Player Attendance
Did not practice: Physically Unable to Perform list – OLB Baron Browning (knee). Non-Football Injury list – WR KJ Hamler (pec), DL Mike Purcell (knee).
S Kareem Jackson had a veteran rest day. RT Mike McGlinchey (personal) was absent a second straight day.
Players limited due to regular camp load management included LT Garett Bolles, WR Tim Patrick and RB Javonte Williams, all of whom had major injuries in 2022. Bolles started practice and then had his day end early.
“(Bolles) will be on that program,” Payton said. “… We’ll kind of have a schedule for them. You saw a few guys that weren’t dressed today that this happened to be their day when they’re going to be down. With each of these guys it’s different.”
Rookie WR Marvin Mims Jr. (hamstring) did individual work but no team drills and rookie center Alex Forsyth was at times relegated to the side-field where injured players often do conditioning work.
WR Kendall Hinton (knee) was activated off the PUP list.
New Injury
CB K’Waun Williams had his left ankle taped late in practice but did not appear to be too concerned.
Top Play
Safety Caden Sterns grabbed the award late in practice when he read quarterback Russell Wilson’s eyes and then hauled in an interception off a pass that fellow safety Justin Simmons first tipped. Sterns is competing for a starting safety job and got his training camp off to a nice start overall Friday.
“Playing man, just reading the eyes of the quarterback and I was hoping, I was feeling like it was going to be a tipped ball,” Sterns told The Post. “It felt like it. So was able to just make a play. Trusted my gut.”
Thumbs Up
New pass-rush pair: The real test will come when the Broncos put pads on – and, of course, when games start in September — but a new-look pass-rushing duo of Zach Allen and Frank Clark looked good on Day 1.
“I’ve been a big fan of him for a while,” Allen said of Clark, who joined Denver on a one-year deal last month. “… Having a guy like that makes my job easier.”
RB room quicks: The Broncos will have competition behind Williams and Samaje Perine at running back. Time will tell if Tyler Badie and rookie Jaleel McLaughlin, both of whom are on the smaller side, can pass protect and hold up to the NFL’s physicality, but this much is clear: Both can move.
Thumbs Down
Question to tackle: One question Denver has is its overall roster depth and that was on display Day 1 with McGlinchey absent and Bolles limited. The Broncos hope they don’t go down both starting tackles again this fall, but if they do, who’s next? Cam Fleming is a veteran, but the offensive line looks quite a bit different with Christian DiLauro, Isaiah Prince and others manning the edges.
Long TD run?: The crowd roared as quarterback Russell Wilson streaked down the middle of the field, 70 yards or so to the end zone. Only problem? A reporter in the peanut gallery suspects Jonathon Cooper would have sacked him before he stepped up in the pocket.
Odds and Ends
• One of Sean Payton’s comments to USA TODAY that he won’t need to walk back: If Denver did things one way last year, it’ll likely be different this year. On Day 1, the Broncos did multiple periods of 7-on-7 work, which was a rarity under Nathaniel Hackett.
• In those segments, Denver’s secondary depth showed through as cornerbacks Damarri Mathis, Riley Moss and Faion Hicks each made athletic pass break-ups on the day. Oh, and the All-Pro was just fine, too. Pat Surtain II easily swatted away a Wilson attempt for Courtland Sutton.
• Another difference this year: No music. At least not on Day 1. Payton’s had it on at times during the offseason program, but not with fans on the berm Friday morning.
• Even Payton himself made at least one change. On Friday, he was rocking a ball cap rather than his trademark visor look. That Colorado sun is no joke, Coach.
• Another candidate for the day’s top play — and another play on which defenders would likely say they recorded a sack — came when 6-foot-4 wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey went up high over Moss on the left sideline to haul in a contested throw.
• Allen had high marks for defensive lineman Jonathan Harris, who’s going to get an even longer look this camp after the suspension of Eyioma Uwazurike for gambling. Said Allen, “J-Harris is awesome. He’s just such a hard worker and such a great guy. We’re all really rooting for him. He’s similar to D.J. (Jones) in the aspect that he’s a really big guy but he moves so well, really twitchy, good feet, fluid. When you’ve got that in a defensive lineman, that’s really all you can ask for.”
• Payton said to expect a lot of players rotating through different units. “I tell our coaches all the time, let’s not be instant evaluators. Let’s be slow to judge, rotate these guys through the first, second and third groups. Let’s not get stuck on where we think guys might be.”
• Not sure this was part of 2022 training camp: At the end of the two-hour session, Payton had the team line up on the sideline of one of the practice fields and run a series of wind sprints. It wasn’t a scene out of “Miracle” or anything like that, but one more piece to the tone-setting that this camp is going to be demanding physically and mentally for the Broncos.
Saturday Schedule
The Broncos are back on the field for open practice No. 2 and the league’s Welcome Back weekend at 10 a.m. Saturday. The parking lot opens at 8 a.m., gates open at 9 a.m. and fans will need a ticket to enter.
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