Undrafted Rookie CB Essang Bassey Puts Finger on What's Allowed him to Thrive in Broncos Camp

Going undrafted in the NFL can be a barrier to success — especially this year with the canceled preseason — but it's not a deal-breaker for those rookies who sign with the Denver Broncos. Undrafted rookie cornerback Essang Bassey could be the latest in a long line of players who, despite draft day disappointment, has ostensibly landed in just the right place.

As news broke that the Broncos had traded cornerback Isaac Yiadom to the New York Giants in exchange for a 20201 seventh-round draft pick, the chances of the 22-year-old Bassey making the roster have dramatically improved. It’s been a rapid ascent up the Broncos' depth chart for the Wake Forest alum as the coaching staff has recognized Bassey's unique skill-set.

After head coach Vic Fangio gave Bassey the chance to play with the first-team defense as the nickel corner on Wednesday, the rookie checked in with KOARadio's Broncos Country Tonight to chart his own emergence on the scene.

“Yeah, feels good just having somebody to believe in you and giving you a chance,” Bassey told hosts Ryan Edwards and Benjamin Allbright. “What we do with that – what I do with that — is up to us. I have to control what I can control, you know I can’t control any moves management makes, I can only control how I play on the field. So that’s kind of what it is, it’s what we have to do as young guys, I guess.”

More so than any season before, the chances of an undrafted rookie making the 53-man roster have decreased markedly. Despite the Broncos' proud tradition of unearthing undrafted gems, Bassey was under no illusions of the mammoth task that confronted him entering training camp.

“Obviously, no preseason games, like I said, you have to treat every practice rep like a game rep,” Bassey said on KOA. “And then as an undrafted guy, you know the biggest thing for me coming in was finding the one thing I’m good at—that will help you stand out. Whether it’s running to the football, attacking the football, causing turnovers and for me, that’s been not making the same mistake twice. Showing that I can continually prove that I know what I’m doing and I can play fast.”

Bassey showed enough progress to earn some reps with the ones, and not long after, the Broncos' dealt Yiadom to the Giants. After practice, Fangio tendered his grade on Bassey's first-team audition.

“I thought he did pretty damn well," Fangio said on Wednesday.

The Broncos do have two veterans in the room in A.J. Bouye and Bryce Callahan to help bring along the young corners, including Bassey and that experience and knowledge has been an asset he's tapped into when he's needed some guidance.

“A.J. is really a technician, man,” Bassey said. “His footwork, his technique is some of the best that I’ve seen personally. Even before in college, I always watched how he moved around on the field—his technique is really tremendous. I’m always looking at what he does on the field at corner. And Bryce at nickel, man, he helps a lot because obviously, this is the defense he has been in. He knows pretty much anything that I would possibly want to ask him.”

The fairy-tale story of Bassey surviving the Broncos' final roster cuts still has to run the final gauntlet as Fangio could potentially decide to add another veteran free-agent corner like Prince Amukamara, an ex-Fangio disciple recently released by the Las Vegas Raiders.

However, should the rookie make the final roster, the Broncos would go into the 2020 campaign with the unusual distinction of having four of their cornerbacks — Bouye, Callahan, De’Vante Bausby, and Bassey — all never having heard their name called on draft day. That provides a big collection of motivated underdogs ceaselessly out to prove the doubters wrong.

That can’t be a bad thing, especially if the coaches know how to harness and channel it. The Broncos will have to trim the roster from its current state of 79 players down to 53 no later than 2 p.m. on Saturday.