Denver Broncos training camp is off and rolling, and the team has been on the practice field for two ramp-up practices and two official camp practices with fans in attendance. It’s still very early into the process, and the pads have not come on yet; that’s on Monday, but we have learned a few things about this team this week.
So, with all that said, here are the five things we have learned about the Denver Broncos through the first four practices for training camp.
Jonathon Cooper is practicing
Heading into training camp, the
status of Broncos starting edge rusher Jonathon Cooper seemed very much up in the air. He was arrested twice during the offseason and is going through the legal process right now. That led many fans and media, myself included, to speculate about his future with the team. The last time we heard from Payton, he expressed his disappointment with the matter, and it seemed to put Cooper’s status with the team in hot water.
However, to Cooper’s credit, he attended a 40-day inpatient mental health and wellness counseling program and seemed to be working on himself after his off-the-field incident. The team must have been happy with the results because Cooper reported to camp with the rest of his teammates and has been participating throughout the week without limitations.
Head Coach Sean Payton was asked about Cooper, and he told reporters that they are staying the course with the league and club protocol but added that Cooper has been “fantastic working away from the building”.
“We’re staying the course with the league. We’re staying the course with league protocol, club protocol relative to what we’re advised to do. He’s been fantastic working away from the building, and we’ll continue to do that and monitor it. We’re supportive, and yet very much aware of the seriousness of these types of things. Pretty much what I said in the spring, there’s a schedule and a course to this, and that’s what we have to follow.”
Payton was later asked if they’re waiting for Cooper’s legal process to play out before making a decision on his future with the team. He repeated that they’re going through the league process but again added that they are proud of the work Cooper has done and that he is fully supportive of him right now and that they are still gathering all the information.
“There’s a process relative to the league, relative to the legal process and then as that all comes together, we can make the right decision. And that’s simply it. There’s no follow up, there’s no other underlying… It’s today’s protocol, and there are probably maybe a dozen players in other camps that are kind of going through a similar protocol. We’re proud of the work he did these last, call it month and a half. It wasn’t easy, and it’ll continue to be a challenge. We’ll see where it goes. [I am] fully supportive of him right now as we gather all the information and then we go from there.”
Payton did hint that Cooper’s legal situation could be finalized “sooner rather than later. “ so we may have some sort of settlement before Cooper’s late August arraignment date, but that’s just speculation on my part.
The fact that Cooper is with the team and practicing and Payton is speaking positively about him is a clear sign that he will likely remain with the team. The legal process is still ongoing and discipline from the league could still happen, but at the very least, Cooper’s future with the team looks a lot better right now than it did a week ago.
Nix and the offense look good early
I have covered many Broncos training camps at this point in my life, and one thing has remained consistent throughout many of them.
The offense struggles early on.
Part of that reason is that the Broncos’ offenses were not very good, the quarterbacks sucked, and/or the coaching wasn’t very good. Some combination of those three things. We even saw them start slow last season before turning it on later in camp. However, this year, quarterback Bo Nix and the Broncos offense have come out of the gates on fire.
Nix has hit multiple deep passes throughout camp, including a 50-yard bomb to Marvin Mims and another 40+ yarder to Pat Bryant. Nix also doesn’t look impacted by his offseason ankle surgery that cost him the vast majority of his offseason. Oh yeah, his chemistry with Jaylen Waddle looks great, and the two have been connecting throughout camp.
It’s early, very early, but it’s a great sign that this Broncos offense is looking this good early in camp against a good defense. It hasn’t been without flaws, of course; the defense has had its share of wins, but the fact we’re talking about the offense looking good early in camp is an exciting development.
New offensive coordinator and playcaller Davis Webb is looking to make an impact on this offense, and so far, the results have been great. Based on reports, we have seen more uptempo, quicker to the line, some creativity, and more use of motion. It remains to be seen how much of that will carry over into the regular season, but I am intrigued to see how it all plays out.
Mims for WR3?
One of the more interesting camp battles happening is for the Broncos’ WR3 job. Jaylen Waddle and Courtland Sutton are expected to be the Broncos’ top pass-catching options this upcoming season, but the snaps and targets behind those two are up for grabs.
The three main contenders are Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims, and Pat Bryant. All three players flashed at different times last season and can make a strong case for the job. However, early in camp, one player has stood out amongst the rest thus far, and that player has been Marvin Mims Jr.
He simply has been making plays throughout camp. He has caught long touchdown passes from Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham and has been heavily targeted during the Broncos 11 on 11 team periods.
Mims is an All-Pro returner who can take it for a touchdown whenever he has the ball in his hands, but his work as a wide receiver has been inconsistent. He has yet to put together a full season of consistent production as a pass catcher; however, he has come up clutch for the Broncos in key moments, been a reliable deep threat, and had stretches of really good football.
Could he finally be putting it all together?
As we know, Mims is in a contract year, and we have seen players around the league have big years right before they head into free agency. If Mims can continue this sort of play throughout camp and into the regular season, he seems like a strong candidate to have a breakout season.
JK Dobbins promises to stay healthy
One of the big question marks surrounding this Denver Broncos team is the health and availability of veteran running back JK Dobbins. Throughout his NFL career, he has been unlucky and dealt with multiple serious lower body injuries. He has had an ACL and Achilles injury and suffered a season-ending Lisfranc injury last season. Now, he is back with the Broncos and is promising to stay healthy this season.
Dobbins told reporters that he promises to play in all 17 games this season and wants to lead the NFL in rushing. Before his injury last season, he was 3rd in the NFL in rushing, but a freak hip drop tackle vs. the Raiders ended his season.
Unfortunately for Dobbins, this will be a difficult promise to keep. Running backs have a hard time staying healthy for all 17 games due to wear and tear and, frankly, things out of their control. Shit happens, and sometimes you just get hurt. Hopefully, Dobbins can stay healthy for all 17 games, but if he played in, let’s say 120 to 15 games but was healthy for the postseason, I would be down for that.
The Broncos need Dobbins to stay healthy because their running game fell completely apart without him last season. Head Coach Sean Payton stressed the importance of him to this team and said Dobbins was a big reason they won 14 games last season.
“Good. There’s a lot to him, and when you’re evaluating the type of injury he had, how it happened and what he brings to the team, we had strong opinions, [General Manager] George [Paton] and I and the rest of the group about re-signing him. He was a big part of why we won 14 games last year, and sometimes that can get lost in the narrative. Certainly he’s been injured, and yet what we were able to do when he was healthy had a lot to do with where we ended up, so it was unfortunate. I believe in the player a lot. That room has gotten markedly better from what I remember in 2023.”
However, Payton is right about one thing. The Broncos running back room looks a lot better than it did a few years ago. Second-year back RJ Harvey had a productive rookie year and had 12 total touchdowns, and rookie Jonah Coleman looks like someone who can be a major contributor his rookie year.
They have a talented starter in JK Dobbins, an explosive change of pace/pass catcher in RJ Harvey, and a talented rookie in Jonah Coleman. Hopefully, these three backs can give the Broncos a strong rushing attack this upcoming season.
The Broncos news training facility is awesome
The Denver Broncos officially moved into their brand new training facility, and they gave us a drone tour of their new place, and man, it looks awesome.
Head Coach Sean Payton was asked about the features of the new training facility and simply hyped up the entire building and everything that comes with it.
“Good question. I think in the training room, if there’s science behind whatever the modality is, the cold plunge or… I think there are some things in there that are new and helpful in recovery and sleep. I said this yesterday in our first team meeting: don’t ever lose track of the facility and who’s in the facility. Who’s in the facility is the most important thing. There have been a ton of teams in fancy new gigs that haven’t been to the postseason in quite a while. Let’s not lose track of what’s in the facility. That facility there [across the fields] has won a ton of games, long before we ever arrived. This one, we’ll write its story. Certainly it’s fantastic, but I would say the first thing that would come to mind would be those items in recovery. It’s the same people preparing the meals, which I think are wonderful, and you’re just sitting in a newer booth. The meeting room set up is fantastic. All of it. But I think those specifics in the training room are unique. The also, sometimes I think with a new structure, you can further distance yourself and we’ve kind of done the opposite. I think it’s 50 steps from, if you’re a player, from wherever you’re wanting to go and I think that’s convenient.”
The Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group did an excellent job with this training facility, and I am excited to see what they will do with the Broncos new stadium that is set to open in 2031.
