Carlos Henderson and Isaiah McKenzie off to great starts for the Broncos

Good morning, Broncos Country!

There’s always a bit of give and take with the news we get this time of year.

You’re not sure if it’s a mirage because you’re so desperate or it’s really real. Let’s put this current bit of info on the Denver Broncos in leaning toward good news but we need to know more. In the the first two weeks of organized team activities, Carlos Henderson and Isaiah McKenzie have made an early impression - on both their Broncos teammates and coaches.

The goal now is to get better each day, as the cliche goes.

“They’re explosive players,” offensive coordinator Mike McCoy said in the first week of OTAs. “The most important thing right now — and it’s really the whole entire offense — is put yourself in a position come training camp to win a spot on the football team. Don’t worry about anybody else, just take care of your own job. That’s what I tell all the players, not just those two young receivers, but everybody.

“‘Learn the system. When you leave this office, you have to study.’ That’s the most important thing because they’re talented players. Once they learn it and they know where there going and how to get there, it’s going to be fun playing with them.”

If Henderson and McKenzie are able to take what they’ve done over the first two weeks of OTAs and get even better, it will make the Broncos offense that much more difficult to defend. Not only do defenses have Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders to fret about, but, hopefully, healthy running backs in C.J. Anderson and Jamaal Charles (if you don’t include Devontae Booker or De’Angelo Henderson), better utilized tight ends and an innovative offensive philosophy. If you add Carlos Henderson and McKenzie to that mix, you have the potential for an explosive offense.

“We have so many different formations and packages, that I’m going to play 50-50 in the slot at No. 3, No. 2, No. 1,” Sanders said this week. “It’s going to be hard for teams to double team me or double team Demaryius, or double team anyone. But right now, we’re focusing on understanding it while getting the quarterbacks on the same page — all of us on the same page — while also gaining that chemistry.”

As you’ve probably gathered from the players and coaches over these two weeks, it’s all about mastering McCoy’s offense. For the rookie wideouts, but also everyone on the offense. Even if a player has been in this offense, they need the time to remaster it. Also keep in mind both Henderson and McKenzie could make impacts on Denver’s special teams. If both are able to contribute in that area as well, holy smokes.

“They have to get familiar with it,” Sanders said this week. “It’s a lot of moving around, but with a complicated offense, once you’re able to master that, that’s when we take off. That’s where we start having those 30-and 40-point games. That’s where we’re trying to get to. We’re trying to rep it over and over and over. As far as complicated, I wouldn’t say that, but as far as package and moving around, it’s a lot of different things. It’s not standing still. You have to be able to adjust on the fly.”

There’s no question that Henderson and McKenzie are off to great starts and it should get you even more excited about the prospects for the Broncos offense. But as is the case with the news we get this time of year, let’s hold off before sealing it as a done deal. We’re only through the first two weeks of OTAs. There’s a lot of time between now and the start of training camp.

But if the two rookies build on what they’re doing right now, watch out.

“They can fly,” Thomas said. “They both can run and catch the ball. They can do things after the catch. I look forward to seeing what they can do for the team.”

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