Broncos OTA Observations: How the quarterbacks looked in their first full practice

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — As one—or two—seasons end, another begins.

With the Denver Nuggets and Colorado Avalanche both bowing out in the playoffs last week, the timing was right for the Broncos to get back on the field on Monday for the first time as a team.

“It’s the start of the season,” head coach Vic Fangio said afterward.

The group spent around two hours on between the lines on a perfect Spring day in Colorado, with a very large portion dedicated to live 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 work.

With the practice being open to the media, BSN Denver was on hand for the entirety of the session, here’s what we saw.

Smokin’ Joe

If you were hoping to open up this article and ready about how Drew Lock is already beginning to dethrone Joe Flacco, sorry to disappoint.

We’ll get to Lock, who had a solid showing for his first day, but Monday made it obvious why the Broncos are adamant about Flacco being the starter.

On the day, Flacco—who looked as comfortable as can be—made a plethora of very nice throws to go along with virtually no bad decisions. His practice was highlighted by multiple strikes to Courtland Sutton and DaeSean Hamilton in the 10 to 15-yard range toward the sideline.

If there’s one thing that certainly puts Flacco a long way ahead of his counterparts at this point, it’s his decisiveness. Even in a brand new offense, Flacco knows where the ball should go on any given play. If that option is open, the veteran quarterback hits that back foot and lets it rip. If the first option isn’t there, he is quick to get to his second read and deliver it there. As it should be in practice, the QB didn’t have to throw a ball away all day.

Flacco’s best throw of the day came on a deep out to Courtland Sutton on third-and-long. Needing to put some touch on it, the QB put it over the top of one defender and right into the arms of Sutton, who dragged his feet for the first down.

“Great throw! Great route!” Exclaimed one coach.

As we learned last year, veteran quarterbacks make practice look easy. This was definitely the case for Flacco on Monday.

Lock displays the arsenal

Welcome in, kid.

Working with the third team for most of the day, Drew Lock showed all of the tools that make him so enticing to the Broncos.

He had a nice completion on a sidearm throw on the run. He displayed fantastic zip on multiple throws to the sideline. He completed passes off of his back foot in the face of pressure, relying on his arm strength alone to get a ball in there.

Lock also had the throw of the day, unleashing an absolute laser in between three different defenders and into the hands of River Cracraft. The window was so small, that some of the defenders on the field began to yell in celebration. Out of nowhere, though, came Cracraft, rolling on the ground with the ball in his hands.

Magic.

On the other hand, the areas in which Lock needs to improve were also on full display.

The young gunslinger is a bit too reliant on his arm strength at this point, and is too willing to throw off of his back foot at times when it is not necessary to do so. On one throw, Lock hit his back foot and saw his receiver come open, but instead of loading on that back leg and unleashing it, he rushed the pass off of that back foot and nearly had it intercepted.

Understandably, Lock seemed a little tight at times during his first real NFL practice, seemingly aiming the ball a little bit rather than just letting it fly.

In the end, it was an up and down day for Lock. He showed you exactly why the Broncos love him and exactly why he still needs to improve in many areas. A good coaching opportunity for Rich Scangarello and T.C. McCartney.

Sanders Striding

Potentially the biggest story of the day didn’t even happen between the lines.

Working on the side of the field with a trainer, Emmanuel Sanders went through a workout that had me saying, “Forget Week 1, he could be out there practicing right now.”

First, Sanders ran a series of full-speed sprints that ended with him stepping on the brakes, one thing that can be an issue for those who have suffered a torn Achilles.

Then, shortly after one media member commented that we need to see him cut, Sanders ran a series of zig-zag sprints at what appeared to be at full speed, cutting every few yards.

It seems clear that Emmanuel will be back and ready to go sooner than later, huge news for the Broncos offense.

Fant could feast

It’s very obvious that Noah Fant is going to be a problem for opposing defenses, and a fantastic blanket for Joe Flacco.

Working mostly with the ones and twos, Fant put on a nice display of his ability to get open.

While most of his catches were of the short variety, he had a great contested catch on third and long with Will Parks bearing down on him. As the ball arrived, Fant picked the ball out of the air and spun off of Parks’ contact, turning up the field with eye-opening burst.

Maybe even more encouraging was a nice block he put on Von Miller. Joe Flacco said after practice that he believes Fant’s blocking is underrated.

While, like all of the rookies, he has a lot to learn, it was clear that he can make plays just off of his talent along.

Other observations

• It appears Brendan Langley will have every chance to make the team, as he should be considered a favorite for at least one returner job, is a key gunner on punt team, and will also get a true look at wide receiver.
• With Ju’Waun James not practicing due to a personal matter in Miami, Elijah Wilkinson got a good look at right tackle.
• Colby Wadman put on a serious display of bombs during a punt drill.
• While he did have one tough rep against Bradley Chubb, Dalton Risner looked like he certainly belonged with the ones on the offensive line.
• During a bit of a windy drill for the quarterbacks, it was clear that both Flacco and Lock’s ball cut through the wind much more effectively than Kevin Hogan and Brett Rypien.
• Working with the second team, Hogan had a bit of a rough day, with multiple miscommunications and dangerous throws.
• Juwann Winfree had a nice day, catching everything that was thrown at him, including maybe the longest ball of the day down the right sideline.
• Trinity Benson was the most impressive of the UDFA receivers, making multiple nice catches on the day.
• Standing at 5-foot-7 on a good day, running back Khalfani Muhammed has some serious burst.