ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Josh Reynolds has primarily caught passes from quarterback Jared Goff, with a little bit of Ryan Tannehill sprinkled in, during his eight-year NFL career.
Goff can fire it. The former No. 1 overall draft pick has a live fastball. How does the ball thrown by Broncos’ rookie quarterback Bo Nix compare?
“Bo Nix compared to anybody else I played with, he’s got a beautiful ball, man,’’ Reynolds said in a conference call with the local media following practice Monday at under-construction Broncos Park. “He can place it wherever he wants to. He can put it on a line, he can have some touch with it. He’s got an amazing arm and I’m excited to see how he progresses and continues to take charge of this offense.”
Nix will start for the Broncos in the season opener Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks. Denver’s first-round draft pick and No. 12 overall selection back in April, Nix will be making his NFL debut after starting five seasons in college at Auburn and Oregon.
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“He’s definitely a lot further along than I’ve seen of rookie quarterbacks in the past,’’ said Reynolds, who has 220 career catches for 2,933 yards and 19 touchdowns in his career. “He carries himself in the same way, off the field as well. I think he’s got a great mindset coming into this thing. He doesn’t have real big highs, he doesn’t have real big lows. He’s just even-keel and that’s all you can look for in a quarterback.”
After playing mostly a No. 3 or 4 receiver role in his career, Reynolds figures to be the Broncos’ No. 2 receiver this year, partnering with top target Courtland Sutton. Marvin Mims Jr. should make it a top receiver trio with rookies Devaughn Vele and Troy Franklin also on the active roster. Not included in that group is veteran Tim Patrick, a 50-catch, 700-yard receiver standout for the Broncos in 2020-21 but injured in 2022-23 and released last week.
“Yeah, man, I was very surprised on that,’’ Reynolds said of Patrick who has signed with the practice squad of Reynolds’ former team, the Detroit Lions. “But at the end of the day I’m not a coach, I’m not in the head office so we trust them up in the head office and if they felt like that was the best move for the team then that’s what we’re going to do.”
Other topics Reynolds addressed during his conference call Monday:
Second-year cornerback Riley Moss, who played little as a rookie because of training camp abdominal surgery but has seemingly won the starting job opposite All Pro Pat Surtain II: “He’s real patient at the line. And for young corners that’s tough to do. You want to go for the first move and stuff like that. He’s had a great camp and had a great OTAs and I’m excited to see him ball out.”
On Vele, a seventh-round rookie from Utah: “Vele, man, great player. He’s real savvy. You’ve all seen the plays he’s made in camp and OTAs. He’s a playmaker, big body. But I really like his savviness. He can manipulate DBs in a way to just get open.”
On Nix will handle the Seattle crowd noise in first NFL start: “Seattle is definitely a tough environment. But I think Bo, he’s played in big games. He’s played with crowds that kind of compare to this Seattle fan base. I think he’ll adjust perfectly.”
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