INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton is turning the improbable into the routine.
In Denver’s 24-7 road win over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, he added another crazy grab to his growing 2023 season highlight reel.
With 6:05 left in the third quarter, Wilson launched a pass 46 yards toward the end zone, where Sutton made a one-handed touchdown catch that drew a loud roar from the thousands of orange-clad fans inside SoFi Stadium.
“He can catch everything,” Wilson said.
From toe-tap grabs to Moss-ing defenders, Sutton has done it all this season. Against the Chiefs in Week 6, he made a leaping one-handed touchdown catch in the corner of the end zone. In Week 10 against the Buffalo Bills, he maintained his balance while using every last centimeter of the end zone to reel in an off-balance touchdown pass from Wilson.
Catching Wilson’s 46-yarder on Sunday with defensive back Michael Davis hanging onto him was just the latest in a long list of jaw-dropping moments.
“I think I had about 35 seconds on that play,” joked Wilson, who actually had roughly 6.5 seconds to scan the field before throwing in Sutton’s direction. “I went left (then) right. I went through my reads one, two, three, four (and) five, then back to (my first read) and Courtland, again.”
When Sutton stood at the podium after his three-catch, 62-yard performance in Denver’s seventh win of the season, he was reluctant to call his touchdown reception the best out of the bunch. Sutton said each one happens so fast that it’s hard to process.
Just know, he’s not done yet.
“There’s more to come,” he said.
For Sutton, his 10th touchdown catch of the season came with some added significance. He is the first Bronco since Julius Thomas and Demaryius Thomas in 2014 to record double-digit receiving touchdowns in a single season.
Sutton and Thomas were teammates in 2018. And even after the four-time Pro Bowler’s passing in 2021, Sutton still views Thomas as a brother and keeps him in his memory whenever he steps on the field.
“That’s huge to be in the conversation of (Thomas),” Sutton said. “Every time I’m on the field, I try to play with a certain attitude and demeanor. It came from the way he played the game.”
The source behind Sutton’s wizardry comes from a mixture of many things. His size and skill at 6-foot-4, 216 pounds certainly has a lot to do with it.
“He’s like that big power forward,” Broncos head coach Sean Payton said, referencing Sutton’s basketball player physique.
Of course, there’s also Sutton’s innate ability to track down long passes. It’s a skill he demonstrated from Day 1 after the Broncos drafted him in the second round of the 2018 draft.
“He just has a knack for it,” Broncos wide receivers coach Keary Colbert said during the week. “Sometimes it just falls on the individual and who they are just naturally. Some of the things they can’t even explain. If you ask him, he’s just making a catch.”
At this point, right tackle Mike McGlinchey is not shocked by any of Sutton’s catches. He thought Sutton’s touchdown reception against the Bills was “out of control” and added that the catch against Los Angeles “is not bad, either.”
“(Sutton) is one of those that you look at him and you’re like ‘He can pick whatever sport he wants to and be good at it,’” McGlinchey said. “He’s so talented and just as responsible for our success as anybody (on the team) has been this year.”
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