Broncos’ belief in rookie punter remains strong: ‘He has a bright future’

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Yes, Broncos punter Jeremy Crawshaw‘s punts in the preseason opener didn’t match the titanic blasts or precision placements that more often than not define his work during punt periods at training-camp practice.

But the Broncos’ confidence in its sixth-round pick remains strong. His work Tuesday showed why.

Once again, the majority of his punts were impressive. As is usually the case — and as Broncos coach Sean Payton referenced nearly three weeks ago when asked about the rookie punter’s progress — there were a pair of punts that were the outliers.

But of his nine punts, two-thirds of them lingered in the air and covered half the field. One punt saw him adeptly field a high snap, quickly recover and crush it 61 yards.

The broad sample size of Crawshaw’s day-in, day-out work reveals the truth: He has the leg.

“It’s working through some of those things that we do with rookies,” Payton said. “You guys see it, and him getting used to the game situations.

“He has a bright future.”

 

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In the later punt-placement period with all of the punts from near midfield, every punt hung in the air long enough for coverage units to get downfield. All but one punt were fielded or landed at the 13-yard line or closer to the goal line.

Crawshaw’s final punt — which remained in the air for over five seconds — hit at the 5-yard line and bounced in the air perfectly to where Quinton Newsome downed it at the 1-yard line. The play could not have been executed any better by punter and coverage player alike.

Such moments are the norm for Crawshaw in practice.

“I think he can be very excellent,” wide receiver Trent Sherfield said. “You can see that we worked on that today. I’m super excited, and he’s a young player as well. I think he’s only going to catch his stride as we continue to work on these things.

“… I think as we continue to work with each other, there’s a little bit of a quarterback-receiver feel when it comes to punting. I have to know where he’s placing the ball; he has to know where I’m going to be. He may have a little bit of a mis-hit. I need to know where his mis-hit might be so I can track that ball.

“As we continue to work together, we’re only going to get better at that as a whole.”

It didn’t show during Saturday’s game, a 30-9 Broncos win. But it almost certainly will.

Ask an expert — Payton’s former punter, Thomas Morstead, now with the San Francisco 49ers, who took a long look at Crawshaw last Thursday and Saturday.

“He came up to me afterwards and just went on about having a chance to meet our guy and then watch his flexibility,” Payton recalled.

“… He said, ‘Man, you really got a good one.'”

PLAY OF THE DAY

Broncos receiver Troy Franklin flashed once again, getting open on a deep post past Ja’Quan McMillian to haul in a 50-yard touchdown pass from Jarrett Stidham during the seven-on-seven period.

ATTENDANCE REPORT

Nik Bonitto did not practice due to a foot issue; Payton said he expects him to return Wednesday … Alex Singleton saw his first team-period work since fracturing his thumb earlier in training camp … Dre Greenlaw returned to individual work … Tight end Nate Adkins and cornerback Reese Taylor did not practice … Gregory Junior debuted, wearing jersey number 30 … Defensive end Matt Henningsen passed through waivers and was placed on injured reserve, which means he does not count toward the Broncos’ 90-player roster limit (plus an international exemption for Crawshaw).

BRONCOS CAMP NOTES

• Practice closed for the Broncos with a move-the-ball period with the following scenario: 1:10 on the clock in the second quarter, a tie score, possession at the offense’s 30-yard line and one timeout. Bo Nix drove the offense into field-goal range with passes to Adam Trautman and Franklin, but the drive ended when he threw deep into a thicket of coverage looking for Michael Bandy. McMillian tracked the football well and reeled it in for the drive- and practice-ending interception.
• Edge rusher Jonathon Cooper was a one-man wrecking crew at times Tuesday. During one period, he burst into the backfield for what would have been back-to-back tackles for losses in game conditions. In a later period, he got past Frank Crum to pressure Nix into an incompletion.
• Cornerback Jaden Robinson came up with an interception, procuring an Ehlinger pass that bounced off the hands of wide receiver Jerjuan Newton during a team period.
• Rookie receiver Joaquin Davis got open on a drag route, catching a pass from Sam Ehlinger past Junior and turning upfield down the left flank for a long gain down the left flank on the penultimate play of the seven-on-seven period.

WHAT’S NEXT

A full-pad practice Wednesday morning at Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit that begins at 10 a.m. MDT.

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