OC Joe Lombardi: Surplus of Broncos WRs a 'Good Problem'
As of June 21, the Denver Broncos are carrying 12 wide receivers on its 90-man offseason roster, about double what will be on the final, 53-player squad. This is inarguably the team's deepest positional group, but a severe paring down is unavoidable in the weeks ahead.
Some view the situation as a problem. Others see it as a good problem to have. Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi falls into the latter bucket.
“Yeah, it’s definitely a good problem," Lombardi told reporters last week. "They’re all big, they all run routes well, and they have good hands. [I’m] really excited about the skill set that room has. They’ve been working really hard out here. Hopefully, there’s enough love to spread around to all those guys. I think as long as we’re moving the ball and scoring points, we can keep everyone happy.”
Let's assume Denver keeps seven WRs for the regular season. The top four are essentially locks — Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, Marvin Mims — leaving the remaining field to compete for only three spots.
That field consists of KJ Hamler, Montrell Washington, Marquez Callaway, Lil'Jordan Humphrey, Kendall Hinton, Jalen Virgil, Brandon Johnson, and Taylor Grimes.
Hamler is on the outside looking in as he's recovering from pec surgery while Callaway and Humphrey — both free-agent signings, both former Saints — could have an inside track due to their familiarity with head coach Sean Payton, who prefers a specific brand of pass-catcher in his smashmouth scheme.
"Consistency—the discipline at that position in painting the perfect picture within the route for the quarterback," Payton said on June 13. "Then, the ability to block the force. Any team that runs the ball well in our league, you have to be able to handle either the safety force or the corner force."
Whoever meets this standard is likely to garner golden tickets to the active roster. They'll be judged when the pads go on during training camp and preseason, after which point the Broncos' brain trust must make more than a few unenviable decisions.
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