Postgame Cold Snacks: The one player who made a case for himself on Saturday night

 

In a backup extravaganza, the Broncos fell to the Los Angeles Rams 6-10.

Hopefully you had a few cold ones during the game to make it more enjoyable than it was. Here are our takeaways from Denver’s fourth preseason game

Crack open a cold snack of your own and enjoy.

BOOTY TIME

Jake Butt’s preseason debut had more highs and lows than the game itself. Butt’s long-awaited entrance almost instantly felt like a nightmare. After his very first snap in the game, the third-year player came off the field limping and immediately went to the trainers.

Fortunately, minutes later, the former fifth-round pick strapped on his helmet and was back in the game.

“It was awesome. He was so excited,” quarterback Kevin Hogan said, speaking about Butt. “That guy’s worked so hard. He made two huge plays on that long drive we had. It’s good. He’s a heck of an athlete, and he’s going to do a lot of good things for us.”

Butt finished out the first half with two receptions for 17 yards before the Broncos called it a night for him.

In the process, he showed flashes of the receiving threat the Broncos hoped they drafted in 2017. With injuries depleting the tight end position, health will be Butt’s biggest concern the final week before cut day.

BORING BACKUPS

Well, there’s nothing we can really say here that’s going to get you excited, but here’s the deal:

With Drew Lock on the shelf, the Broncos need a back-up quarterback, and they aren’t going to make an undrafted rookie that guy.

What’s that you say? Kevin Hogan only has one career NFL start and has thrown just four touchdowns to seven interceptions in his NFL action? You say he has worse stats in real NFL games than Paxton Lynch? Well, in this context, it doesn’t matter.

While Vic Fangio said after the game that the back-up quarterback competition is not yet over, and that Brett Rypien still has a chance, Denver is eventually going to make Hogan their No. 2 quarterback heading into the season. Why? Because of the simple fact that he’s been in the league.

In the end, this is a short-term solution for Denver while Drew Lock rehabs his sprained thumb, and if Flacco were to leave the game in a sudden situation, the last thing the Broncos need to do is throw in a wide-eyed rookie who has never played against NFL second-teamers, let alone starters.

While Hogan’s performance in Saturday’s game, 8-12 for 69 yards, won’t blow you away, it was solid for what he is, a backup QB.

WOEFUL SPECIAL TEAMS

The most exciting play the Broncos had on special teams on Satruday was a five-yard punt return. And that’s about on par with the way things have gone in the preseason for Denver.

Unfortunately for the Broncos, as Vic Fangio and Tom McMahon have constantly said, there’s no front runner at either returner position and it’s not because there’s too much talent. They simply do not have any playmakers at either position.

Last week, Fangio made it clear that special teams are an issue, going as far as to deem them a “big-time concern.”

As it stands now, Denver’s special teams have no more clarity, or hope for that matter, than they did entering the game.