After the Denver Broncos beat the New York Jets in London, one of the specific areas head coach Sean Payton was displeased with was the kicking game. And after returning stateside, Payton and the Broncos wasted absolutely no time addressing his frustration.
The Broncos have reportedly signed former Saints safety and special teams ace JT Gray, who was previously on the Baltimore Ravens' practice squad. Better late than never, because when the Saints surprisingly cut Gray, just about everyone thought he would end up reuniting with Sean Payton and Darren Rizzi in the Mile High City.
Instead, Gray decided to sign with the Ravens' practice squad, and he has yet to log a single snap this season.
Broncos (finally) sign special teams ace JT Gray after kicking game disaster vs. Jets
So far this season, the Broncos have allowed 761 kickoff return yards in six games. That's the 3rd-worst number in the league right now. They gave up a 70-yard kickoff return against the Jets in London and another couple of returns that helped the Jets do way better in the field position battle than anyone expected.
The Broncos have also allowed 29.3 yards per return this season, which is the worst number in the NFL.
I think everyone expected more out of the hire of Darren Rizzi, which I personally felt was one of the best non-head coach hires of the entire 2025 offseason. Rizzi's reputation on special teams precedes him, and a player like JT Gray is evidence of that. Gray has made multiple All-Pro teams for his ability in kick coverage, and the Broncos are calling on him to fix a major problem area of the roster right now.
The new kickoff rules were supposed to benefit the Broncos more than anyone else, but that hasn't been the case at all. And let's be honest, JT Gray alone isn't going to fix an issue like this. The Broncos' entire coverage unit has to be better and more consistent, or they'll be better off just giving teams the ball at the 35.
It isn't fair to the Denver defense at this point that the special teams keeps setting them up with short fields to work with, and that starting of field position will be a problem against teams other than the New York Jets.
On the one hand, you appreciate seeing the Broncos acknowledge a clear weakness so far this season. On the other hand, you can't deny that this is the team putting a Band-Aid over a gaping wound, and the pressure should be firmly on Rizzi and not a player like JT Gray.
At this point, we don't know exactly who Gray is replacing, but the Broncos are calling on reinforcements to address one of the worst areas of the team so far this season.