Broncos Wire podcast: Injuries, Nathaniel Hackett, Hall of Fame and more
The Denver Broncos had quite an eventual first week of training camp.
To break down all the news and updates, I joined host Ryan O’Leary on the Broncos Wire podcast to recap and react to the latest developments. You can listen to episode No. 82 below:
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Our unedited notes for this week’s pod can be seen below.
Tim Patrick and KJ Hamler injuries
Patrick, 29, suffered a non-contact Achilles tear on Monday. He will be placed on IR and miss the entire 2023 season. Patrick also missed the entire 2022 season with a torn ACL. He signed a three-year, $34 million contract extension late in the 2021 season and will now miss 34-straight games. Patrick has a potential out in his contract next spring. If the Broncos bring him back, Patrick will turn 31 during the 2024 season and have a $13 million salary cap hit.
Hamler, 24, was diagnosed with pericarditis, which he called a “mild heart irritation.” The Broncos waived him with a non-football illness designation. If they placed him on the reserve/NFI list, Hamler would have been ruled out for the entire 2023 season. Instead, Sean Payton said Hamler will need about a month to recover and then a few weeks to get up to football speed, then Denver might bring him back.
Hamler has had awful injury luck since being drafted by the Broncos in the second round of the 2020 NFL draft. Hamler has been unavailable for 27 of the team’s 50 games over the last three years.
Big-name WRs available include Julio Jones, Jarvis Landry, T.Y. Hilton and Kenny Golladay, but Denver seems more likely to stick with in-house options. Behind Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton, the top candidate to step up and help replace Patrick and Hamler is second-round pick Marvin Mims.
Sean Payton blasts Nathaniel Hackett
The day before training camp, Payton stuck up for QB Russell Wilson and his 2022 struggles by casting blame on Hackett instead, saying last year “might have been one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL.”
Hackett, of course, is now OC for the Jets. New York head coach Robert Saleh stood up for Hackett and said “there’s a lot of crows pecking at our neck.”
Jets OL Billy Turner (who played under Hackett with the Packers and with the Broncos last season) called Payton an “[expletive] bum” and “childish” on his Instagram story.
Jets QB Aaron Rodgers said the comments were “way out of line” and Rodgers also called Payton “insecure.”
Hackett suggested that Payton broke a coaches code and he said “it’s unfortunate that that had to happen.”
One day after making the comments in an interview with USA TODAY, Payton said during a post-practice presser that he regrets the comments and he called them a mistake. Payton said he should have shown more restraint.
The damage has clearly been done, though, and the Jets won’t forget those comments. Denver will host New York in Week 5
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Broncos have a new alternate helmet
Denver will wear a new white alternate helmet this season.
The Broncos have to wear the alternate helmet with their existing Color Rush uniform, which is all-orange. Some fans wanted the team to wear all-white or white pants with it.
Denver could make more alternate tweaks in 2024 and eventually, new uniforms will arrive.
3 former Broncos one step closer to Hall of Fame
Broncos Super Bowl 50 champion DeMarcus Ware will sing the national anthem before the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday and he will then be enshrined in Canton as part of the 2023 class on Saturday.
Looking ahead to next year, ex-Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar is among 12 senior semifinalists for the 2024 Hall of Fame class. Up to three senior candidates will be elected to the 2024 class.
Mike Shanahan, a two-time Super Bowl champion with the Broncos, is among 12 semifinalists in the coach/contributor category for 2024. Only one coach/contributor will be enshrined with the 2024 class.
Late coach Dan Reeves is also a coach/contributor semifinalist for 2024. Reeves reached nine Super Bowls as a player and coach, representing the third-most in NFL history only behind Bill Belichick (12) and Tom Brady (10).
Two quick questions on special teams to wrap things up
1. The NFL has a new rule this year — a fair catch on a kickoff will result in the ball being spotted at the 25-yard line (even if it’s fielded inside the 25). Many coaches don’t like the change, and Sean Payton thinks it will have unintended consequences. The idea is to make the game safer by creating even fewer kickoff returns, a play that is responsible for many injuries every season. Do we think it’s a good rule change?
2. Pat Surtain got a few reps as a punt returner this spring. He’s very willing to contribute on special teams, but the Broncos are only having him practice for emergency-type situations, not as a primary returner. Being such a valuable player, should Surtain even be a fallback option as a returner?
We will return later in the offseason with new podcast episodes as news pops up. If you enjoy this podcast, you can check out previous episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or on your podcast service of choice. Please consider giving the podcast a positive rating and review!
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