The realization hit Juwann Winfree last week.

The football standout from Dwight Morrow High School in Englewood has, in fact, reached the NFL.

“Rookies had our last workout before we were able to go on break, which started last Friday,” Winfree said Wednesday. “And I was just looking down at my Broncos hoodie, and I’m like, ‘Wow, I’m really blessed and thankful that I really actually made it’.”

The 6-foot-3 wide receiver is enjoying a few weeks at home before Denver’s training camp begins in earnest. His family used the opportunity to throw the sixth-round draft pick a sendoff party, dubbed the "Next Level Celebration", at Picco Tavern in Hackensack.

Juwann and his father, Carl, also formally announced the creation of the Team Winfree Youth Foundation, a charity aimed at getting youngsters in North Jersey – and, eventually, beyond – involved with organized sports.

“Our goal is to provide opportunities where youths who are motivated to excel in sports will thrive,” said Carl Winfree, who serves as Team Winfree COO.

“We will expand as we get bigger,” he added. “We’ll expand out to the Denver area, since once of us will be playing for the Broncos.”

That would be the CEO of the nonprofit. Juwann, 22, grew up playing football in Englewood and graduated from Dwight Morrow in 2014. He landed on the All-North Jersey defensive first team as a senior cornerback, but all signs pointed to offense being his calling.

“I remember when I’d be stuck in the house with him and my other brother [Jordan] when my parents were at work,” older sister Jazmin Winfree said. “Juwann would be throwing the football back and forth to himself in the kitchen, going, ‘Keyshawn Johnson! Tiki Barber!’ … he’d drive me crazy, but look where we’re at now.”

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Winding road

Not that his path to the pros necessarily followed a straight line. Juwann signed a letter of intent to play at Maryland and was there a year before transferring to Coffeyville Community College in Kansas.

He then spent three years at Colorado, where he completed a degree in sociology. On the field, Winfree lost his junior season to a medical redshirt (torn ACL) and worked his way back to become the 187th overall pick in this spring’s NFL Draft.

“We were just anxiously waiting, waiting together for that phone call,” Carl Winfree recalled of Draft Day. “I got tired of waiting.”

Carl went upstairs but did not miss his son’s big moment.

“All I did was hear noise from downstairs, and I knew it meant something,” he said. “Hearing that yell from downstairs just brought tears to everybody’s eyes, because we know the time that Juwann put in to get that opportunity, and it finally came.”

Up ahead

The next leg of the journey involves gaining separation from a group of 13 receivers that will be in Broncos training camp. Beyond established starters Emmanuel Sanders and Courtland Sutton, several spots appear to be up for grabs.

That Winfree has begun to develop a rapport with new Denver quarterback (and fellow Jersey guy) Joe Flacco is a critical step for the rookie.

“I’ve gotten a few reps in with him so far, made some plays with him,” Winfree said. “I just want to build a trust with him, because he’s an NFL [veteran].”

Winfree will head back to Colorado the second week of July, and if all goes well, he hopes to establish a residence out there by the end of August. The Broncos will play the first game of the preseason against Atlanta in the Aug. 1 Hall of Fame game in Canton, Ohio.

“It’s been all I could’ve ever dreamed of and even more,” Winfree said. “With the success I’ve been having so far within [rookie minicamp], it’s been allowing me to open some eyes and show that I can really do even more.

“I’m just getting started.”