The Denver Broncos finished the pre-season in Denver versus the Minnesota Vikings with a 23-13 victory. They ended up going 2-1 in the preseason without playing any of their star players or guaranteed roster spot guys. The Broncos got to see extra reps from their deep bench and some of the position battles, that was how Nathaniel Hackett chose to use the pre-season to improve the team. Below are some of the big plays that were made and a few of the mistakes that could potentially cost some guys their roster spots.

Positive Plays

• Delarrin Turner-Yell gets a 4^th down stop on the goal line! This was unfortunately reviewed and overturned as the ball barely broke the plane, but DTY laid a big hit!
• Seth Williams gets a huge deep ball from Brett Rypien wide open, made a concentration catch for a first down a few plays later, and had 4 receptions for 68 yards in the first half! This was a roster making performance in a position group that is highly contested
• KJ Hamler was targeted five times and played the entire first half, he secured some good catches and looked fast and comfortable. A few missed opportunities, but he looked explosive!
• Montrell Washington took a jet sweep for an end-around, 11-yards touchdown!! Andrew Beck had a key block that made this run an untouched touchdown.

• Kana’i Mauga (MLB) made a 5-yard tackle for loss penetrating the offensive line at the snap and making an open-field tackle in the backfield! This dude had a great day, he had a ton of tackles, made plays in the passing game, and was hard to not notice on the field.
• Eyioma Uwazurike had a sack after the pocked was wrecked by Nik Bonito. This was called back because of a holding penalty by PJ Locke in the secondary.
• Mike Boone had five carries for 44 yards and looked special! He had wiggle and was hard to tackle in the open field.
• Alex Singleton had an excellent break on a ball that should have been intercepted for a pick-6 but dropped the ball. But read the play perfectly.
• McTelvin Agim got a strip sack (for his 2^nd Forced Fumble of the half) that was scooped up by Baron Browning for a touchdown before the end of the half!

• Jonathan Cooper and Jonathan Harris combined for a nice stunt that resulted in a drive stopping third down sack.
• Dalarrin Turner-Yell had a big sack in the fourth quarter on fourth down in the red zone! Big time play
• Nik Bonito had a hell of a game, two sacks, a forced fumble, lead the team in tackles. Came alive on the last possession of the game where the Vikings were trying to drive the field to tie the game.

• Not a single sack was given up, the offensive lines pass blocking has been masterful this entire pre-season.

Negative Plays

• Brett Rypien throws an interception in the endzone trying to fit in a post route touchdown to KJ Hamler, that was deflected up into the air.
• Jalen Virgil muffed the opening kickoff out of bounds to start the game at the 3-yard line
• Albert Okwuegbunam played a significant portion of the first half and didn’t have a single reception. Eric Tomlinson had a few big catch-and-runs from the TE group.
• Seth Williams had a big play opportunity for a 20-yard catch before the end of the first half and just plain dropped it.
• Kendall Hinton dropped a first down ball as the offense tried to drive the length of the field before the end of the half, ending the drive.
• Defense allowed the Vikings to drive the length of the field and get into field goal position in the final 49 seconds of the first half.
• Long snapper Jacob Bobenmeyer had a bonehead play where he fielded a punt from Sam Martin inside the 5-yard line, but he fielded the punt and ran into the endzone under his own power for a touchback…
• Nothing exciting or memorable from Josh Johnson in my opinion, if I were a betting man, I think Brett Rypien earned the second string QB position backing up Russell Wilson. Johnson was efficient, completing 11/14 passes for 107 yards, but only conjured three points in the second half taking out the field goal the offense was gifted at the end of the game when the Vikings went for it on 4^th and 17 from their own 12-yard line and got stuffed.
• Seven penalties for 50 yards felt a little sloppy.

The Broncos have until August 30th to make some roster decisions and trim the team from 80 players down to the 53-man squad, and then they have a few more days until they must have their 10-man practice squad defined as well. Middle Linebacker, Wide Receiver, Tight End, Defensive Line, Offensive Line, Punter, and Cornerback are all positions that are likely going to cut some players that could end up on other rosters in the NFL.

I’ll do a mock 53-man roster before the deadline and do a comparison once the official roster is released.

About Post Author

Aaron Hubert

Major Colorado sports fan who was once, for an entire year, a paid writer covering the entire Colorado sports scene. I grew up in Fort Collins, Colorado, a huge fan of all the professional sports Colorado had to offer. I played Football and Basketball in High School. I attended Colorado State University for undergrad, earning my degree in Business with a concentration in Computer Information Systems. I work as a professional Product Manager in the software development space for Fanatics.com the sports apparel company. I am a Fantasy Football and Fantasy Hockey participant, not sure if that will ever be worked into these writings, but keeping my option open! I really enjoy the process of being a huge fan of sports, being a passionate Colorado sports advocate, and using social media and writing to express my beliefs and opinions about sports.

aaronh92@hotmail.com

http://www.centennial-sports.com

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