The Denver Broncos like undrafted free agents. Unlike some teams, they give them every opportunity to succeed. That’s why so many have made the final roster over the last decade, and that’s why another one is likely to make the final roster this year, too.
Following the conclusion of the 2016 NFL draft, John Elway and Co. signed 21 undrafted free agents, and while many will compete down to the last cut, nobody has made the immediate impression that Iowa tight end Henry Krieger-Coble has made during OTAs.
Part of that is because Krieger-Coble has stood out as a pure pass catcher this offseason, hauling in everything thrown his way, as detailed by Andrew Mason at DenverBroncos.com. With Virgil Green and Jeff Heuerman both sidelined with injuries, Krieger-Coble has received more reps than most undrafted free agents would normally see. And if he keeps it up, there’s a real chance that he might earn his way onto the roster on his receiving merits alone.
But it’s his ability to long snap that has put Krieger-Coble on a fast track towards success.
On Wednesday, Krieger-Coble talked with Les Shapiro of the Afternoon Drive on Mile High Sports Radio about why he’s been pushed to take up long snapping, despite never holding that role in college.
“I understand that I’m definitely not one of the tallest tight ends out there, and I’m also not one of the heaviest,” Krieger-Coble said. “In that regard, I am a tweener. I’m just trying to go out and work as hard as I can and do as many things as possible.”
Despite a productive senior season, Krieger-Coble understood that he was a fringe draft prospect at best, and if he wanted an opportunity to live out his NFL dream, he needed to find a way to stand out.
“I want to have another skill on resume, just another thing I can do,” Krieger-Coble said. “I had a coach back at Iowa that really stressed learning how to long snap and ever since my senior year, after the bowl game, I’ve been trying to work on it.”
And when he got to Denver, special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis was impressed enough by Krieger-Coble’s ability that he told him to keep at it.
“At my pro day, I long snapped at the end of it just to get it out in front of scouts and show that I can do it,” Krieger-Coble said. “Coach [DeCamillis], the special teams coach, told me he wanted me to come in and practice afterwards and get some snaps in.”
And it makes sense. While the long snapper is one of the most underrated and under-appreciated players in the NFL — until they screw up, that is — the Denver Broncos made it clear this offseason that paying a top-tier long snapper is not a top priority when they cut Aaron Brewer, who signed a four-year $4 million deal last March.
Finding a young guy on an ultra-cheap undrafted-rookie-free-agent contract, who can not only long snap but play tight end too, would save the Broncos even more money — and based on the contract Von Miller is looking for, that’s exactly what they need.
He’ll have to beet out Casey Kreiter and Nathan Theus, who were signed as long snappers this offseason, but that won’t be too hard if he can bring that added bonus of playing tight end.
To listen to the rest of the conversation with Henry Krieger-Coble, check out the podcast below …
Catch Afternoon Drive with Eric Goodman and Les Shapiro every weekday from 4p-6p on Mile High Sports AM 1340 | FM 104.7 or stream live any time for the best local coverage of Colorado sports from Denver’s biggest sports talk lineup.