After being picked by the Denver Broncos in the fifth round of last year’s NFL draft out of Missouri, cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine started his career slowly with 12 straight inactive games.
Then, after the Broncos had injuries at cornerback, Abrams-Draine was thrust into action and he looked sharp. He played in Denver’s final five games of the season and totaled nine tackles, two pass breakups and one interception.
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“It helped him,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said of KAD getting experience late last season. “When you come out of your rookie year and you can come out on a high note like that — I’m talking about those last five or six weeks — I think that goes a long way. He’s getting stronger, and he’s putting weight on. He’s very smart and has good ball skills. So I think that last quarter pull for him was really important.”
Abrams-Draine (5-11, 178 pounds) had one tackle and one pass breakup in the team’s 2025 preseason opener last week. He also had an impressive interception, but it was nullified by a penalty.
“He’s smart, he has really good ball skills,” Payton said. “He’s one of those players that, someone brought it up at the beginning of training camp, the tail end of last year his play and his confidence… You can have a stretch of four weeks, and all of a sudden that can carry over into the next year. He’s someone that prefers to play off and keep the ball in front, break on the ball. I like his ball skills, and I like between the ears. He’s very, very smart.”
Abrams-Draine will look to impress again when the Broncos host the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday. The 23-year-old cornerback should be considered a lock for the 53-man roster as he competes for a bigger role in 2025.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Denver Broncos: CB Kris Abrams-Draine continues to impress