ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) — On the first field, Broncos quarterback Bo Nix had his best day of training camp, throwing darts to Courtland Sutton and Devaughn Vele while catching a break from having to face Denver's suffocating defense on Thursday.
On the far field, Arizona Cardinals star tight end Trey McBride put on a show for his friends and family in his return to his native Colorado, repeatedly getting open for Tyler Murray against a unit missing Nik Bonitto (foot) and Dre Greenlaw (thigh).
“Me and Kyler had a great connection today,” said McBride, who took a point of pride in finding the gaps against a defense that's been getting a lot of buzz this summer.
After the spirited joint practice that left both teams satisfied, Broncos coach Sean Payton revealed that Saturday's preseason game will feature almost exclusively backups, saying that neither he nor Cardinals coach Jonathan Gannon “are going to play the No. 1s," save for a handful of players who need some more work.
Payton figured two joint practices in one week going back to last week's trip to San Francisco were sufficient, so he's going to sit his starters this weekend but have them make cameos in their preseason finale at New Orleans next week.
“It was a good workday,” McBride said. “The Broncos brought it. We brought it. And most importantly, everyone came out of here pretty healthy."
McBride, who's from Fort Morgan, Colorado, and attended Colorado State, had a big fan base at the practice, including former Broncos tight end Joel Dreessen, also from Fort Morgan. Another native son, Calais Campbell, who's from Denver and grew up a diehard Broncos fan, also had plenty of supporters on hand.
“You know what's crazy?” Campbell said. “I did not know (McBride) was from Colorado until like yesterday. I should know everybody from Colorado. He slipped through the cracks. But we talked a little bit about it and it's really cool because there's not a lot of us and we definitely have that fraternity and that brotherhood."
McBride said he was "happy to be back in Colorado — air's a little thinner, harder to breathe — but it's good to be back, for sure. A lot of family, a lot of friends came out to support. It's one of the first times I've had everyone out here at practice, so it was cool to see them here watching me and more importantly, to get some good work in with the Broncos.”
Hall of Famer Peyton Manning was on hand and he watched the Cardinals' offensive starters, including Marvin Harrison Jr., the son of one of his favorite targets during his time in Indy, going up against Denver's front-line defense.
Manning met with McBride and Campbell during water breaks.
Of course, one play in particular came up when Campbell was chatting with Manning — the time in 2014 when Manning prevented Campbell from getting a pick-6 by tripping him up just shy of the goal line.
“It was a great play by him. He saved the touchdown and they won the game and if we had scored that touchdown, we probably would have won," Campbell said. "But, you know, I tell everybody, Peyton Manning could have been an All-Pro linebacker.”
Campbell returned to Arizona for his 18th NFL season at age 38. Asked if he would consider trying to wrap up his career in his native Denver in 2026, he demurred.
“I have no thoughts at all about playing football after this year,” Campbell said. "I'm giving everything I've got into this season. So, yeah, there ain't no tomorrow. I don't even know if tomorrow exists. All I've got is right now."
Pressed about this being his final NFL season, Campbell said, “I'd be very surprised if it's not.”
But he added a caveat: “I felt like the last couple of years was my last year. So, I will put that disclaimer out there. Last year at this time I felt the exact same way I feel right now. So, you never know.”
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FILE - Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman Calais Campbell runs to the next drill during practice at the team's NFL football training camp Thursday, July 24, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)
Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix takes part in drills during practice a the team's NFL football training camp, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, in Centennial, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride reaches out to make a catch during practice at the team's NFL football training camp Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
NUUK, Greenland (AP) — Troops from several European countries, including France, Germany, Norway and Sweden, are arriving in Greenland to help boost the Arctic island's security after talks between representatives of Denmark, Greenland and the U.S. on Wednesday highlighted “fundamental disagreement” between the Trump administration and European allies.
“The first French military elements are already en route” and “others will follow,” French President Emmanuel Macron announced Wednesday, as French authorities said about 15 French soldiers from the mountain infantry unit were already in Nuuk for a military exercise.
Germany will deploy a reconnaissance team of 13 personnel to Greenland on Thursday, its Defense Ministry said.
Denmark announced it would increase its military presence in Greenland, with NATO allies joining them, just as the Danish and Greenlandic foreign ministers met with White House representatives on Wednesday in Washington to discuss U.S. President Donald Trump's intentions to take over the island in order to tap its mineral resources and protect the security of the Arctic region amid rising Russian and Chinese interest.
On Thursday, Danish Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said the intention was “to establish a more permanent military presence with a larger Danish contribution,” according to Danish broadcaster DR. He said soldiers from several NATO countries will be in Greenland on a rotation system.
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, flanked by his Greenlandic counterpart Vivian Motzfeldt, said Wednesday that a “fundamental disagreement” over Greenland remains with Trump after they held highly anticipated talks at the White House with Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Rasmussen added that it remains “clear that the president has this wish of conquering over Greenland.”
“We really need it,” Trump told media in the Oval Office after the meeting. “If we don't go in, Russia is going to go in and China is going to go in. And there's not a thing Denmark can do about it, but we can do everything about it."
Trump said he had not yet been briefed about the contents of the White House meeting when he made his remarks.
In Greenland’s capital, Nuuk, local residents told The Associated Press they were glad the first meeting between Greenlandic, Danish and American officials had taken place but suggested it left more questions than answers.
Several people said they viewed Denmark’s decision to send more troops, and promises of support from other NATO allies, as protection against possible U.S. military action. But European military officials have not suggested the goal is to deter a U.S. move against the island.
Maya Martinsen, 21, agreed and said it was “comforting to know that the Nordic countries are sending reinforcements” because Greenland is a part of Denmark and NATO.
The dispute, she said, is not about “national security” but rather about “the oils and minerals that we have that are untouched.”
On Wednesday, Poulsen had announced a stepped-up military presence in the Arctic “in close cooperation with our allies,” calling it a necessity in a security environment in which “no one can predict what will happen tomorrow.”
“This means that from today and in the coming time there will be an increased military presence in and around Greenland of aircraft, ships and soldiers, including from other NATO allies,” Poulsen said.
Asked whether the European troop movements were coordinated with NATO or what role the U.S.-led military alliance might play in the exercises, NATO referred all questions to the Danish authorities.
However, NATO is looking at how members can collectively bolster the alliance’s presence in the Arctic, according to a NATO official who was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Rasmussen, the Danish foreign minister, announced the creation of a working group with the Americans to discuss ways to work through differences.
“The group, in our view, should focus on how to address the American security concerns, while at the same time respecting the red lines of the Kingdom of Denmark,” he said.
Commenting on the outcome of the Washington meeting on Thursday, Poulsen said the working group was “better than no working group” and “a step in the right direction.” He added nevertheless that the dialogue with the U.S. did not mean “the danger has passed.”
Line McGee, a 38-year old from Copenhagen, told AP that she was glad to see some diplomatic progress. “I don’t think the threat has gone away,” she said. "But I feel slightly better than I did yesterday.”
Speaking to FOX News Channel’s Special Report on Wednesday after the White House talks, Rasmussen rejected both a military takeover and the potential purchase of the island by the U.S. Asked whether he thinks the U.S. will invade, he replied: “No, at least I do not hope so, because, I mean, that would be the end of NATO.”
Rasmussen said Greenlanders were unlikely to vote for U.S. rule even if financial incentives were offered “because I think there’s no way that U.S. will pay for a Scandinavian welfare system in Greenland, honestly speaking.”
“You haven’t introduced a Scandinavian welfare system in your own country,” he added.
Trump, in his Oval Office meeting with reporters, said: “We’ll see how it all works out. I think something will work out."
Niemann reported from Copenhagen, Denmark, and Ciobanu from Warsaw, Poland.
Fishermen load fishing lines into a boat in the harbor of Nuuk, Greenland, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)
Greenland Foreign Minister Vivian Motzfeldt, left, and Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, arrive on Capitol Hill to meet with members of the Senate Arctic Caucus, in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
