Broncos’ rookie roster longshots to watch during training camp, preseason games

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With the Broncos presently astatine a 90-man roster, plentifulness of shot futures are astatine involvement up of the 3 cut-down dates aboriginal this month.

So what’s the cardinal to lasting retired among the assemblage to manager Vic Fangio and his staff, particularly for rookies drafted successful the aboriginal rounds oregon signed arsenic undrafted escaped agents?

Flash and pizzazz is nice, but consistency is overmuch better.

“Obviously, the large plays drawback everybody’s eyes,” Fangio said. “But it’s the consistency (that counts more). Can a feline beryllium reliable to spell retired determination and play and uphold his occupation passim the crippled and not conscionable marque a flash play each present and then?

“A large illustration is antiaircraft players. There are astir 65 plays successful a game. If a feline has 2 sacks, instantly everybody thinks helium had a large game. Well, helium played astir 63 different plays — how’d helium bash successful those?”

The Broncos already waived 1 undrafted escaped agent, erstwhile Colorado State receiver Warren Jackson. More players volition beryllium sent packing erstwhile the adjacent week’s archetypal cutdown rolls around. The roster volition beryllium trimmed to 85 connected Aug. 17, 80 connected Aug. 24 and past 53 connected Aug. 31, and the quality to play peculiar teams volition origin heavy into the chances for bubble candidates.

Here are rookies to support an oculus connected during the preseason arsenic the Broncos unfastened up astatine Minnesota connected Saturday.

WR Seth Williams

Williams, the team’s sixth-round prime retired of Auburn, is looking up astatine a agelong wideout extent chart.

Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, Tim Patrick and KJ Hamler are each locks to marque the 53-man roster. Tyrie Cleveland (back) and returner Diontae Spencer (knee) are presently retired with injuries. The Broncos carried 7 receivers connected their archetypal roster past September.

That leaves 2 oregon 3 spots for the remainder of the 13 receivers presently connected the roster.

But Williams isn’t focused connected the magnitude of accomplishment astir him, and said Broncos fans tin expect him to beryllium a “speedy receiver who tin spell successful determination and artifact and premix it up connected peculiar teams.”

“I look astir and I spot the endowment each astir me, but I’m a benignant of feline who focuses connected myself,” Williams said. “I’m trying to get amended day-by-day, and if you’re watching different radical and keeping way of different people, that’s erstwhile you suffer way of your game.”

ILB Curtis Robinson

Robinson signed with the Broncos arsenic an undrafted escaped cause aft a productive vocation astatine Stanford, wherever helium was two-time All-Pac-12 honorable notation and squad skipper successful 2020.

His last play astatine Stanford featured a team-leading 44 tackles and 3 tackles for nonaccomplishment successful six games. That followed a beardown 2019 during which Robinson rebounded from a backmost wounded that constricted him to 2 games the twelvemonth anterior and had him wondering if helium would ever play again.

Robinson said helium brings velocity and quality to the wrong linebacker country arsenic helium competes alongside Josh Watson, Peter Kalambayi and Barrington Wade (signed during grooming camp) connected the extent chart.

Last year, the Broncos carried 5 wrong linebackers connected the archetypal 53-man, meaning those 4 players are competing for 2 spots aft locks Alexander Johnson, Josey Jewell and Justin Strnad.

“I’ve got bully vets up of me, truthful I’m doing my champion to soak up everything I tin and proceed to advancement arsenic an wrong linebacker,” Robinson said. “Camp has helped retired a batch with the playbook… I’m starting to consciousness a batch much assured successful the basal worldly and each the small details of our schemes and techniques.”

WR Branden Mack

Mack signed arsenic an undrafted escaped cause pursuing an outstanding vocation astatine Temple, wherever helium finished tied for 5th connected the Owls’ all-time receiving touchdowns database with 15.

The 6-foot-5 vertical menace knows his champion accidental to marque the squad is done peculiar teams, and he’s embracing his accidental to larn nether the likes of Sutton and Jeudy.

Mack besides has plentifulness of added information successful his combat for a spot connected the roster oregon signifier squad. His father, Daryl, passed distant successful outpouring 2017 erstwhile Mack was a redshirt freshman. Even earlier breaking retired connected the assemblage scene, helium had mislaid his “biggest relation model.”

“We were ever talking astir maine being successful the NFL, and conscionable having a accidental astatine it,” Mack said. “I transportation that value connected my shoulders, but I cognize he’s watching maine from above. I privation to proceed to marque him proud… When helium passed distant that was a large load connected my full family, and everybody went downhill. But I noticed that I can’t spell downhill. I’ve got to enactment up, beryllium encouraging, beryllium affirmative for my ma and for my family.”

OLB Andre Mintze

A four-year letterman astatine Vanderbilt who registered 75 tackles and 17 tackles for nonaccomplishment implicit 43 vocation games, Mintze signed with the Broncos arsenic an undrafted escaped agent.

Mintze is 1 of six extracurricular linebackers connected the roster, and is competing alongside Derek Tuszka and Pita Taumoepenu for the 4th and possibly 5th spots connected the roster (Von Miller, Bradley Chubb and Malik Reed being locks).

“My extremity is to amusement I’m a physical, astute subordinate and to marque an interaction — whether that’s connected tract extremity block, punt, punt return, adjacent connected defense,” Mintze said. “I privation to amusement I person measurement and that I tin execute astatine this level.”

More rookie longshots

Denver Broncos defender Nolan Laufenberg takes ...

CB Kary Vincent (seventh-round prime retired of LSU, opted retired of the 2020 season)… FB Adam Prentice (only existent fullback connected roster, undrafted escaped cause retired of South Carolina)… DB Mac McCain III (undrafted escaped cause retired of North Carolina A&T)… G Nolan Laufenberg (Castle View and Air Force product, undrafted escaped agent)… T Drew Himmelman (the tallest subordinate connected the roster astatine 6-foot-10, undrafted escaped cause retired of Illinois State)… WR DeVontres Dukes (undrafted escaped cause retired of South Florida)… TE Shaun Beyer (undrafted escaped cause retired of Iowa)… S Jamar Johnson (fifth-round prime retired of Indiana, but connected the reserve/COVID database each of grooming camp).

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