Stokley: Broncos have to let Jamaal Charles ‘loose’ at some point

Denver Broncos running back Jamaal Charles feels great, so much so that he said as much on Friday.

The veteran running back said he’s “going through (his) plays” and is “excited” to be out there.

But Charles, working back from knee issues that hampered much of his past two seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, hasn’t done much more than “mini drills and individuals.”

“I told them I definitely want to do more,” Charles said. “Right now, I’m happy with the system.

“They’re taking their time with me, and I told them I want to do more with (practice), to get hit. I want that to get my confidence up and see where I need to fit my pads and make people miss. The process is still going right now. Whatever they tell me to do I’m just doing it day by day.”

But, “at some point,” 104.3 The Fan’s Brandon Stokley said on Sunday, “you’ve got to let him go.”

The “Stokley & Zach” co-host said he believes the Broncos have a plan in place for Charles and “they’re just going to take it slow,” but at some point it’s go-time.

“You’ve got to let him loose and see if he has anything left or not,” Stokley said.

The comments come after the Broncos running back room suffered some injury setbacks, with second-year rusher Devontae Booker out for the preseason with a fractured wrist and rookie De’Angelo Henderson tweaking his ankle.

The latter, Joseph said, could have practice on Sunday but was held out as a precaution.

“It’s a small sprain. It’s a low sprain,” Joseph said of Henderson’s injury. “He’ll be back tomorrow. He could have gone today, but just being smart with these guys early on.”

But everything from bumps and bruises to serious injury is par for the course this part of the season, Stokley said.

“Running backs, sometimes it’s whoever’s left standing and if you can stay healthy. So, we’ll see how it breaks down,” Stokley said. “We’ve got a long camp left with that group.

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.