Former Broncos receiver Emmanuel Sanders returns to Mile High on Sunday as a member of the New Orleans Saints, 13 months after he was traded to San Francisco.
The Broncos flipped Sanders and a 2020 fifth-round pick for third- and fourth-round selections. The Broncos drafted defensive lineman McTelvin Agim with the third-rounder and traded the fourth-rounder to Jacksonville for cornerback A.J. Bouye.
Sanders had 404 regular-season catches and 28 touchdowns in 78 games for the Broncos. He reached the Super Bowl with San Francisco and signed with New Orleans in free agency. Sanders has 35 catches for 413 yards and three touchdowns. He missed two games on the Saints’ COVID-19/reserve list and had only one catch in two other games.
“Emmanuel’s doing well,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “He’s picked up our system. … He’s quick in and out of his cuts. He has a good feel for man-and-zone coverage. He’s been a good addition for us.”
Sanders was acquired as a complementary player to Michael Thomas, who led the NFL in catches the previous two years (125 and 149) and appears to have regained his form after missing six consecutive games. Thomas had nine catches for 104 yards in Sunday’s win over Atlanta.
“(Thomas/Sanders) have been good receivers in this league for a while,” Broncos safety Kareem Jackson said. “Anytime you get a chance to see guys like that, you have to be on your ‘A’ game as a collective unit. We have to be up to the task.”
Driskel on COVID-19 list. The Broncos placed third-string quarterback Jeff Driskel on the COVID-19/reserve list before their Thursday’s morning practice.
Coach Vic Fangio said discussions between the Broncos and the NFL office began at 4 a.m. to determine if the team could practice. The natural concern when a player goes on the reserve list is the other players in his position group. Fangio said the other quarterbacks were around Driskel for “minimal amounts.”
“They thoroughly checked those guys that on the (contract tracers were around Driskel) for two minutes, three minutes, four minutes and they came back and said nobody else needs to go on the list and they cleared us to have normal activities and normal practice,” he said.
Driskel joins defensive end Shelby Harris (out the last three games) on the COVID-19/reserve list. Harris was present at practice Thursday as an observer.
Fangio said Harris will need to practice to rebuild his conditioning and “until you see him off the list and practicing, you can assume he won’t play.”
Jeudy sits out. Fangio said receiver Jerry Jeudy’s ankle has been “bugging him,” and he was held out of practice Thursday. During the media viewing period, Jeudy did not take the team stretch and watched individual drills from the side.
Safety Trey Marshall (shin) missed a second consecutive day of practice. Limited were right tackle Demar Dotson (hand/calf), right guard Graham Glasgow (calf), cornerback Bryce Callahan (ankle), outside linebacker Malik Reed (ankle) and defensive lineman Sylvester Williams (elbow).
Cornerback Duke Dawson (chest) and inside linebacker Josey Jewell (ankle) were full-go after being limited Wednesday.
Fond memories. New Orleans was both Fangio’s first NFL coaching post (linebackers) and his longest stop (nine years, 1986-94). Fangio coached the Saints’ “Dome Patrol” linebackers corps of Sam Mills, Pat Swilling, Rickey Jackson and Vaughan Johnson.
“It was very special for me,” Fangio said. “I had nine great years there. Coaching good players always makes it more enjoyable. I’m still in touch with some of those players — they text me regularly, which is very nice.
“Every time I go back there — even though we’re not going back there this time — it kind of feels like my second home.”
Watson earning trust. A practice squad/COVID-19 call-up the last two games, second-year inside linebacker Josh Watson has played 47 special teams snaps. Watson had a thunderous tackle in kick coverage at Las Vegas in Week 10. His three special teams tackles this year are tied for second on the Broncos.
“Physical,” special teams coordinator Tom McMahon said last week. “Josh executes his assignment, is a great tackler and studies a ton. Going into a game, he knows his opponent. He’s really starting to grow into that special team’s linebacker who just gets it. He understands that you can win games by preparing and he understands that ‘work’ and ‘win’ start with ‘W’ for a reason.”
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