CB De'Vante Bausby Explains How the Canceled NFL Preseason Could Negatively Affect Broncos

Denver Broncos cornerback De’Vante Bausby enters his second season with the team as a man well-versed in the art of perseverance. Bausby's propensity for bouncing back from adversity has been essential to carving out a niche for himself at the NFL level.

Ever since entering the league as a college free agent back in 2015, the 27-year-old Missouri native has had to dig deep and fight on. Bausby has previously been released by his hometown Kansas City Chiefs on two different occasions while spending time on the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles practice squads before hitting the NFL road again.

The cornerback's long path to finding a place with the Broncos has seen him battle a serious and scary injury and even saw him flash his talents with the now-defunct San Antonio Commanders of the Alliance of American Football. After the AAF folded, Bausby found a spot with the Broncos, reuniting with Vic Fangio, to fill out the CB depth chart.

Bausby's stint in Denver was going well until that frightening neck injury in Week 5 forced him to the sidelines. During his limited playing time, he posted 13 tackles and defended three passes (two of which were on third down against Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers).

The sample size was just enough to convince the Broncos front office to offer him a new one-year deal this past spring. At the NFL Combine, Coach Fangio revealed that Bausby was fully healed from his cervical neck sprain and looking forward to him competing for playing time in 2020.

On Tuesday, Bausby checked in KOA Radio's Broncos Country Tonight to voice his opinion that he would like to see at least one preseason game remain on the schedule before the regular season begins in earnest. That hope has since been dashed by the NFL and NFLPA.

"Now I might be wrong, but my personal opinion is I understand with the late start or possible late start, [and] the safety issues, you’ve got to cut some games,” Bausby said. ”But, I think we need at least one, just one, whether we play a quarter or a couple of series or just anything. I think we need one before the real thing starts.”

Clearly, Bausby speaks from his wealth of experience as a player always on the roster bubble. When it comes to being a long shot to make a 53-man roster, he knows how the sausage gets made and how important those opportunities to compete with outside competition under the lights of real game action can be to that NFL demographic.

Taking away crucial playing time and the chance to impress the coaching staff (and scouting departments of outside teams) in limited reps is going to see a watershed of deserving talent get cut before they even get a chance to suit up.

If Bausby makes the roster again, he believes the Broncos are well-poised to adjust to the absence of a preseason. That type of confidence comes from the returning coaching staff, defensive scheme, and players.

“Defensively, I think we’re going to be solid,” Bausby told KOA. “Because we’ve got a lot of guys returning and we’re in the same system. Defensively, I feel like it’s easier to get the ball rolling. Now, offensively, we got new pieces and young guys, so I feel like it’s more on that side of the ball that we need at least one practice run before things get serious.”

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Bausby’s hopes for a lone warm-up game were dashed by the announcement that the NFL and the NFLPA had agreed to cancel the entire preseason. While that could go a long way toward letting the regular season go ahead, it’s sure to heap even more pressure on second-year QB Drew Lock to rapidly acclimatize to OC Pat Shurmur’s new offense during training camp.

During the early going, it could be vital if the Broncos defense can put up strong performances until Lock and Co. can find their feet. With that in mind, Bausby is all too aware that players will have to bring their A-game if the team is going to be able to weave in newly-drafted speedsters like Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler. It’s a challenge that Bausby is ready and willing to take on.

And, for what it's worth, he's not afraid to line up against any Broncos wideout, regardless of draft pedigree.

“All of them, all of them, [it's] going to be fun, going to be exciting,” Bausby said of his coming one-on-ones with teammates. “You see clips online, those guys are awesome, they get out of their breaks real fast. Looks like off the line of scrimmage, they're real good, so it’s gonna to be good going against them, going against new guys.”

That underdog mentality will serve Bausby well, especially in the wake of the notable departure of longtime starting CB Chris Harris, Jr. That only means that opportunity knocks for somebody new to take his spot and make a real impact this season.

Far from being daunted by the training camp battles, Bausby is relishing the chance to get back on the field after spending most of 2019 injured and rehabbing his neck and all of 2020 locked in during a pandemic.

“I don’t really care who is in front of me,” Bausby declared. “I know, just get the opportunity show the guys what I’m about. It’s been a long time since I’ve been out, meaning it’s been a long time since the guys that make decisions seen me. So, I’m excited to get back into that. It’s going to be fun because it’s very competitive at my position; competition brings out the best of you. So, it’s going to be exciting and I’m just ready to get back into it and show them what I’ve got.”

With the recent news that third-round CB Michael Ojemudia has signed his rookie contract, it only serves to reinforce how hard it will be for Bausby to make an impact in 2020. One thing Broncos Country can expect from training camp is a motivated and battle-tested Bausby, pitching himself right into the mix this summer.

Follow Keith on Twitter @KeithC_NFL and @MileHighHuddle.

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