ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — For the first time in 2021, under the blistering June sun, the Broncos had their first 11-on-11 practice on Monday morning.
Despite a different situation, it was the same result as the past two weeks for Teddy Bridgwater — a heavy dose of Jerry Jeudy.
The full-team practice didn’t slow down the quarterback-receiver connection one bit.
In fact, the very first throw of Bridgewater leading the Broncos’ full offense in practice was a 25-yard touchdown to No. 10. Working on the right side of the field, Jeudy found an opening in the secondary and Bridgewater delivered the ball to the second-year receiver as he trotted into the end zone. Touchdown.
Much like the previous two practices during OTAs that have been open for media viewing, Jeudy and Bridgewater were clicking on all cylinders during Monday’s practice.
Bridgewater looked Jeudy’s way multiple times in team and 7-on-7. What has initially stuck out about the on-field chemistry quickly developing between the two is they aren’t just connecting short, they’re clicking deep.
In addition to the touchdown grab, Bridgewater and Jeudy connected twice for first-down gains.
Unlike the touchdown pass on the first play of 11-on-11s where Jeudy was wide open, Bridgwater hit the magnificent route-runner in stride on a 15-yard out near the right sideline. Jeudy secured the ball with a defender smothered on him and landed violently on the ground. But the ball didn’t move despite the hard impact. Another first down from Teddy to Jerry.
A week before, it was a different day, but same story. During Week 2 of OTAs, Bridgewater hit Jeudy in perfect stride for a 35-yard touchdown down the right side. The two also connected on a 20-yard out-route on the left sideline where Bridgwater released the ball before Jeudy was out of his break. A second later, an open Jeudy hauled in the pass and got two feet in bounds.
The quick chemistry that No. 5 and No. 10 appear to have is not the norm. In fact, after practice, Vic Fangio said “it takes forever” for chemistry to form between a quarterback and receiver.
“But it’s a process that gets better every day,” Fangio added.
Bridgewater and Jeudy appear to be defying the odds, at least initially.
“You can see strides early,” Fangio said, when asked specifically about the chemistry between Bridgwater and Jeudy. “I don’t know that those strides have been made yet, but hopefully that’s what all of our quarterbacks can get with all of our receivers.”
Of course, for this to matter come the regular season, Bridgewater still needs to win the starting quarterback job, which appears to be months away. Even if that happens, there will still be significant strides that need to be taken by both Bridgewater and Jeudy, individually and collectively.
“You can think of some of the all-time great quarterback-receiver tandems. They’ll tell you that even in their seventh, eighth and ninth year together that they were still growing,” Fangio added. “It’s a daily happening that can keep improving.
This is certainly the beginning of the road for the two, not the end. There is still plenty of work that needs to be done to continue to improve their connection. But for just three weeks into the offseason program, it’s been quite a hot and encouraging start.
