ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — In the Broncos' final open practice before they head to Indianapolis for their preseason opener, rookie receiver Devaughn Vele provided one of the highlights of camp.

In a tight red-zone period, quarterback Jarrett Stidham lofted a ball to the left corner of the end zone — and Vele did the rest. The seventh-round pick contorted his body and threw his right arm backward, stabbing at the ball in the same motion. Vele then pulled the ball back to his chest as he went to the ground, and nearly every offensive player — both those on the field and those waiting to sub in — swarmed the Utah product.

"It was fantastic," Offensive Coordinator Joe Lombardi said after practice. "… He's been making a lot of those plays all camp. That was a little extra special, but he's been showing us that all camp."

Vele, whom the Broncos selected with the 235th-overall pick in April's NFL Draft, caught 43 passes for 593 yards and three touchdowns during his final collegiate season. In training camp, he has turned in a slew of contested catches and impressed Denver's coaching staff.

"From where he was drafted … he's had really good performance from that," Lombardi said. "[He's] smart [and] he's obviously an older player for a rookie, so you hope with that age comes some of that maturity we're seeing from him. He's been everything we hoped for."

'IT'S GOOD COMPETITION'

The red-zone period in which Vele made his highlight catch was among the most entertaining back-and-forth battles of training camp.

In work from the 5-yard line, the Broncos' first-team offense struck first. Stidham threw a series of touchdown passes to tight end Nate Adkins, Vele and wide receivers Marvin Mims Jr. and Michael Bandy, and Mims' catch was another impressive grab.

The Broncos' defense, though, responded nicely. In the next set of reps, rookie outside linebacker Jonah Elliss provided pressure, cornerback Riley Moss delivered a pass breakup and cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine defended another end-zone throw.

In the final reps of the period, Bandy scored another touchdown on a back-shoulder grab on one play while Andre Smith batted down a pass on another.

The period was a near-perfect representation of the first 12 practices of training camp, as Denver's offense and defense each earned their share of wins.

"It's good competition," Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph said. "We want guys to have as many live reps as they can, especially in the red zone. That's good stuff down there. Offensively, we're seeing a lot of motion and a lot of formations — a lot of good plays. For our young [defensive backs], to see it live and see it full speed and motions and shifts and adjustments, it's vital for us."

QUICK HITS

… Outside linebacker Baron Browning continued a strong training camp as he made several highlight plays. In the first run period of practice, he chased a ball carrier down from the backside to make a stop. Then, in the first 11-on-11 action of the day, he likely would have posted two sacks in a four-play stretch. Browning also had a free rush for a potential quarterback hit on Stidham's pass to Vele.

"Obviously being a 3-4 defense, having outside 'backers are important," Joseph said of Browning. "He can rush the passer, he's a physical edge guy in the run game. Having him healthy is key for us."

… The Broncos ended practice with a pair of attempts from the minus-41-yard line with 38 seconds left and one timeout remaining in a one-score game. Cornerback Ja'Quan McMillian sealed a win for the first-team defense with a pass breakup on fourth-and-4, while a Damarri Mathis pass defense prevented a big play for the second-team offense.

… Zach Wilson turned in an impressive seven-on-seven period, as he threw a 25-yard touchdown to Tim Patrick and an 18-yarder to Javonte Williams. Bo Nix threw a touchdown pass of his own as he found an open Blake Watson for a score for a 25-yard touchdown in 11-on-11 action.