In case you needed any indication of how well things are going after just one training camp practice for the Denver Broncos and newly acquired wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, Sean Payton said he "walks on water" with his traits at the position.
The Waddle hype train has left the station, and the team is still just in its acclimation period of camp.
So what did Payton mean by that comment? Context is always important, and he certainly wasn't crowning Waddle the savior of the offense, by any means. What Payton was actually saying had more to do with the way Waddle easily moves all over the field, and with a level of speed and quickness that didn't previously exist on the roster.
There's a huge difference between track speed and game speed. What Waddle has is the best possible combination of both, giving him the ability to create separation with ease, and giving the Broncos a dynamic threat at every level of the field.
Sean Payton already raving about Jaylen Waddle after one Broncos training camp practice
Earlier this offseason, Payton was gushing over Waddle to Trey Wingo in an interview after one of the team's OTA sessions. Bo Nix didn't have the chance to practice with Waddle until mandatory minicamp, but Nix was also extremely complimentary of his new weapon.
“There’s an element of explosiveness that I think as an offense we’ve lacked for a couple years. We’ve had plenty of explosive plays, plenty of points, all that kind of stuff. We’ve made great strides, but there was a level of explosiveness that a guy like that adds. So you could be first-and-10 and starting a drive and go one-and-done because he takes it 75, 80 yards.
That’s the kind of weapon that we added, and that’s I think what we all have been out here watching and sort of really enjoy watching. Just seeing him get out here and move and run around. You just can’t replace speed. That’s just what he brings to the table. He’s extremely fast with the ball in his hands. He looks like he doesn’t really slow down to make cuts, which is pretty tough to do for a fast guy."
- Bo Nix (in June after mandatory minicamp, via Broncos PR)
So, the imagery of Waddle "walking on water" makes a lot more sense with all of that in mind. When Bo Nix says that he 'doesn't really slow down to make cuts', that's the same type of ability Sean Payton is referring to. He's so smooth in the way he moves around the field, and none of that motion is ever wasted.
The Broncos have had a ton of issues over the past couple of seasons with young receivers (or veterans) trying -- and failing -- to consistently create separation. There hasn't been any sort of "easy button" at the receiver position, and the issues have compounded with the inability to create separation on top of leading the league in dropped passes over a two-year period.
This is a unique type of player the Broncos simply haven't had on the roster since probably Emmanuel Sanders during his prime years, at least in terms of the combination of speed and explosiveness. Waddle brings that to the table, and that element being added into the offense clearly has Sean Payton excited.
Rightfully so. The Broncos traded 1st- and 3rd-round picks to the Miami Dolphins to get Waddle back in the middle of March. It was a much-needed blockbuster move for a team with championship aspirations. And early on, Waddle is quickly proving to be exactly what this team needed.
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