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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- **In the midst of the "offseason," many players will make their way back to the team's Dove Valley headquarters in a little less than three weeks.
The team's voluntary offseason conditioning program is set to begin on Monday, April 15. Below you will find the club's offseason schedule, with information on what each phase means.
April 15-18, April 22-25 Phase 1 Workouts
The offseason workout program is strictly voluntary, beginning with phase one workouts. Phase one consists of the first two weeks of the team's offseason conditioning program, and is limited to strength and conditioning and physical rehabilitation. Only strength and conditioning coaches are allowed on the field, and no footballs will be used -- with one exception. Quarterbacks are permitted to throw to receivers, as long as they are not covered by any other player. Helmets are not permitted during phase one.
April 29-May 2, May 6-9, May 13-16, May 23 Phase 2 Workouts
For the next three weeks of the conditioning program, the club will participate in phase two workouts. In phase two, all coaches are allowed on the field. On-field workouts can include individual player and position drills, but no full team drills. No offense versus defense drills are allowed, but special teams drills on a separate basis -- kicking team or return team only -- are permitted. Helmets are still not allowed during phase two.
May 10-12 Rookie Minicamp
On May 9, the Broncos' rookies -- both drafted and undrafted -- will report to Dove Valley. They'll go through physicals, get fitted for equipment and take care of other administrative items. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the rookies will take the field for the first time in a minicamp that is designated for only rookies, though NFL rules stipulate that certain non-rookies are also eligible to participate. Last season, 30 players took part in the camp, including two on a tryout.
"I think it kind of slows things down for us so we're not just thrown right into the fire," defensive end Derek Wolfe said before last year's rookie minicamp. "We're all learning here. So I assume it'll help slow it down for us a little bit."
May 20-22, May 29-31, June 3-6
OTAs
Phase three of the offseason conditioning program brings Organized Team Activities, or OTAs. The club will conduct 10 days of OTAs, in which all coaches are allowed on the field. No live contact drills are allowed, including one-on-one offense versus defense drills. However, special teams drills and team offense versus team defense drills are allowed as long as there is no live contact. Helmets are allowed, but no pads or shells are permitted.
June 11-13 Mandatory Minicamp
The first and only mandatory veteran minicamp of the offseason program takes place in mid-June. Physicals will take place on Monday before practices on Tuesday through Thursday. The same rules of OTAs apply to the mandatory minicamp. Two-a-days are permitted on two of the three practice days, but players are allowed to be on the field for a maximum of three-and-a-half hours, and the second practice must be limited to a walkthrough. From June 14 until late July, when training camp is tentatively scheduled to kick off, the players cannot participate in any team-organized workouts.
Below is a look at what the first day of offseason conditioning prior to the 2012 season looked like:
