Training Camp Takeaways — Day 11: Russell Wilson wins again in the two-minute drill

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Russell Wilson is officially turning heads.

One potential reason… Justin Simmons’ absence.

Early last week, Simmons picked Wilson off in three consecutive practices. With Simmons dealing with a tweaked groin, Wilson has put together his three best days of practice. For the first time all camp, deep balls are possible. Given that it’s Simmons’ job to take those away, it’s easy to make the connection.

“His football IQ is so high. I mean, he can coach the room right now,” defensive coordinator Vance Joseph said on Tuesday. “He’s actually fixed about three or four things for me in the last four days because I haven’t been in the system and there are certain calls that I was not used to those guys making last year. He explained it to me and we kind of came together and made it right for both sides. He’s done a good job helping me put in the systems.”

Head coach Sean Payton has also been impressed.

“His football IQ is pretty rare,” Payton said on Monday.

We’ve got plenty of time to write about what exactly Wilson has done well, but I wanted to start this off by writing my biggest takeaway from camp: when Justin Simmons is on the field, the offense has struggled, but when Simmons is off the field, the offense has been great.

Tuesday’s practice wasn’t as action-packed as others have been. The Broncos replaced one of their team periods with a walk-through, which significantly cut down the number of reps. The starters also only had one two-minute drill instead of two.

Right tackle Mike McGlinchey and wide receiver Brandon Johnson both left practice with injuries about 90 seconds apart. Trainers were looking at their legs. Both hung around the practice field for a few minutes before leaving the field under their own power. I missed a few reps watching those two.

Today’s camp report might not be as bulky as others have been, but here’s what went down…

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Participation report

• RT Mike McGlinchey left practice during nine-on-seven drills under his own power. Mike Klis of 9News reports that McGlinchey is expected to miss 2-3 weeks with a knee sprain.
• WR Brandon Johnson left practice during one-on-ones after slipping on his break. Klis reports that the Broncos aren’t concerned about his injury.
• OLB Frank Clark participated in practice. He has missed several practices in the past week.
• LT Garett Bolles only participated in positional work, not competitive positions of practice. This has been his typical routine on his rest days, as he works back from a broken leg.
• S Justin Simmons missed a third practice with a “tweaked groin.”
• S Kareem Jackson was in attendance, but didn’t participate. He has received regular rest days during camp.
• CB Riley Moss made his first appearance at practice since he underwent a sports hernia surgery. He is still several weeks away from participating.
• TE Chris Manhertz did not participate in practice. He worked on the side field with the injured players.

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Russ wins the two-minute drill

Russell Wilson’s offense got the ball at their own 27, down six points with 1:43 on the clock and two timeouts. They needed a touchdown.

Wilson hit Marvin Mims in the flat, but overthrew his running back on the next play, which set up a 3rd & 8. He went back to Mims again, this time on a deep ball up the right sideline. The rookie gained a step on Ja’Quan McMillian and brought the pass in for a 37-yard gain.

With one minute left, the Broncos were 34 yards from the end zone. Russ hit Dulcich on the right sideline for six yards, and the tight end stepped out of bounds to stop the clock. A second-down incompletion set up a 3rd & 4. Wilson went to the right side of the field again, this time finding Jalen Virgil for a nine-yard gain to move the sticks.

Wilson took a shot to the end zone deep down the middle of the field, but the ball fell incomplete. Caden Sterns was among those in coverage. On 2nd & 10, with 27 seconds left, Wilson hit Courtland Sutton on an out route. Sutton could have gotten out bounds but opted to pick up a few more yards. The Broncos used the first of their two timeouts with 20 seconds remaining, and the ball at the 14-yard line.

On 3rd & 5, Sutton ran a dig or shallow post and gained separation from Damarri Mathis for a touchdown grab.

Moving the ball 73 yards is no easy feat, but Wilson worked clinically to get the job done. The defense was without Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson, but the offense was without their starting tackles, so the fight was fair.

The big play from Mims was his best moment in camp, by far. The rookie speedster has worked back slowly from a minor soft tissue injury, and has been a full participant in practice for a couple of days. He placed himself firmly on the shortlist of receivers vying for the third receiver job with his catch on Tuesday.

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More from Russ

The two-minute drill was the high point for Russell Wilson on Tuesday, but there was plenty more to like. As noted above, the missing team drill left him a little light on reps.

In seven-on-sevens, Wilson rocketed a ball to Greg Dulcich in the back of the end zone through a tight window for a touchdown. He also hit Jerry Jeudy and Samaje Perine on out routes for modest gains. PJ Locke contested a ball over the middle and forced an incompletion.

Wilson also made a bad decision on a play-action pass in team drills. He rolled out out of the pocket and could have hit a receiver in the flat but chose to force the ball to the second level to Jerry Jeudy on a crosser. Pat Surtain broke the pass up easily. He threw another incompletion to Jeudy, when a blitz forced him into an uncomfortable throw and he missed a tight window, maybe intentionally. Essang Bassey was in great coverage. He finally connected with Jeudy on a ball up the sideline for a 10-yard gain. The ball went through Damarri Mathis’ hands on its way to Jeudy.

In red zone drills, Wilson hit Samaje Perine on a screen. The play may have been a 15-yard touchdown with Ben Powers leading the way, but Perine probably would have come up a few yards short. Wilson also hit Kendall Hinton from five yards out on an out route deep in the end zone. He floated the ball over rookie cornerback Art Green’s fingertips and into Hinton’s hands.

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One-on-ones

I didn’t catch every rep, since there was action going on on both sides of the field and there were injuries to monitor, but here’s what stood out…

• Jerry Jeudy ran a slot fade. He gave a little shake before turning upfield. Pat Surtain didn’t bite. The quarterback has no choice but to throw the ball, so he lobbed one up. It looked like an interception all the way but Jeudy was able to jump up and bat the ball away with one hand.
  
• Kendall Hinton beat Faion Hicks on a deep post for a touchdown.
  
• Courtland Sutton caught a hitch in front of Damarri Mathis for a few yards. He’s been great underneath throughout camp.
  
• Jerry Jeudy burned Damarri Mathis on a slant. He made a great move at the break.
  
• Montrell Washington got deep and caught a touchdown ball in the end zone. He’s done good work separating and even better work tracking the ball so far in camp.
  
• Marquez Callaway caught a lobbed ball over Fabian Moreau on the sideline. Callaway had another strong catch in team drills, when Ja’Quan McMillian was in position but wasn’t able to rip the ball away.
  
• Isaiah Prince stood up Randy Gregory.
  
• Forrest Merrill pushed every offensive lineman he went up against back a couple of steps.
  
• Marcus Haynes had a great rep burning Demontrey Jacobs around the outside.
  
• Matt Henningsen and Jonathan Harris continued to beat the Broncos interior linemen.

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Other notes

• Alex Singleton and Nik Bonitto would’ve combined for a sack in team drills if they were allowed to touch the quarterback. They penetrated from Isaiah Prince’s side of the field.
  
• Chris Allen beat Tommy Hudson for a sack. He would have had a big hit a few plays later when he came around the edge unblocked.
  
• Elliott Fry was the only kicker to miss on Tuesday. It was a 39-yarder.
  
• Greg Dulcich and Montrell Washington had great blocks on a screen the created a big play for Kendall Hinton.
  
• The Broncos’ backup offense didn’t converter two-minute drill. They made it across the 50 but the drive ended with a 4th & 15 incompletion, set up by a Demontrey Jacobs false start.

(Check out the details from the previous open practice here.)