2025 Broncos Training Camp: Acclimation Day 2 News and Notes

Today was Day 2 of their acclimation ramp practice, the final one before Broncos camp officially kicks off tomorrow in front of nearly 800 fans in attendance. Today’s practice was a little bit longer than their opening period on Wednesday, but it was still a non-padded ramp-up practice. With fans in attendance tomorrow, the team will allow media members to live tweet what is happening throughout practice, so we should have a better idea of what’s happening on the Broncos’ practice field.

Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton did not meet with the media today, but we did hear from All-Pro guard Quinn Meinerz and safety Talanoa Hufanga.

Today we have the Broncos pass rush being dominant, Bo Nix’s arm strength wowing his teammates, injury updates, news and notes, notable quotes and more!

Broncos’ pass rush was dominant

The Broncos’ defense led the NFL in sacks last season and is showing that they still have an elite and dominant pass rush. During today’s ramp-up practice, Nik Bonitto, Zach Allen, Jonathon Cooper, John Franklin-Myers, Dondrea Tillman, and even Drew Sanders showed off their pass rush potential.

It is still early in camp, still in their ramp-up period, and defense is always ahead of the offense early in camp, but this is exciting to see. They have the same overall unit returning this year, with a good mix of established veterans and intriguing young players who could be on the verge of a breakout year.

Zach Allen, John Franklin-Myers, and D.J. Jones are established veterans, but then you have Nik Bonitto and Jonathon Cooper, who are both coming off breakout seasons. If they continue to improve, this pass rush could get even better. On top of that, you have second-year pass rusher Jonah Elliss, Dondrea Tillman, and exciting rookies Que Robinson and Sai’vion Jones mixing in as well. So, the Broncos have a young and talented pass rush unit that has the legit potential to be even better than they were last season.

Hell, we haven’t even mentioned Drew Sanders, who is expected to be used as a blitz-specialist/pressure player this upcoming season. Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph can scheme up some exotic blitzes to get after quarterbacks this upcoming season.

Safety Talanoa Hufanga was asked if the Broncos’ pass rush would make things easier for hi,m and he told reporters that it would make things much easier and that they have “Dogs up front”.

“It makes it a lot easier. You got dogs up front. I think they led the sacks last year [with] 63. So it makes it easier for us, but at the same time, we want to make it so they can have sacks too. We’ve got to cover long and get sticky in the back end so they can make it right up front.”

If the Broncos’ pass rush can repeat what they did last season or even improve, this defense could be very dangerous. They added Hufanga, a first-round cornerback in Jahdae Barron, a stud linebacker in Dre Greenlaw, and already have the reigning DPOY in Pat Surtain II. If the pass rush is dominant and all the other pieces live up to expectations, this defense will be elite.

Bo Nix “wows” with his arm strength

One of the narratives thrown around about quarterback Bo Nix was that he had limited arm strength and a “noodle arm”. These people apparently never watched Nix at Oregon because I watched a bunch of his tape, and it was clear he had really good arm strength and could drive the ball if needed.

These narratives were blown up during the season when Nix launched multiple impressive deep throws during the season. He threw an absolute dart to Mims vs. the Browns that resulted in a 93-yard touchdown, another bomb that was an absolute dime to Mims vs. the Bengals, and had the long touchdown to Troy Franklin vs. the Bills.

Well, he is still impressing people with his arm strength, but this time, it’s his own teammates.

The veteran safety was asked about what kind of stress Nix puts on a secondary. He told reporters that Nix is a smart player who is very accurate, and then mentioned what kind of arm he has. He mentioned that on the first day of OTAs, the first pass Nix threw was over everybody’s head.

“First and foremost, I think he’s just a smart player. Then you get on the field and you see how accurate he is and what kind of arm he has. Especially at the first day at OTAs, the first ball was over everybody’s head and I was like, ‘Wow.’ You have to account for those kind of things. Not every game that you play in the NFL are you going to play a quarterback that can launch it that far. For him, he has that ability to just get it over the defense’s head and that changes your perspective on how to play him. to see what kind of teammate that he, is a great person and great player. Just seeing how he handles himself in the locker room and the cafeteria and all that, I’m excited to play with him.”

This is an element of Nix’s game that is often overlooked. He is viewed as a checkdown merchant who will throw short passes, and he does do that quite a lot. However, he has also proven that he can launch a ball deep and throw it accurately while doing so.

Haters and doubters will remain, but the people, players, and coaches inside the Broncos building know the type of arm talent that Nix possesses. I would anticipate a few more deep shots this upcoming season.

Injury Report

• WR A.T. Perry remained on the PUP list and did not practice
• Veteran RT Mike McGlinchey did not practice today – Source

News and Notes

• KOA’s Ryan Edwards notes that QB Bo Nix’s decision-making is SIGNIFICANTLY faster than last season. – Source
• He also notes that LB Drew Sanders is ELITE coming downhill as a blitzer. Sanders has been called a pressure player, so we may see him used in blitz packages this upcoming season. – Source
• After some speculation about Courtland Sutton sitting out yesterday’s team drills, the veteran wide receiver did participate in team drills during today’s practice. So, a bit of a nothing burger there – Source
• Edwards also notes that edge rusher Andrew Farmer is a “sneaky name” to keep an eye on when it comes to making the Broncos’ 53-man roster. – Source
• Bo Nix has been sharp in back-to-back 7-on-7 drills.
• RB J.K. Dobbins was the first back used in team drills once again today.
• TE Evan Engram looked quick and fast on the field today.

Tweets From Camp

Notable Quotes

Safety Talanoa Hufanga on if he is changing anything to stay healthy

“It’s the same physical play. I think for me, you have got to take care of the body even more and have no regrets in everything I do. I go out there to play the game the right way, and that’s playing fast and playing physical. Injuries happen, that’s part of the game. For me, I’m just going to step on that field and have confidence that I can play the game I play.”

Safety Talanoa Hufanga on how important his relationship with S Brandon Jones is to him

“I think for us, we had the same [defensive backs] coach [in college]. I watched a lot of ‘B Jones’ (S Brandon Jones) film throughout college, and so I already knew a lot about him, seeing the way he plays and how fast he is. He’s probably one of the fastest players on the team, and so to see him in person was just amazing. The cool thing about it is the first week I got here, he’s like, ‘Hey, do you want to get work in?’ And there was no hesitation. It wasn’t like, ‘Hey, you’re on this by yourself.’ He’s like, ‘No, we’re all in this together.’ So it was really cool to see him, a veteran like that step up to lead another vet in the right way.”

Safety Talanoa Hufanga on how vocal guys have been about reaching their ultimate goals at the end of the year

“The goal for every team should be the Super Bowl, right? Do we look at it that way? No. We look at it day-by-day. A person who goes out to war in the Army—I’ve talked to them—they do not think about Thanksgiving, they don’t think about Christmas. They think about that day that they’re in and what they got to do that day to execute. That’s what we got to do. I know it’s not that serious. We get to go home to our wives, our children and stuff like that. Those are the goals that we put out there for us to execute the right way.”

All-Pro Guard Quinn Meinerz on if he thinks this is QB Bo Nix’s team

“It was kind of his team when he got here. Our job as the offensive line is to make him feel comfortable both on the field and off the field. He’s done a great job himself preparing for his moments. I think we’ve all done our job around him to make him feel comfortable—players and staff—to continue to be behind him and let Bo Nix be Bo Nix.”

All-Pro Guard Quinn Meinerz on returning every starter on the offensive line

“Having the same [offensive] line is incredible. We can just pick up right where we left off. All of our calls that we’ve developed throughout the years, we already kind of know what to do. We can move through our installs faster and we can get into more detail work and more technique stuff. A lot of the stuff that we’ve been building through the foundation is something we don’t have to really think about anymore. There’s still a lot of details and finishing to do with this group, so I’m excited to keep working every day.”

All-Pro Guard Quinn Meinerz on the Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group’s impact on the organization

“They’ve been doing an incredible job. It’s players first by far and that’s everywhere. Our nutrition, our weight room and our recovery stuff. If it’s something our staff believes will give us an advantage, it’s here. You’re seeing an incredible facility being built right there and it’s being built incredibly fast. It’s great having their presence here and to know how much they care about us as players.”

All-Pro Guard Quinn Meinerz on facing a talented defensive front every day

“It’s incredible to be able to go against Zach Allen every single day. I win some, he wins some, and it’s a nonstop battle. We both have a ton of passion and grit for this game. When we’re out there battling and then when we’re done, we’re asking, ‘Hey, why did you do that? Why did you do this?’ We’re bouncing ideas off of each other because he also has that drive to be the best in the league. It’s incredible to build work together with these guys. D.J. Jones is a hard person to move in the run game and John-Franklin Myers—we have such depth at all of these positions that I have to wake up every morning preparing to go against these guys. It’s great to have a great defensive line and a great offensive line going together because it’s only going to make us better.”