The Broncos spent last season getting reminded, over and over, that talent at receiver doesn’t mean much if the ball keeps hitting the turf.
Denver’s wideout room has plenty of skill, but the drops became a real problem and may have played a part in why the Broncos made the big trade for Jaylen Waddle. Sean Payton made clear he saw the issue as more than a one-off annoyance. In his final press conference of 2025, he zeroed in on the basics.
“There’s a proper way to catch a football, and most of the time, it’s with your thumbs together, not the other way around,” Payton said in a piece written by Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. “The other way around, I’m serious, only exists when the ball is below your belly button.
Even the deep balls should be caught with your thumbs together. So we have to be better at that.”
The numbers backed up the frustration. According to Kosmider via TrueMedia, Denver finished with the second-most drops in the NFL, including 17 by wide receivers, which tied for fifth-most at the position.
The problem didn’t stop when the regular season ended, either. Kosmider wrote that Broncos receivers dropped six more passes in the playoffs, the most of any of the 14 teams in the field.
Three of those came in Denver’s three-point loss to the Patriots in the AFC Championship game.
Payton responded by making a coaching change, moving on from receivers coach Keary Colbert and bringing in Ronald Curry, who had worked for him in New Orleans and also played receiver in the NFL. At the time, it looked like a hard reset. Curry says the new staff dug into the issue from every angle.
“You always address the issues, no matter what it is,” Curry said. “So if that was an issue getting here, I feel like, knock on wood, these guys caught the ball excellently all camp, all offseason.
We work on it in between drills, as far as those guys catching the ball, if they’re not in on special teams. As a receiver, you’ve got to be able to run and you’ve got to be able to catch, and that’s what we harp on.”
Rather than leaning only on extra Jugs machine work, Curry said the Broncos have tried to make camp feel more like Sundays.
“A lot of guys feel like they catch 100 Jugs (machine passes) and they’re good, but the ball is coming right at ’em,” said Curry. “So you want to try to put them in positions where they’re catching the ball without burning their legs up.
“We sit back there, and I’m a former quarterback, and Kyle (Kempt) has been helping us from the quality-control position in throwing these guys the ball and just coming up with different drills that are better game-like (situations). “
Curry believes the approach has worked, but the real test won’t come until the games start counting. For a Broncos team with a receiver group that has stayed under the radar, the drop issue is one of the quieter storylines worth watching.
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Payton knows the timing could work in Denvers favor because both teams will be showing off several new faces, which creates the kind of unscouted wrinkles coaches love to mine in Week 1. For the Broncos, the challenge is making sure Waddles speed and versatility are ready to matter right away, even as the staff balances all the moving parts that come with introducing a major addition before a divisional showdown. [Read more 🡒]
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Sean Payton has already acknowledged the situation around Rapp, and Rapp has spoken about his role as well, which suggests Denver sees this as more than a casual depth move. The Broncos are still sorting out what they have in the back end, and Rapps chance to matter could come sooner rather than later if he keeps building momentum in practice and stays available when the team needs help. [Read more 🡒]