ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The joint practice between the Broncos and Green Bay Packers came down to a final-minute drill.
The offensive teams were down 24-21 with no timeouts. The Packers’ offense had three series against the Denver defense. With Packers quarterback Jordan Love having two series and backup Sean Clifford having one, the Denver D came through with three consecutive four and outs. Reese Taylor finished one defensive stand with an interception.
On the other field, Broncos’ No. 1 quarterback Bo Nix directed his team to a touchdown and No. 2 quarterback Jarrett Stidham directed his team to a touchdown. No. 3 quarterback Zach Wilson didn’t get to finish his series.
“I thought we moved the ball really, really well,'' Stidham said. "Pretty efficient for the most part. A couple of penalties here and there, but I thought all-in-all it was a good practice.”
The Broncos, who got fine play from all three of their quarterbacks throughout the 2 hour, 18-minute practice, seemed to get the better of the Pack on a sunny and warm late-Friday morning in what was the final day of training camp at Broncos Pack, where the berm was packed with an overflow crowd.
Former quarterbacks Peyton Manning and Chase Daniel, who played 18 and and 13 seasons, respectively, attended the joint practice and both came away impressed with how the Broncos operated and performed.
“Overall, I was really pleased,’’ Broncos head coach Sean Payton said about the joint practice in general.
“It was good,'' Nix said. "It was definitely different playing against a different team in practice. I liked it. I thought everything ran very smoothly with guys getting in and out of the huddle. [We] were playing good and sharp football on both sides. I thought it was very clean and was a good day of practice.”
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Thus, the Broncos have finished another training camp. They will meet up with the Packers again Sunday evening, this time in a preseason game at Empower Field at Mile High with kickoff at 6 p.m. and televised on 9NEWS.
The Broncos will play their starters with Nix at quarterback, Stidham coming in second – probably sometime in the second quarter – and Wilson mopping up like he did last week at Indianapolis.
“I’m excited,’’ said Nix, who may have fibbed some because he never seems to get excited. “It’s a great opportunity to get out there and get in the flow of the game early and get a few drives in. Excited to roll with those guys and excited to be playing on our home turf. I think it will be a good time.”
The Packers will not play most of their starters Sunday while the Broncos will.
“Just, our schedule; their schedule,’’ Payton said.
Although Stidham and Wilson performed well in their snaps against the Packers’ defense in practice Friday, this was a day when Nix was reinforced as the Broncos’ No. 1 quarterback.
“It’s good,’’ Payton said of Nix. “There’s going to be a lot of video to watch. There’s third down, there’s red zone. It’s hard to give you an evaluation right now. I was pleased the practice ran smoothly.”
When Payton doesn’t gush flattery at Nix, there’s a chance its because he’s suppressing his over-the-moon feelings about how the rookie has played.
Nix moved in the pocket to connect with Courtland Sutton for 25 yards in the first team period and later opened a red zone period by hitting Tim Patrick perfectly for 15 yards in a zone hole.
Next week’s schedule will have practices Wednesday, Thursday and Friday with no fans, a final preseason game Sunday Aug. 25 against Arizona at Empower Field in which few starters are expected to play.
> Video below: Former Broncos offensive lineman Ryan Harris talks upcoming game against Packers
And then by Tuesday, Aug. 27 the roster will be cut down from 90 to 53 players.
“(We’re) probably at 60 right now,’’ Payton said. “Give or take, 61. … There’s probably 9 or 10 spots I’m still looking at.”
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The biggest roster decision will be whether to keep all three quarterbacks, or cut it down to two. Nix, a first-round draft pick who has been playing like it, is a cinch for one spot. That means Stidham and Wilson may be competing for the other spot.
“All I can focus on is having fun playing ball, which I have been,’’ Wilson said. “I really enjoy being out here with the guys, throwing the ball around.”
“Sean will make his decision whenever he deems it necessary,'' Stidham said. "We have a game on Sunday, and that’s what I’m focused on.
“Don’t really get caught up in what’s happened or what is going to happen,’’ said Stidham, who connected with running back Jaleel McLaughlin on a long route down the left sideline. “I’ve got guys counting on me every single day, to come out here and play really well.”
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