Lucas Krull had an efficient day at the office in last week's preseason opener, his only catch going for an inexplicably wide-open eight-yard touchdown amid the Denver Broncos' 30-9 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.
It's honest work being the third-string Broncos tight end — but laudable all the same to head coach Sean Payton.
“He’s a guy [who has] now been in the league. He’s not a rookie or a young player anymore, and he’s found some confidence," Payton told reporters Tuesday. "It’s been built, I always say this, with a series of plays. The first play that I can remember two years ago on a critical third down in L.A. against the Chargers. He broke a tackle, converted a first down to keep the drive going and we needed it. So he’s stacked up a few of those plays. I think he’s having a good camp. He’s a good target down the field. He got open on a busted coverage the other night that all of us would’ve been just as happy and open as he was.”
Even Lucas Krull could believe he was this open 😅
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/ISsssG0T8R— NFL (@NFL) August 10, 2025
A 2022 undrafted free agent, Krull, 27, found a home in the Mile High City after spending his rookie campaign with Payton's former employer, the New Orleans Saints. The Kansas native has appeared in 20 games across the last two seasons, notching 27 receptions for 247 yards and a touchdown on 465 snaps.
The 6-foot-6, 260-pound Krull checks a set of particular boxes for Payton: he's tall and athletic, a dynamic weapon to utilize in the red zone and down the seams. He also bought into and appreciates the "small details" of a mind-numbingly complex offense.
"When you get to the league, there is so much to grasp and learn, and there is a big picture of it, right? But none of that matters if you can’t pick up on the little details,” Krull told Chris Tomasson of The Denver Gazette. “That’s something that he continuously talks about with us. It’s something I don’t take for granted, because that’s what really counts at the end of the day. ... You thought it was good, but you go back and watch the film, and he coaches you up. It’s like: ‘Man, I could have been so much better.’ It’s those little details that is what’s going to bring us to the Super Bowl."
Unfortunately for Krull, barring the unforeseen, he's firmly entrenched behind Evan Engram and Adam Trautman on the depth chart, limiting his potential regular-season impact. Fortunately for Krull, he has the chance of even making a regular-season impact, seemingly a lock to again crack the 53-man roster.
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