ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Training camp is about to begin, and a young Broncos roster is set to get to work.
And as the 2024 season nears, both the coaching staff and players are eager to embrace a new energy and control their own fate one day at a time.
"I think everybody's aware that you can't really focus on the stuff that you can't control," safety Brandon Jones said Tuesday of external skepticism. "What we can control is [that] we're going to go out there and practice tomorrow and continuously get better each day."
This drive to continuously get better resonates with the young and eager group, as only 21 percent of players on the roster have more than five years of NFL experience and more than 40 percent of the team has two or fewer years of experience.
Fourth-year guard Quinn Meinerz believes that what the team lacks in experience, it makes up for with its energy and excitement to learn.
"For me, I'm obviously still a young player," Meinerz said. "When you have a young team with a lot of veteran coaches, I think the hunger for us to learn and mold as players to the system is really exciting and something that I'm continuing to look forward to."
Jones, who is entering his first season with the Broncos, has noticed the same sentiment amongst a defense that will look to expand upon last year's steady improvement.
"Everybody's just super eager to learn," Jones said. "Everybody's itching to be on the field tomorrow, so it's definitely just really exciting to be here."
As Head Coach Sean Payton enters his second season with the team, he will look to build off of last year's knowledge and experience while evaluating the young roster. While making mistakes may be inevitable for newer players, Payton believes that managing and responding to those mistakes will play a key role in the team's progression.
"Listen, there are mistakes that are going to happen, so you live with those mistakes," Payton said. "But we don't live with them consistently. With a younger team, I think we have to be smart with our installation. I think we have to be smart with how much we want to give them. There's, I think, a balance there that you really work with relative to the experience, but also the scheme."
Limiting outside noise will also be important as the Broncos look to build momentum heading into the season. Payton, Jones and Meinerz all believe that the team is ready to compete, noting that outside expectations will not dictate their approach and effort heading into the 2024 season.
"None of that means anything," Payton said. "… We'll get ready to play, and we expect to compete. We expect to win."
With training camp about to begin, the Broncos will look to carry this energy and perspective into practice, preseason and beyond.
"I think there's nothing bad to say about having a young team," Meinerz said. "You don't want to count out the young, hungry team that is working really hard."
