Ex-49ers enjoy preseason return visit to Santa Clara with Broncos
SANTA CLARA — Mike McGlinchey still owns a home in the Bay Area and was having his offensive linemates over for a backyard pool barbecue Thursday night.
One of the first orders of business for Talanoa Hufanga when the Denver Broncos arrived Wednesday was to stop in at his favorite Korean barbecue spot in San Jose.
“They take good care of me there,” Hufanga said.
Anyone expecting a snarling, chippy joint practice session with the 49ers and Broncos came away disappointed. It was more like a mutual admiration society. As much as the Broncos and 49ers enjoyed going against someone else, there were enough familiar faces to keep it respectful and professional.
“Neither team wants to disappoint the other,” Denver coach Sean Payton said. “We had this two-hour moment in time. There’s no conflict. They’re an NFC team, we’re an AFC team and let’s use it to get better.”
Hufanga and Dre Greenlaw signed with Denver in the offseason as as step-in-and-start free agents at safety and linebacker. McGlinchey, the Broncos’ right tackle, is beginning his third season in Denver after spending five years with the 49ers. D.J. Jones, a Broncos defensive tackle, has played in Denver for four years after spending five with the 49ers.
Greenlaw was on site but is recovering from a quad strain and did not speak with the media. Payton said he hoped to have him back full speed next week.
“He’s doing really well,” Payton said. “We were fortunate last week with a little scare. He probably won’t play in the game (Saturday) and will be back working on Monday. It’s always emotional for a guy like him and Hufanga to come back. Those guys had a lot of wins here with a lot of teammates and coaches.”
The Broncos’ quest to return to Levi’s Stadium for Super Bowl LX on Feb. 9 will be at least partially contingent on keeping Greenlaw and Hufanga on the field and out of the trainer’s room.
“There’s a confidence about them,” Payton said. “Both are very serious about winning and the process. I think when you can add pieces like that to a young roster it’s invaluable.”
McGlinchey said he can feel the difference.
“It’s the energy I felt from them in San Francisco,” McGlinchey said. “They’re such talented players, but you can feel them on the field. When I was here, Kyle always talked about feeling you through tape, like I should be able to put on a silent tape and know who you are as a person, and I can do that with Dre and Huf. They’ve taken to their roles and they’re going to help this team tremendously.”
Hufanga exuded more joy than emotion at the chance to compete against his former teammates. He approached Trent Williams and playfully challenged him to a fight.
“That’s the silverback gorilla,” Hufanga said. “You’ve got to stay out of the way.”
He chided Christian McCaffrey and kept up a good-natured banter with several others. During the practice, Hufanga showed up with a solid hit on 49ers running back Ameer Abdullah and diagnosed a misdirection run with Ricky Pearsall.
“I did a lot of growing here,” Hufanga said. “This is where I got married, where I had my first kid. A lot of great experiences, NFC championships, a Super Bowl, those are memories you take forever. To be back here is special, but I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.”
While Hufanga and the Denver defense practiced against the 49ers offense on one field, the Broncos offense worked against the 49ers on the other. McGlinchey lined up against Nick Bosa, as he did for four years during 49ers practices.
“It is very good work,” McGlinchey said. “Any time you get to go up against competition like that, it’s very helpful. It’s valuable as you move forward in the season. Nick’s been at the top of this league since he walked in the door and I expect nothing different this year.
“He’s just so hard to stick with. He doesn’t stay blocked. But that’s no different than the last couple of times I faced him.”
McGlinchey had some good pass sets against Bosa, although Bosa did have one sequence where he may have recorded three sacks in rapid succession (there are no actual sacks in practices, so it’s not always easy to tell). He also got a few snaps against Mykel Williams, the 49ers’ top draft pick, before the defensive end went down with a hyperextended knee. Williams limped off to the weight area and did not return.
“He went down kind of early in team periods, but he looked the part,” McGlinchey said. “He’s a pretty impressive guy to look at. He has all the tools and you can see why he was picked so high. I played across from (defensive line coach) Kris Kocurek, I know what a good coach he is and he’s going to get these guys going.”
Mike Shanahan, the former 49ers offensive coordinator and two-time Super Bowl winner with Denver, was watching on the field. Payton has been friends with Mike and Kyle for years, and the respect the organizations appear to have for each other carried over on the field.
Kyle Shanahan said going in he was glad there was only one practice because usually hard feelings erupt into fistfights on Day 2. There wasn’t anything close to that Thursday. The two staffs met and went over details and the practice ran like clockwork at a brisk tempo.
“Sean’s message was we’re not flying across the country to get into fights,” McGlinchey said. “We’re going to do a clean operation. We’re going to do our job. They understand how to be pros, we know how to be pros and it was a good, clean day.”
Denver’s offense did some of its best work against the 49ers defense with underneath passes from quarterback Bo Nix. He and backup Jarrett Stidham also hurt the 49ers on scrambles on extended plays.
“It was good to see a different pace, a different speed a different scheme,” Nix said.
PRACTICE NOTES
— Linebacker Dee Winters continued to hold up well in coverage and had one nice breakup of a Nix pass at the goal line. Rookie Nick Martin was victimized toward the end of pracitce when Stidham broke free to his left and looped a pass to R.J. Harvey for a big gain.
Fred Warner and Winters have been consistent in their ability to defend against the pass throughout camp.
— Kalia Davis was getting his share of reps, some with the first team, particularly after Williams went down. The 49ers’ young defensive linemen were getting an eyeful with Nix and Stidham breaking into the clear on scrambles.