Broncos Camp Notebook | Day 3: Russell Wilson Rallies Fans
Englewood, CO — There’s an old saying that goes, ‘The only constant in life is change,’ and nothing could be more true for the Denver Broncos in 2023. Led by first-year head coach Sean Payton, the team officially opened training camp on Friday morning after a two-day ramp-up to acclimate personnel to this summer’s workload.
At first glance, Centura Health Training Center’s landscape looked somewhat different, and not just because of the sponsorship change. No longer do the contingents of radio row litter the perimeter of the practice field in Dove Valley.
Even Broncos Country itself has been limited to 3,000 fans per day at capacity, as the franchise implemented a free ticketing system for the 12 practices open to the public this summer. For the first time this season, fans saw with their own eyes the beginning of Payton’s vision being implemented in practice.
After a dramatic lead-up to training camp, including Payton’s recent lambasting of the former Nathaniel Hackett staff, I left the first day of training camp with three major takeaways. Let's dive in.
Payton’s Not Here to Take Part; He’s Here to Take Over
Say what you want about Payton’s brash personality, which has been a hot national topic this week leading up to camp, but it’s damn clear that he's in full control of this football team.
While it’s hard to interpret what to expect on Day 1 of training camp, I was pleasantly surprised to see this football team working and grinding in the near 90-degree heat. In my handful of years covering Broncos training camp for Mile High Huddle, much of the practice time has been wasted, boring, inefficient, and sloppy.
None of those were the case today under Payton’s handpicked crew of players and coaches. Referees were not included at Friday's practice, but I can’t recall a single false start or encroachment penalty called for the duration of the day. Mistakes were made, sure, but the boneheaded tendencies of the past were gone.
Players were also moving quickly between drills, demonstrating a sense of urgency to work and, more importantly, the desire to earn a roster spot. Coaches refrained from yelling, cursing, and other demonstrative forms of fiery behavior and were free to operate their positional groups under the guidance of Payton, who roamed the entirety of the field. There was a clear, calm sense of delegation between the Broncos head coach and the rest of his staff.
My favorite aspect of Payton’s first day of practice came at the very end of two sessions. Prior to their dismissal, players and coaches alike lined up and ran gassers as a team — the same gassers we ran in high school and pee wee football.
Payton’s decision for team conditioning in the Mile High sun wasn’t a punishment, nor was it done with malice. Chalk up those gassers to good, old-fashioned, authentic football conditioning that truly demonstrates the team mentality that he has already implemented.
Russell Wilson Rallies Fan Base but Pump the Brakes
The biggest question this season that starts in training camp revolves around Payton ‘fixing’ Wilson. While this question can’t be answered on Day 1 of camp, I was very pleased to see the veteran Broncos quarterback looking lean and light on his feet.
Wilson maneuvered the pocket with ease and executed eerily familiar footwork that he showcased with the Seattle Seahawks early in his career.
More than once, Wilson opted to tuck and run with the football, showcasing to the nearly 3,000 fans in attendance that he’s been working hard in the kitchen, on the field, and in the weight room.
To start 7-on-7 drills, Russ completed two straight passes to wideout Tim Patrick, who’s coming off a season-ending ACL tear suffered almost one year ago. Wilson operated the offense with concise knowledge of the personnel, assignments, and his options for each play, demonstrating his level of commitment to learning Payton’s new offense.
Wilson threw tight spirals with accuracy and delivered a monster deep pass to wideout Lil'Jordan Humphrey that drew the applause of fans. However, Wilson is clearly still working out the kinks of this offense.
The timing was somewhat of a struggle today as Russ hesitated more than once in team drills, which resulted in him taking off and running. Some people consider that a win, and while it’s a smart decision, I view it as a wasted rep because this is the time to make mistakes. Training camp affords players a safety net of insulation that is designed to prepare them for the worst of conditions in facing an opponent every week.
The talented Broncos defense intercepted Wilson today on a pass meant for Courtland Sutton that was tipped by safety Justin Simmons and picked off by Caden Sterns. While I understand QB is the focus of every team and even more so this town’s team, I’m not going to get too high or too low on Russ after one training camp practice.
Now, if we reach the end of camp and he’s still running around wasting reps throwing senseless picks, then I’ll have a problem. For now, I’m curious to see how Payton evaluated Wilson’s performance in the facility and how he’ll perform on Day 2.
Don’t Sleep on New Broncos DL Zach Allen
The defensive line in the NFL is one of those positional groups that is never glorified but is critical to the success and identity of a football team. Fans are enamored with blockbuster signings of big-named receivers or QBs every offseason, but when the Broncos signed Allen to a three-year, $45.75M contract this past spring, I couldn’t wait to see the big man in training camp.
Wearing No. 99, the 6-foot-4, 281-pounder from Boston College showed explosive strength, technique and quite literally introduced himself to the fan base at practice today with his outstanding performance. On more than one occasion, Allen beat single and double pass protection assignments and interrupted Wilson’s rhythm during first-team reps.
On one specific play, the same play that Wilson scrambled for approximately 80 yards, Allen would’ve had the sack, if not a strip-sack, were it a true live-bullet game, before allowing his QB to take off.
Allen also showed exceptional awareness on the line of scrimmage as a run defender, where he didn’t mind mixing it up with the Broncos' interior offensive line, specifically center Lloyd Cushenberry and guards Ben Powers and Quinn Meinerz. There are already whispers at camp from Broncos alumni and players that Allen could have a double-digit sack total at the end of the season, proving that he’s here to raise hell for AFC West quarterbacks and play-callers.
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