ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — For the Broncos, the sight of Jaylen Waddle catching a touchdown pass from Bo Nix in a red-zone period Monday was not merely welcomed — it was, they hope, a taste of what is to come from their prized pitch-and-catch combination over the next six months.
But it has also been a far rarer sight than they would have hoped.
With Waddle sidelined for the previous six practices due to a muscle strain he suffered on August 5, Monday represented just the eighth practice that Nix and Waddle have shared together with team or seven-on-seven period repetitions since the stunning March trade for the ex-Miami Dolphins wide receiver.
Nix watched the first six days of June work from the sideline while recovering from his second ankle surgery of the offseason, then worked individually before receiving seven-on-seven snaps on the final day of minicamp. They had two days together in the July acclimation period, then four training-camp practices before Waddle left during individual work Aug. 5.
So, at the moment, there have been more days this year without either Nix or Waddle — nine — than practices with them working on their timing against the Broncos’ potent defense.
But Sean Payton isn’t concerned.
“I think we have a lot of time still,” Payton said after Monday’s session. We have good work this week, this weekend and there’s been a lot of time on task already.
“We’re being smart with it, and [Waddle] is coming along really well. So, we’ll see how this week unfolds.”
They’ll have two more days next week along with a game-preparation-style practice Thursday, a similar schedule next week heading into the second preseason game against the Green Bay Packers and then a smattering of sessions around the team’s cut to 53 players before diving into game preparations against the Kansas City Chiefs just after Labor Day. So, there’s a chance to double the amount of work that Nix and Waddle have already received together.
MOSTLY GOOD NEWS FOR THE BRONCOS REGARDING INJURIES
Center looks a bit better now for the Broncos with both Luke Wattenberg and Alex Forsyth seeing individual work Monday, although Wattenberg moved to the side field later. Running back J.K. Dobbins also saw his workload increase from last week, when he didn’t see team-period repetitions after he suffered what Payton termed as a soft-tissue injury.
But the sight of Drew Sanders on the side field Monday was an unfortunate one, especially coming off of the sack he posted in the fourth quarter on Friday night in Atlanta. He’s played just five of a possible 37 games — including postseason — over the last two seasons.
For more from Monday at Broncos Park Powered By CommonSpirit as the team got back to work following a weekend respite, watch the embedded video.
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