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Observations, notes and quotes from day two of Broncos minicamp

Jun 6, 2019, 6:21 AM | Updated: 1:00 pm

The Broncos continued mandatory minicamp on Wednesday at UC Health Training Center. They only have another day of minicamp before they take a break for a little over a month before the start of training camp in mid-July.

Broncos head coach Vic Fangio was positive about his team’s performance on the second day.

“I think day two went well. We got a lot of good work a lot of good reps, covered a lot of things. To me, it’s not day two because it’s just a continuation of the OTAs, but we can practice a little longer, so we have. Everything’s been good,” Fangio said.

Here are my notes, quotes and observations from the second day of mandatory minicamp.

***

Kicking Butt and Having Fun

It’s a joy to watch Broncos second-round pick Dalton Risner practice. He just has fun out there. Risner goes hard, there is no question about that, and he generally seems to enjoy everything he’s been tasked with in practice.

Before the draft, I said that the closest thing to Quenton Nelson (No. 6 overall pick for the Colts last year) was Risner. I talked to him at the Reese’s Senior Bowl and fell in love with his game when breaking down his film. Scouts I talk to believed that Risner could play four of the five positions on the offensive line if necessary and I myself graded him as a right tackle.

Instead of playing him at tackle, the Broncos have him inside at left guard. The rookie has welcomed the challenge and looks to be a good fit for the zone-blocking system.

Risner has already captured the attention of veteran teammate (and fellow starting guard) Ron Leary.

“He works his (butt) off. I love him. He doesn’t complain too much. He just comes to work. He’s always asking questions. I like him because he wants to be great. You have a lot of young guys these days coming in and think they’ve got it figured out and know it all. He’s the complete opposite,” Leary said.

Risner is already a fan-favorite in Broncos Country. It’s clear that he has become a favorite of his teammates in a short amount of time. Watching Risner is fun, and I can’t wait to see what he has in store during the regular season.

***

Big Plays Abound

The connection between Courtland Sutton and Joe Flacco has grown over the last month. Early in voluntary offseason workouts, I remember one play in particular where Flacco launched what had to be a 70-yard bomb for Sutton, but it fell from the heavens to the ground as it was too far in front of the young wideout.

That timing has improved. On Wednesday, Flacco launched a similar big-time throw to Sutton that he easily ran under – splitting a double team – for the score. As I noted in my report yesterday, Flacco doesn’t have a favorite target, but you can see the connection with Sutton growing.

Broncos offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello likes what he’s seen from Sutton so far.

“I think that the transition period takes a little bit of time, especially coming from SMU – a spread system. With his background, I think (wide receivers coach] Zach Azzanni has done an amazing job developing him and being creative with how he’s taught him,” Scangarello continued. “He’s brought him along very fast. I think he’s gaining confidence. I think you combine a good football IQ, good work ethic, a good guy with some talent—the sky is the limit.”

Sutton has the physical tools to dominate in the NFL. If he creates a strong bond with Flacco, then he can begin playing up to his enormous potential.

***

On the Down Low

Earlier this offseason, the Broncos decided to let center Matt Paradis move on in free agency. That showed a lot of confidence in their incumbent center Connor McGovern. Last season, McGovern started about half the season at center and got plenty of experience.

He’s an incredibly strong player who can dominate an opponent with brute strength. However, McGovern showed last year snapping to 6-feet tall Case Keenum that he needed to work on his shotgun snaps. At times, Keenum had to gather in low shotgun snaps which disrupted the timing of the play.

Flacco is a much taller quarterback than Keenum, so snapping to him has to be a bit different. I have seen some low snaps this year from McGovern, roughly one per week based on the practices that have been open to the media. On Wednesday, McGovern had another low shotgun snap to Flacco – an obvious concern for me with only one day of minicamp left.

Earlier this offseason, I asked McGovern if there was any adjustment when shotgun-snapping to a taller quarterback.

“No, it’s just a bigger target. When you’re under center, he has bigger hands and a bigger target. When in shotgun, it’s just a bigger target. Your snaps should be right in that perfect circle no matter who it is. Even between Flacco who is 6-5 and Case who is 6-2, it’s not that big of a difference for that circle. Same old, just have to get it back there as quick as you can,” McGovern said.

McGovern has a tremendous work ethic. I know that he works diligently at the facility and on his own away from the facility to improve his game. He can improve this part of his game. He’s got the work ethic, but it apparently is going to take more time.

We’ll see if McGovern can clean up this before the start of the regular season.

***

Basketball Skills

Noah Fant is not a finished product. He wasn’t coming out of Iowa this year as a first-round pick and his game was not one you could describe as flawless.

An underutilized part of his game was squaring up and moving back towards the quarterback. This skill is for more nuanced or experienced tight ends, so it’s not a shocker that Fant needed to work on that facet of his game.

It looks like Fant is taking well to coaching. So far in mandatory minicamp, Fant is using his size to box out smaller defenders much like a basketball player in the low post. Fant has a large wingspan which means he can pluck the ball away from his body and corners or safeties are powerless to defend a well-placed throw intended for the rookie.

Fant was a seam-ripper in college at Iowa, and that speed was a known asset from his college film. However, to be the best pro he can be, Fant needs a more well-rounded game. He can’t just be a straight-line route runner. Fant can become especially dangerous if he masters the route tree and the little things that can help him get open.

During OTAs I asked Hawkeyes teammate (and Bronos teammate) Josey Jewell what the team was getting in Fant.

“He’s a dude. He’s a pretty fast tight end. He’s kind of like one of those hybrid guys, but not a lot of people give him credit for his blocking. I think he does a great job blocking also. His route tree is pretty good and he can just flat out run. He’s going to be a mismatch for some people,” Jewell said.

Mismatch is the name of the game for Fant. The Broncos should be able to use the rookie early and often to move the chains and score touchdowns.

***

Todd-Father

It was good to see Todd Davis back out on the practice field. He missed the first day of mandatory minicamp so he could be with his wife for the birth of their child. Davis could have stayed away for the second day, but instead he was out there with his teammates and making plays.

At times, the Broncos will use their second-team offense to go up against their first-team defense. They did that on Wednesday with rookie quarterback Drew Lock at the helm.

Davis made sure to give Lock one of those “Welcome to the NFL” plays for the rookie. Lock dropped a pass in for running back Devontae Jackson that Davis merely ripped out of the would-be receiver’s hands and went for a score.

The defense won the day on Wednesday. Perhaps the return of Davis wasn’t the only reason why that was the case, but it was clear that they looked better with their captain inside linebacker out there.

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Observations, notes and quotes from day two of Broncos minicamp