ENGLEWOOD, Colo.—Broncos tight end Marquez Branson is generating a lot of buzz for a practice squad player.
His coach has bragged about him, his teammates have raved about him.
With the Broncos in search of another pass-catching tight end to replace Tony Scheffler, whom they traded to Detroit in the offseason, Branson might very well be the solution.
Broncos coach Josh McDaniels certainly believes so.
“You didn’t see him last year, but we have very high expectations and high hopes for him,” McDaniels said.
Branson arrived in Denver last season as a college free agent out of Central Arkansas and spent the whole year on the practice squad.
Frustrating? Definitely. Watching road games from the comfort of his couch wasn’t the way he envisioned helping the team.
But he used his time on the practice squad to meticulously study the system and improve his technique. His steady progression drew the attention of the coaching staff.
“That’s what impressed them the most, my knowledge of everything I was supposed to be doing,” Branson said.
Not to mention his ability to mimic the moves of San Diego Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates. He would play the role of an opposing team’s tight end in practice to give the defense a feel for what it would be like on game day.
The 6-foot-3, 247-pound Branson particularly excelled at emulating Gates.
He was that hard to cover.
“He did a nice job for us in terms of showing our defense what we wanted him to do,” McDaniels said. “We’re excited about his progress.”
Branson will be competing for a roster spot with tight ends such as nine-year veteran Daniel Graham and Richard Quinn, a second-round draft pick last season who didn’t have a catch.
There are also two rookies in camp in Eastern Washington’s Nathan Overbay and University of Colorado standout Riar Geer.
“I’ve just got to come out and work as hard as I can, do everything they want me to do to the best of my ability,” said Branson, who caught 82 passes for 1,236 yards and 18 touchdowns in two seasons at Central Arkansas. “I can make that leap (to the active roster). But it’s going to take a lot of hard work and dedication.”
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LONDON CALLING: Although their trip to London is still three months away, the Broncos are already devising a game plan.
The team intends to practice in Denver most of the week leading up to the game against San Francisco on Oct. 31 at Wembley Stadium. They will arrive in London on Friday morning and go through a quick walkthrough that afternoon, followed by meetings.
After that, the Broncos will squeeze in some rest to attempt to eliminate jet lag.
“Different teams have done it differently,” McDaniels said. “We’ve had some different people take some different trips over there and kind of help us measure the time and how quickly we’re going to be able to get from the plane to the hotel, how quickly we can do all that stuff and then get back into a normal routine during the course of the week.”
Sightseeing doesn’t seem to be on the agenda.
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FITTING IN: With a bevy of backs in camp, Kolby Smith is trying to stand out. Exactly how, he’s attempting to figure out.
“It’s a great group of guys. We’re all here competing against each other, trying to make each other better,” Smith said.
The fourth-year veteran was assigned to the Broncos after being released from the Kansas City Chiefs in June.
The 5-foot-11, 219-pound Smith spent three seasons with the Chiefs, rushing for 540 yards and three touchdowns in 27 games. His best performance was against Oakland in November 2007 when he rushed for 150 yards and two TDs.
He was hampered last season by a sprained left ankle.
Smith joins a stable of Broncos tailbacks that also includes Knowshon Moreno, Correll Buckhalter and J.J. Arrington.
“I’m just trying to define my own role, as best as I can,” Smith said.
