Broncos’ Butt gets to work out in pads for first time since 2016
Second-year former Michigan star sat out 2017 with knee injury
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Jake Butt couldn’t help but get a little nostalgic over the simple routine of putting all his pads on again. Reasonable. It’s been awhile. The Denver Broncos tight end returned to the field in full gear Tuesday for the first time since tearing his right ACL against Florida State in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 30, 2016.
“I kind of thought about it when I put on the pants. It was like, ‘Man, I haven’t put on the pads in almost two years,’” the 23-year-old Michigan standout said. “It was exciting. It felt good out there.”
His career was on hold last season as he recovered from the knee injury that caused him to slip to the fifth round of the 2017 draft. The Broncos were hopeful to have him back for the second half last season, but he wasn’t ready and went on injured reserve.
Butt declared Tuesday his knee feels “100 percent” again. He wasn’t wearing a protective brace when the team donned full pads.
He could be a big boost to the tight end corps. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound Butt won the John Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end his senior season at Michigan. He had three catches for 28 yards against Florida State in the Orange Bowl before tearing his knee.
His recovery has been somewhat slower than he anticipated. The rehab has been filled with plenty of ups and downs.
“It’s not just you’re getting better and better every day. You have some days that are better than others,” said Butt, who had 138 catches for 1,646 yards while with the Wolverines. “In that sense, you have a mental component. But once you’re on the field, for me personally, you’re playing football. You’re not thinking about any bumps and bruises you might have.”
He used the down time in 2017
memorizing his routes and reads.
“I had a year to observe how pro football really works,” Butt said. “Going back to the spring, I really got into the playbook so I can hit the ground running in camp.”
Butt has plenty of competition in camp among a tight end group that’s got deep Big Ten Conference roots. There’s rookie Troy Fumagalli, a fifth-round pick out of Wisconsin. There’s also Jeff Heuerman, a third-round pick in 2015 from Ohio State who’s currently sidelined by a balky knee. Not to be left out: Matt LaCosse attended Illinois.
VIKINGS: Minnesota locked up another core player with a long-term contract Tuesday, signing wide receiver Stefon Diggs to a five-year extension and moving the star of the “Minneapolis Miracle” pass into the NFL’s top 10 highest-paid players at his position.
Diggs has yet to post a 1,000-yard or 100-catch season, but his ability was on full display when he turned a sideline catch into a 61-yard touchdown as time ran out to lift the Vikings to victory over New Orleans in last season’s playoffs. Selected in the fifth round out of Maryland in 2015, Diggs has been one of the biggest steals of that draft. He formed a prolific tandem with Adam Thielen last year.
CHARGERS: Cornerback Trevor Williams injured his left leg during the fourth practice of training camp Tuesday, potentially dealing another blow to Los Angeles’ depth in the defensive secondary.
But coach Anthony Lynn is cautiously optimistic that his team’s latest injury isn’t serious.
Last week, the Chargers lost former Pro Bowl cornerback Jason Verrett to a torn Achilles tendon.