The Denver Broncos just started training camp, but some young players are showing signs of breaking out very early on. Who is standing out?
It’s that time of year when players get on the field at Denver Broncos training camp and absolutely blow our initial 53-man roster predictions out of the water.
And you love to see it.
The pads aren’t even on for the Denver Broncos yet, but with just over two weeks until the team’s first preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys, a variety of players have already started making an impression.
Let’s take a look at five of them, even though it’s still very early.
Denver Broncos possible breakout player: PJ Locke, safety
PJ Locke was the talk of practice after day one at Denver Broncos training camp, and the highlight reel shows us exactly why…
https://twitter.com/Broncos/status/1552459070111563777
Locke was out there making plays on the ball when it was thrown in his direction, and you love to see it.
What’s interesting about this particular breakout situation is that Locke made a comment to Mile High Sports’ Cody Roark that he wasn’t even primarily a safety in college — he played mostly in the nickel at Texas.
Although Locke is a bigger-bodied guy for a defensive back, the fact that he had so much time on task in the nickel in college certainly helps him in his role with the Denver Broncos, which could be a very fluid one.
Locke will likely be asked to play deep safety, nickel, dime, perhaps even some linebacker in certain situations.
What we’re seeing already in training camp is that he’s more than up to the task.
Denver Broncos possible breakout player no. 2: Aaron Patrick, EDGE
You’ve got to love the dark horse among dark horses.
There are few position groups on the Denver Broncos roster that will likely be tougher to crack the final roster than off the edge.
Depending on the roster-building philosophy of this coaching staff, we could see at least five or six edge players kept on the roster, and not just for pass-rushing purposes.
Aaron Patrick suited up for 12 games last year with the Denver Broncos, and most fans probably have no idea who he is.
He’s the guy out on the field wearing DeMarcus Ware’s old no. 94 and flying off the edge at practice.
According to those in attendance, Patrick is showing off his ability to play the edge in addition to getting that “core special teamer” label from special teams coordinator Dwayne Stukes earlier this offseason.
McAllister swallowed up by Aaron Patrick, who does a great job setting the edge on some sort of stretch play
— Zach Segars (@Zach_Segars) July 28, 2022
Aaron Patrick is not unlike a lot of guys that George Paton has brought in during his time as GM with the Denver Broncos.
This guy is an absolute freak athlete off the edge at 6-foot-4 and change, 245 pounds, and nearly 35-inch arms.
He had an other-worldly 39-inch vertical jump at that size with a 4.53 in the 40-yard dash.
Obviously, that kind of size and speed can help your special teams unit, but that kind of get-off (a very good 1.60 10-yard split) is also coveted in today’s NFL.
There are some guys you just can’t let hit the waiver wire and after poaching him from the Jaguars last year, the Broncos might be wise to figure out a way to keep Aaron Patrick on the roster one way or another.
Denver Broncos possible breakout player no. 3: Jonas Griffith, LB
The emergence of Jonas Griffith has been something the Denver Broncos must have seen coming from a few miles away.
After the team cycled through seemingly every other option at the position in 2021 as injuries started mounting, they finally reached the point where Griffith got the chance to start the final four games of the season.
He didn’t disappoint.
He racked up over 40 total tackles, he was playing great in coverage, he was playing instinctively, and he was attacking the line of scrimmage.
Furthermore, Griffith is one of the best athletes on the entire roster looking at his pre-draft metrics. He’s 6-foot-4, 250 pounds, and he’s been making a ton of plays early on in training camp.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Griffith end up leading this Denver Broncos team in tackles even with Josey Jewell coming back healthy from a pectoral injury he suffered a year ago.
The Broncos have long needed a linebacker with athleticism that could play well in coverage, play all three downs, and help the team match up well with opposing offenses even when they are in their base defensive look which typically includes at least two off-ball linebackers.
They now seemingly have that guy in Jonas Griffith, who has been a thorn in the offense’s side through a couple of early practices, not to mention all of OTAs.
Denver Broncos possible breakout player no. 4: Baron Bronwing, EDGE
Although Jonas Griffith and Aaron Patrick are earning some positive publicity, so is second-year player Baron Browning, who is not to be counted out this year by any means.
Browning is making the full-time transition to the EDGE position which will put him in a position to really highlight his elite athletic ability.
Moving to the edge doesn’t mean we’ll never see Browning in coverage again. It doesn’t mean he’s completely done with the off-ball linebacker position.
It does mean we’re actually going to get to see him playing off the edge, something teams are going to have a hard time countering with his insane first step.
Browning has a 1.56 10-yard split, a freaky fast burst for a big man listed at 6-foot-3, 245 pounds.
Not only is he fast, but Browning is also very strong. He threw up 225 pounds on the bench press 23 times and showed in Senior Bowl practices that he can really throw tackles around when he wants to.
Broncos edge rushers looking solid today. Baron Browning’s first step is faassst
— Cody Roark (@CodyRoarkNFL) July 28, 2022
Baron Browning plays an outside run perfectly, cutting off the block and forging a cutback inside to help.
— Cody Roark (@CodyRoarkNFL) July 27, 2022
Playing the edge is not completely about rushing the quarterback, although certainly, we want to see plenty of that from him.
Browning has got to be able to prove he can set the edge, or teams will just run at him all the time.
It’s hard to know exactly what we’re going to see from Browning this season but the fact that the Broncos have him lining up on the edge, poised to use his athleticism and speed at such a premium position?
It’s exciting, and Browning is catching eyes before the pads have even come on.
Denver Broncos possible breakout player no. 5: Eric Saubert, TE
Alright, it’s time to start talking more seriously about Eric Saubert.
Earlier this offseason, it was Albert Okwuegbunam being crowned TE1 after the Noah Fant trade.
Then, at OTAs, the Greg Dulcich hype train was rolling off the rails.
As we open training camp, it seems as though Saubert could be running away with the TE1 job.
Score the TD ✅
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) July 28, 2022
Dunk over the crossbar ✅ pic.twitter.com/NpANZgFtGA
This is not just a 53-man roster drill. This is not just a tight end depth drill.
This is Eric Saubert out at multiple training camp practices catching the eyes of literally everyone in attendance, as well as catching just about everything Russell Wilson throws his direction.
Saubert has a real shot to steal the TE1 job with Okwuegbunam shockingly not making many (or any) headlines so far and Greg Dulcich both a rookie and working off to the side, healing up from a hamstring tweak he suffered at OTAs.
The TE1 job has been wide open as far as I’m concerned since Noah Fant was traded to the Seattle Seahawks.
With that, why not Eric Saubert?
4 players that stood out on Day 1 of Denver Broncos training camp
Which four players stood out on Day 1 of Denver Broncos training camp in 2022? We take a look at some of the earliest standouts.
He’s the guy out there making plays at training camp. At just 28 years of age, there’s no doubt he could be ready to play the best ball of his NFL career to this point with Russell Wilson at the helm of the offense.