The Denver Broncos moved wide receiver Pat Bryant to short-term injured reserve, which allowed them to sign Lil’Jordan Humphrey to the active roster. They’ll need him with Bryant out, so the move makes sense. It was also reported that Bryant was likely to miss four games anyway. Overall, they did what they needed to do to keep the offense as full strength as possible.
They also added defensive back Ugo Amadi who has mostly played at safety. He has appeared in 85 games with 17 starts with four different
teams. They have been looking to improve their depth at safety and this looks like a move that helps.
Broncos daily recap
Sean Payton explains why he’s taking back Broncos play-calling
Sean Payton is taking over play-calling duties for the Broncos, explaining the decision and what he hopes to accomplish.
Scouting the Enemy: Los Angeles Chargers
The Denver Broncos battle the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Here is a deeper look at their Week 5 opponent.
Potent quotables
Vance Joseph
On what makes the Chargers a dangerous opponent
“It’s a good unit. When you watch it closely, it’s a good unit. Even last week’s game in the first 15 plays, they dropped some balls early that would’ve been big plays. It’s a group with talent obviously. It’s a well-coached group also. So it’s a dangerous opponent. It’s a 0-4 team that’s desperate, that has talent and great coaching. So being at our best is a must.”
On how OLB Que Robinson has been playing so far this season
“He’s played well for us. Obviously with more reps and time on task, he’s playing better and better each week. He’s prototype, and he’s playing really good football for us.”
On his confidence in CB Kris Abrams-Draine
“He’s very smart. He has great ball skills. He has natural cover abilities. So when he’s playing for us, we have no worries as far as the coverage part.”
Darren Rizzi
On CB Kris Abrams-Draine’s impact on special teams
“He’s a guy that I didn’t know a lot about when I got here two years ago or before last season, and a guy that I’ve really grown to have a lot of faith and trust in, respect for. He could do a lot of different things. He’s played gunner, he’s played jammer, he’s played returner, he’s been on the kickoff team. So he’s done a little bit of everything. He’s on the field goal block, rush team. So kind of a quiet lead by example, really… Maybe sometimes you don’t think—he’s quiet, so maybe he’s not paying attention. He sees everything, he hears everything. You see that in his play, you see that in the detail of his work. A guy that’s out here early. We talk about the jugs, things like that. Just a really impressive guy in terms of work ethic. I’m proud of what he’s done to this point and I’m looking forward… I know he’s getting some more action here potentially, and I’m rooting for him because I’m really, really proud of him.”
On P Jeremy Crawshaw’s progress with directional punting
“Really both ways. It just happens to be the way the games have played out. It’s been a little bit more to the right. It’s something that directionally, it’s a weapon for us. He started doing a really good job towards the end of last year with it in the postseason games and even at the end of the regular season. That directional thing is a big deal. There was probably the first half of last year, we probably missed the target a few times. That was more of a lack of experience thing. I think it’s something he’s worked on. He actually did a heck of a job last week. We should have kept the one out of the end zone. Obviously that ball went out to the 20 [-yard line], but he really should have had five punts inside the 20 last week. It was a huge field position. That’s going to be huge for us the whole year. Because of the new kickoff rule, it’s really hard to pin a team on the kickoff now. Really hard. So if you get a tackle inside the 25 [-yard line] on a kickoff, it’s a big deal. So that’s the one phase of the game where you can really sway the field position. So that becomes a weapon for us, but it’s something that he’s worked on, it’s something that he’s gotten a lot better at and it just happened to be to the right. Great observation, but we do have the same thing the other way. It just really depends on field position, wind, all that kind of stuff.”
Davis Webb
On if he’s disappointed with the change at play-caller
“I think it’s more just how we started off offensively (with his disappointment), but I’m excited to see how our team responds this week. We’ll try to get a team win against a divisional opponent. It was a long week in some ways, but in other ways, it’s back to work. I’m still in charge of running the offensive meetings and helping out the quarterback room and that’s where we’re at.”
On if he had a sense after Sunday that there would be a change in play calling
“I’m not really sure if I had a sense or anything like that. We had a productive talk on Monday. I know he [Head Coach Sean Payton] mentioned it yesterday. We talked for about an hour. I know it wasn’t probably easy for him, but I’m really looking forward to seeing how we respond this week.”
On if the conversation with Head Coach Sean Payton was difficult for him
“I think any time that happens in any aspect of your life, job-wise, it is a little bit. But in the same breath, that’s the NFL. You get going. I’ve been a backup QB, been up and down before, and that’s kind of how it goes.”
On what he learned about himself as a play caller in four games
“I think it was a smaller sample size than maybe we’d like for a full season, but within the four weeks, every week the operation was cleaner. I learned a ton about myself in regards of sending the plays in, getting the plays in early, how we go about game planning with [Head Coach] Sean [Payton] in there. Just learned a ton through four weeks and really, and I am really proud of the growth our staff showed and our players showed. We were so close in a lot of areas. I think in the San Francisco game, you can see a few plays that were very, very close to being successful. Same with the week before against the Rams. We just didn’t put a full game together consistently enough. I take responsibility for that. I’m the play caller, but we all have a hand in this and hopefully we can get going this weekend a little bit faster.”
On if everything besides who is calling plays on gameday is staying the same
“Yes. [Head Coach] Sean [Payton] has been in there throughout all the gameplan meetings so far this year. Obviously this week we knew he was going to call it, but nothing really changed other than knowing on Sunday he was going to call it. So I think we’re all excited to watch our players perform and get a big road win.”
On how Head Coach Sean Payton has supported him and the opportunity to continue to learn from a potential Hall of Fame head coach
“He will be (in the Hall of Fame). I think for him, there was a lot of empathy with our conversation because that did happen to him. We talked about that for a long time, but in the same breath, it’s a different situation as well. I don’t think anyone wanted to go through this right now, but he’s excited to get the chance to call plays. I know he’s itching, and we’ll see how it goes.”
On if four games was enough to make a decision to change play callers
“Luckily, it’s not my job. That’s his (Payton’s) job, but obviously I think he answered that. I think the world of him and how we’ve kind of gone about it, really from [Walton-Penner Family] Ownership [group], to our players. It’s exciting because we still got… We’re 2-2 through the first four games. Our first four opponents were a combined 13-3 to start the season. So, welcome to the league. I think we’re all excited to get going in L.A.”
On the offensive players feeling like they let him down and the support he felt from them this week
“No question. I’m very thankful for all those guys, from the offensive line, to the wideouts, the quarterbacks, running backs, tight ends. I’ve definitely felt that, but like I’ve been saying right now, it’s onto the next thing. That’s the NFL. We wake up, and we have a job to do and that’s to help these players be successful. That’s the only thing on my mind right now, and I think our staff’s doing a good job of that.”
On if he envisioned this being a scenario during the offseason
“I have taught myself early to think about the best- and worst-case scenarios. If you’re OK with both, then take that job on… Nothing I can really do about it now except be the best teammate and offensive coordinator I can be. That’s what I’m trying to do.”
On what the offense could change moving forward
“Not much has changed honestly since I first got here. We kind of adjusted some verbiage as [QB] Bo [Nix] has gone on throughout the seasons. Like I said at the beginning of this, this is a [head Coach] Sean Payton offense and we’re rolling that way. I think I’ve learned a ton when it comes to sequencing, to play selection, to how we gameplan, to really how the players respond to it. So I think everyone’s got a hand in that, and we’ll see what happens.”
On if he tried to convince Sean Payton to allow him to continue as the play-caller in their conversation
“I think that’s a private conversation. We’ll keep it as such. It was an hour long. He made a decision, and that’s his job. He’s the head coach of the football team, and my job now is to do this role even better.”
On how close he thinks the offense is to figuring things out
“Extremely, extremely close. I think there are a few things in the pass game that were close last week, a few things in the run game that were close last week. You can see the second halves of the Jaguars game, the Rams game. I mean, I just mentioned three good teams right there. Kansas City was tough on everybody… So I think getting off to this start, being at 2-2 is not what we wanted, but it’s where we’re at. I think that a lot of teams in the NFL will be OK with that.”
On who told QB Bo Nix they were making a change at play caller
“I think [Head Coach] Sean [Payton] might have done that to be honest with you. But again, like I told him, I’m going to be like I always have been in my mind and his mind: I’m all in for him. I’m all in for everybody in this offensive unit, and I’m going to do everything I can to make sure everybody’s in a position to be successful.”
On if he would change where he calls plays in the future and what he learned from the experience
“I don’t think that was an issue (being on the sideline). It’s a good question. I really enjoy being on the field. I love talking to [WR] Jaylen [Waddle] on the bench or [WR] Courtland [Sutton] on the bench, and [QB] Bo [Nix], and the offensive line and the coaching staff. That’s a strength of mine. I don’t think I’ll ever go up there. I hope I never go up there. I don’t think that was really an issue. It was more just a lot of things kind of happened at once.”
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