Broncos

Broncos QB Bo Nix said his surgically repaired right ankle will not prevent him from scrambling or using his mobility this season.

“Absolutely not,” Nix said, via ESPN. “I’m going to roll [out]. I’m going to be as athletic as I can be. … It’s a strength of ours, and so we’ve got to use our strengths. For me, that’s when I feel at my best, that’s when I feel free. When I’m playing like that, when I’m moving around, it’s a good thing.”

Broncos HC Sean Payton said Nix’s ability to avoid sacks is one of his defining strengths and has a major impact on the offense’s ability to sustain drives.

“It’s hard to sack some quarterbacks, and he’s one of them,” Payton said. “That was something we saw on college tape, and in our league, when you take a sack, just do the analytics on it, getting points on that drive or likelihood to kick a field goal, it all drops dramatically.”

Nix continued, saying he will continue to run when necessary but plans to balance aggressiveness with protecting himself.

“It’s always the situation,” Nix said. “If it’s a first down, I’ll go down, not take unnecessary hits. At the same time, a key third, fourth down, you have to go get the first down, and that’s why you train hard in the offseason to withstand those hits. It’s all about being smart. I’m not going to be dumb. I know I’m not going to run over everybody on the field. I just got to be smart, put us, put me, in a good situation and move on to the next play.”

Nix added that he feels fully healthy and unrestricted as he prepares for the season.

“I feel great, feel normal. Nothing’s holding me back out there. Playing like I normally do, and I feel really good and continue to push and progress and also continue to get ready for this long season.”

Chargers

Chargers rookie WR Brenen Thompson said his strong start to training camp has not changed how much improvement he believes he still needs.

“I’m nowhere near where I want to be right now,” Thompson said, via the team’s website. “I think if I was, there would be issues.”

Thompson said adjusting from a simpler college offense to OC Mike McDaniel’s more complex NFL system has required significantly more studying and mental preparation.

“I think it’s something I put on myself in studying and being mature in that aspect, understanding that you can’t really play football if you don’t know what you’re doing,” Thompson said. “It’s been a big transition, it’s been huge. I’m used to one word calls in college and now we’re in 20-word calls and really get the calls from the quarterback, dissect which part belongs to you and go out there and execute. I put a lot on myself to study and know what I have each play, but not only that, get the mental reps of the other 60, 70 plays other players are getting in practice,” Thompson added. “Just making little strides at a time.”

Thompson said one of his main goals is earning the trust of QB Justin Herbert and the rest of the team.

“I think it’s awesome,” Thompson said. “He’s been a great quarterback, great leader to this whole team and whole club. I think that’s a goal of every rookie coming in, to gain the trust of their fellow teammates and coaches,” Thompson added. “I’m working very hard every day to do that.”

Raiders

Raiders RB Ashton Jeanty is heading into his second season and told reporters he is working on being a more vocal locker room leader instead of just being along for the ride.

“Yeah, I think being more vocal for sure,” Jeanty said, via Jared Feinberg of SI.com. “I mean, it’s always tough being in the first year trying to figure out so much stuff. But this year, there’s a lot of expectations for me and I think I’ve got to make a big jump. I think that starts with helping my teammates as well and just being a better teammate. So, I think that starts with leadership.”