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Broncos Training Camp recap: Big plays for Lynch, Inconsistent Trev, and Bolles impressive again.

Here is your day two recap of Denver Broncos day two Training Camp practices.

By Scotty Payne
Quarterback Paxton Lynch trots off the field at the end of the morning session of the first day of Denver Broncos training camp
Casey Barrett Photography

Day two of Denver Broncos Training Camp has come and gone, and we saw some big plays from Paxton Lynch, an up and down day for Trevor Siemian, Garett Bolles playing well again, Von dominating..again, injury updates, news and notes, tweets from practice, and more!

Big plays and more big plays for Paxton Lynch:

One of the big terms thrown around this offseason was how the Broncos wanted to add “juice” to their offense after being rather stale the last few seasons. They added that with multiple explosive receivers drafted, a few speedy backs added and a more aggressive playbook, but Paxton Lynch added the “juice” to the practice today.

Lynch rolled right, pump faked and out ran the defense for a 50 yard or so touchdown during today’s practice. This wasn’t a “we can’t touch the QB” type of run by reports either. Lynch simply just out ran the defense and showed off his athletic ability.

Head Coach Vance Joseph said he wasn’t surprised at all about Lynch’s running ability and that they have seen it all spring.

“It’s Paxton, he can run. I wasn’t surprised to see that. He made a bunch of those in the spring. For a young quarterback like Paxton, early on, when he’s playing, if things break down, he does have legs to make things better. As a defensive coordinator, you hate that part because you can’t account for that guy. When you want to play man to man, no one is accounting for him. So when things break down early on, he can take off and make big plays with his legs.”

That ended up being the play of the day, but before that, another big play from Lynch was the play of the day.

During a 7 on 7 drills, Lynch split the defense on a 40-yard strike to wide receiver Cody Latimer. This was with the second team offense against the second team defense, but he showed off his elite arm strength as well as throwing a dime to split the coverage. We saw Lynch struggle with this during the Jaguars game last season, so this appears to show that his mechanics and footwork have improved.

Vance Joseph said that Paxton is just out there “playing ball” today.

“Paxton is Paxton. He is playing ball. He’s improving every day. Both guys are improving every day. The offense—I love it because we’re in attack mode all the time. That’s what I want. That’s my vision for the offense; it’s to attack defenses at all times and to score points. If we can do that, it will make a difference.”

Lynch was impressive today, and one onlooker even suggested that he was the best player on the entire field.

This now makes for two straight practices where former first-round pick Paxton Lynch has won the quarterback battle, and may even begin separating himself from Siemian some.

Decision making was supposed to be on Siemian’s side, but so far Lynch has had the upper hand. Demaryius Thomas wanted this battle to end early, and he may very well get his wish if this continues.

It’s still only two non-padded practices, and a lot can change going forward but this is a very promising start for Lynch.

Siemian inconsistent but finishes strong:

After a day one where Siemian called himself a “slappy” because of his play, he needed to come back and have a better practice, and he did, but still was inconsistent.

He had some nice plays like these consecutive 20 yard passes to wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders and tight end Jeff Heuerman. He also had a nice touchdown pass to wide receiver Jordan Taylor. It was a nice showing for him early on, but then the turnover and near turnovers started to happen.

Cornerback Lorenzo Doss who sabotaged Mark Sanchez’s chance of starting last year started to pick on Trevor Siemian today.

Then came the ugly turnover. Siemian was picked off in the end zone by cornerback Bradley Roby. This “No Fly Zone” secondary will get you from time to time, but turnovers in the end zone are one of the bigger no-no’s a quarterback can do. He also was struggling with accuracy early in practice as well.

Siemian did finish the practice strong during a 7 on 7 drills with multiple touchdowns, but as Andrew Mason noted here, it was against the second team defense.

So it sounds like it was a little better day for Siemian but still wasn’t as good as Paxton Lynch. Is Siemian starting to feel the pressure? How he responds again tomorrow will be very interesting.

Bolles continues to impress:

The Broncos first-round pick Garett Bolles continued to impress today while splitting first-team reps with Ty Sambrailo.

For the second straight day, Bolles was the first guy up at left tackle. That shows he has the early lead at the position and nothing he has done has made him lose ground on Sambrailo.

In fact, Sambrailo was beaten multiple times by All-Pro edge rusher Von Miller. That happens to everyone, but not a good look for Sambrailo who has had some big struggles the past few years. Sambrailo isn’t challenging Bolles at all right now for the starting gig.

Now with that said, Joseph said that Bolles needs to earn the job and that Sambrailo is coming off a “hell of a spring”.

“We drafted [T Garett] Bolles, but he has to earn his spot. And [OL] Ty [Sambrailo] has had a hell of a spring. He’s earned the rights to compete for the job. It’s been fun to watch both of those guys compete for the job. Even [T Donald] Stephenson is in that mix. He’s earned that right. But, the best two guys are going to play. We’re looking to have four guys who can play tackle for us because in our division, every team has two edge-rushers, and they play left and right. We have to have two tackles who can play.”

Even Von Miller was excited to see what Bolles did after stuffing fellow linebacker Kasim Edebali in an O-line and D-line drill. Having a starting pass rusher congratulate an offensive tackle for stuffing a fellow defensive player rarely happens, so it shows that the Broncos leaders are excited about Bolles and already respect him.

As I said yesterday when the pads come on is when we’ll get a true test of Bolles ability, but someone like Bolles will likely thrive in that environment. Remember he has a VERY aggressive personality on the football field, so he should be something to watch in the coming day as the physicality continues to ramp up.

DeAngelo Henderson continues to impress:

With Devontae Booker missing all of Training Camp with an injury, someone has to step up to replace his production on the roster this summer. Well so far, that player has been a sixth-round pick, running back DeAngelo Henderson.

The rookie Henderson caught the eye of All-Pro cornerback Chris Harris Jr. who said the rookie back impressed him so far.

I like No. 33 [RB De’angelo Henderson], he’s a guy that’s impressed me. Henderson he’s a guy that just comes downhill so I’m excited to see what he does when we put the pads on.”

I too am anxious to see how Henderson does once he gets the pads on. With C.J. Anderson and Jamaal Charles likely not seeing a ton of action during the preseason, I think we will see plenty of Henderson during those games.

If he performs well during the Preseason, he has a good shot at having a role in the offense early in the season.

Jamaal Charles playing with a chip on his shoulder:

The former Chiefs running back has heard the doubter for a few years now, but is ready to prove them wrong in 2017.

Charles says he has no doubt in his mind that he can still play at a high level in this league.

“There’s no question I can still play; I know I can still play. The only thing right now is knowing the playbook and controlling what I can control. One day at a time. The preseason is coming up before the regular season. All I can control is training camp right now.”

The biggest concern about Charles is his knee that has really cost him the past two seasons of his career. Every time he cuts on it, the Broncos coaches will be holding their breath hoping it holds up, but Charles says “If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen”.

“You can only control what you can control. With me cutting and letting go, if it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen. All I can focus on is trying to go out there and try to not let our guys hit me. That’s the goal. So when I cut, I’m just letting it go. If it happens, it happens. Only the one above can know when that time comes.”

Charles will be a big story for the Broncos in 2017. If he falters, it may end a great career. However, if he returns to form, the Broncos have a HUGE steal and a former star running back from a division rival who will play them at least twice this season.

Let's hope that Charles can get his revenge on the Chiefs this season.

Injury report:

News and notes:

Tweets from practice:

Funny tweet of the day:

Never eat as many crab legs as you can or you will get “stomach issues”.

Notable quotes:

Vance Joseph on the Broncos tight ends

“Improvement. [TE] Virgil [Green] is Virgil. Virgil is steady. He’s a blocker. He’s a pass catcher. He’s been steady for years around here and that isn’t going to change. [TE Jeff] Heuerman has had a hell of a spring and he’s had two pretty good days. And, he’s a big body guy that has deceptive speed, good hands, and long arms, so if he comes on, that’s going to help us. [TE A.J.] Derby is more of a pass catcher, a movement guy. We’ve got three different guys which helps your offense.”

Chris Harris Jr. on how the defense has to adjust to a quarterback that can scramble

“We’ve got to cover longer. When you see Paxton, you know you’ve got to cover. The linebackers kind of have to keep an eye on him and that’s the difference. He can do that. We saw today, he had a nice little run just taking off and outrunning a couple of linebackers and a couple of defensive lineman. He brings that different effect to the offense and Mike McCoy knows how to use those guys perfectly.”

Shane Ray on providing leadership

“It’s funny, I do a lot of critiquing with the younger guys in the room. When we talk about film and we talk about pass rush, I’m normally they guy that says, ‘Hey, how did you feel when you did this,’ or ‘How did you do this,’ or ‘Why didn’t you try this.’ I think that stems from DeMarcus [Ware] making me more aware of being a complete pro. Talking to the guys, ‘Hey, did you look at this guy’s stance? Did you look at the center twitching his fingers?’ Finding the little things. I think that I push myself not just physically but also in the film to be able to see little things and also to be able to help the other guys out. Even though I’m not a vet, I’m not in ‘No Fly Zone,’ I’m not [OLB] Von [Miller], I’m a young buck on the team and I still feel like I have a huge roll. My role is to lead the younger guys because we’re going to be the new wave and that’s what we want to do.”

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