Tag: Montrell Washington

Chargers show why not to underestimate importance of special teams

The Chargers special teams units pushed them to victory over the Broncos.

In what was considered the most exciting yet boring game of the week, the Chargers didn’t beat the Broncos with their offense. Their defense? Yes, in the second half. However, their special teams play through all four quarters ultimately pushed them to victory.

Dustin Hopkins battled a hamstring injury to make four field goals, including the tying one in the fourth quarter and the winner in overtime. Hopkins, who missed last week’s win over the Browns with a quad injury, tweaked his hamstring on a PAT attempt in the second quarter.

Instead of being sidelined, Hopkins knew the game’s trajectory, and how Denver was stifling Los Angeles from finding the end zone, so he pushed through the pain to connect his field goals from 37, 31, 35, and 39 yards outs.

To take some of the pressure off of Hopkins’ leg, punter JK Scott handled the kickoff duties. His five kickoffs all went for touchbacks.

But arguably, the play of the game was made by two rookies, sixth-rounders Ja’Sir Taylor and Deane Leonard. Taylor lined up as a gunner on the outside as the Chargers punted the ball with the score tied at 16 apiece with under five minutes left in overtime.

Taylor beat his man on the outside, sprinting toward punt returner Montrell Washington, who was calling for a fair catch. As he got to Washington, safety P.J. Locke stood between himself and Taylor. Taylor pushed Locke into Washington right before he could make the fair catch.

The block knocked Locke into Washington, and he fell to the ground, unable to haul in the hanging punt from Scott. The football deflected off of Washington, and Leonard was there to recover the ball at Denver’s 29. That led to Hopkins, the hurt hero, making the game-winner.

After years of having special teams be the reason for some of their losses, the Bolts finally found a way to flip the script.

This speaks to Brandon Staley’s moves in this department by signing Hopkins halfway through last season, hiring special teams coordinator Ryan Ficken, adding All-Pro long snapper Josh Harris and Scott via free agency, and drafting and developing contributors on coverage units.

As the saying goes, defense wins championships.

However, if the offense stalls, like it did yesterday, special teams play can and will impact the final score of the game.

Montrell Washington accepts blame after muffed punt

“That’s on me. I have to be louder,” Broncos returner Montrell Washington said of Monday’s muffed punt.

With just under five minutes remaining in overtime of Monday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers, the Denver Broncos were set to get the ball back with the game tied 16-16.

Broncos returner Montrell Washington then muffed a punt when safety P.J. Locke was blocked into Washington while the rookie was attempting to catch the ball. L.A. recovered the fumble and kicked a field goal to win the game.

After the loss, Washington put the blame on himself for the blunder.

“That’s on me. I have to be louder and communicate better for him (to clear out),” Washington said after the game, via KMGH-TV’s Troy Renck. “Everything that happens back there, it’s my job to make sure it’s done right, the right way. We will bounce back from it for sure.”

Washington reiterated multiple times that he was at fault for the fumble, but coaches also won’t be happy with Locke, who should have been more aware of where he was on the field.

“We, obviously, need to make a call to be able to let [Locke] know that he was to move. P.J. went to engage into a block, and then, unfortunately, got pushed back into Montrell.”

Washington said after the loss that he did make a call to clear out, but Locke apparently did not hear him.

Outside of the defense, seemingly everything is going wrong for Denver.

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Ranking Broncos’ rookies by potential impact in 2022

Montrell Washington has an opportunity to make an instant impact with the Broncos this season.

Denver Broncos outside linebacker Nik Bonitto (second-round pick) and tight end Greg Dulcich (third-round pick) were the team’s highest-picked players in April’s draft, so it’s reasonable to assume they will have the biggest contributions on defense and offense among Denver’s rookies this season.

That doesn’t necessarily mean Bonitto and Dulcich will have the biggest overall impacts among the Broncos’ rookies this year — special teams is also a key part of any NFL team’s success.

Denver wide receiver Montrell Washington wasn’t picked until the fifth round, but he’ll be the team’s starting returner, giving him the greatest opportunity to make a big impact as a rookie.

With that in mind, here are our rankings for the Broncos’ rookies, ranked based on their expected instant impact in 2022.

Russell Wilson watched film of college prospects with George Paton before NFL draft

The Broncos’ front office has kept QB Russell Wilson looped in for matters of the offense and roster.

The Seattle Seahawks traded quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos in March, the end result of a breakup between Wilson and Seattle’s front office.

There were various reasons for that split, with Wilson having a lack of input in Seattle believed to be among them. It seems that the QB won’t have the same problem with the Broncos.

Denver has built its offense around Wilson and he’s been involved in the process. He’s also been looped in on the process of building the roster, with general manager George Paton even watching film of prospects with Wilson before the NFL draft earlier this year.

“I will never forget going into his office. He says, ‘Hey, come on in. I want to show you some clips. I have a bunch of receiver clips and stuff,'” Wilson said last week. “We watched every single receiver. Literally. When I say every single receiver, we watched every single receiver for about a good hour and a half, two hours.

“We watched every single guy, and then we came across this guy named Montrell Washington. We looked at each other like, ‘He may be the one.’ Sure enough. Obviously, George and his team have done an amazing job finding great talent, and how they pick these guys — it’s been really special.”

The Broncos later picked Washington in the fifth round of the draft. How much input Wilson had on the decision is uncertain, but just the fact that he was involved in the pre-draft process seems to be a sign that Denver’s front office plans to work with the QB and keep him in the loop.

That kind of QB-GM relationship doesn’t happen on every NFL team.

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Jalen Virgil continues Broncos’ trend of UDFA success stories

Jalen Virgil is the latest UDFA to find success with the BRoncos.

When it comes to undrafted free agents, the Denver Broncos have been one of the most successful teams in the NFL at finding this untapped talent. In 18 of the last 19 years, Denver has had at least one undrafted free agent make the roster. Their most recent success comes in the form of wide receiver Jalen Virgil.

Virgil, a rookie out of Appalachian State University, was a big target during the preseason for Broncos quarterbacks, catching nine passes for 180 yards (a 20 yards per catch average). Virgil’s emergence came in the wake of the loss of star receiver Tim Patrick to an ACL injury.

Early on, Virgil showed the ability to make contested catches in the first preseason game against the Dallas Cowboys. In that game, Virgil made three catches for 83 yards.

In subsequent weeks, Virgil’s playing time expanded, including several reps as a kick returner alongside Montrell Washington.

Earlier this week, Denver general manager George Paton praised Virgil’s versatility.

“Every game he made plays and he made plays every practice,” Paton said. “He can cover kicks, and he’s an interesting guy [because] he can return kicks.”

Virgil’s rise to the 53-man roster was meteoric. Whether he can fill the shoes of Tim Patrick remains to be seen, but the Broncos have only had positive things to say about him so far.

“[Virgil]’ s just answered every test and aced it, and he has legit speed,” Paton said. “He can take the top off, so we’re excited for him.”

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Broncos stock up/down: Risers and fallers after final preseason game

After the Broncos’ 23-13 win over the Vikings, there are many decisions to be made. Who stood out from this contest?

After a 10-point victory in their final preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings, the Denver Broncos now have significant decisions to make by whittling the roster from 80 players down to 53. Here are six aspects of the game that the Denver decision-makers will look at to aid their conclusions.

Broncos close out preseason with 23-13 win over Vikings

Mike Boone and McTelvin Agim stood out in the Broncos’ preseason finale on Saturday night.

The Denver Broncos wrapped up preseason on Saturday evening with a 23-13 win over Minnesota Vikings at home.

Denver’s standouts on offense were running back Mike Boone and rookie wide receiver Montrell Washington. Boone rushed five times for 44 yards and caught two passes for seven yards. Washington scored a touchdown on an 11-yard run from a pitch in the second quarter.

On defense, defensive lineman McTelvin Agim turned in an impressive performance with two strip-sacks, including one that outside linebacker Baron Browning returned 17 yards for a touchdown just before halftime. Rookie safety Delarrin Turner-Yell also stood with four tackles and a sack that stopped the Vikings on fourth-and-goal late in the game, preserving the win.

Broncos kicker Brandon McManus added 50-, 40- and 31-yard field goals to give Denver 23 total points.

Unfortunately for the Broncos, they did not escape the game without injury. Promising rookie receiver Brandon Johnson went down with an ankle injury in the first quarter and he did not return to the game. It remains to be seen how much that injury might impact Johnson’s chances to make the team.

On a positive note on the injury front, receiver KJ Hamler returned to action for the first time since tearing his ACL last September. Hamler caught three passes for 18 yards and he looked healthy and confident.

Up next for Denver is Tuesday’s deadline to finalize a 53-man roster.

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Broncos wide receiver competition is ‘very close’

The Broncos will have to make some tough decisions at WR when they trim the roster down to 53 players.

Even after losing Tim Patrick to a season-ending knee injury, the Denver Broncos have a crowded wide receiver room entering the final week of preseason.

Courtland Sutton and Jerry Jeudy top the team’s depth chart, with KJ Hamler the presumed favorite to win WR3 duties this season. Behind them, fifth-round draft pick Montrell Washington also seems like a lock as the team’s return specialist.

If the Broncos carry six receivers, there’s only room for two more after those presumed locks.

The candidates for the final two spots include fan favorite Kendall Hinton, special teams ace Tyrie Cleveland and summer risers Brandon Johnson, Seth Williams and Jalen Virgil.

“It’s funny, every time you think somebody is going to separate themselves, another guy steps up,” coach Nathaniel Hackett said of the competition at WR. “It’s not necessary that anybody is taking a step back, it’s that other people are stepping up. As a coach, that’s what you’re trying to create at all positions. So, I think it is very close.

“I think those guys are really working hard and they’re getting a great understanding of the pass game and what we are trying to accomplish. I think that’s what is good to see and it’s a positive problem to have for us.”

Denver will play a final preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday before finalizing a 53-man roster by the following Tuesday. The receivers that don’t make the active roster could be candidates for the practice squad — if they’re not claimed off waivers by other teams.

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Broncos blasted by Bills 42-15 in second preseason game

The Denver Broncos came back to earth after a win against the Dallas Cowboys, losing to the Buffalo Bills 42-15.

The Denver Broncos lost big to the home team Buffalo Bills 42-15 in their second preseason game of 2022.

The Broncos continued to rest most of their offensive and defensive starters, with quarterback Josh Johnson getting the nod for the second straight game.

After a promising start to the game, where Johnson led the Broncos on a 12-play, 64-yard drive ending in a Brandon McManus field goal, the Bills never looked back.

Buffalo began the game with their first-team offense against the Denver backups, quickly going down the field for a 70-yard touchdown drive. The Bills went on to shred the Broncos defense for six straight touchdown drives, while the Denver offense stalled drive after drive.

After a tough game against the Dallas Cowboys last week, Brett Rypien rebounded nicely in the second half in Baffalo, going 22-of-26 for 191 yards and the Broncos’ only touchdown of the game to tight end Eric Saubert.

The Denver return game again shined, with Montrell Washington returning two kickoffs for 55 total yards, his longest going for 35 yards.

In addition, one of the few bright spots came in the form of receiver Jalen Virgil, who returned two kicks for 60 total yards, his longest going for 30 yards. Virgil also tacked on two receptions for 39 yards. Virgil is quickly climbing the receiving ladder in the absence of Tim Patrick.

Kicker Brandon McManus also finished the game 3-of-3 on field goal attempts.

This week, every team must cut five players, trimming the roster from 85 to 80 by Tuesday, August 23. The Broncos play their final preseason game in Denver against the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday, August 27.

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