Tag: preseason

Broncos hope facility construction only impacts one training camp

Construction is in full swing at the Broncos’ training facility, and the team hopes it will only disrupt one training camp.

Last summer, the Denver Broncos started construction on a new $175 million facility with the goal of having it completed ahead of the 2026 season.

The team is still weighing options for having fans attend training camp during construction this summer, but if all goes well, it will be business as usual in 2026.

“We broke ground on the new training facility in September and we are about 10 to 15 percent of the way there in terms of completion on construction,” Broncos owner/CEO Greg Penner said on Jan. 15. “We are about 90 percent of the way there on design. Everything is going according to plan. We had some snow days baked in. I think we’ve only had two days off so far. Things are progressing as we’ve planned. We couldn’t be more excited about how that is coming together.

“Our goal is to only have one training camp where that really disrupts our training camp. I think you all saw it this season, we managed the practice very well. Sean [Payton] and his whole staff was great. It didn’t disrupt us at all. Anyways, that is all on track and we’re really pleased.” 

The Broncos currently have a 3,000 capacity limit for training camp practices. It remains to be seen if that number will increase when the new facility has been completed. Denver will announce plans for this summer’s training camp later this year.

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Gators round out D1Baseball’s Preseason Top 10

D1Baseball has Florida at No. 10 to start the college baseball season. Will the Gators secure a third-straight trip to Omaha in 2025?

D1Baseball ranked the Florida Gators No. 10 in its initial top 25 rankings ahead of the 2025 college baseball season.

The Gators are one of nine SEC teams in the preseason top 25 and are the lowest-ranked of the six programs inside the top 10. The Texas A&M Aggies are in the top spot after a College World Series Runner-Up run last season, followed by Virginia, LSU, Tennessee and Arkansas in the top five.

Florida rivals Georgia and Florida State immediately precede the Orange and Blue on this list. Three-game series will be played against both teams to help clarify the rankings. In addition to the Bulldogs, Florida hosts Alabama and Vanderbilt and travels to Mississippi State, Tennessee and Texas throughout the SEC schedule.

Twenty-one of Florida’s 56 scheduled games are against preseason-ranked opponents by D1Baseball.

Perfect Game ranked Florida No. 11 earlier this month in its preseason breakdown. The consensus appears to be a borderline top-10 ranking for the Gators so far, but the team does return 17 players from a College World Series club that only figured things out late last year.

D1Baseball Preseason Top 25

Rank Team 2024 Record Final 2024 Rank
1 Texas A&M 53-15 2
2 Virginia 46-17 7
3 LSU 43-23 NR
4 Tennessee 60-13 1
5 Arkansas 44-16 17
6 North Carolina 48-16 5
7 Oregon State 45-16 10
8 Georgia 43-17 11
9 Florida State 49-17 4
10 Florida 36-30 8
11 Duke 40-20 24
12 Oregon 40-20 12
13 NC State 38-23 6
14 Wake Forest 38-22 NR
15 Clemson 44-16 9
16 Vanderbilt 38-23 NR
17 Oklahoma State 42-19 21
18 Mississippi State 40-23 22
19 Texas 36-24 NR
20 Dallas Baptist 45-15 NR
21 Arizona 36-23 25
22 UC Santa Barbara 44-14 19
23 TCU 33-21 NR
24 Nebraska 40-22 NR
25 Troy 37-22 NR

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Summer practice with Packers sparked Broncos’ impressive season

“That’s when I knew what type of team we had,” Pat Surtain said of the Broncos’ joint practice with the Packers last summer.

The Denver Broncos dominated the Green Bay Packers in a joint practice last summer, then they defeated them 27-2 in a preseason game. After that game, Packers coach Matt LaFleur said his team was humbled in Denver.

That joint practice against Green Bay’s starters gave the Broncos a confidence boost ahead of the regular season, and Denver went on to reach the NFL playoffs for the first time since 2015.

“I think what was very compelling about that joint practice was the tenacity that the team had,” Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain said. “The energy, the vibrant energy that we had as a team, the enthusiasm. I think that speaks volumes because the Packers are a playoff team as well as we can see. Going out there competing but also dominating as a team. That’s when I knew what type of team we had.

“I already know — minus the doubters, minus the naysayers — but the belief within the team and this organization, I already knew we were destined for this opportunity and this moment. I’m looking forward to next week. Going out there in a playoff game, it a tough atmosphere, playing our hearts out.”

That practice was seemingly a wakeup call for the Packers as well as they went on to go 11-6 in the regular season and also made the playoffs. Green Bay reaching the postseason was not a surprise, though. Few outside of Denver expected the Broncos to make the playoffs.

“[T]alking to the defense after they got done [against the Packers], and the way that they explained how they felt like they dominated on that side of the ball, it was encouraging,” wide receiver Courtland Sutton said. “To have a defense go against… at the point in time Jordan Love had signed his contract, I think he was the highest-paid quarterback in the league at the time. For them to go over there and have the couple days that they had plus the game, it was encouraging. Then for us on offense, there was a two-minute drill. I’m pretty sure you all already know. There was a two-minute drill that we had against their defense, and I think we ran like four plays. We got within five yards of scoring, and they said, ‘Let’s start it over.’

“Seeing that a young guy like Bo [Nix], this was probably two weeks, three weeks into training camp. For him to go out there and orchestrate a two-minute drill like that against a defense of that quality, of that caliber, that was definitely encouraging. As older guy in that locker room, to see Bo go out there and handle and manage that situation the way he did, it was very encouraging. Like I say all the time, his development, his persistence to get better is what I feel like makes him so special. I would say those two situations [were telling].

“I think that joint practice gave us a little bit of, ‘All right, we can go out there and compete,’ because obviously they’re a playoff team as well. A really good team. The Packers are a really good team, so for us to go out there and perform the way we did in that joint practice, it was good to see.”

Denver will now face the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card round of the NFL playoffs. Green Bay will travel to take on the Philadelphia Eagles. The Packers might not know it, but that joint practice with the Broncos seemingly kicked off a new era of relevance for Denver.

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Will Richard recaps Florida basketball’s preseason one week out from opener

The college basketball season is just a few days away, and Florida’s Will Richard believes the Gators will be special in Year 3 under Todd Golden.

Florida basketball begins its 2024-25 season on Nov. 4, and the team is ready to take yet another step forward in Year 3 of the [autotag]Todd Golden[/autotag] era.

Senior guard [autotag]Will Richard[/autotag] spoke to the media on Friday three days out from the season opener and expressed a tremendous amount of confidence as preseason workouts conclude.

“Energy and effort, everybody being on the same page as far as the way we start practice. I feel like we’ve been very sharp so obviously just carrying that forward and making sure everybody is ready to go.”

Florida has played two scrimmages together, and the team is beginning to gel. Everyone is on the same page with a common goal to win more than they did last season, and the early returns are encouraging.

“We’re all around each other all the time,” he said. “And on the court, Alijah (Martin) is fitting in perfectly. Kajus (Kublickas) and Urban, they’ve been doing a good job. So it’s been very good. Chemistry’s definitely there.”

That chemistry has led to two wins during preseason scrimmages.

“FIU, we started off the first half a little slow,” he sad. “It was the first time playing somebody else but (in the) second half we got going, and then I felt like last Saturday (against Charleston) was a much better team performance as far as how we attacked the game.

“We dominated on the glass, we were good on defense, so I felt like it was a big jump from the first scrimmage to this one.”

There’s an eagerness to get the season started in Gainesville. Richard says this is the best team he’s been on and that the expectation is to do something special this year.

“I can’t wait,” he said. “This offseason, we’ve just spent the last five months preparing and getting ready for this. So, I definitely can’t wait for that moment to finally get out there.”

Defensive improvements

Golden mentioned that the defensive portion of practice is the most rigorous part, but Richard says it’s a challenge he welcomes.

“It’s been a very good part of practice for me because doing the predraft stuff, those are some of the things that they said I need to work on, so I try to take those as seriously as possible. I know that it’s something we were deficient in last year, I know it will help us out moving forward.”

Richard believes there is a “night and day” difference between the team’s level of preparation on defense this year compared to last. Areas of improvement include “continuing defensive possessions where there are rotations” and ball-screen communication.

The team is getting to their spots better in practice, whether the plan is to ice the ball to the sidelines or weaken the middle.

Richard ready for bounce-back offensive year

After dipping below 35 percent from three-point range last year, Richard is hoping to bounce back offensively in 2024-25. He rarely misses in practice these days and says the basket is looking bigger as his shot becomes more consistent.

“I felt like it was a little bit of a mechanical issue (last season),” he said. “I was bringing the ball too inward and it was going up so I was missing left and right. This time, I’m trying to keep it more on the right side. So it was definitely mechanical. I got to fix that when I went back home with my trainers.”

There will be struggles, of course, but as a veteran in the program, Richard believes he’ll be able to impact the game even when his shot isn’t falling.

“I’m way more mature with how my game is,” he said. “I know my shot is a good part of my game, but that doesn’t define the rest of the game for me. So, if my shot is not going, I can impact the game in a number of different ways.”

The coaching staff is also finding new ways for Richard to get open looks, which should help him sustain a rhythm. The roster also has more depth than in previous years. Having multiple shot-creators will open the floor for Richard to strike more often.

Richard’s relationship with late USF coach Amir Abdur-Rahim

Richard also spoke about his relationship with former USF basketball Amir Abdur-Rahim, who recently passed away suddenly. Abdur-Rahim recruited Richard out of high school while at Kennesaw State and offered council when he hit the transfer portal after his freshman year at Belmont.

“I was definitely a little shaken up by (his passing),” he said. “… when I entered the transfer portal, he called me, and he was just like, ‘I’m not recruiting you to Kennesaw. I just want you to know that I’m here for you if you need any advice,’ …  and he was really one of the reasons I came (to Florida).”

Abdur-Rahim believed Florida was a good fit for him since he was familiar with the coaching staff, and told Richard what questions to ask on his visit to Gainesville.

“He’s a great guy, and we feel for those guys,” he said. “I played against a lot of them in high school because they went from Kennesaw State. So I reached out and told them our prayers and stuff were with them … He was one of those guys who definitely was genuine and believed in you. So it’s tough.”

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Florida G Alijah Martin drops 32 points in second ‘secret scrimmage’

Preseason “secret scrimmages” don’t always reveal how much a team has improved, but the addition of Alijah Martin is already being felt at Florida.

Florida men’s basketball played its second not-so-secret scrimmage on Saturday, and FAU transfer guard [autotag]Alijah Martin[/autotag] had himself a day against Charleston.

Martin dropped 32 points on 11-of-15 shooting, according to Swamp247. He also added four rebounds and two assists over 27 minutes of play.

Todd Golden targeted Martin early on as a transfer acquisition. He led FAU to a Final Four appearance as a shutdown defender and contributed 13.1 points per game, mostly as a three-and-D, floor-spacing shooter.

“We were a little inconsistent on the wing last year in terms of being able to execute and having a great level of energy and enthusiasm,” Golden said when addressing Martin’s fit on the team. “He is elite that way. He competes every day. He brings fire and energy to our practices and he brings a vocal leader to our practices.”

The goal for Martin has been to improve on offense in a Gators uniform without giving up too much on the defensive side of the ball. His recent outburst against a top-100 program in last year’s NET rankings is an early sign that he’s making the right adjustments.

Martin started at the 2 position with Walter Clayton Jr. at the other guard position and Will Richard on the wing. He put up 20 of his 32 points in the first half on 7-for-10 shooting.

It’s still the preseason, which means it’s too early to make any definitive declarations on the team, but it’s safe to say that Martin’s impact is already being felt. He’s going to be a key piece of this 2024-25 roster.

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WATCH: Spencer Rattler’s best plays of the preseason

The Saints shared a highlight reel featuring Spencer Rattler’s best plays of the preseason. If you need a shot in the arm prior to Sunday’s game, watch this tape:


The New Orleans Saints fan base is excited for the debut of Spencer Rattler. This is probably the most excited the fan base has been in years. Rattler is a young quarterback with a skillset that feels like he can be a starter in this league moving forward. And quite frankly, some of the excitement derives from Derek Carr fatigue.

It’s for a slightly different reason that excitement level has spilled into the locker room. There’s belief in Rattler, and an intrigue on how the young player will perform. That is independent of Carr but still based on his skillset.

As Rattler prepares for his debut, the Saints official social media account posted the best plays we’ve seen from him thus far. It’s primarily passes but there are a couple of runs mixed in there. It isn’t a preseason highlight tape without showing Rattler run through a defender for a touchdown.
Rattler’s passing highlights are headlined by a back shoulder throw to Samson Nacua and a deep shot to now-Denver Bronco A.T. Perry.

If you need an extra shot in the arm prior to Sunday’s game, watch this tape.

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Dennis Allen explains why he’s starting a rookie QB after Derek Carr injury

Dennis Allen explains why he’s starting Spencer Rattler after Derek Carr injury: ‘In this particular game he gave us the best chance to win’

Dennis Allen delivered a bombshell on Wednesday when he announced that backup quarterback Spencer Rattler would take the reins from Derek Carr in Week 6’s game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The New Orleans Saints’ starter suffered a significant oblique muscle injury that’s going to keep him out for at least the next two games.

As to why the Saints are rolling with Rattler instead of the team’s other backup Jake Haener? Allen said that was a staff decision.

“We talked a lot as a staff about what we felt like was the best thing for us, and [anyclip-media thumbnail=”undefined” playlistId=”undefined” content=”dW5kZWZpbmVk”][/anyclip-media], that was the decision that we made. And we’re excited about him getting an opportunity to go in there, and  we’ll let him go play and see what he can do,” Allen said.

However, Allen kept his cards close to his vest in talking about what went into making this decision — as far as matchup preferences or the state of the offense given all of the injuries impacting the offensive line. Still, after meeting with his coaches, this was the course of action Allen felt was best for them this week.

“Internally we talked a lot about it and felt like in this particular game that he gave us the best chance to win,” Allen continued, “Both he and Jake have been practicing extremely hard, preparing to be the starter. It was kind of the conversation that we had at the beginning of the year, Jake would be the two to start but there wasn’t going to be any, basically, a kind of a week-to-week deal. And we just felt like, for this game, was going to give us the best opportunity.”

It’s surprising to see the Saints shift gears now after Rattler was inactive for each of their first four games. It was Haener going in each week whenever Carr missed time with an injury or the game’s result was put out of doubt. But Haener wasn’t drafted by this coaching staff. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, quarterbacks coach Andrew Janocko, and their assistants made the decision to draft Rattler and now they want to see what he can do with a full week of practice under his belt.

That just might save Allen’s job. He’s led the team into a 2-3 record for the second time in three seasons as their head coach, and they need some kind of a spark to snap their three-game losing streak. If Rattler can navigate a muddy pocket and bounce back from the occasional negative play as well as he did at South Carolina, it would give the team some real hope for the future. He added that Rattler will have a bit of a long leash. Allen feels that the rookie needs to play if he’s going to learn and improve, and fearing he could be pulled out of the game after one or two mistakes wouldn’t be helpful.

But that still means he’s got to play better than he did in preseason. Few of Rattler’s opponents from those exhibition games are dressing out on Sundays, and those that are got the better of him in his second preseason matchup with the San Francisco 49ers. For now, all Rattler should worry about is studying and preparing for his next opponent so he can earn another opportunity after that.

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Chiefs to place WR Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown on injured reserve

According to a report, the Kansas City #Chiefs are set to place WR Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown on injured reserve.

According to a report by NFL insider Jordan Schultz on Friday, the Kansas City Chiefs are set to place veteran wide receiver Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown on injured reserve, putting him out for at least the next four games.

The Chiefs acquired the former Arizona Cardinal in the 2024 offseason to add speed and experience to a receiving corps that desperately needed both.

The team hoped Brown would immediately make an impact in head coach Andy Reid’s offense, but after he sustained an injury in Week 1 of the preseason, the speedster has been forced to the sideline.

Take a look at Schultz’s report below:

https://twitter.com/Schultz_Report/status/1834612540896370993

Brown’s continued absence could become an issue for Kansas City’s offense moving forward and is something for fans to keep their eyes on as the regular season progresses.

Expect the Chiefs’ young receiving corps to step up in Brown’s absence as the team prepares to host the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.

Linebacker signed with Broncos after dominating them in preseason

Kristian Welch totaled 6 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 PBU and 1 INT against the Broncos in preseason. Denver signed him shortly thereafter.

When the Denver Broncos faced the Green Bay Packers in their second preseason game last month, Packers linebacker Kristian Welch totaled six tackles (including one behind the line of scrimmage), one pass breakup and one interception. He also played well in a joint practice against Denver.

After Welch failed to make Green Bay’s 53-man roster last week, the Broncos signed him. Welch’s performance against Denver wasn’t the only factor that led to his signing, but it certainly didn’t hurt.

“We still felt like inside linebacker was an area of need for us,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said Monday. “We went into kind of the final 53 cut down looking at that position. He was someone that stood out on film. Obviously, we had practice tape together with him, but more importantly, just the body of work for that player.”

Welch (6-3, 240 pounds) spent three years with the Baltimore Ravens before joining the Packers in 2023. The 26-year-old linebacker has been used primarily on special teams to this point in his career. After adding Welch, Denver’s 53-man roster for Week 1 is set.

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Preseason injuries helped Saints linebacker room in the long run

Demario Davis and Pete Werner missing most of training camp allowed Willie Gay to gain experience in the system and Anfernee Orji to develop

Demario Davis and Pete Werner missed the entirety of the preseason due to injuries. You never want players to be injured, but there was a silver lining to their absence: Other linebackers had the chance to step up.

Willie Gay Jr. and Anfernee Orji both showed up big in the preseason. Let’s separate the two because they entered camp at two different places and had two different benefits from the preseason.

Gay seemed to be entering a training camp battle with Werner, but Werner’s extension put that assumption in doubt. Pair that with Werner missing the majority of training camp, but not losing his job, and you are looking at Gay likely always destined to be the strong side backer.

Gay made the most of his preseason by playing a large amount of snaps in the first two games. Getting this amount of reps allowed him to get comfortable in a new system quickly. As a guy who will play Week 1, this was huge for him.

Orji was fighting for a roster spot and became a lock with an emphatic preseason. Orji went from a player who could end up on the practice squad again to a young linebacker to be excited about. He even got some reps versus the opposing starters that did play in the preseason.

No one is ever happy to see an injury occur. Getting Gay quickly acclimated and Orji’s major development were two positives to come from the situation, though.