Fangio puts his “show me” mentality to work

Good morning, and happy Mother’s Day to the Broncos Country moms,

We know about “death by inches.”

Vic Fangio made it clear at his introductory news conference that the days of silly mistakes that lead to losses were over. The Denver Broncos henceforth will be prepared for anything and everything that happens through their preparation on and off the field.

But as we “inch” closer and closer to training camp, another aspect of Fangio has emerged — a “show me” mentality. In some form or fashion, we’ve all heard the expression “actions speak louder than words.” It’s become clear that’s how Fangio wants to coach and learn about his players. Don’t tell him, show him. That helps explain why he doesn’t watch much film on any of the Broncos on the roster. Fangio wants to see with his own eyes what they do and how they play. Perhaps more important is how they prepare — in the weight room, kitchen, classroom and field.

It’s a clean slate. Show Fangio what you can do — veterans and rookies.

“The main purpose of this is to get these guys indoctrinated to being a Denver Bronco,” he told the media after the first day of rookie minicamp. “For them to learn our system and start learning it, so when OTAs start on Monday, they’ve got a chance to mix in with the veterans, know how to practice without pads on, learn some plays, learn some defenses, learn their assignments, get great individual attention from the coaches in these three days, so they’re more prepared and ready for Monday’s OTAs.”

In that refrain, Fangio and his staff won’t throw a lot at the rookies this weekend for minicamp. This is their first taste of the NFL and it’a a lot to take in. A lot.

“You tell them about it, and I told them about that (Thursday) night in the team meeting,” Fangio said. “There’s a big difference between the NFL and college football. There’s over 700 colleges, I believe, playing college football with 100-man rosters or more. We’re down to 32 (teams). Colleges play over a four-year period and we play over a 10-year period or more. You can see or get a feel for the competition and how much it’s been weeded out. The standard of play is just that much greater.”

One of the biggest differences between college and the NFL is the time spent in meetings.

“They need to learn how to be a good learner in those meetings, keep a good focus and make sure they’re constantly learning,” Fangio said. “Before you can do it on the field, you have to understand it in the classroom.”

We know about “death by inches.” But what’s equally clear is Fangio wants to see if his players can do the job — on and off the field. That’s the mark of a great teacher, and another sign the Broncos are in great hands.

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