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Denver Broncos first-round pick Shane Ray met with the media today and told reporters that he is 100%, and will do all the drills asked of him in practice.
Shane Ray: "I'm 100 percent, full go." He'll do all drills in practice right away.
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) July 27, 2015
This is great news for the Broncos and their first-round pick who has been rehabbing a toe injury. This injury has kept him limited throughout OTA's and Minicamp practices this spring.
This means we will see Ray taking part in all the individual drills as well as taking part in some team activities for the first time as a Bronco.
Ray says that he has been training at the Broncos facility for the last month and has his weight up to 247 pounds.
He has also been talking to both Von Miller and DeMarcus Ware to help his game. He asked Von how he can improve defending the run game, and asked Ware about tips on rushing the passer.
It's good to see Ray picking the brain of two All-Pro players and working on improving his game.
Ty Sambrailo didn't take the summer off:
Rookie left tackle Ty Sambrailo met with the media this afternoon and was asked how he spent his "summer vacation".
Ty Sambrailo said that summer vacation "wasn't really a vacation." Said he's been back working for the last three weeks.
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) July 27, 2015
As we know, Sambrailo is replacing Pro-Bowl left tackle Ryan Clady who tore his ACL earlier this spring. Sambrailo has spent the spring and the summer working on his game and body.
What should help Sambrailo is the blocking scheme that Head Coach Gary Kubiak uses. In college, he played in a zone-blocking scheme similar to the one Kubiak uses, so this has made for a seamless transition for Sambrailo.
Quarterback Peyton Manning has also been very helpful in this process for Sambrailo. This has to be comforting for the rookie knowing that arguably the best quarterback of all time is being supportive of you, and trying to help you out.
He has also spent the summer working out and getting to know his teammates along the offensive line. He says right guard Louis Vasquez, center Gino Gradkowski, left guard Ben Garland and tackle Chris Clark have all been at the facility working out with him.
Darius Kilgo learning every spot along the defensive line:
Rookie defensive lineman Darius Kilgo told media members today that he is learning nose tackle and 3 and 5-technique.
Darius Kilgo says he's learning all 3 spots on the DL, not just NT, but the 3- and 5-technique.
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) July 27, 2015
Being able to play multiple positions along the defensive line will really help Kilgo's chances at making the team. He is probably best suited to play nose tackle, but if he can provide depth at both end positions, that would be great.
You also have to factor in the four-game suspension of Derek Wolfe into the equation. Wolfe was expected to be a starter at defensive end in this defense. So that now makes your depth at defensive end a little thin. So if Kilgo can help provide depth at both spots, it would really help him make this team.