ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos have added some serious weapons to their arsenal on offense.
Size, speed, athleticism, the team has added all of the above in the offseason with multiple additions and two of the most intriguing new pieces came in the draft and now sit in the wide receiver room: Carlos Henderson and Isaiah McKenzie.
“They can fly,” the team’s most tenured player, Demaryius Thomas, said on Thursday afternoon.
Yes, while they may be undersized—McKenzie at 5-8 and Henderson at 5-11—both of the new guys can really burn. Both have the potential to bring a big spark to the offense and the return game.
There’s just one issue, while they can undoubtedly fly on the field, they’re going to need to fly in the classroom, and they obviously aren’t there yet.
“No. 1 is learn the system because they’re swimming,” offensive coordinator Mike McCoy said of what he’s expecting from the young guys. “All the rookies that just got here not long ago, they’re trying to figure out which was is right and left right now. If you were out there at practice the past couple days, you could see the playmaking ability that they have. They’re explosive players.”
“The most important thing right now—and it’s really the whole entire offense—is put yourself in a position come training camp to win a spot on the football team. Don’t worry about anybody else, just take care of your own job. That’s what I tell all the players, not just those two young receivers, but everybody. ‘Learn the system. When you leave this office, you have to study.’ That’s the most important thing because they’re talented players. Once they learn it, and they know where they’re going and how to get there, it’s going to be fun playing with them.”
They key phrase there is “once they learn it.” That’s the thing with rookies, most of the time their talent is not in question but the way they adjust to the league, the way they absorb the playbook, that’s always a big question. The young guys will need extra attention from their coaches and even some help from the vets on the team.
“I understand totally what they’re going through,” Thomas said. “I couldn’t even line up my first time running this offense. I still remember the day that [New England Offensive Coordinator Josh] McDaniels came to Atlanta and quizzed me on it. It was tough. It’s going to take some time, but they’re picking it up kind of quick… They both can run and catch the ball. They can do things after the catch. I look forward to seeing what they can do for the team.”
“I saw a lot of this offense,” he added. “We have a couple new things, but it’s a lot of the same things we had back in the day, just different wording. Some of the guys ask how I know it. Then I try to help out the younger guys; the older guys are learning so quick. I’m here to help them because it’s kind of the same things that I have been learning before with (Former Head Coach Gary) Kubiak’s offense.”
Thomas, McCoy and everyone else involved with the organization knows The Broncos need the explosivity that these rookies can bring to the field, they’ll need all hands on deck, though, to have them ready come kickoff in Week 1.
