Dalton Risner, Juwann Winfree eager for opportunity to practice at Broncos Stadium at Mile High

[Miles]

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The kid from Wiggins is about to get his first chance to play at Broncos Stadium at Mile High.


Rookie offensive lineman Dalton Risner and the Broncos will practice at the team’s stadium on Saturday afternoon, and it will mark the first time the Colorado native competes on his new home field.


“I’m glad I’m doing this before I play my first game there,” Risner said Friday. “That way, maybe I can let a little bit of the emotion out tomorrow. So, no cameras when I walk out to practice.”


RELATED: Free tickets to Saturday's practice available to download through Ticketmaster


Wide receiver Juwann Winfree will be making a return appearance at the stadium after playing in the Rocky Mountain Showdown with the Colorado Buffaloes.


“It’s going to be a special moment,” Winfree said. “Any time I’m just in a stadium like that – just the environment — you feel good. You feel empowered. I had a touchdown in that stadium the last time I played there, so I’m looking forward to making more plays tomorrow when I’m out there and just that feeling of being in the game stadium, just the feeling of that atmosphere.”


The game-like atmosphere is part of the reason that Head Coach Vic Fangio decided to have the team practice in the stadium for the first time since 2014.


“It will be good for those young guys, especially some of these guys that have been at small schools where they don’t see a crowd or a stadium that big," Fangio said. “It can be a little imposing. Hopefully it helps them for next Thursday and the rest of preseason and moving forward. I think there’s benefit to it. That’s why we did it. We didn’t have to do it. They asked me if I wanted to do it and I said, ‘Yeah. let’s do it.’”


The Broncos kick off their preseason schedule on Aug. 1 in the Pro Football Hall of Fame game.


Their practice on Saturday is slated for 2:15-4:15 p.m.


“It's going to be good to get the feeling again, to have all those younger guys get the feeling of what it's like, and just to be able to get us back in there,” second-year linebacker Josey Jewell said. “It's going to feel good, and it's going to be awesome to be able to have a practice in there and make it feel more like a game."