On a day when Broncos pass catchers stood out, J.K. Dobbins seized the spotlight

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Before running back J.K. Dobbins became the talk of Broncos training camp with his “pinky promise” to make it through a full 17-game regular season for the first time in his seven-year career, it was Marvin Mims Jr. and Evan Engram who had the throng in the bleachers buzzing.

Both got open deep during the course of Friday’s camp-opening practice, which saw the Broncos focus on third downs throughout the day. Mims capped the day with a 30-yard catch in the move-the-ball period past Talanoa Hufanga and Pat Surtain II, but his most dynamic moment might have been earlier when he sprinted past Riley Moss down the left sideline for a 50-yard catch. Moss remained close enough to get the stop and prevent a touchdown, but with that — and another reception on the day — Mims capped a week in which he’s practiced as though he has a boulder on his shoulder.

Which stands to reason, of course; his expiring contract and the addition of Jaylen Waddle puts him in a squeeze in regards to his long-term offensive role.

But as has often been the case in the last three seasons, when utilized, he delivers.

“Yes. He’s demonstrated it time-in and time-out,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said. “There’s a lot of confidence that he plays with. He has that top-end speed, but his strength is locating the ball when it’s down the field 50 yards or 40 yards. He does that really well.”

Engram turned in the early candidate for play of the day by breaking open deep, hauling in a long touchdown pass with JL Skinner trailing in coverage. This followed strong work during June’s practices, which begs the question: Does the installation of Davis Webb as the Broncos’ primary play caller make a difference?

After all, Webb and Engram go back a while — to 2017, when they were both part of the New York Giants’ draft class. Payton affirmed that Webb has some ideas as to how to maximize the 10-year veteran tight end.

“I would say yes to some degree. I think he’s trying to find different ways where he might have a matchup, and I think that’s a good thing,” Payton said. “Now it’s just executing, and it’s ball security, catching, the landmarks, some of the nuances. He’s one other piece where you’re trying to spread the ball around. Who’s going to earn those touches? Those have to be earned.”

So far, Engram seems to be doing his part to justify them. But the “ball security” aspect Payton mentioned is crucial. Engram’s high drop rate last year can’t be overlooked, and a spate of drops this year could squash any hopes of increased production in his second Broncos season.

OTHER BRONCOS ON-FIELD NOTES FROM THE DAY

• The edge-rusher depth flashed again, with multiple pressures from Johnny Walker Jr. and Que Robinson deflecting a Bo Nix pass at the line of scrimmage late in practice.
• Punter Jeremy Crawshaw overcame a mis-hit punt on his first attempt of the special-teams period and followed up with 10-straight punts that had hang times exceeding 4.0 seconds.
• Inside linebacker Karene Reid forced and recovered a fumble from wide receiver Michael Bandy, who himself was a frequent target on offense — as per usual for practices in recent years.
• The young cornerback depth flashed, with Kris-Abrams Draine and undrafted rookie Brent Austin each breaking up passes. Austin capped Thursday’s acclimation-day session with a pass defensed in the end zone on the final play of that day’s session. Riley Moss also broke up a pair of passes.
• Both rookie tight ends from the draft class — Justin Joly and Dallen Bentley — caught passes.
• Not practicing were tight end Caleb Lohner and inside linebacker Drew Sanders. Payton declined to offer an update on their statuses. Sanders missed all of last season due to a foot injury; Lohner sat out OTAs and minicamp, but was not placed on the physically-unable-to-perform list to start training camp. Sanders took part in the Broncos’ acclimation days Wednesday and Thursday.

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