Fangio: Broncos Will 'Manage' Courtland Sutton's Week 1 Snaps

A 'pitch count' for Courtland?

Roughly one year removed from tearing his ACL, Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton will start the 2021 regular-season opener against the Giants. That's the good news.

The bad news? Don't expect the full Sutton experience right out of the gates. Broncos head coach Vic Fangio revealed the former Pro Bowler's snaps will be "managed" according to game flow.

"We have four good receivers and they’re all capable of playing," Fangio explained Wednesday. "The pitch count can be a little misleading at times. It’s more so how the drives are going. If we’re going three-and-out a bunch, he can play them all. If we can get some nice drives going, he’ll need some time off.”

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Donning a hefty knee brace, Sutton was slowly reacclimated into the team portion of practice during training camp last month. He missed Denver's first two preseason contests before suiting up in the finale. Sutton aced his test, catching two of three targets for 27 yards and a touchdown.

Progress, achieved. Concern, alleviated.

"It definitely gives him a confidence boost," Fangio said after the game. "Just to be out there playing, running routes, out there competing [and] knowing he could get hit for the first time. He hadn't played since the second game last year so it's good to get him out there. It was a bonus that he caught some balls [and] caught a touchdown, but the important thing was just getting him out there playing."

Staring down his first foray into unrestricted free agency, unsigned beyond the upcoming campaign, Sutton profiles as the Broncos' WR1 ahead of sophomore breakout candidate Jerry Jeudy. The club went relatively light at the position, carrying only five WRs (Sutton, Jeudy, Tim Patrick, K.J. Hamler, Diontae Spencer) on the 53-man roster.

While it appears Jeudy will receive the lion's share of reps in Week 1, Sutton's load management should prove temporary.

Just ask his quarterback.

"Seeing him out there on Saturday, we just expect Court to be Court and be the best version of himself," said Teddy Bridgewater. "He brings a ton of energy to this offense; he brings a big-play ability to this offense. We just expect him to be Court, trust what he's being told from the coaches and go out there and have fun.”

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