ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — This should be beneficial for the Broncos.
They have a new head coach in Nathaniel Hackett, a new offensive playbook in the Hackett-revised West Coast system and a new quarterback in Russell Wilson. When the leaders are new, the team is new, and so the Broncos will welcome the Dallas Cowboys for joint practices in advance of their preseason opening game Saturday night, Aug. 13, at Empower Field at Mile High.
The joint practices figure to be held Wednesday, Aug. 10 and Thursday, Aug. 11 at the Broncos' UCHealth Training Center. Because those joint practices will fall while the Broncos are still in training camp, they are expected to be open and free to the public.
The joint practices are usually a bigger test than the preseason game because the starters get plenty of reps against each other in practices, only to play limited, if any, snaps during the game.
The two teams are still working through details, but it will be the third time the Cowboys and Broncos will have held joint practices prior to the season. They shared workouts in the scorching heat of Dallas in 2007 and at Broncos' headquarters in 2008.
The most prominent Bronco with a Cowboys connection is outside linebacker Randy Gregory, who spent his first seven seasons in Dallas. Initially, he agreed to a five-year, $70 million contract to re-sign with Dallas in March, but backed out because of contract language regarding the $28 million in guaranteed money. Gregory instead signed a five-year, $70 million deal with $28 million in guarantees with the Broncos.
Soon after signing his new deal, Gregory underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. It's possible he may be able to participate in individual drills by the time his former team arrives in mid-August, but it's unlikely he would participate in 11 on 11 contact work.
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