AFC Notes: Broncos, Steelers, Raiders

Broncos

Broncos HC Sean Payton was asked about the team losing OC John Morton to the Lions.

“Remember, he was there not too [long ago], two-and-a-half, three years ago,” Payton said of Morton, via BroncosWire.com. “Our industry is small, so all of these guys I feel like I’ve hired or got to work with, [like] Dan [Campbell]. So when Dan calls me on ‘Johnny Mo’ and he’s going to be the play caller, I’m like, ‘He’ll be excited.’ I’m excited for him. The terminology and the communication, all the things that Jared [Goff] knows, the system, that all stays cleanly intact. Johnny is a tremendous worker. He’ll be the last one out, first one in in the morning. I’m happy for not only Johnny, but there are a number of guys this year that just seemed to like multiply. It’s good to see some of them here, like [Aaron] Glenn. It’s good to see them in these positions because those guys obviously were loyal and worked extremely hard for me at one point. So it’s good to see.”

Steelers

QB Aaron Rodgers is expected to sign with the Steelers, but NFL vice president of broadcast planning and scheduling Mike North said that the league did not consider that when they scheduled a Steelers visit to the Jets in the season opener.

“You’ll see Pittsburgh at the Jets are on CBS at 1 o’clock in the afternoon in Week 1, along with seven other NFL games all at the same time,” North said, via Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports. “I think if the league knew, we probably would’ve scheduled that game for a national television window. So at worst, it’s Justin Fields against his old team. At best, it’s Aaron Rodgers going up against one of his old teams. Look at what we did with Aaron Rodgers’ first game the last two years. If we knew something, I think you would’ve seen it reflected in the schedule. That being said, still a good game.”

Raiders

• Raiders WR coach Chris Beatty on fourth-round WR Dont’e Thornton Jr.: “There’s a lot of things he wants to work on, as far as polishing his route running releases. For a taller guy, we gotta work on understanding the whole scheme, so everything slows down for him. He’s done a great job so far, but he’s got a long way to go to get where he’s going to be able to be a contributor right away.” (Ryan McFadden)
• Las Vegas RB coach Deland McCullough reviewed first-round RB Ashton Jeanty’s start at OTAs: “Very detailed, very into doing the right things on the football field, presenting himself the right way, and a guy who learns at a high rate. …In these first couple of weeks of OTAs, he’s [taken] the most plays.” (McFadden)
• McCullough also touched on Jeanty changing his stance: “There’s positives to being in a traditional stance. It doesn’t take away from anything that you’re doing. What was being suggested to him and what he’s been doing at a high level is definitely not hurting his game by any stretch. It’s all in the eye of the beholder.” (McFadden)