As the Broncos prepare to face the No. 1 ranked defense in the league on Sunday, tight end Joel Dreessen will look to share some insight from his five-year stint with the Houston Texans.
Although plenty of things have likely changed in the Texans’ scheme, Dreessen can still help break down the tendencies and habits of some of his former teammates.
“I can tell them how a guy is going to play, or a few tips here and there,” said Dreessen, who started 34 games for the Texans and caught 13 touchdowns. “It’s still going to be a hard-fought battle between the lines.”
The Broncos’ other tight end, Jacob Tamme, also has some knowledge of the Houston Texans after spending the last four years with the Indianapolis Colts.
“I’ve played against them a lot myself, too, coming from the AFC South,” Tamme said. “I don’t have the knowledge Joel has, but really it’s just little tidbits about guys, what they like to do, what they don’t like to do. That type of thing. But at the end of the day, it’s about going out there on Sunday and executing better.”
Linebacker Wesley Woodyard plays more than half of the team’s snaps at both defense and special teams. He said Dreessen has been helpful in preparing the team in both areas.
“He has a lot of insight about which guys can do this, as far as if they can run routes a certain way,” Woodyard said. “Joel, he came in today, I know on special teams, he gave us tips. Defensively he was telling us you shouldn’t do this versus this guy, you can do this versus that guy.”
While Dreessen tries recall what he can about his former team, the Texans can recall a thing or two about Dreessen as well. Houston running back Arian Foster spoke highly of Dreessen’s time as a Texan.
“They got my favorite player that was on my team last year,” Foster said of Dreessen. “He knows that. I used to tell him that all the time. That was my guy. That was my ace. He’s just a hard working cat. He’s going to do whatever it takes to get the job done. He’s just a dedicated, loyal player and just a good human being.”
