Sean Payton on Broncos Rookie CB: 'He Has a Savviness'

Kris Abrams-Draine was thrown to the wolves on Monday Night Football and he held his own.

August 11, 2024, Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S: Denver Broncos cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine (31) and Denver Broncos safety Tanner McCalister (30) prior to the preseason game between the Denver Broncos and the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Indiana. Indianapolis U.S. / Scott Stuart / IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

The Denver Broncos entered their Week 14 bye on the heels of an up-and-down defensive showing. The Cleveland Browns put up 552 total yards of offense and 32 points, and were it not for two timely pick-sixes, the Broncos might not have entered the bye on a three-game winning streak.

One of the big issues on that Monday night was the absence of cornerback Riley Moss, who'd suffered a knee injury the game before. In his place, defensive coordinator Vance Joseph rolled out veteran corner Levi Wallace, who proceeded to get utterly torched and humiliated by ex-Bronco Jerry Jeudy to the tune of 235 receiving yards and a touchdown. It was one coverage breakdown and miscommunication after another.

Eventually, someone on the Broncos sideline put their foot down, and Wallace was replaced late in the game by rookie fifth-rounder Kris Abrams-Draine. The Mizzou product held his own, but did get clipped by the officials on a pass-interference penalty that set the Browns up on the goal-line late in the fourth quarter.

Thankfully, Jameis Winston opted to throw his third interception of the night shortly after, picked off by Broncos linebacker Cody Barton, and that was the ball game. The Broncos won 41-32.

The 12 defensive snaps Abrams-Draine saw were his first of the season. Emerging from the bye, Broncos head coach Sean Payton held court via conference call on Monday, and shared his feedback on Abrams-Draine's "good" debut.

“He’s smart. He has a savviness to him," Payton said of Abrams-Draine. "I think he’s getting stronger physically. I thought he handled his role [well] Monday night, going in there and playing. I thought he had a pretty good game in the kicking game. That’s important. So overall, I was pleased.”

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Abrams-Draine has received plenty of reps on special teams this season, as Payton intimated, when the Broncos have opted to dress him. The nearly 6-foot cornerback runs a 4.44-second 40-yard dash and has some length to him, as well as a physical disposition.

The rookie will have to learn how to navigate within the rules of the NFL in terms of what kind of contact (and when) is allowed, but it was an exciting opportunity for Broncos Country to see Abrams-Draine on defense. As for all those brutal coverage breakdowns vs. Cleveland, Payton worked to quicly extract the lessons with the team before moving on and hitting the bye.

“It’s what we talked about after the game," Payton said of Denver's passing defense in Week 13. "Obviously there are things when the game ends that you look back on and say, ‘We would’ve done this differently.’ It’s finding a way to get your best players against their top receiver. There were a handful of things—not just on defense, but in all three phases—that we would’ve done differently, and we have to learn from that.”

Fans were screaming for Joseph to just assign Patrick Surtain II to Jeudy and shadow him around the field, but after trying it on a few snaps (which the Broncos' shutdown cornerback won), Joseph ultimately had to go back to a more neutral defensive look to avoid tipping off Winston on the coverage pre-snap. Winston may be a gunslinger and, at times, a turnover machine, but he's a veteran with a high football IQ and he would have made the Broncos pay.

But would it have been worse than the 497 passing yards Winston threw for? I seriously doubt it. The Broncos should have just bitten the bullet and put PS2 on Jeudy and let the chips fall.

Another lesson to be leaned on at a later date. Next up, a very playoff-relevant home tilt vs. the Indianapolis Colts. Here's to hoping Moss will be back in the saddle after a month off to rest and recuperate that knee.

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