Sean Payton Puts Pressure on Broncos TE Albert Okwuegbunam
The Denver Broncos suddenly have a logjam at tight end. That's not to say that the position is replete with Pro Bowlers. At least, not yet.
But new Broncos head coach Sean Payton has stocked the position with tight ends he hand-picked, including veteran Chris Manhertz and former New Orleans Saints draft pick Adam Trautman. These players join a pair of pass-catching incumbents hoping to catch on in Payton's program.
One of the tight end holdovers is Albert Okwuegbunam. Entering his fourth year, Okwuegbunam inherits his third coaching staff in hopes that he won't find himself in the doghouse with the Payton regime as he did the past two.
Payton has so far seen fit to keep 'Albert O' on the roster, and the coach's scathing eye has perceived a valuable skill set. But Payton used the 'C word' when discussing the young tight end's outlook: consistency.
“He can run. He’s athletic. I think consistency," Payton said earlier this week. "He’s made progress. He’s at that stage where this is the time."
During Denver's mandatory minicamp practices — which punctuated the team's offseason training program — Okwuegbunam did stand out with a few timely plays. It seems to have given Payton some confidence of his own that the Broncos are on the right track with Albert O.
"He did make a few plays," Payton said. "I was encouraged with that. I think that as a teacher, our job is to hit the ceiling with these guys. He’s been very attentive."
Okwuegbunam has always had a high ceiling, and while it's good that he's been focused, if he's going to outshine other tight ends on the roster, some of whom, again, Payton hand-picked, he's going to have to further develop his blocking acumen, which has been a neglected attribute of his overall game.
Payton hopes to see where the you-know-what squats in the woods on that subject when the pads go on in training camp.
"We’re not in pads yet, so that tight end position is interesting," Payton said. "Some of them are better run blockers, some are better receivers."
Payton's blunt approach to communication is unflinching when it comes to criticism, which is why his relative praise for Okwuegbunam's talent is not only noteworthy, but should be a beacon of encouragement for the young player as he enters a contract year.
If Albert O doesn't meet Payton's expectations, though, he won't be around to play out this final year of his contract. Payton ended up dropping two 'C words' when it came to the Okwuegbunam subject: consistency and confidence.
"He’s certainly athletic," Payton said of Okwuegbunam. "I’ve said this a million times. Confidence is born out of demonstrated ability. We can wish for confidence, and you can say, ‘I’m confident.’ We’ve all seen moments where players do something in a game and all of a sudden—so it has to be born out of demonstrated abilities. There’s a catch he makes today that gives that young man confidence that he can do it again. That’s the growth spurt. It just can’t be wished for. Ultimately, you hit a clutch shot, or you make a pass and there’s incremental growths."
A fourth-round pick out of Missouri back in 2020, Okwuegbunam's Broncos career has been up and down, and early on, injuries disrupted his momentum. Upon returning from a torn ACL suffered his rookie year, Okwuegbunam found himself in Vic Fangio's doghouse, and last year, in Nathaniel Hackett's.
This all gave rise to 2022 third-rounder Greg Dulcich, who supplanted Okwuegbunam and a pair of veterans in the Broncos' starting lineup last year. That was then; this is now.
As Payton said, Albert O is at the 'this is the time' stage of his career. It's do-or-die for the big, athletic tight end who ran a 4.49-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, exiting Mizzou with all the promise in the world.
As a Bronco, Okwuegbunam has appeared in 26 of 54 possible games with seven starts, totaling 54 receptions for 546 yards and four touchdowns. He's proven he can be a productive pass-catcher, but with Payton planning to deploy two-tight-end sets to help blast open the Broncos' running game, Okwuegbunam will have to quickly meet his new head coach's blocking standard.
Or else.
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