News and notes from Day 5 of Broncos Camp

News and notes from Day 5 of Broncos Camp

The Broncos finished up Day 5 of training camp earlier today, and it was their third-straight padded practice. It was chippy practice with DT Malcolm Roach and RB J.K. Dobbins going at it throughout the practice, but at the end of the day, the defense dominated once again.

In today’s piece, we have Troy Franklin continuing to impress, linebacker Levelle Bailey is making plays all over the field, and could we see Marvin Mims out of the backfield? We also have news and notes, injury updates, tweets from camp, notable quotes, and more!

Troy Franklin impresses

The trend throughout the offseason and now into training camp has been Troy Franklin impressing. He added some weight/muscle, looks more explosive than he did last season, and seems more confident on the field. Last year, I rarely talked about Franklin in these posts because he never really stood out.

That’s not the case this year and he’s turning that added confidence into results on the practice field.

Today, Franklin had a great one-on-one period. He caught a deep pass for a touchdown over rookie corner Jahdae Barron, who had him in tight coverage. He used his size and speed to haul in the touchdown pass over the rookie corner and had a diving contested catch over the middle of the field as well.

After practice, wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. was asked about Franklin and told reporters that Franklin has grown a lot since last year, and he has been tremendous on the field for them this summer.

“[WR] Troy [Franklin] has grown a lot, and it’s really cool to see it. Last year we had some different things going on and a lot of different people moving different places. Him getting an opportunity was huge for him and just the confidence he started with last year and was able to grow in expecting to know what we need out of him this year. His growth—you guys have seen it—has been tremendous out here on the field.”

All the Broncos’ wide receivers have been flashing at times throughout camp, which has shown off their depth at the position.. This unit was at one time considered one of the weaker receiving units in the NFL, and now, it seems like one of the deeper ones that is full of upside.

Mims was asked about the competition in the room, and he mentioned how everyone has been playing well. He continued by saying that the Broncos’ depth in the wide receiver room has not been talked about enough and that it’ll be a strength for the team heading into the season.

“I think it’s a great thing. You look at all the guys in our room and how we’ve been playing at camp, for the most part everyone’s looked good. There’s not very many negatives to say. We’re going against a hard defense who’s probably going to be the best defense going into the season. It’s huge for us. Just the depth of our receiver room is something that isn’t talked about enough, and I think it’s a really strong thing for us going into the season.”

Courtland Sutton is back and is your WR1, Mims is coming off a breakout second half, Vele is coming off a solid rookie year, Franklin is impressing so far, rookie Pat Bryant is being heavily targeted and getting 1st team reps, and even Trent Sherfield looks like a player. This room is deep, and suddenly, quarterback Bo Nix is surrounded by talent.

Levelle Bailey continues to stand out

I highlighted Bailey standing out yesterday, and it continued through today’s practice. With Alex Singleton and Drew Sanders sidelined, Bailey continued to see first-team reps alongside Dre Greenlaw in the Broncos’ defense, and he impressed once again.

When Bailey entered the league, he profiled more as a coverage linebacker than someone who could be a solid run defender. However, after he added some size according to Head Coach Sean Payton, he has suddenly become a player in run defense for the Broncos.

In today’s practice, he was all over the field and had run stops against Audric Estime and even chased down the speedy Jaleel McLaughlin out on the edge.

Bailey has gone from a roster bubble guy, probably on the outside looking in, to looking like a lock to make the roster and maybe even having a role on defense in less than a week. Now, it is still early, and we’re still in the month of July, but Bailey is continuing to turn heads, and I am anxious to see how he looks moving forward.

Marvin Mims out of the backfield?

Marvin Mims had a breakout second half of the year last season, and some of that was due to how he was used in the offense. He wasn’t used like a traditional receiver, but more like a gadget player. He would run deep routes, be used in the screen game, and on top of that, he is a 2x All-Pro return man.

We also saw him line up in the Broncos’ backfield at times last season, and when asked if he anticipates doing that more this season, Mims told reporters that he expects to be back there at times this upcoming season.

He added that getting hit by linebackers isn’t necessarily cool, but he does expect to see time back there.

I would anticipate Mims will be used a lot like he was last season, but with added wrinkles. Reports out of camp indicate his route tree has grown, so hopefully, we see him do more traditional receiver stuff. However, if you can line him up in the backfield and get some of the other receivers on the field at the same time, man, the Broncos could have some serious mismatches.

Injury Report

• WR A.T. Perry remained on the PUP list and missed today’s practice
• WR Devaughn Vele and rookie EDGE Que Robinson sat out today’s practice, and there was no word on their injuries – Source
• LB Alex Singleton (broken thumb), who remained sidelined, is expected to return next week

News and Notes

• DT Malcolm Roach stuffed RB J.K. Dobbins during a run and was being vocal about it. Roach, as expected, has been active in run defense – Source
• WR Trent Sherfield continues to have a role in the Broncos’ first-team offense – Source
• UDFA LB Jordan Turner has been a standout player (outside of Bailey) – Source
• QB Bo Nix converted multiple third-and-longs to end practice. He would hit Sutton on the first attempt and then Sherfield on the next one – Source
• RB’s Audric Estime and Blake Watson had good days – Source
• EDGE Jonah Elliss had a sack and pressure today and has been impressive during these padded practices – Source
• Jonathon Cooper has been a menace all camp and blew up every run on his side of the field – Source
• Rookie CB Jahdae Barron has been making steady improvements each and every practice – Source

Tweets From Camp

Notable Quotes

WR/KR Marvin Mims Jr. on the offense’s success last season

“I feel like last year we were throwing a lot of different looks at defenses we were playing. I feel like it helped the offense a lot. I think we were playable, and then you add [RB] RJ Harvey, [TE] Evan Engram to the mix too. There are all types of different formations and stuff we can go into with the new players and the strengths we have as a team, so I think it could be really doable this season.”

WR/KR Marvin Mims Jr. on if he thinks he will see a higher volume of return opportunities with the kickoff rule change

“Yes, for sure. At the end of the day, it’s up to the kickoff team. With me back there and whoever’s going to be out there next to me, if they kick it to a touchback, it goes out to the 35 [-yard line]. Most teams don’t want to give the offense the ball at the 35, and especially give [QB] Bo Nix the ball at the 35. That can be trouble. Should be a huge, major thing for us this year, and we’ll see how it plays out.”

CB Riley Moss on CB Jahdae Barron adjusting to the NFL

“He’s smart. He comes into the training room in terms of recovery stuff. He knows what to do. He’s gotten a routine, which is kind of the biggest learning curve obviously when you come into the NFL, is you have so much time. How are you going to spend that time? And he’s spent that time well, I think, rehabbing and stuff like that and also just picking up the defense. I think he’s smart and he understands where his help is at, and that’s nice too. Having him out there you can trust him, and it helps all of us.”

CB Riley Moss on what he wants to focus on and improve from last year

“I think the point of attack when the ball’s up in the air. Some of those 50/50 balls being stronger, not getting pushed off. That was a big thing for me this offseason was getting bigger, getting stronger, being able to push against the receiver and be a little bit more physical.”

CB Riley Moss on what he has learned playing opposite of CB Pat Surtain II

“As long as I’m across from DPOY, it’s going to be like that, and I love the challenge. It makes it fun. It makes it fun to come in to work knowing it’s on me. I’m going to be on an island, and what can I do? That’s what I think makes this game so beautiful and why I love the position that I’m in.”