Amidst a very saddening day for Denver Broncos fans as they lost two of their young receivers in Tim Patrick and KJ Hamler for extended amounts of time, the team had a few ups and downs as they threw on the pads for the first time since their week 18 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers in the season finale.
Aside from injuries, despite implementing a brand new offensive system under head coach Sean Payton, many players seem to be picking things up quicker than expected.
Denver Broncos players that stood out at Day 5 of training camp
RB Jaleel McLaughlin
Entering his rookie campaign and experiencing his first NFL offseason, rookie UDFA RB Jaleel McLaughlin is already faced with many obstacles and “not so great” odds as it is very difficult making an NFL roster being undrafted. However, the 22-year-old McLaughlin seems to be ready for the tough task at hand early on in his career. Actually, more than ready.
Attending camp practice, I was able to witness the young back showcase his talents in an offense that benefits small-framed RBs like McLaughlin. Throughout practice, McLaughlin was consistently making plays and presenting his high-end speed to the coaching staff and fans.
During team periods, McLaughlin got some effective work in with the backups and had rushes of 65 yards (touchdown) and 30 yards, both of which he was hardly touched by any defender. Very impressive stuff for the 5-foot-7 back out of Youngstown State.
While he did outperform other competitors in RBs Tyler Badie and Tony Jones Jr., he’s still going to need to have more performances like these throughout camp. I would still give the early winner for the RB3 spot to second-year player Tyler Badie however, McLaughlin most certainly gave his teammate a run for the money today (pun intended).