The Denver Broncos are back at training camp preparing for the 2021 season and football is undeniably in the air. Since the Broncos won Super Bowl 50, however, excitement is understandably tempered.
The team has not exactly given fans reason to be overly optimistic in recent years but everyone in the NFL is undefeated right now and there are plenty of reasons — on paper, at least — to be very excited about this team.
The Broncos have one of the league’s most talented defensive units led by one of the best defensive coaches in the game. The offensive skill positions are absolutely loaded. The offensive line, now in its third season under Hall of Famer Mike Munchak, seems ready to take another huge leap forward in 2021.
There have been a number of really pressing questions for this team heading into training camp and we’ve been watching and observing as much as possible through the first six practices and seven days to bring detailed reports of what’s been going on, what the players and coaches are saying, and who has been standing out.
After finally getting feet on the ground at Denver Broncos headquarters in Englewood, CO, and watching a couple of practices in person, there is even more to discuss than just the quarterback position, believe it or not.
Shocking, I know.
It’s still early and there’s still plenty of ball to be played, but there are also some major items to be discussed coming out of Denver Broncos training camp in 2021.
Here are the top 10 major takeaways so far.
Denver Broncos training camp: 10 major takeaways
1. Jerry Jeudy superstar season incoming
There is really not enough hyperbole that can appropriately hype the way Jerry Jeudy has looked so far in the 2021 offseason.
Jeudy’s development from his rookie season to year two in the NFL is already extremely notable, so if you’re looking for a mid-round fantasy football steal and you don’t have a bunch of Broncos fans in your fantasy draft, make sure Jeudy is someone you target.
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It doesn’t matter if it’s been during one-on-one drills, 7-on-7 or “skelly” period, or 11-on-11 team period — Jeudy has been absolutely feasting on the practice field.
It’s only a matter of time before a bunch of Minnesota Vikings defensive backs are being victimized in the joint practices these two teams are about to have.
Jeudy was rightly criticized for dropped passes during his rookie season. They were a serious issue that significantly contributed to no fewer than two losses during the 2020 season (specifically games against the Titans and Chargers).
As concerning as those drops were, those concerns should be borderline erased as Jeudy enters his second season looking like a bona fide superstar out there and someone who can create separation effortlessly.
2. Pat Surtain II – Trend Setter?
When the Denver Broncos drafted Pat Surtain II, the selection was critiqued by many as overkill. The Broncos went out in free agency and got Ronald Darby and Kyle Fuller. They already had Bryce Callahan. They also spent plenty to re-sign Justin Simmons and bring back Kareem Jackson at safety.
What was the point of the first-round cornerback?
Early on in training camp, we’re getting a glimpse of that.
Vic Fangio has hinted at it quite a bit, but seeing it in person is really fun. Surtain has been working in with the top defense playing a hybrid slot/dime linebacker role and lining up against pretty much anyone and everyone.
Not only are we seeing Surtain lined up at outside corner at Denver Broncos training camp, but we’re also seeing him in the box and in the slot.
For years, Denver Broncos fans have been absolutely clamoring for that secret weapon at linebacker that can cover these ultra-athletic tight ends all over the league. The problem is, there are very few linebackers that can turn in coverage and do well against Travis Kelce and Darren Waller. Those guys are basically WR1 types of receiving threats.
How do you cover a WR1? I’ll give you a hint — it’s not with at LB1…
You need to cover a WR1 with a CB1, of course.
The Denver Broncos and most NFL teams spend between 65-75 percent of their defensive snaps in the nickel formation. With teams basically utilizing nickel as a base defense, how quickly could we see the dime defense become sort of the new nickel?
Pat Surtain II could help the Denver Broncos become trendsetters in that regard, using 6 DBs more often than not. You’ve got to get your best 11 on the field as much as possible, and for the Broncos, this is the way to do it.
3. Offensive Line Competition (C, RT)
The Denver Broncos entered training camp in 2021 with two positions on Mike Munchak’s offensive line that were realistically up for grabs.
Those two positions were center and right tackle.
Center
The incumbent at center is 2020 third-round pick Lloyd Cushenberry III, a player who understandably struggled in his rookie year as the full-time starter. Cushenberry started off playing rather poorly for the Broncos but got progressively better as the season wore along.
He was projected to be challenged by incoming rookie Quinn Meinerz, a product of D-III Wisconsin-Whitewater who has some truly elite physical and athletic tools.
With Meinerz coming in, it was a real “the devil you know vs. the devil you don’t” situation and many thought the rookie could be a starter in 2021.
Cushenberry has, so far, staked his claim on the position.
At this point in time, Vic Fangio said essentially there is no competition at center. Meinerz has been working with the second unit on offense and there has been no splitting of reps with Cushenberry.
Right Tackle
While the center position remains Cushenberry’s to lose, the right tackle position is entirely up for grabs.
The two primary contenders at this point are undoubtedly Calvin Anderson and Bobby Massie.
Anderson got two starts for the Broncos in 2020, one each at right and left tackle. He’s been developing in Denver for two years now and the team has been very high on him. Massie was signed after Ja’Wuan James went down with a season-ending injury, and the two have split days as the first-team RT evenly through six practices.
Anderson was the 1st-team RT on days one and two, Massie took days 3-5, and Anderson was back with the top offense for the first day of padded practice.
In terms of the team’s long-term success, it would be great if Anderson could create some separation and win the job. If it’s even close, you have to think the Broncos will go with the young guy who has more long-term potential with the team and Massie as a fail-safe.
Anderson looked strong in practices and had a couple of notable pass pro reps. His athleticism has never been in question. It looks like things could finally be clicking for the guy the Broncos once poached off the Jets’ practice squad.
4. 2021 7th-round picks showing out
With a couple of days to observe camp in person, including the first padded practice of the offseason, I was very excited to take some notes on players in the trenches who stood out.
The Denver Broncos took a couple of late-round shots in the 2021 NFL Draft on defensive lineman Marquiss Spencer (Mississippi State) and Jonathon Cooper (Ohio State) with outstanding athletic profiles and perhaps more in the tank than their college production led on.
With some outstanding flashes throughout their college years, Cooper and Spencer really exemplify what should be the “ideal” seventh-round dart throw in the NFL Draft.
Those two guys made some of the more eyebrow-raising plays over the course of two days of camp, and Cooper had one pass rush rep, in particular, that may have been one of the more impressive individual defensive reps thus far.
Cooper, specifically, could be competing for a rather crucial role on the Denver Broncos’ defense. At this point, no fourth pass rusher or edge player has really emerged behind Von Miller, Bradley Chubb, and Malik Reed.
Practices like Cooper had on Tuesday go a long way towards ultimately making the 53-man roster.
5. Wide Receiver Competition/Trade Rumors?
Vic Fangio warned that the Denver Broncos’ offense would be hard to identify in terms of the starters, backups, third-string, etc. simply based on which receivers were on the field.
There are the usual suspects — Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, and Tim Patrick — but Fangio has made good on his word and just about every receiver (it seems) has been rotating in with the first unit on offense.
If you’re scoring at home, however, 2021 sixth-round pick Seth Williams has probably been getting more looks than most out there with that first offensive unit along with other guys like Kendall Hinton and Trinity Benson.
For the conspiracy theorists among us, one might consider Williams’ extensive work with the top offense a great way to get a look at someone who could be a possible Tim Patrick replacement.
As much as I and many others would love to see Patrick get a contract extension with the Denver Broncos — and they should at least ask him about a price point they are comfortable with — the likely outcome is that Patrick is not in Denver beyond 2021.
Although you’d love to see him play out this season in orange and blue, is that the best value he brings to this team?
General manager George Paton has got to know that Patrick’s trade value will probably never be higher, especially as injuries pile up around the league. Patrick showed his value to the Broncos last year by filling in as an injury replacement for Courtland Sutton, but the team’s depth seems to be more than fortified and there could be 9, 10, maybe even more regular-season worthy receivers on the team.
As much competition as there is right now for spots at wide receiver, could we see a trade of someone like Tim Patrick?
6. McTelvin Agim – Breakout Player?
Nothing is more fun to talk about during training camp and preseason play than breakout player candidates.
The Denver Broncos are a young team, so they have plenty, but one player who really seems to be playing his way into becoming a major factor in 2021 after basically making no impact in 2020 is McTelvin Agim.
Agim, a third-round pick out of Arkansas last year, got a little bit of work on the Broncos’ defense but not consistently, even with some injuries on that defensive line.
With so much nickel and dime defense expected this year from Vic Fangio’s defense, guys like Agim who can get to the quarterback quickly will be tremendously important.
The Broncos had a breakout player on the defensive line in 2020 with Dre’Mont Jones, who produced at a starter level despite barely eclipsing 50 percent of the team’s snaps played.
With Jones’ breakout and Shelby Harris’ contract extension (Mike Purcell’s, too), there is little doubt about the Broncos’ top three on the defensive line.
Behind those guys, though? It’s open season.
McTelvin Agim was a converted defensive end who put on the weight to play the interior defensive line, and his versatility is going to be key moving forward.
He should have a significantly increased role in 2021 and should be expected to be a breakout player.
7. Justin Strnad a threat to Josey Jewell?
The Denver Broncos had a fairly underrated duo of starting inside linebackers last season in Alexander Johnson and Josey Jewell.
Johnson didn’t play quite as well as he did in the 2019 season but Jewell far exceeded anything we’ve seen from him up to this point in his career. Entering the 2021 offseason, those two players are both projected to be free agents after the season.
They were the unquestioned starters heading into training camp but a groin injury that will put Jewell out for at least 10 days (according to Vic Fangio) has paved the way for second-year player Justin Strnad, who is essentially a redshirt rookie after missing all of last season with a wrist injury.
Strnad was a very solid three-down linebacker for Wake Forest in college and had some shades of Fred Warner (the prospect) to his game.
NFL teams are obviously looking for linebackers that can play all three downs effectively and with their back to the line of scrimmage, and Strnad is a guy who can do that.
Through the first week of camp, Strnad has played well and showed he belongs out there. He has made a couple of nice plays in coverage blowing up designed running back pass plays and showing off his range and quickness.
At this point, it’s tough to say that Strnad is going to flat out replace Jewell in the lineup, but he undoubtedly will get some snaps.
8. Never too many DBs?
Heading into training camp, the Denver Broncos were already loaded in the defensive backfield. In addition to the top six guys on the roster at cornerback and safety (Justin Simmons, Kareem Jackson, Ronald Darby, Kyle Fuller, Bryce Callahan, and Pat Surtain II), the Broncos also had guys like 2020 third-round pick Michael Ojemudia, last year’s starting nickel corner Essang Bassey, and three draft picks from the class of 2021 loading up the depth chart.
Apparently, though, you can never have too many defensive backs.
Since camp has opened up, the Broncos have added guys like Tedric Thompson, Rojesterman Farris, and the latest Saivion Smith.
The message?
You can’t have too many good defensive backs and the Broncos plan on keeping a lot of them.
There will be plenty of competition on this roster for sixth, maybe seventh cornerback spots as well as the backup safety positions.
In the early goings, it looks like the Broncos have PJ Locke and Trey Marshall battling it out for one roster spot given those guys’ history as special teams aces, but there are young playmakers all over this unit and the Broncos have continually added more.
9. The QB Battle
Well, we couldn’t entirely escape talking about the quarterbacks, could we?
There is no doubt that through six days of training camp, the Denver Broncos have seen little separation in this quarterback competition between Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater.
Lock opened up camp with the top offensive unit but it’s been an even split — as promised — ever since.
The team has to be hoping there is a clear separation at some point by the time they are done with that first preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings.
Up to this point, it’s been tough to gauge from the outside looking in.
In two days that I personally observed of camp, both quarterbacks had some nice downfield throws but on day five, it was a clear “Teddy” day as far as making more throws goes. On day six, with the pads on, it was a major emphasis on the running game, so there was very little to glean from the quarterback competition.
Perhaps on day seven, that will be shifted around.
Pat Shurmur said after the first padded practice that this is the “best” version of Drew Lock he’s seen, which is a great sign. Although both quarterbacks started off without throwing any interceptions, they’ve since thrown a handful each.
That’s to be expected in camp.
The question becomes how improved either of these guys can be at taking care of the ball in an actual game. Both guys struggled in that area last season.
So far, the separation — if there even is any — is minimal.
10. Unprecedented roster construction coming?
Given the way we’ve seen the Denver Broncos implementing guys into their defensive gameplan, meaning Pat Surtain II working with the top defense in the dime package, how much could we see shifted in the way this roster is built?
The Broncos have so many wide receivers that should be on an NFL roster, how is that going to change the way George Paton and Vic Fangio decide to shape things?
The offensive line not only has good starters but also some good depth. Do you keep eight guys there? Nine?
There is no question about the fact that this roster is loaded in certain areas and a little thin in others. With the major emphasis being placed on the dime package, it would not be surprising to see the Denver Broncos keep more than 10 defensive backs, maybe even in the 12-13 range.
That would obviously impact other areas of the roster significantly, and the areas that seem to be in danger of being impacted the most are at linebacker and tight end.
For so long, teams have kept more off-ball linebackers than they probably needed to, but with expanded practice squads and the ability to essentially shuttle guys up and down, there is an opportunity for the Denver Broncos to get a little creative with their roster construction.
Denver Broncos: Five players that could turn heads at training camp
The Denver Broncos are about to begin their training camp for the 2021 NFL season. Who are the five players that could turn heads during camp?
You’ve got to find a way to keep your best 53 guys who are going to contribute week in and week out, and I think we’re going to see some fascinating changes, even if some of them are slight, in the way this particular team chooses to build the roster.