00:10:49 is Patty Ice to the media. This guy has been every single day at training camp just I mean my goodness like you want to talk about somebody who's finding a way to stack days that's the thing that we talked about at the beginning of camp right who can be the one to stack days pat Bryant is doing that more than anybody else on this team I would say well and the thing in training camp that you always want to pay attention to when it comes to any player is consistency I don't think we've seen a drop off inconsistency from pat Bryant yet in the 10 training camp practices that we've had day 11 obviously taking place

Starting point is 00:11:23 here today. But I think for Pat specifically, his mindset, I mean, you're seeing a lot of what we saw last year during OTAs, during minicamp and even during training camp last year, where I can recall, we did several episodes where I was like, wow, rookie Pat Bryant, he's playing really well right now. He's making plays left and right here. I would also say, too, what is life like without Cortland Sutton, Jalen Wado? Who steps up? The Broncos got put into that situation last week at practice with Jailen Waddle experiencing muscle tightness and having a strain, Cortland. and Sutton getting the three veteran days off essentially. Okay, so now who's up for Bo Nixon, this Broncos offense?

Starting point is 00:12:00 And you want to look for a guy to emerge? Well, then there's Marvin Mim's injury that happened last week as well. So all of a sudden, we're talking about how loaded this room is, but yet you're dealing with instances in this last week and a half, or three of your top five guys have mispractice, either due to injury or load management or a combination of both of those things. Well, Pat Bryant has been the consistent guy, even on the day where it was Cortland Sutton and Jalen Waddle out.

Starting point is 00:12:24 Pat Bryant was the guy who really kind of became that wide receiver one in practice for Bone Knicks. You see the chemistry and the relationship between these two guys. It is growing. And that was something that we saw down the stretch last season. I mean, Pat early on the season was blocking his tail off in the run game. Didn't see a lot of targets early on the season. But down the stretch, he kind of became that big body go-to guy. And it was because of the things that Sean Payton mentioned about him,

Starting point is 00:12:47 because of the things that Davis Webb mentioned about him. Speaking of Davis Webb, here is the thing. he's had to say so far about Patty Ice. Man, Patty Ice has had some really, really good practices. I think, you know, when Jayland went out for a couple days or Coral and him, Troy, they really stepped up and made some plays down the field. I think Pat is very, very savvy, smart. When he catches a ball, his feet on the ground,

Starting point is 00:13:08 and the things we were attracted to whenever he was coming out, Illinois. And it's really, really cool to see him to take another jump this early in the year, too. I thought it was interesting. He made that same exact note that Sean Payton did about when he catches it, both of his feet are on the ground. That's not really something that you look directly at when you're watching wide receiver highlights or when you're trying to, you know,

Starting point is 00:13:29 you watch a guy that your team is drafted, like when the Broncos took Pat Bryant and nobody had really heard of him. I mean, not really. A few of the draft community people knew about him and did a deep dive on him, but he wasn't necessarily somebody who was popping up in everybody's mock draft. So when you're watching the highlights of Pat Bryant, you're not looking for,

Starting point is 00:13:47 hmm, does he catch the ball with both feet on the ground? Well, why is that so important? It's important because he's able to get yardage after the catch much more easily than if he were to leave his feet and completely derail his acceleration, right? So when you keep both feet on the ground, you're able to continue running at full speed when you catch the ball and you're able to get up field in a hurry. That's where Sean Payton made the note about, remember the clutch plays that we saw Pat Bryant make at Illinois where he had like two or three game winning touchdowns or I don't remember if they were walkoff.

Starting point is 00:14:19 Yeah. Yeah. So it was like that was the thing that stood out in those clips is that he's got his feet on the ground when he's catching it. He's able to get up field and make these plays after the catch that I guess I don't really notice as much, Cody, that receivers leave their feet when the ball gets to them in those instances. But that must happen all the time. And so when you have somebody like Pat and you mentioned that word chemistry, all these things combining, the chemistry is that he's ready for an explosive season. And so I like that note. And I think it's something that really sets him apart in a unique way that you wouldn't think about with other receivers. On the Broncos, they've done an extensive process on Pat Bryant.

Starting point is 00:14:59 I think a lot of people had the assumption that the Broncos were just going into the 2023 NFL draft. And they were just, okay, who are the receivers here on the board? Oh, we're just going to round and we take this guy. And all the Broncos, they've done background work on them. One thing we've learned about George Payton, Sean Payton, the pro scouts, the college scouts here for this Broncos organization is they love to do background work on. players dating back for a couple of years. Now, obviously, Illinois is one of the programs that Denver has kind of tapped into looking at certain guys. And that really kind of started, I think, with Alex Paucheschi. And maybe it was because Jim Lennar was the bridge connection, because he had

Starting point is 00:15:30 the analyst job. I think it was back in 2023 for them. But looking at those players and building out prospects, they're looking at Pat Bryant. And this was something that I think Luca Evans this offseason did a great job. He put a story out out there about the Broncos background work. And this was two years in the making. I think this goes back to 2023. If I'm not mistaken, they're looking at, they wanted to see certain practice film of this guy versus this guy, right? And they're building this profile. Now it's translating, you've got the game tape at the college level to showcase it. Okay, what are you looking for in a

Starting point is 00:16:01 wide receiver? The Broncos, they had Cortland Sutton, right? Big body guy, go get the 50-50, but they've been looking for somebody who could be a compliment or kind of do everything type of wide receiver. And that's what they were looking for. And that really is when you look at it, Pat Bryant, you don't need the fast 40 yard dash time to be this guy that should be taken in a first round, second round. Like the Broncos thought process wasn't on that. Is this guy a good teammate?

Starting point is 00:16:24 How is he when he's not getting the football? When he is getting the football, what's standing out about him? And you mentioned like the leaving the body. Like often at times there are a lot of receivers that just like to naturally kind of jump up and get the ball. Now, that's not to say if there's a pass that's going high, you don't jump a giddy. You do that. But there are some guys that have this tendency, even when the ball is head level or chest

Starting point is 00:16:43 level sometimes they'll jump to catch it. He catches it the right way how Sean Peyton wants with the hands up and not low. That's what stands out about Pat. And now we've seen it translate into confidence here in training camp. Like over the weekend, Sarah, he had the play of the day. And it's a shame

Starting point is 00:16:59 that nobody had footage. Like Broncos didn't even release it because they're not going to do that. But it was an incredible play where he's working against Jayquan, Macmillan, and Zaday Barron. He goes up above both those guys, catches it, gets both feet in bounds. Two feet, toe tats. kind of like the very, very back corner pylon of the end zone, that focus is so hard.

Starting point is 00:17:19 That's an incredibly tough play to make. And he makes those incredibly tough plays. The Broncos feel like they're getting an all-around receiver with Pat Bryant. And that's exactly what I think they need. And it also creates a lot of questions going forward because of Cortland Sutton's contract after this season, Marvin Mims potentially being a guy who could leave as well. So it puts things into question here for this Broncos wide receiver room, but the Broncos are making sure that Pat Bryant is an answer for them.

Starting point is 00:17:46 So Pat Bryant to me, Cody, from what I'm hearing you say and what we're kind of hearing throughout the course of training camp, I feel like he has the three Cs that are required for a breakout season. Number one, he's got chemistry with the quarterback. Number two, he's got the coaches in his corner. Like the coaches love this guy. And I think the coaches are a big reason why the team drafted him in the first place. And then number three, he's got that confidence in that play that you just described

Starting point is 00:18:10 really is what I think kind of makes that obvious, right? Because you go up over J-Quan-McMillan, and not even Brandon Cooks could do that in the playoffs, right? And Jaday Barron, obviously, as well, two guys you're mossing for a touchdown. That shows that you have a level of confidence to be able to say, hey, that's my ball when it's into air. Your quarterback trusts you to make those my ball catches.

Starting point is 00:18:36 Your coaches have the confidence to put you in those situations by drawing up those plays for you. Everything is all pointing right now to Pat Bryant having just a perfect mixture of ingredients to be able to make this happen. And I'm not saying, well, he's going to steal the shine from Jalen Waddle or anything like that. But I think that why not both, right? Why doesn't? Waddle is that missing piece for the offense.

Starting point is 00:19:00 And Pat Bryant is the guy who, oh, shoot, like this guy. Now teams have to account for him every single week. He can still become that even with Jalen Waddle in the mix. That's exactly what the Broncos are hoping for with having Cortland, having Jalen saying, okay, if defense is one of folks on these guys, we got a Pat Bryant. Like the Avengers said, you know, we got a Hulk. Well, the Broncos, they got a Pat Brian. We're excited to see what he can bring to the table here this upcoming season.

Starting point is 00:19:23 Obviously, all health considered for all these guys throughout the 2026 NFL season. But you know what is coming up here, Broncos country? It is game week. We're just five days away from there being a game with the Broncos playing against the Atlanta Falcons. Game week is here. What are we looking for in these final three practices leading? at the preseason. You'll get that more. You're on today's episode of the show. Support from today's episode comes from our friends over there at Odu. Running a business

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Starting point is 00:20:16 It's about having everyone working toward the same goal. And that's true in sports just like it is in business. This past week in Broncos head coach, Sean Payton had to miss practice because he was in Canton, Ohio, inducting Drew Breaz in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. And Vance Joseph ran practice to a T. It's the standard. It's the culture that's been built in a mile high city. It's the operation that really matters.

Starting point is 00:20:34 And Vance Joseph took that playbook from Sean Payton and things worked out well. Great organizations win because operations matter. And that's why you should get O-D-D-D-O-D-O-D-com slash Lockdown. That's O-D-O-O-O-D-com slash Lockedon. Three more days of Broncos training camp practice this week leading up to Friday's preseason opener on the road against the Atlanta Falcons. Everything you need to know is going to take place here on today's episode of the show here. Broncos country, thanks for rocking with us here on the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Also the number one sports podcast network in the country.

Starting point is 00:21:07 Let's get into what we want to see here this week. Obviously, say game week is going to be big. I don't think these next three training camp practices are going to be this hyper-focused competition, right? I think now you're going to start to see maybe a little bit of a shift into we're going to have some competitive periods. But the idea is going to be Broncos versus Broncos. It's going to be, okay, let's focus on some of the things that we really need to master going into this game. You're not going to be scouting for anything the Falcons really do. That's just kind of everyone runs a base vanilla scheme, so it's format.

Starting point is 00:21:36 So there's going to be some in-game adjustments as you go. and that's why you go through installs early on. So you have your base principles that you can run here early on in the preseason without really tipping your hand. So what I want to see here in practice this week, number one thing, sir, you want to start to see guys that have been kind of banged up,

Starting point is 00:21:52 return to practice. I think a lot of people have been concerned about injuries. And I think when you look at maybe the list of names that are like mispractice for this, that or the other, I think a lot of people like, okay, the Broncos are really injured. I don't think that's the case right now.

Starting point is 00:22:03 You have a few soft tissue injuries, and that's Marvin Mims. and that's Jalen Waddle. And then outside of that, with Nick Benito getting hurt last week, it was bone. It was more so him and his ankle getting rolled up on. Luke Wattenberg landed on his shoulder arm. That's more muscular or skeletal than it is muscular. So I understand it.

Starting point is 00:22:22 You was Matt Henningson for the season to do a torn Achilles. But you just want to see guys not exiting to the locker room for anything. And it's been hot in the mile high city. That also factors into it as well. That's the number one thing I want to see this week because you want to get into training camp. This is where your back-end, roster battles, you start to really focus on who's going to make that 53. Yep, it's where you sort of make those determinations based on, okay, this guy's

Starting point is 00:22:45 long-term potential versus this guy's short-term impact. How do we weigh those two things against each other when we're building out this roster, especially with the Super Bowl in focus, right? Because ultimately, this is the team that the Broncos are going to be assembling, saying we believe that the 53 guys that we're assembling plus the practice squad, that this is the crew that's going to be able to win it all in the NFL this year. And that's their expectation that hasn't changed. And so it's going to be a little bit different than I think it was obviously a season ago.

Starting point is 00:23:14 There's a lot of different players, a lot of different coaches. But I think even different than what the expectation is given the fact that you have all this roster continuity. There's still players like we talked about this. It doesn't really get discussed often with the Broncos because of their continuity, but breakout players on both sides of the ball potential to change that roster equation. Guys at the bottom, we get to see them in special teams. live special teams here in the preseason as well. You're going to get to see past rushers getting after another quarterback

Starting point is 00:23:42 and actually being able to hit the quarterback, which is my noted favorite part of the preseason, other than getting to see the playmakers out there. But the past rushers, that's always one of the easiest ways that you could say, hey, this guy, he made himself undeniable out there. So I'm looking forward to that. I'm looking forward to continuation of this quarterback battle as well,

Starting point is 00:24:02 Cody, the quarterback two battle, that is, between Sam Ellinger and Jared Stiddle. them to see how that kind of plays out. But also these young wide receivers, Troy Franklin, I feel like it's obviously he's made plays at training camp. Davis Webb just told us that a little bit ago. But by comparison to Pat Bryant and even when healthy Marvin Mims,

Starting point is 00:24:20 he's been rather quiet, in my opinion. So I'm excited to see him make some plays. I'm excited for these young tight ends. So much. I mean, we love all 90 players. Obviously,

Starting point is 00:24:30 we want to see them all succeed. But there's a few things that stand out. And those right there, I think, are kind of near the top of the list. I'm also curious to see about linebacker three, right? And this is kind of a multifaceted one, not only just the on-field defensive play of these guys,

Starting point is 00:24:43 but also those guys having to play special teams like Lavelle Bailey, Karenne Reed, Red Murdoch, Tori, and York. These guys have to play a lot of defense and a lot of special teams in this game, probably next week's game as well. And who stands out the most there? Who's doing the things that the coaches are looking for? And I even think back to when we heard from Darren Rizzy this weekend, he even identified not only just in the return game,

Starting point is 00:25:04 but like they wanted to identify in the show. year's draft process specifically behind a proven guy like Marvin Mims. Okay, who can return puns for us? Who can return kicks for us effectively? There's that. But then he also tied into, like, because of the roster continuity that this team specifically has, so much of what's going to determine who makes the roster is based on who stands out on special teams, these next three games here, these next three preseason games.

Starting point is 00:25:28 And if there's someone who can make an undeniable case, they'll more than likely get the best advantage, I would say, when the coaches have to go through and evaluate. And of course, you're going to weigh the risk of, waivers or guys not making it. But I think the Broncos have a better idea of that. But this is where those question marks that you may have on the back end of a very, very loaded roster kind of answer themselves. I'm looking for it in the return game. I'm looking at it specifically at the linebacker position. And I'm also curious too as well. You mentioned a wide receiver room. I think what Troy Franklin, a lot of people are saying, wow, we haven't heard his name called a lot. That must not be

Starting point is 00:26:02 good news. I don't think it's bad news because here's also the thing that people forget. they're also holding these other practices at night that media doesn't get to attend. And from what I've been told, Troy's been making a lot of plays. And now certainly with the injury to Jalen Waddle, the muscle tightness, which I think we'll probably see him back at some point this week. I don't know if that's going to be for today's practice, maybe Tuesday or Wednesday. If we see Jalen Waddle start doing some more, that'll be a good sign. Marvin Mim seems to be in good spirit.

Starting point is 00:26:29 It doesn't seem to be walking with a limp or in pain. He's out there, which is always a good sign as well. We see these guys back. And if not, okay, keep it on. Cameron Ross, keep an eye on other guys, too, that are, you know, trying to make a name for themselves here on this roster, not only just Cameron Ross, but I'd even say Hakeem Butler, which, I think for him, his road to this roster is probably going to be very hard. But this is the perfect time, Sarah, to even put it right here. This is going to be the little Jordan Humphrey preseason because he's probably going to get a ton of targets and catches. He might end up being the actual, like, preseason on-field producer for this Broncos team.

Starting point is 00:27:02 And I think if the Broncos have to make a decision between here, Hakeem Butler, I think it's a pretty easy. decision for little Jordan Humphrey over Hakeem based on everything that we've seen so far. Yeah, and I'm interested to see about these two new receivers. Obviously, one of them is not necessarily new. I mean, Kyriez Rowan was with the Broncos in the past last year for a bit on the practice squad as well. But this other guy, I believe it's Kyrie Duplessis or something like that. I haven't looked up the pronunciation for his name, so I apologize if I just...

Starting point is 00:27:30 Duplessis. Duplessis. Wow, a little French tang there to that one. like it. Duplessi. Duplesses. He returned his first career college punt for a touchdown, which I thought was fascinating to me. So that was at Delaware. He didn't return any punts at coastal Carolina.

Starting point is 00:27:50 And then the first one he gets at Delaware, he takes it to the house. And he's got some legit speed. He ran a 4-40 in the pre-draft process. So he's already been with the lions and one other team. I can't remember the other one. But he's already been with two other teams before he got to Denver. So other teams are Seattle was the other one.

Starting point is 00:28:09 So he's been with some pretty good teams at that. So I'm interested by just that, like you mentioned, that punt return competition because when Marvin Mims went down last year, I also heard Cody from the scrimmage that in kick return, Jonah Coleman was the first one up for kickoff returns. So that was what I read somewhere. Yeah. I don't think it's going to be like,

Starting point is 00:28:31 I don't think we're going to see that in the games. I think that they want all those guys to get it. like they put last year they put rj harvey back there a lot and i know r j in season actually had some kick returns they put they put their running backs in there because they want them to learn how to field and how to catch there's that we we're crazy bro we didn't even mention the running backs that's probably maybe the one i'm the most excited about us seeing these dang runners run the run the ball here and obviously knock on wood stay healthy uh we'll see who gets a veteran game off here for the preseason but i'd expect the broncos starters to play you know maybe at least

Starting point is 00:29:02 the series offensively and defensively. And according to Sean Payton, like, if they do well, then they might be one and done. If they struggle a little bit, they might get two series. We've seen Sean do that here before here. But Broncos Country, let us know what you're most excited to see here this week as the Broncos kick off their preseason campaign. And more importantly, three more practices left here this week before game time. Sarah and are going to have you covered every step of the way with everything going on at

Starting point is 00:29:26 Broncos camp this week, plus our preview and ultimately the post-game show against the Atlanta Falcons. As you get all that much more to this week here on Locked on Broncos.

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