Practice this afternoon got a little wet and wild for the rookies, as what is becoming a training camp ritual got underway for the second consecutive year.

Under the smothering heat, the first-year Broncos stepped up to a patch behind the end zone that had been watered for the last several hours. One by one, they dove for loose footballs in a mud pit while the veterans sprayed them with hoses and doused them with buckets of water at the beginning of practice. Afterward, the rookies stood out in their mud-stained jerseys as they went about their normal practice routine.

The scorching heat probably made being soaking wet for the remainder of practice a little more bearable.

There was a change of plans for the afternoon session. Typically on two-a-days, the evening session kicks off at 5:30 and runs until 7:30. Tuesday afternoon, however, the practice started at 4 and went until 5:30.

At the start of practice, rookies and veterans alike ran a few special teams drills before separating into offense and defense to walk through some plays. No one wore pads — the veterans even wore shorts.

Halfway through the session, however, the rookies were ushered to the opposite field, where they put on their pads.