ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — A familiar mantra from his parents has helped Riley Moss prepare for a new season in Denver.
"My parents have always told me this: I like to learn the hard way," Moss said Thursday.
In 2025, there were plenty of successes for Moss. He led the team in passes defensed by a healthy margin as he recorded 19 PBUs — seven more than the next closest player and more than double all but two of his teammates.
He snagged an interception, recorded a sack and played 97 percent of Denver's defensive snaps. Moss' 19 passes defensed were tied for the most in the NFL, and he allowed the fourth-lowest completion rate among cornerbacks that faced at least 90 targets.
Playing opposite 2024 Defensive Player of the Year Pat Surtain II, though, didn't come without its challenges. Moss faced a league-high 118 targets, and he was whistled for a series of pass interference calls.
Moss, it should be noted, was whistled for just one penalty in the Broncos' final eight games of the season, including the postseason. Still, he entered training camp determined to lower his penalty rate — and eager to draw upon the lesson from his parents.
"It actually helps me out in those situations," Moss said Thursday of that preferred learning style. "Because yeah, they're going to throw the flag because I'm being too aggressive [or] whatever. Even 'V.J.' [Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph] will tell me, 'Keep going out there, keep playing aggressive.' It's in one ear and out the other. It happens. I know I need to do better as a whole this season. And I have been. It's been a big focus this camp.
"I'm still going to play aggressive, and I'm not going to shy away from it."
Moss' high level of play has been on display throughout camp. He broke up two deep passes again on Thursday, and the flags stayed in the referees' pockets as Moss made the plays on the ball.
Head Coach Sean Payton noted "there were some tough calls" that went against Moss in 2025, but he credited the fourth-year player for not backing down from competing. That resilient mentality, Payton said, is a key characteristic of Moss' game — and it's a necessity to play the cornerback position.
"I think there's a little grit and toughness," Payton said. "He can bury the last play. He knows he's going to get a lot of traffic and attention. Yes, I like his toughness. I think it's a tough position to play, and he doesn't back down at all from that, his confidence doesn't wane. That's a really good trait."
As Moss makes plays, he's also training his physical and mental endurance. The Broncos cornerback said Denver's defense allowed long conversions at times last year when fatigue impacted the mental side of the game.
"[The] biggest thing for me in this training camp is getting to the point of fatigue where it's really hard to think [and] I'm exhausted," Moss said. "And still being able to have great technique. Remember where my help's at, remember what we're trying to do as a defense. If we can do that — not only me, but everybody — it's going to be hard for us to get beat. Some of those third-and-longs that we gave up last year, I think part of it was the fatigue and us not being as sharp as we should be. That's the biggest thing, at least for me personally, that I'm trying to get better at, is staying locked in when I'm really tired and it's really hard to think — and still going out there and making a play."
In turn, Moss believes he can make strides in his game and show the continued improvement that he's worked toward.
"This is Year 4, and I've already proven that I can go against anyone in the league," Moss said. "Now, it's how can I be elite going against those guys?"
'IT'S NOT IF, IT'S JUST WHAT YEAR'
On Friday afternoon, Payton will head to Canton, Ohio, for Drew Brees' induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
And on Thursday in Denver, the Broncos had a visitor who Payton knows should also earn a bronze bust.
Broncos Ring of Fame head coach Mike Shanahan visited practice, and the winningest coach in franchise history spent time chatting with Payton in the early moments of the day's work.
"He's going to be there," Payton said. "… [Former Patriots coach] Bill [Belichick] obviously is going to be there. Mike's going to be there. It's not if, it's just what year."
Payton said Shanahan is "extremely" integral in telling the story of the NFL, and he spoke at length about Shanahan's impact on offensive philosophy.
"Mike, and then the coaching tree, and then the Super Bowls, every element of it fits — just like the Broncos and [Pro Football Hall of Fame QB John] Elway and the many members of that team," Payton said. "There's a chapter, a number of chapters, that are attributed to that timeframe. So, I'm looking at it really more in a microscope relative to what he was doing before anyone else was doing it. So, there are elements to him being the head coach, but then him being a heck of an offensive play caller and a forward thinker relative to how he utilized his personnel, the success they had with the wide-zone scheme, all of the play-action mechanics. … Yes, a very important part of our history."
In the most recent Hall of Fame selection process, Shanahan was among the nine semifinalists for the Coach nomination for the Class of 2026.
