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Kiszla: Why new quarterback Joe Flacco gets the Broncos back in the NFL playoff conversation By Mark Kiszla Denver Post June 5, 2019 Flacco has never thrown for more than 27 touchdowns in any of his 11 previous seasons in the NFL and has topped 4,000 passing yards only once in his career. New Broncos quarterback Joe Flacco stinks … if you believe all the power rankings of quarterbacks on the internet. Those ratings suggest he is Trent Dilfer 2.0, at best. But like most of what you read on Twitter, the instant analysis of Flacco is for the birds. When Flacco drops back to pass, he earns respect without uttering a word, by displaying a gift that’s rare, even at the NFL level. “He can throw the ball 80 yards, easy,” Broncos linebacker Von Miller said Tuesday, marveling at a mighty heave Flacco unleashed during practice. “He threw it 80 yards across the field. He’s looking like a Super Bowl MVP to me.” Game knows game. And unlike a year ago, when Broncos teammates mightily tried to prop up Case Keenum as a quarterback to be trusted, Flacco’s arm talent has done the talking during spring workouts at Dove Valley Headquarters. “That man has a cannon, I can tell you that,” Denver defensive lineman Shelby Harris said last week. “That man can really throw the ball.” Game knows game. For example: When I asked Flacco how he can tell Miller is a special player, he replied: “I’ve been around a lot of good guys on defense, for most of my career, as you guys know. Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs … just to name a couple. And he’s just another one of those guys. He is special.” Game knows game. For anybody not wearing orange-tinted glasses in 2018, it was obvious from the jump that Keenum did not have special physical gifts. No cannon. No swagger. No game. As the season wore on, it also became apparent Keenum lacked the ability to outthink a defense. Mistakes made him withdraw into a shell. Playing quarterback is such a difficult job at the NFL level, because the game can become too big for anyone who allows any fear of failure to creep in. In short, Keenum was a quarterback who’s the very definition of an NFL journeyman. He colored inside the lines and inspired mediocrity. That might be just fine as the backup quarterback on the bench, but Keenum was the wrong answer in a city that has been spoiled by the Hall of Fame greatness of John Elway and Peyton Manning. Now, what the Broncos have in Flacco won’t truly be revealed until the victories and defeats begin to count in the standings. But this much we know: He’s no kid trying to fool us by dressing up in his father’s clothes. At age 34, Flacco exudes the natural confidence of a QB who can throw the football over the head of every last man in the defense for a touchdown (not that we want to cause Broncos Country any painful flashbacks of a playoff game in January 2013). How far can Flacco fling a football if a Hail Mary is required? “On like a Hail Mary? If we’re on the opposite 30-yard line … ” he said, trying to be modest. By most quantifiable analysis, Flacco is a game manager. He has never thrown for more than 27 touchdowns in any of his 11 previous seasons in the NFL and has topped 4,000 passing yards only once in his career. Despite being one of the most dominant players in the league, Miller dislikes the obsession with the ratings game. “The media — sorry for you guys — they just put everybody against each other. You’ve got the NFL Top 100. This guy is No. 1 and this guy is No. 6 and this guy is No. 12 … ” Miller said. “It creates this kind of animosity, for no reason.” This is hard to quantify, but it’s also the most important thing Flacco has established since he arrived via trade from Baltimore in March. For the first time since Manning retired, players in the Denver locker room know they will take the field with an NFL quarterback who isn’t afraid to lose. In that regard, while Flacco is a distinct upgrade over Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch or Keenum, I cannot guarantee you he will lead this team back to the playoffs for the first time since Super Bowl 50. With Flacco in the huddle, however, the Broncos are back in the game. Broncos minicamp Day 1: What we saw on the field By Ryan O’Halloran Denver Post June 5, 2019 Broncos cornerback Chris Harris has been back with the team for only a week following the resolution of his contract dispute, but he is already feeling comfortable. “It’s a lot of the (types) of defense that I’ve run in the past,” Harris said after Tuesday’s opening mandatory minicamp practice. “Some new and different checks, but I’ve seen everything in eight years to be able to catch on fast.” Harris was in a customary spot with the first-team defense and stayed at one of the outside spots throughout the 11-on-11 sections of practice. “He’s done fine,” coach Vic Fangio said. “Chris has done a good job of picking things up, but he’s obviously not in-tune with all the details of it. That will come with time on task, both in the meeting room and on the practice field.” When the Broncos break for the summer Thursday, Harris will have participated in six workouts. Last week, safety Will Parks said the Broncos’ new defense is “Christmas for cornerbacks.” How about it, Chris, after being around for a few days? “It’s a lot of things I’ve done in the past,” Harris said. “It’s just about waiting to get to the games and playing fast. You know me — I like practice, but I love the games.” Minicamp opens The Broncos were on the field for more than two hours, but their minicamp practice looked a lot like the organized team activity workouts. “We followed the same practice plan, just added a few minutes to every period because we can stay out here longer,” Fangio said. Practice began outside, moved inside because of weather concerns and finished outside. A hurry-up period wrapped up the session. The first-team offense got bogged down, their series ending with an incompletion (break-up by cornerback Bryce Callahan), a penalty on left guard Dalton Risner and a batted-down pass by nose tackle Shelby Harris. Second-team quarterback Kevin Hogan had five incompletions (not including a clock-stopping spike), including a near interception by cornerback De’Vante Bausby and a break-up by safety Su’a Cravens. The third-team offense was ready to take the field, but Fangio put the starters back out there. Flacco completed 6-of-8 passes during the possession. “We had extra time (and) a couple of drives that didn’t last as long as they could have and we gave them some more reps,” Fangio said. Overall as an offense during the offseason program, Flacco said: “Vic’s defense and the progress they’ve made and the amount of stuff they’ve put in, it tests you every day so you go out there and you make some mistakes. But we’ve been able to learn from a lot of them.” Lock’s collisions Rookie quarterback Drew Lock, who is running the third-team offense, was involved in two collisions. Lock hit the turf when rookie outside linebacker Malik Reed didn’t slow down soon enough. Lock popped right back up and Reed received a few words from Fangio. “We make our guys aware of (not contacting the quarterback) all the time and I think our offensive linemen and defensive linemen and outside linebackers, the guys primarily protecting and rushing, have done a great job since we’ve been here of getting something out of practice without overdoing it,” Fangio said. Later, Lock scrambled right and barreled over cornerback Trey Johnson, who was caught in no man’s land — get out of the way or slow Lock down. Injury updates Receiver Emmanuel Sanders (Achilles), running back Phillip Lindsay (wrist) and tight end Jake Butt (ACL) will end the offseason program the same way they started it — as spectators. Lindsay and Butt did some individual work, but none did any team drills. Of Sanders, Fangio said: “I think Emmanuel is doing well physically. I have no medical basis for this, but I think he’ll be back earlier than people think.” Right guard Ron Leary (Achilles) appeared to participate in more plays and cornerback Isaac Yiadom (shoulder) did 11-on-11 work after being limited to 7-on-7 during the three OTAs open to the media. Footnotes. The only missing player was inside linebacker Todd Davis, whose wife went into labor Tuesday morning. Joseph Jones took Davis’ spot with the first-team defense. … The Broncos hosted 50 members of the military from Fort Carson. Players signed autographs for them after practice. … Former Colorado defensive coordinator Jim Leavitt has been a regular at OTAs and worked with Fangio in San Francisco. Just an observer or will he have a role in training camp? “He’s here observing — his wife kicked him out of the house,” Fangio joked. Von Miller responds to critics of his Pass Rush Summit By Kyle Fredickson Denver Post June 5, 2019 Broncos linebacker invited top NFL edge rushers to share knowledge last weekend.

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