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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) — On a warm summer day, position battles took center stage as the Denver Broncos’ mandatory minicamp began.

It’s difficult to make any definitive statements on the first day of minicamp, but Drew Lock received the bulk-share of the snaps.

“My confidence is high right now,” Drew Lock said after practice, where he delivered three-straight touchdowns in the red zone. “I’m just excited where this is going. I see a lot of things that we’re building on, so to say, where we get to focus on some minor details now. Instead of maybe last year, focusing on some bigger-picture things. I think that’ll help us be 10 times better in the long run.”

The deepest position group on the field for the Broncos is at secondary. Newly acquired Kyle Fuller and Ronald Darby are veterans who look the part, making life more challenging for the offense.

“The better you are at those positions — it does open up more avenues,” head coach Vic Fangio said.

Broncos minicamp will continue Wednesday and Thursday at team headquarters.

Notes

  • Broncos quarterback Teddy Bridgewater opened up about his injury status with the Carolina Panthers last season. The veteran quarterback said he took a hit to the knee against Tampa Bay in the second game. “I probably should have just shut it down for the rest of the season,” said Bridgewater, who did play through the injury and completed the season throwing 15 touchdowns. Bridgewater said he is fully recovered. “I just love this game and I never take it for granted.”
  • Running back Melvin Gordon III made his 2021 offseason debut on the first day of mandatory minicamp. The seventh year pro returned to the Broncos looking in good shape because of what he called a normal offseason. “I actually got to train and do what I do,” said Gordon, remembering the challenges of COVID-19 last season. “You have to think: most of the time before we even got there, most of the gyms were closed down. People were trying to run in their houses. I was literally meeting up with people trying to sneak in gyms to try and train.”
  • Head Coach Vic Fangio said his entire staff is fully vaccinated. With the players, he said 61 guys have started the process or are fully vaccinated. “We’ve got a bunch of guys that have said they’re going to. It’s like college recruiting. There’s a lot of verbal commitments that don’t follow through. We’ll see [if] our verbal vaccinations follow through.”