The Denver Broncos rested nearly all of their starters against the Dallas Cowboys in their preseason opener last week.
Going forward, that might be the new normal in Denver.
“You know me — I don’t like the preseason,” coach Nathaniel Hackett said Tuesday. “That’s just my philosophy, my upbringing after just seeing all the different things that I’ve seen in the past. There’s always that risk-reward.
“I think we would all sit here and say, ‘Sure, we want the guys to go out there, do good, and get reps,’ [but] in the end, we want to be smart with the guys. It’s a 17-game season.”
That statement from Hackett seems to suggest that starters might not get many (if any) snaps during preseason.
In the place of regular preseason playing time, the Broncos have had some game-like practices, and they featured starters in a joint practice against the Dallas Cowboys, who agreed to first-team vs. first-ream reps at practice.
“Those practices — we want to be more efficient, better, faster, and just as game-like as possible,” Hackett said. “I think that’s what we’re trying to create. The more that they do that, the better.”
Hackett later name-dropped Los Angeles Rams coach Sean McVay and Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur, who play starters sparingly (if at all) during preseason.
“Seeing how they did it, I think it really opened my eyes because of how healthy we were able to be,” Hackett said. “In the end, that’s what we’re trying to do as coaches. We want them to prepare for that Week 1. That’s all that matters to me.”
Fans would love to see Russell Wilson and Co. on the field this summer, and it’s possible they still will, but fans shouldn’t expect extensive preseason snaps for the team’s top starters over the next two weeks.
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