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NFL Training Camp Day: Denver Broncos Day 10 news and notes

News and notes from day 10 of Denver Broncos Training Camp.

By Scotty Payne
Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Day 10 of Denver Broncos Training Camp just wrapped up earlier today. Today multiple veterans's had the day off and the young guys and backups ran practice. We have Ronnie Hillman looking fast, an update on Osweiler, an update on injuries, and more!

Veteran rest day:

A select few Broncos vets were given today off. With Monday being an off day, this will give these guys two full days to rest and allow their bodies to recover.

This will probably be the final "veteran rest day" before the team's preseason opener on Friday against the Seattle Seahawks.

It will be interesting to see if and how Kubiak continues this throughout the remaining days of Training Camp and into the Preseason.

Running backs looking good:

C.J. Anderson returned to practice today after sitting out a little bit of yesterday's practice with a shoulder injury.

Head Coach Gary Kubiak praised starter C.J. Anderson and backup Ronnie Hillman after today's practice.

"First off, C.J. comes off with a little banged shoulder yesterday, wakes up this morning and says, ‘I’m going. I feel great.’ As a coach, right away, that’s a great sign, and he had a really good practice. We put a few balls on the ground. I don’t know who it was, but we put a few balls on the ground today. I think Ronnie Hillman has been a consistent performer throughout camp so far, so we’ll see. We’ll see how it happens."

Kubiak also said to expect to see Anderson play a "fair amount" of snaps in the preseason. It's a fine line, but he said Anderson's age allows him to get a few more reps during the preseason.

Earlier this Training Camp coach Kubiak challenged Ronnie Hillman to play more aggressively, and it appears that he accepted this challenge.

Kubiak was asked if he thinks Hillman could be a "power back". He said yes, and he called Hillman a "big-play player".

"Oh, I think so. I think so. He’s a big-play player. There’s a difference when some guys are back there, and they’re that five-and-six yard player and they have the ability to maybe make a big play. Every time he touches it, he has a chance for a home run. He runs with confidence between the tackles and maybe we get to the point where I’m doing these things with him, I don’t know, but I don’t see a reason for that right now. I see him doing everything we do."

This running back battle will be fun to watch. All four have flashed at times during Training Camp, and it will be interesting see how well they all do during the Preseason. This group may force Kubiak to keep four running backs.

James Casey will be important to this offense:

When the Broncos signed Casey, some assumed he would be a nice role player for the Broncos, but it appears he will be more than that.

Casey figures to be your starting fullback, but he will do much more than that. He will play tight end, but a red zone weapon, play special teams, and be the lead blocker for this team's running attack.

There will be a couple games this year where Casey gets multiple touchdowns for the Broncos offense.

How did Osweiler do?:

With Peyton Manning sitting out today's practice, Brock Osweiler was your starting quarterback today.

Osweiler had a good showing today it seems. He had a sequence where he threw three touchdown passes to Cody Latimer, Nathan Palmer, and James Casey in goal line work. That's a positive sign right there.

He had a few miscues today but followed those up with a nice play.

It's good to see Osweiler bouncing back from a bad throw to throw a perfect pass for a touchdown.

Kubiak seemed pleased with Osweiler's performance.

"I thought Brock did a good job. He missed a few plays. I know he missed a skinny there at the end on a little mock situation we had on third-and-7, but he made a lot of plays, too. I just think he’s gaining a little confidence running the football team when it’s his. You can see when he comes out here on those days it’s not a shock. It’s ‘let’s go.’ I think it’s important for the group, and obviously, it’s important for his career. I thought he did a good job."

Gaining this confidence should pay off for Osweiler during the preseason.

Injury Report:

  • C.J. Anderson returned to practice today after dinging his shoulder in yesterday's practice.
  • Wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders returned to practice after suffering a minor hamstring injury earlier this week.
  • Linebacker Steven Johnson didn't practice but did take part in some warm-up drills.
  • Lineback Brandon Marshall was pulled from practice because of soreness. It was just a precautionary move.
  • Fullback/tight end Joe Don Duncan took a big hit in today's practice and stayed down on the field for a bit. He went to the locker room and is being evaluated for a neck injury.
  • Linebacker Lerentee McCray (groin), safety Ross Madison (groin), cornerback Tevrin Brandon (shoulder), nose tackle Marvin Austin Jr. (groin), Cornerback Curtis Marsh, and defensive end Derek Wolfe(concussion) all did not practice.

Notes:

  • Coach Kubiak today said he plans to have Dir. of Analytics Mitch Tanney on headset to help evaluate game situations. It will be interesting to see the role he plays.
  • The Broncos will release their first depth chart tomorrow afternoon. More on that later.
  • Coach Kubiak said he will decide later this week if Demaryius Thomas will play in the preseason opener.

Tweets from practice:

Quotable:

Gary Kubiak's thoughts on defensive end Kenny Anunike.

"He’s really doing well. The concern with Kenny is hanging on to weight, bulk and those types of things. You know what, if you’re 15 pounds lighter than everybody but you play harder than everybody else, it doesn’t matter. Defensive Line Coach Bill Kollar is getting everything out of him. He’s an effort player, chase guy and makes a lot of plays because of his effort as a player. I’ve been impressed with Kenny. He’s making a big push to help this football team."


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