Sean Payton on the signing of safety Taylor Rapp: “It was more availability than necessity”
· Yahoo Sports
The Broncos announced that they signed veteran safety Taylor Rapp last week ahead of their Week 2 preseason matchup vs. the Green Bay Packers to add some depth to their safety room. Today, Denver Broncos Head Coach Sean Payton met with the media and explained their reasoning behind signing the veteran safety.
He was basically too good for them to pass up.
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The Broncos signed Taylor Rapp because they like his game and what he brings, per Sean Payton: “More talent at that position”
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Payton told reporters that Raoo is a veteran player that they liked, had good grades on, and simply wanted to add more talent to the safety position. He added, they weren’t pounding the table to add a safety, but it was more Hey, this player’s available,’ and ‘Let’s work him out and sign him if possible.
“Yes, [he’s a] veteran player we liked, had good grades on and just more talent at that position. It was really more… It wasn’t like us pounding the table, ‘We need a safety.’ It was, ‘Hey, this player’s available,’ and ‘Let’s work him out and sign him if possible.’ So I’m glad he’s here. We’ve had experience playing against him. He has real good football instincts and awareness that serves you well at that position. So I think it was more availability than necessity, if that makes sense.”
Rapp is a talented football player who brings a ton of experience and playoff/Super Bowl experience to this roster. Throughout his career, the former second-round selection has appeared in 93 games while starting in 72 of those games. Last season, he appeared in six games for the Buffalo Bills before a knee injury ended his season, and he was placed on the injured reserve. During his career, Rapp has totaled 488 tackles, 11 tackles for a loss, 2 sacks, 12 interceptions, 31 pass deflections, and 2 forced fumbles.
While Payton says they were not banging the table, saying they needed a safety, they needed to add some depth to that room. They lost versatile/former starter P.J. Locke, who was their third safety last season to free agency, and did not really bring anyone in to replace that role. They allowed their in-house depth to compete for that role throughout the offseason and into training camp. However, All-Pro special teams player Devon Key, JL Skinner, Tycen Anderson, and rookies Miles Scott and Parker Robertson were never able to fully lock down that role. So, it made sense to bring in a talented veteran with experience like Rapp at this point in the summer to fill the Broncos’ one big glaring need heading into the season.
At the end of the day, I really like this signing for the Broncos. Adds some much-needed depth and gives the team some insurance in case safeties Talanoa Hufanga and/or Brandon Jones end up missing some time this season. Safety depth was their one glaring hole on the team on paper, and they filled that with his signing.