Denver Broncos: DaeSean Hamilton stepped up in loss to 49ers

Denver Broncos wide receiver DaeSean Hamilton had to step up due to the loss of Emmanuel Sanders. He did just that against the 49ers.

When the Denver Broncos lost wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders to a torn Achilles, it bumped rookie DaeSean Hamilton to the first-team offense, along with fellow 2018 rookie draft pick Courtland Sutton.

Prior to Sunday’s matchup with the San Francisco 49ers, Hamilton’s best performance came in early October against the New York Jets, when he caught three passes for 44 yards.

On Sunday at San Francisco, Hamilton caught seven passes for 47 yards. No, his yardage total was not drastically different, but now he is getting many more opportunities.

Hamilton’s first reception came at 4:50 left in the first quarter. It was a shallow curl route for a gain of seven.

On Hamilton’s second reception, he was lined up to the far left. Case Keenum motioned him inside between Courtland Sutton and the offensive line.

The ball was snapped almost immediately after Hamilton got to his spot and he ran a short “dart” route off of play-action motion. The play is intended for the receiver (in the case, Hamilton) to end up in the flat. The play ended up losing one yard.

This was not an error by Hamilton. It was just a good play by the 49ers defense detecting what was coming.

With 1:48 left in the first half, Hamilton found himself wide open on the middle-left of the field. It would have been a pretty large gain.

Case Keenum chose to throw to the team’s other rookie, Courtland Sutton for what would have been a first down if it wasn’t incomplete.