An unexpected candidate is already building chemistry with Russell Wilson early in camp

Eric Saubert claims he didn’t sleep any easier Wednesday night.

“I’m trying not to get too high, trying not to get too low—just mellow,” Saubert said. “I try to keep that confidence all the time. That’s how you play fast. That’s how you play free.”

He says he won’t be sleeping any easier Thursday night either, after following up a two-touchdown performance on Day 1 with another stellar showing on the second day of Broncos camp.

“That’s the expectation—right?—that we’re going to score?” Saubert said. “We hate not scoring more than we actually like scoring.”

At 28, Saubert’s resume is packed with employers but lacking accomplishments. The Atlanta Falcons chose Saubert as a tight end out of Drake in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He was the first Bulldog drafted in more than 30 years.

Two years later, Saubert was traded to the Patriots in the offseason for a seventh-round pick and then was cut before the season began. For the next two years, he bounced from active rosters to practice squads for the Raiders, Bears and Jaguars. Then, ahead of the 2021 season, Saubert joined the Broncos.

Over his five-year career, Saubert has produced 18 catches for 132 yards and a touchdown, which came against the Chargers last season.

“If I wasn’t looking better (in camp), then I’d be doing something wrong,” he said. “As a player, I feel like I’m turning that corner. It’s a different timetable for everyone.”

Through two days Saubert has a strong case for camp MVP, but he just as easily could have found a new home this offseason, as he has so many times before.

“This is where I wanted to be all along,” he said. “Free agency was a little bit of a ride for me—a little longer than I would have liked—but I’m back here and that’s what matters.”

Despite being the last of the Broncos free agent signings—and that deal coming after the Broncos had drafted tight end Greg Dulcich with their second pick and after the Broncos had signed tight end Eric Tomlinson—general manager George Paton mentioned Saubert when recapping the offseason in his pre-camp press conference.

“The fact that we were able to retain some of our core guys that are really import to the locker room—like K-Jack, Josey Jewell, Deshawn Williams, Saube and Melvin Gordon—I feel good about that,” Paton said.

That’s a good list to be on.

Saubert’s new deal also came after the Broncos’ biggest move of the offseason: trading for quarterback Russell Wilson.

“That energy everybody talks about, it’s infectious,” Saubert said. “He’s such a positive guy.”

Wilson organized a workout at his house in San Diego a week before camp opened and Saubert was one of the dozen or more Broncos invited. They worked on routes and timing but also had a chance to get to know each other better.

“It’s going to be a long season,” Saubert said. “It’s important that we’re all cool with each other. There’s a love there, a bond.”

The bond with Wilson is paying off early in camp.

While Saubert didn’t find the end zone on Thursday, he did make a highlight-reel type of play. He ran a seam route, split the linebacker and safety, and caught a ball from Wilson that would’ve picked up at least 15 yards in a game.

Since the defense isn’t allowed to tackle, Saubert ran the rest of the way down the field and dunked the ball through the uprights.

“He was wide open,” head coach Nathaniel Hackett said after practice, “but the first part was so great. That was just that understanding of how to move a defender and find a sweet spot.”

The Broncos have a boatload of tight ends—that’s probably why it took so long for Saubert to get his new deal—but there’s a path for the veteran to make the roster. The top two contenders for the starting job, Albert Okwuegbunam and rookie Greg Dulcich, are both young guns who make their name downfield. Neither excels as a blocker.

Saubert is a grinder who can help the Broncos out in their new wide-zone blocking scheme, while also providing a threat through the air.

“He’s been great to have on this team,” Hackett said. “We’ve thrown him in there. He’s strong, he’s good at the point of attack in the run game, and then he’s done some good stuff in the pass game. It’s about teaching those details and he’s buying into all that stuff. Whenever you get a guy that’s a smart guy, a tough guy, and that’s going to buy into what we’re trying to do, you’re going to see great things happen.”

Despite the praise form his coach, Saubert will try to keep his even-keeled demeanor and stick to his game plan; he’ll wake up at 6, make the short trip to the team facility at 6:15 and join the team for Russell Wilson’s daily pre-practice walkthrough.

But there will be one exception.

“I’m gonna make it a goal one of these days to beat (Russ) here,” Saubert said. “I don’t know, I might need to wake up at three.”