Denver Broncos linebacker Red Murdock had eight tackles in his NFL debut against Atlanta.
Denver Broncos linebacker Red Murdock came to Denver as Mr. Irrelevant, but the final pick of the 2026 draft established himself as something of a tackling machine in the Broncos’ second preseason game, as he made seven tackles in the 33-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Murdock is learning to call plays as part of his crash course in NFL linebacking, as he played 47 snaps and made eight tackles. It’s a big responsibility, even in a preseason game, and defensive coordinator Vance Joseph was impressed with the early results.
“I thought Red did a great job of controlling the huddle, making the calls and making the checks,” Joseph said this week in a piece written by Parker Gabriel of the Denver Post. “That’s his strength, man, he’s super smart. I want him to turn it loose more often than not. … Things move and we’re in the right fronts and the right coverages. That’s his strength right now and the play-making will come with time.”
Joseph added that “you’ll see more play-making from Red,” and Murdock is battling for a role behind starting inside linebackers Justin Strnad and Alex Singleton. He’s competing wiht rookie Taurean York and a pair of undrafted free agents in Karene Reid and Jordan Turner, with Levelle Bailey going down with a fracture in his lower leg in Friday’s loss.
Everyone is getting experience calling games, according to Joseph, and Murdock and York have done it together multiple times, starting a friendship that began back at the Shrine Bowl in January.
“Shrine Bowl, I was in a boot and we were still collaborating together,” Murdock told The Post earlier this month. “Trying to see certain things and helping him make plays in practice and stuff like that, because I wasn’t able to play. But now, we’re two guys that love ball.”
Murdock has made his reputation as a relentless workaholic, and he says he’s not worried about how the roster spots in this battle will shake out.
“I can go to sleep peacefully knowing I gave it my all, we all gave it our all, and the Broncos are getting the best linebackers they can get,” he said. “Also, all of us emptying the tank pushes each other to be better. Anybody slacking, anybody going through the motions, it’s going to be so evident on tape, the way that we play football here in Denver.
“You can’t be slacking at all. Every rep is very intentional, from physical intensity to mental.”
Joseph has already seen plenty of tape on Murdock from the draft process, and now the linebacker is sharpening his game at the next level.
“It’s his college tape. It’s the draft eval,” Joseph said. “He was a smart football player that punched the ball out a lot and we’ve seen that in practice. To be a Mike ’backer in this league, it’s more than the physical traits. It’s your mind. That part he has.
“Now we have to use his mind to make more plays.”
