Broncos' HC Says TE Albert Okwuegbunam 'Needs Some Reps'
Denver Broncos' third-year tight end Albert Okwuegbunam had a forgettable preseason Game 1. But in Denver's second tilt of the 2022 preseason, 'Albert O' looked much better.
The talented tight end was also featured more in the Broncos' passing attack. Okwuegbunam saw six more snaps in Saturday's 42-15 loss to the Buffalo Bills than he did the game prior.
Head coach Nathaniel Hackett feels good about his team's collection of talent at tight end but, in particular, wanted Albert O — currently listed atop the team's depth chart — to get some live-bullet exposure.
“Yeah, I think our tight ends are playing really well—all those guys," Hackett said post-game on Saturday. "The four guys that we had playing quite a bit—five guys we have playing. We want to get a good look at all of them. There are guys that some have played a little more football than others. But Albert's guy that he needs some reps. It was great to see him miss that first one and then come back and catch the next one because that's what he does. He vertically stretches down the field. I'm excited to see the film and see where they are at.”
Okwuegbunam finished the day with four receptions on five targets for 32 yards. He didn't have an explosive play, per se, but you could see how much the Bills respected his unique combination of tools.
• RELATED: 3 Concerning Takeaways from Broncos' 42-15 Preseason Loss to Bills
The Broncos also got solid production out of Eric Saubert, who caught all three of his targets for 17 yards and the team's only touchdown. Rookie Dylan Parham also brought his lunchpail to Buffalo, leading all Denver tight ends with 24 snaps, and finishing with two receptions on two targets for 14 yards, coming inches away from scoring a touchdown himself.
Beyond those three tight ends, the Broncos also have Eric Tomlinson and Andrew Beck, the former of whom had 16 snaps in Buffalo, while the latter saw eight. The team feels pretty good about its collection of tight end talent.
But we've yet to see Greg Dulich — the team's 2022 third-round pick — in action. The rookie has seemingly been snake-bitten as he's dealt with a lingering hamstring injury.
Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.
Follow Mile High Huddle on Twitter and Facebook.
Subscribe to Mile High Huddle on YouTube for daily Broncos live-stream podcasts!
