Why KJ Hamler believes his whiteboard work will translate to the field in his preseason debut

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — KJ Hamler’s recovery is almost over.

“I feel like I’m dang-near there,” he told reporters on Wednesday. “I just want to go out there and do what I was doing last year before I got hurt.”

Hamler hyperextended his knee during the third game of the Broncos’ 2021 season and needed surgeries to repair his hip and his ACL. Exactly 11 months after the injury, the wide receiver will likely take the field for the first time when the Broncos take on the Minnesota Vikings in their final preseason games, head coach Nathaniel Hackett said on Thursday.

“I think he’s going to get a couple of snaps,” Hackett said. “We’re going to try to get him in there. It’s been a while since he’s played.”

New offensive coordinator Justin Outten is excited to get his top speed threat back in action.

“You want to get him started; you want to get his confidence back,” Outten said. “He has been in a controlled setting this whole time, and he’s eager. He’s ready. He’s ready to go; he’s excited. We’re excited to see him back inside the white lines.”

Hamler has been vocal about the mental and emotional toll that recovering from the injury placed on him. Physically, though, the recovery seems to have been fairly straightforward.

Still, trusting his leg isn’t always easy. It helps that he also recovered from a torn ACL in 2016.

“Yesterday trying to jump for a ball, I was a little nervous I’m not gonna lie,” he said. “When I landed safely I knew it was fine. You’ve just gotta get those little goosebumps and those little fears out. I try not to live in fear. It’s my second ACL so I’ve been through this before, so I knew how this process was going to be.”

Before Hamler returned to full-speed practice this week, he was roaming the sidelines with his whiteboard. Whenever the coaches called a play, he drew it.

“I just keep thinking every time he goes up there, how many times he’s drawn every single play over and over and over again,” Hackett said. “He might be one of the best ones understanding the offense, because he’s worked so hard. He did a good job.”

Hamler feels the board-work paying off too.

“It’s just the little things and the little details that I probably mess up on,” he said.

Hamler will get about three weeks to clean up all of those details and that process will really start on Saturday. He’ll wear a knee brace and he plans to keep it on all season.

A return against the Vikings could provide exactly the spark that Hamler needs. Last preseason, Hamler torched the Vikings for 105 yards and a touchdown on just two catches, including this 80-yard bomb.

Outside of a few highlights like the one above, Hamler hasn’t produced all that much since he was a second-round draft pick in 2020. The main problem has been injuries.

But with Tim Patrick sidelined by an ACL injury of his own, Hamler is the heavy favorite to be the Broncos’ third wide receiver this season. He’ll have an opportunity to build his name as a pro.

“As soon as I step onto the field, and I see another person across from me in a different jersey, it all just clicks back,” Hamler said. “Just going out there, trying to be me and trying to be myself, I don’t think that’s changed at all.”