Broncos Camp | Day 13: Three Players Entering Preseason With Momentum
Englewood, CO — Final preparations are being made by new head coach Sean Payton for the Denver Broncos to play the preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals on Friday night.
The Broncos are well into their second consecutive week of camp, with the regular season rapidly approaching. After a full padded practice session on Tuesday, the team had another good day of work in helmets and jerseys on Wednesday at Centura Health Training Center.
There’s speculation that Thursday will be a walkthrough for the Broncos either before the team leaves for Arizona, or perhaps once the team arrives. The first unofficial depth chart dropped before practice started, adding fuel to the fire for Broncos fans eager for the 2023 season to start.
For the first time in what feels like forever, I'm very excited for preseason Broncos football to get started on Friday night because Payton plans on having first-team players take the field for limited reps. This means that fans will get a sneak peek at what the Broncos have been working on in the Mile High sun this summer at Dove Valley.
Based on what I've seen this week, here are three players to monitor in the Broncos' first preseason matchup against the Cardinals.
Expect a Heavy Dose of FB Michael Burton
Let’s be honest; the fullback position isn’t for everyone or every team. Some of my friends in the analytics world consider the fullback to be a wasted roster spot, while fan bases recognize the position as the last of a dying breed.
Diehard fans will be quick to point out how instrumental former Broncos fullback Howard Griffith was in Hall-of-Famer Terrell Davis’ success in the late '90s. Like it or not, Payton loves the fullback, and that’s going to translate to a productive ground game for running backs Javonte Williams and Samaje Perine.
Donning the No. 20, Burton has been one of the most active players for Payton’s offense in training camp. Standing 5-foot-11 and weighing in at 242 pounds, Burton is expected to block and attack defensive linemen more than twice his size and work as a pass-catching option for Russell Wilson out of the backfield.
I've also seen Burton running his tail off in special teams with his determination set on making this football team. Due to an offensive line that has struggled for much of camp, specifically at the offensive tackle positions, Burton has been asked to supplement on the perimeter in chip blocking and pass protection so that Wilson can have the time to read his receivers and throw the ball.
Burton was signed to a one-year contract this past spring after winning a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022. Originally a 2015 fifth-round draft pick, the New Jersey native arrives in Denver after playing for six other NFL teams, with two stints with the New Orleans Saints under Paytons in 2019 and 2020.
There’s no such thing as a sure-fire roster lock for any position on Payton’s squad, especially since the Broncos have a tight end room capable of supplementing the run-blocking game with Adam Trautman and Chris Manhertz. However, look for Burton to get a hefty workload of preseason action against the Cardinals on Friday night, where the 31-year-old veteran will likely turn some heads in Broncos Country.
TE Greg Dulcich Controls his Fate
The casual fan might not have many expectations for a 2022 third-round pick. But Dulcich’s role in this Broncos offense is completely contingent on his level of production through what remains of training camp and, more importantly, the preseason.
The 23-year-old arrived in Denver after earning first-team All-Pac-12 honors at UCLA and had a nice rookie season with the Broncos. Dulcich appeared in 10 games, with six starts, totaling 33 receptions for 411 yards and two touchdowns. He averaged 12.5 yards per catch.
Dulcich’s ability to stand out in 2022's putrid offense leaves many to wonder how he’ll perform under the offensive wiz and play-caller Payton. Dulcich had a very rough first week of training camp, in all honesty.
The tight end struggled in drills against smaller defenders, specifically coming back to the football and fighting through contact. Dulcich left a lot to be desired at the onset of camp, which has led to the speculation that Trautman as the most likely TE1 option.
But it’s not about how you start; it’s about how you finish. Dulcich has burst back onto the scene the last handful of practices and has dazzled onlookers with superb catches and impressive jumps and dives to haul in the football. Maybe the 6-foot-4, 245-pounder just needed to shake off the cobwebs a bit and grasp what was being asked of him by Payton's high demands.
This week in camp, Dulcich caught a bullet from Wilson in red-zone drills after the offense led a 40-to-50-yard scoring drive versus a stingy defense that has been causing issues. Dulcich has also tightened up his route running and has caused some defenders to fall all over themselves this week in one-on-one and 7-on-7 drills.
The fact of the matter is Payton knows what he has in Trautman and Manhertz but is still working to find a place for Dulcich’s abundance of talent in this offense. Not to mention Albert Okwuegbunam, who’s also refusing to go away amid the battle in the tight end room.
While it’s unclear how many tight ends Payton intends to carry on the active roster, this room is fighting its tails off for a chance to earn starting reps and catch passes from Wilson. But how many of these players are willing to block so that they can earn a rep as pass-catchers remains to be seen.
Don’t be shocked at all on Friday night if Dulcich is given ample opportunity to show what he can bring to this new-look offense and football team.
DL Jonathan Harris Continues to Fly Under the Radar
You’d think that it’d be hard to miss a 6-foot-5, 296-pound lineman at practice, but you’d be wrong. After all, Payton’s coaching staff has the offensive and defensive linemen practice one-on-ones and pit drills in the distance, where it’s tough for fans and media to see what’s unfolding. But just because it’s hard to see doesn’t mean that Harris isn’t raising hell for Broncos' O-linemen.
Harris enters his fourth year with the Broncos. Last season, he played in eight games with four starts and logged 20 tackles (13 solo), two tackles for a loss, and one QB hit after being moved from the practice squad to the active roster multiple times during his Denver stint. The 27-year-old went undrafted in 2019 before landing with the Chicago Bears during his rookie season, only to be waived a few months later.
The Broncos have been home for Harris the last handful of seasons, and No. 92 is putting in the work to continue living in the Mile High City with expectations of making the 53-man roster. Harris has been tasked with leading an attack on the Broncos' O-line from right up the middle and has been battling with first-teamers Lloyd Cushenberry III, Ben Powers, and Quinn Meinerz.
While the big men seem to alternate days on who is truly king of the trenches, Harris has been a pain in the tail for this new-look offensive line. While he’s not known for being a fiery pass rusher, there have been multiple days of Harris driving run blockers into the chest of ball-carriers hoping to spring a burst from the line of scrimmage.
Harris continues to make his presence known, which is impressive for his size, as he consistently demonstrates that he’s healthy and in shape, thanks to the Broncos' offseason conditioning program. This man doesn’t get winded, never asks to be taken out of a drill or team period, and is bringing a nasty attitude of aggression and intelligence to Denver’s defensive line room.
Under defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, Harris is being challenged to stay agile and live on the line of scrimmage, which has made things very messy for the starting offense, which has tried to implement its installation from earlier in the practice, only to have him and his fellow D-linemen gobble them up. Harris has also been responsible for batting down passes at the line of scrimmage, one of which was picked off for by Randy Gregory and returned for a touchdown early in camp.
I’ve written about pass rushers the likes of Randy Gregory, Nik Bonitto, Jonathon Cooper, and Zach Allen having superb training camp practices the last two weeks. Playing the interior D-line can be a thankless position, but Harris has freed up teammates on the perimeter to tee off on the Broncos' offensive tackles and Wilson.
I’m not comparing Harris to Derek Wolfe, as the two have different styles, bodies, and resumes. But just as Wolfe sprang teammates Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware on the pass-rushing edge during the Broncos' Super Bowl 50 run, Harris’ competitive level of play is allowing his teammates on the perimeter to feast in the backfield.
Harris’ stats will never jump off the page, nor will he make a cut on some folks’ D-line rankings, but you can be sure when you turn on the film that he is no joke and could be eyeing a career-defining season with the hopes of earning a long-term contract in Denver.
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