ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The easiest takeaway from the Broncos’ first open OTA practice would be to say football is back and leave it there.
Sean Payton even described this stretch of the calendar as feeling a little like the first day of school.
But the more meaningful takeaway from Thursday’s media availability was not the return of spring work. It was how quickly some of the Broncos’ biggest 2026 storylines are already coming into focus.
Jaylen Waddle looks like the headliner.
Bo Nix appears to be trending toward a bigger role by minicamp.
And Denver’s defense does not sound interested in coasting off what it accomplished last season.
JAYLEN WADDLE DID NOT NEED A SPLASH PLAY TO BE THE STORY
If there was one player who shaped the tone of Thursday’s OTA conversation, it was Waddle.
He did not need a huge highlight in the open practice window to do it, either.
Payton said Waddle had a good week, picked things up quickly, and had a really good day earlier in the week. What mattered more than any one rep, though, was how players on both sides of the ball described him.
Safety Talanoa Hufanga gave the best football explanation of what makes Waddle different. He said Waddle has the ability to make every route look the same, whether it is a stop, a dig, or an out, and that it puts pressure on a defensive back’s backpedal.
That is a revealing quote, because it gets past the easy “he’s fast” label.
As I have said before. Waddle is not just a speed threat. He is a stress creator. He forces hesitation. He makes defenders wrong for a split second, and that is usually all it takes.
Courtland Sutton backed that up from the offensive side of the ball.
Sutton called Waddle “a special dude” and said his speed and acceleration are top tier. He also pointed to Waddle’s understanding of offense, his ability to manipulate speed inside routes, and the danger he brings after the catch.
That part may matter most for Denver. The Broncos are not talking about Waddle like a one-dimensional deep threat. They are talking about him like a player who changes how the entire offense can function.
Waddle himself also sounded like someone who expects the transition to move quickly. He called Bo Nix a tremendous player and said that when you have a quarterback like that slinging the ball, building chemistry should not take that much time.
That may end up being the most important offensive takeaway of the spring so far.
The Broncos did not just add another receiver.
They added a player who already sounds like he changes the picture for everyone else.
BO NIX IS STILL NOT FULLY BACK BUT THE TIMELINE SOUNDS ENCOURAGING
The biggest actual news item from the day concerned Nix, even though he did not practice.
Nix was on the field watching Thursday while continuing to recover from late-April surgery. Payton said the Broncos expect to see more of him in the third week of this OTA period, which lines up with minicamp.
That does not mean Denver is rushing him. It means the timeline still appears to be moving the right way.
For now, the Broncos are giving the backup reps to Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger while Nix continues progressing. But the significance of Thursday’s update is simple: the organization still sounds comfortable with where Nix is headed.
That matters because spring practices are one thing. The real shape of this offense cannot fully emerge until its quarterback is back in a bigger role.
Still, the Broncos left Thursday sounding like they expect that part of the process to arrive soon enough.
TALANOA HUFANGA PUT THE TAKEAWAY ISSUE ON HIMSELF
The Broncos did a lot well on defense last season.
Hufanga made it clear Thursday that he does not think that is enough.
Asked where the defense can improve, Hufanga said the takeaway issue starts with him. He admitted he left too much on the field in terms of interceptions and said Denver’s defensive emphasis this year is taking the ball away.
That kind of answer matters in May.
It is easy for a good defense to talk about continuity, chemistry, and being back together. Hufanga took it a step further and gave the defense a harder edge. He publicly owned part of the production gap and made it clear that Denver is not measuring itself only by sacks and third-down stops.
The Broncos want the ball.
And Hufanga sounds like he has taken that personally.
He also explained the offseason slogan on his shirt — GTD, for “go the distance” — which feels fitting for a defense that believes it did many things well but still did not finish the way it wanted.
THE OFFENSE SOUNDS DEEPER AND SUTTON MADE SURE TO SAY IT PUBLICLY
Sutton gave one of the more revealing offensive answers of the day when he pushed back on criticism of Denver’s tight end room.
He said publicly that he does not like the bashing of that group and added that the tight ends have looked really, really good through OTAs. He specifically pointed to Adam Trautman and Lucas Krull while also making the broader point that Denver’s offense only takes the next step when every room contributes.
That matters because Sutton’s comments fit the larger tone of the day.
The Broncos do not sound like they are building an offense around one star addition and a bunch of spectators. They sound like they believe Waddle makes the whole structure more dangerous, not less balanced.
Sutton also emphasized that the offense’s selfless approach from last season remains intact. The targets will come, he said, but the job is still to do what helps the team win.
That is exactly the kind of answer Payton wants to hear in the spring.
JONAH ELLIS STILL LOOKS LIKE AN EDGE
One quieter but important football note from the day involved Jonah Elliss.
There had been recent discussion about Elliss potentially taking some snaps at inside linebacker, but Thursday’s open practice suggested his primary home remains outside for now. He worked exclusively at edge, and Payton confirmed afterward that is where his home will be initially.
That is worth tracking, because it says something about how Denver currently views both Elliss and the roster math around him.
The Broncos are deep on the edge, and that depth is a good problem to have. But it also means players like Elliss are part of a bigger game-day roster conversation. If he can eventually offer more flexibility, that helps. If not, Denver still clearly likes what he is doing outside.
And right now, Payton made it sound like Elliss is doing too well there to move him away from it.
THE REAL TAKEAWAY
OTAs are not built for sweeping conclusions.
But they do start to reveal where the real storylines are headed.
On Thursday, the Broncos sounded like a team that already feels the effect of adding Jaylen Waddle. They sounded encouraged by Bo Nix’s trajectory. They sounded like a defense that wants more than just “good again.” And they sounded like an offense that believes its supporting pieces deserve more credit than they have gotten.
