Ball-hawking DBs, Wilson’s scrambles headline Broncos practice

ENGLEWOOOD, Colo. — It was a Day One that didn’t feel like a Day One.

That’s what happens when you have two practices before opening the gates to fans. The public schedule said it was the first day; the bodies of Broncos players ramping up toward full-pad snaps July 31 said otherwise.

And only then will Sean Payton and his staff begin getting a true grasp on what they have.

And “begin” is the key word.

“I tell the coaches all of the time, ‘Let’s not be instant evaluators. Let’s be slow to judge,'” Payton said. “‘Let’s rotate these guys through with the first, second and third groups. Let’s not get stuck on where we think guys might be.’ Then gradually, we will have the chance (to know).

“Right now it’s, ‘What are you doing? Do you know how to get lined up? Do you understand what we are doing so that when you do have the pads on, and we are in those preseason games or scrimmages, [you know what to do].’ It’s hard to evaluate someone if they are having trouble learning what to do or if they are slow to do it. It is a little early, but they are certainly bright, willing to learn and working hard. That’s kind of where they are at.”

Friday’s practice was longer than Thursday’s — by roughly a half-hour. Again, that’s part of the ramping-up process that will see a day off Sunday before Monday’s full-pad work.

“Obviously, the days are longer,” defensive end Zach Allen said. “But it’s been nice to just get the focus on football 100 percent. The offseason stuff — especially for me, coming to a new city, I kind of had to deal with a lot of the ins and outs, finding a place to live, finding your routine, everything like that. But I definitely feel comfortable.

“Today was a good day. We’ve had three good days,” he said. “I’m glad to be working again.”

What we saw today at #BroncosCamp:

* DBs making big plays
* Wilson scrambling well, looking nimble
* Defense has upper hand

My quick recap: pic.twitter.com/2cojE07PnC

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) July 28, 2023

EYE-CATCHING PLAYER

Defensive end Jonathan Harris and the Broncos go back to October 2019, when they claimed him off waivers from Chicago. But it’s been a bumpy ride. He spent all of 2020 on the non-football injury list. The Broncos waived him at the roster deadline in 2021. They did so again the following year. He spent four months on the practice squad in 2021 and two months there last year.

He existed on the NFL fringe. He played 16 of a possible 59 games over his Broncos years. But he started four games last season — including the final three down the stretch. And when DeShawn Williams left for Carolina in March as a free agent, a window opened for the Lindenwood University product.

Friday, he pushed his way through. And bulled his way into the backfield repeatedly, blowing up a pair of run plays while generating consistent pass-rush pressure. In their search for a starting base 3-4 end to play alongside Zach Allen and D.J. Jones, Harris could provide their answer.

“J-Harris is awesome,” Allen said. “He’s just such a hard worker and such a great guy. We’re all really rooting for him. He’s similar, kind of, to D.J. in the aspect that he’s a really big guy, but he moves so well. Really twitchy. Good feet. Fluid. And when you have that in a defensive lineman, that’s all you can ask for.”

PLAY OF THE DAY:

Caden Sterns was in the right place at the right time. But getting to the right place meant laying out parallel to the grass and diving for a deflected interception late in the session.

The play began with Russell Wilson looking for Greg Dulcich down the right seam. Justin Simmons ran step for step with the second-year tight end. Wilson’s window was minuscule, and the veteran safety deflected the ball.

Sterns alertly read the flow of the play, darted toward the falling ball and got under it.

His playmaking ability is obvious from his bursts of playing time in the last two seasons. But moments like this could propel him forward — and perhaps to a full-time starting spot.

“He’s certainly grasping what we are doing defensively,” Payton said. ” … I think he’s doing well. I think he’s got good instincts, and we’ll just keep progressing with him.”

NOTES:

• Russell Wilson’s scrambles caught plenty of attention Friday. But it must be noted that his longest run — a 70-yard dash on which he just kept going as the crowd’s roar intensified — might have been a sack in game conditions. He escaped, but Allen pressure and a potential sack. Allen and Randy Gregory later generated pressure that forced another Wilson scramble.
• Punter Riley Dixon averaged 43.1 yards per punt during the punt period. Montrell Washington had a tough go during that segment; he muffed one punt and then encountered difficulty judging another, with the punt falling at his feet and bouncing. Six of Dixon’s nine punts had hang times of at least 4.50 seconds.
• Both Damarri Mathis and Riley Moss broke up passes during the seven-on-seven period. Mathis swatted away a Wilson pass intended for Adam Trautman, while Moss deflected a Jarrett Stidham pass over the top of Lil’Jordan Humphrey.
• But Moss found himself on the business end of a deep pass from Stidham to Humphrey. During a team period, Stidham delivered a gorgeous pass down the left side that Humphrey got under for a 37-yard gain. The play came despite pressure on Stidham from Nik Bonitto.
• Inside linebacker Seth Benson logged a pass defensed during seven-on-seven reps. He got his hand in to prevent Kendall Hinton from reeling in a short Ben DiNucci pass.
• Penalties were minimal. Allen jumped across the line of scrimmage during a team period, and that was it. Crucially, the offense had no pre-snap or timing infractions.
• Running backs Tyler Badie and Jaleel McLaughlin each had breakaway runs. Both continued demonstrating speed and explosion that revealed themselves during OTA and minicamp sessions.
• Defensive end Elijah Garcia blew up a DiNucci handoff to Tony Jones Jr. with quick penetration during the first team period.
• Brandon Johnson ran a crisp route to generate separation from Mathis, allowing him to catch a pass from Wilson near the sideline during a team period.
• On Orange and Blue Today, I referred to Jonas Griffith working with the No. 2 defense as a “cheat code.” He was dominant, including one play where he perfectly diagnosed a Stidham-to-Trautman screen pass in the flat.
• Marcus Haynes generated what would have been a sack of DiNucci in game conditions during a team-period rep.

PARTICIPATION REPORT:

• RT Mike McGlinchey did not practice for personal reasons.
• S Kareem Jackson received a veteran rest day.
• LT Garett Bolles was held out for rest, as a player returning from a season-ending injury. ““He’ll be on that program. We’ve got three different groups of players,” Payton said. “Some of the older guys, as I mentioned before—anyone who was injured last year and that middle-range group that we think are just a moderate risk. We’ll have a schedule for them.”

QUOTE OF THE DAY:

"Anything not first is second — or last, in my opinion."

Russell Wilson, channeling his inner Ricky Bobby — or specifically, his father, Reese Bobby.

Of course, as Reese later noted … "Hell, Ricky, I was high when I said that!" pic.twitter.com/Pvuj050cU1

— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) July 28, 2023

WEATHER REPORT:

Temperatures spiked from 80°F to 88°F during the practice under fair skies.

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