New Denver Broncos head coach Gary Kubiak likes to do things a little differently. This includes holding veteran players out of practice occasionally, which he believes allows them to stay fresh over the long grind of the season. It also enables the coaching staff to get a good look at the younger players who may find themselves in pressure situations down the line.
"I've always believed in doing it," Kubiak said this week. "I'm probably doing it more [than] in the past after I was in Baltimore last year and we did it quite a bit. We had some young guys step up and play really well for us, especially up front last year. I find myself in kind of the same situation up front. We've got to get those guys going."
Out of all the veterans who have received a respite, Peyton Manning is probably the only one complaining about it. "He's not a big fan of it," Kubiak said. But, at 39-years-old, Manning could likely use a few days off here and there. Plus, this gives Kubiak a good opportunity to evaluate Manning's back-up and possibly his eventual replacement in Brock Osweiler.
"We'll continue this process. I want to practice at least one day with those other guys sitting, because I just think it's important," Kubiak said. "You'll probably see some of that in training camp, too. I think the NFL season is a long grind ... Also how you go about getting young guys involved with your team -- the only way I know how to do that is give them practice time."
Osweiler has thrown just 30 regular season passes since being selected in the second-round of the 2012 draft. As he enters the final year of his rookie contract, the Broncos must find out if he has what it takes to replace Manning when the time comes. General manager John Elway has made glowing public comments about Osweiler's progress in the past. The young QB is excited to have more of an opportunity to show off in practice.
"First of all, I absolutely love it. I'm getting more reps than I've ever gotten as a Bronco," Osweiler said. "... I'm getting twice what I usually get. It's very valuable to a new player, and especially in a new offense. You can only study so much in the classroom. You need to get out to the grass and you need to go out there and run those plays."
