During the Denver Broncos' preseason victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Tim Patrick made an appearance and caught a pass. He didn't even make it to the preseason last year or the year before.
Patrick caught a 14-yard pass from Jarrett Stidham in the first quarter. It was his first reception in any game since January 2022, so it's been a while. The reception was marred a bit by the fact that Patrick then drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for taunting.
Maybe that is part of being excited and forgetting to act like you have done it before. Patrick addressed the play following the game:
INSANITY: The refs called a taunting penalty on #Broncos WR Tim Patrick after he celebrated making his first catch in over two years.
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) August 11, 2024
He is back from a devastating ACL and Achilles injury.
LET HIM CELEBRATE THAT
🤦♂️🤦♂️🤦♂️
pic.twitter.com/HohUYMdbkS
"It felt good; it honestly hasn't felt that long. I feel like I go against the best every day, so out there, it just felt like it was another day in the office."
It was nice to see Patrick on the field. He wears No. 12 now rather than No. 81 and he is hoping to continue his career with the Broncos as he enters the final year of his contract.
Tim Patrick is not a lock to make Broncos' roster
Patrick's teammates are pulling for him and most of Broncos Country is too. But having missed the previous two seasons and being part of a deep wide receiver room, it's far from a guarantee.
It was good to see Patrick out with the first team on the field Sunday but that could just be a sign of respect from Sean Payton to a veteran player. The Broncos have a lot of players at wide receiver who deserve a roster spot.
The emergence of seventh-round pick Devaughn Vele has made it even harder for Patrick to make this roster.
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