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When the Denver Broncos signed cornerback Bryce Callahan in free agency, they got one of the top ranked slot cornerbacks in the NFL. However, during the first week of OTA’s he has been seeing a lot more action on the outside. And so far, he’s enjoying it.
“It’s been going pretty good,” Callahan said of the first week of OTAs. “I’ve been playing on the outside more and I like it. Beautiful scenery, so I can’t complain.”
That is interesting, since it was supposed to be Chris Harris Jr. moving to the outside to help ensure a strong secondary in 2019 after the team moved on from Bradley Roby this offseason. The subsequent contract dispute between their star cornerback and the team has forced the coaching staff to start looking at how life might be without one of their best players.
Callahan came to Denver from the Chicago Bears, following his former defensive coordinator, Vic Fangio, who is now the head coach of the Broncos. That relationship, along with the strong offer from John Elway, were the primary reasons he followed Fangio to Denver.
“I would have to say my main thing was Coach Vic [Fangio],” Callahan said. “I’ve been in this system for four years. I felt comfortable with it. I felt like I could come here and not start over. I could just get here and get rolling. That was the main thing.”
That loyalty is partly due to the type of coach that Fangio is, but players also like enjoying success. Fangio had a tendency to put his players in the best position to succeed and that is also a big factor in that loyalty.
“He’s never too high, never too low,” Callahan said of Fangio. “He’s a straightforward guy. He puts you in position to make plays.”