Training camp officially came to a close Thursday afternoon and the Denver Broncos are forging ahead with the 2015-16 season. The team will face off with the Houston Texans Saturday night in their second preseason game.
It seems like yesterday the team began their first step of the long season and quickly players made a name for themselves. After practice several revealing, funny or exciting things were said from UCHealth Training Center. Here is a look back at the most notable quotes from August.
10. August 18 special teams coach Joe DeCamillis describes watching the Seattle tape and his wife’s reaction to the game.
“Yeah, I was fired up. That’s a good way to say it. I watched it about 20 times and felt as pitiful on the 20th time as I watched it on the first. The great thing about it is, when you go home, you have such support from your wife. No, not so much. She’s the worst critic. She’s like, ‘We’re not even going out. You played pitiful. I don’t want to be around you.’ She just wants accountability just like I do.”
9. July 30 John Elway lays out the plan for the offense this season and how it benefited him and should benefit Peyton Manning.
“No. 1, we’re going to have good balance on the offensive side. What I can say late in my career—that was my best friend, the running game. I think that running game will be Peyton’s best friend also. Obviously, it’s going to be a little bit of an adjustment. But you’ve got two smart, bright offensive football minds that are competitive and want to win. There was never, ever a thought in my mind that this was not going to work.”
8. August 1 Shane Ray detailed how he and his defensive teammates are approaching the season.
“I don’t think that we think about anybody else. When we think about our defense, I’m sure we think that we’re the best defense there is in the NFL. The only way that we can prove that is if we come out and play how we’re coached and handle our business. We can’t be wrapping our minds about ‘look at this defense’ or ‘look at this defense.’ We need to build our own defense.”
7. August 12, two days before the team’s preseason game against Seattle, head coach Gary Kubiak was asked about his youthful offensive line’s identity and what he will be looking for.
“We’re fixing to find out. They’re a young group led by a heck of a player in Lou [G Louis Vasquez]. I just think watching them grow up here throughout the course of camp; I’m excited about what they can be. Like I said, there are going to be a lot of bumps in the road along the way, but I know that they’re going to play hard. I know they’re very well coached and it’s up to them to come together as a group and be successful. They get their first test on Friday and boy, is it a good test for them.”
6. August 17 Von Miller responds to a question about J.J. Watt and how he measures up with him in the NFL.
JJ, he’s an awesome talent. He’s incredible, a once in a lifetime player, but I’m a once in a lifetime player, too. I feel like I go out there and I can play with the best of them. It’s a lot of talk before the season. Luckily, I have a season coming up and I get to lay it all out there and show everybody the type of Von that I can be. I want it to be about me this season. That’s the way I’m going about it—me and the Broncos. That’s where my mindset is at.”
5. August 4 Rick Dennison was asked about the team’s willingness to communicate and help each other. His answer was both surprising and refreshing.
“Well I’ll tell you what, I have been a lot of places, but this is kind of unusual,” Dennison said emphatically. “The defense has been great trying to help us out. That’s all that he (Ware) is trying to do. Ty (Sambrailo) is a young guy and he (Ware) can tell him how he is going to attack him, what he sees and what he feels. Anything that they can add to us to help us for September because we’re just practicing right and getting ready. I’ve overheard DBs tell us, ‘This is how you’re running this route. That’s why I know that’s coming.’ It’s been awesome.”
4. August 6 Demaryius Thomas shared his thoughts on Manning’s health and arm strength at camp.
“I don’t know if you all are going to believe what I say, but I think it’s a little more zip on it. I don’t know how he can do that. He’s an older guy—one of the oldest guys on the team—but I feel like every year around this time, there’s almost more zip on his ball. You can notice it. He threw a couple posts today, probably 50, 60 yards, and I’m like, ‘Whoa.’ It’s making me excited.”
3. August 8 Kubiak described the skill set Aqib Talib possesses that separates him from other corner backs after he made an interception at practice.
“To me, the difference in this league between a good corner and a great corner is guys that have ball skills. A lot of guys can cover, but when the ball is there, can you make the play on the ball? Can you make the pick? Can you take it the other way? As an offensive guy, attacking corners that you know don’t have ball skills, you’re not afraid. That’s what separates him. If he gets his hands on the ball, like I told the guys the other day, ‘Let’s go to work,’ that will be a touchdown, not just turnover.”
2. August 11 former Bronco and two-time Super Bowl Champion, Rod Smith, explained to the media what the roster needs to do inside the locker room in order to make the necessary step to become a champion.
“The answer is not getting more pieces in. It’s taking the pieces you have and putting them closer together.”
1. August 1 Louis Vasquez laid out exactly how he feels entering his 7th season and how he wants his offensive line to approach each game.
“My job is to get myself and the rest of the line ready to play. My mentality is by the end of the fourth quarter, we want to feel your soul wilt in our hands. So I’m trying to instill that in the offensive line because it’s dirty work. You might as well get nasty with it. That’s what I’m trying to instill in the young guys.”
OTHER NOTES:
Manning, Emmanuel Sanders (hamstring), Owen Daniels, Vasquez, Larentee McCray and Kenny Anunike (knee) were held out of practice due to injury r veteran rest. Anunike will be out multiple weeks after getting his knee scoped Thursday morning. Marvin Austin Jr. (groin) was placed on season-ending injury reserve Thursday afternoon and the Broncos received Jake Murphy from the Cincinnati Bengals off of waivers.
The final practice of training camp was light and the players were in helmets and shorts. Both the offense and defense practiced against installed Texans looks. It appears that after the Seattle Seahawks game Friday Trevor Simian has supplanted Zac Dysert as the No. 3 quarterback. This week he has received more repetitions during practice. Dysert has struggled through training camp and continued to do so Thursday. Bennie Fowler continued to impress coaches and onlookers Thursday with an impressive touchdown catch from Brock Osweiler and Thomas appeared to be in “football shape” and will play Saturday.
Defensively, Danny Trevathan and Chris Harris Jr. were held out of some team drills Thursday. After practice Kubiak stated that he does not expect Trevathan to play Saturday but will let Brandon Marshall get his first snaps of preseason football in.
The special teams unit practiced some field goals and punt return coverage Thursday with little to report.
Email Sam at sam@milehighsports.com and follow him on Twitter @SamCowhick.