A.J. Bouye's First Impression of Bryce Callahan Hints at a Resurgence in Broncos' Secondary
Although Bryce Callahan is in his second calendar year with the Denver Broncos, he has the same number of starts under his belt in the Orange and Blue as newcomer A.J. Bouye, the latter of whom just arrived this past April — zero.
Unfortunately, after signing a three-year, $21 million deal as a free agent in 2019, Callahan had a lingering foot injury that kept him from appearing in even one, single, solitary snap. Subsequently, with the foot surgically repaired, Callahan accepted a contract restructure this past offseason right about the time Bouye arrived via trade from Jacksonville.
Callahan played his first four years under Vic Fangio, who was the Chicago Bears' defensive coordinator during that stretch. Fangio is the only Xs and Os tactician Callahan has ever played for at the pro level, and that familiarity was something the Broncos prioritized 18 months ago.
Although Callahan wasn't able to play in 2019, nothing can be done about it now. It's water under the bridge.
With Bouye and Callahan joining forces as the Broncos' two top cornerbacks, the former has been impressed by the latter. Following Tuesday's practice, Bouye spoke to what his initial impressions of Callahan have been and in so doing, revealed what makes the sixth-year corner so valuable to the Broncos.
“Bryce really knows the scheme a lot being in it," Bouye said. "I think the first day we were out there practicing, the one thing I noticed was how he’s able to pass off certain routes. As soon as someone sits down, he’s just exploding out of it. He made an interception, he had a nice breakup and you can just see he knows the game. He knows where his help is going to be, where receivers are going to be, and what routes he can play."
Why is Callahan's comfort in Fangio's scheme so important, you ask? Because, unlike every other corner out on the grass at UC Health Training Center, there's nothing new about Fangio's scheme to Callahan. It's all he's known.
That means he can play fast. That fact was made apparent last summer before he reaggravated that foot injury. Callahan was one of the stars of OTAs and the early days of training camp, winning his one-on-ones with stud wideouts like Emmanuel Sanders and Courtland Sutton. That trend has already carried over into this year's camp and that should excite the heck out of Broncos fans.
"Just watching him and how he plays certain things, that’s one thing I’m paying attention to because when he’s on my side, I’ll know how he plays certain routes which is going to help me," Bouye said.
The defensive backfield is a symbiotic ecosystem. Veterans who can quickly master their own responsibilities in Fangio's scheme can not only play fast and instinctually but can help the guys around them, not just as a teacher or sounding board, but in terms of knowing where the help is on a given play and understanding leverage in different coverages.
Fangio's scheme didn't get off on the right foot to open his tenure in Denver. I can only imagine how much of those struggles would have been mitigated by the presence and impact of Callahan, had he been healthy.
But again, water under the bridge. Fans might feel like it's too early to get hopes up on Callahan but I wouldn't worry too much about it. He's playing completely unfettered and with the confident, reckless abandon of a veteran supremely comfortable in the scheme.
The intensity with which Callahan has attacked training camp practices thus far shows the hunger and motivation he has to have a bounce-back season. His contract restructure turned a lot of the salary and guaranteed money into playing-time incentives. He has to be on the field to earn all that money back.
For Fangio's part, he seems relieved to have Callahan back in the rotation and helping to show the Broncos' extremely young cornerback depth chart exactly how it's done in this scheme.
"Callahan had a good day today in his first action back," Fangio said on Sunday, following the second practice of camp. "He actually did have one day of the earlier practice. Again, I haven’t watched the whole day of practice, but he did make some plays out there today. It’s good to see him out there moving around. His foot feels fine. He’s confident and ready to go.”
Although it pained Broncos Country to see Chris Harris, Jr. defect to the Los Angeles Chargers, Callahan and Bouye, if Fangio's hunches are correct, could quickly make the No Fly Zone days of yore feel like a distant memory. The Broncos already have arguably the best safety tandem in the NFL in Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson.
The No Fly Zone casts a long shadow but Fangio finally has 'his' guys at cornerback, and when he's had that in years past, those players typically have a lot of success on the field.
The only question now is, who steps up to be that No. 3 corner when the Broncos go into the nickel sub-package? In such obvious passing situations, Callahan will kick inside to the slot which means another corner will need to join Bouye on the boundary.
It's too early to tell who the leader in the clubhouse is. Fangio spoke to the issue on Monday but it feels like it'll come down to Isaac Yiadom, De"Vante Bausby, and Michael Ojemudia to decide the No. 3 corner.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHudde.
