School is officially out Thursday for some teams around the league conducting the final day of mandatory minicamp.
While some head coaches will stick to the schedule and go through meetings and practices, other clubs are taking the opportunity to cancel on-field work and replacing it with team-building exercises.
Count the Broncos in the latter category, as head coach Vic Fangio elected to replace practices with fun-filled events, as The Athletic's Nicki Jhabvala pointed out.
The Broncos aren't the only team to go the fun route. The New York Jets under first-year head coach Adam Gase also canceled practice and Gase is treating the team to an outing at a local Topgolf, while the Miami Dolphins under first-year head coach Brian Flores also canceled practice. Miami, though, will conduct conditioning tests and meetings. The Eagles shelved their final day of OTAs to go bowling.
Teams using the final day of minicamp or a day during organized team activities to build camaraderie isn't a new concept in the NFL.
For example, New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton is known for setting aside time to bring his team together. Past expeditions include Payton taking the team fishing and Wednesday's trip to the World War II Museum.
Still, it's never a bad thing to see coaching staffs and players use a day during the offseason workout program to have fun ahead of the training camp grind, which will kick off around the league in late July.
