The Broncos are 10 days from some painful roster decisions.
Sean Payton, however, would prefer to lose a good player because his team has more than it can keep rather than the alternative.
“There’re going to be a number of tough decisions, but I’d rather be in that position than the position we were in two years ago at this time,” he said after his reserves battered Arizona’s, 27-7, in the second of three preseason games. “I think the talent level has gradually gotten better.”
Preseason games don’t count outside of individual evaluation. They don’t give any meaningful insight into whether a team will start fast or slow, win its division or finish last.
But the preseason can give at least an idea about quality roster depth and it certainly appears Denver’s got just that.
NFL teams must cut their rosters from 90 to 53 by 2 p.m. on Aug. 26. Every year, much is made about players being sure bets to get claimed by other teams, and every year the number is lower than expected — often less than one per team. Payton thinks his team will be getting poached this summer rather than doing the poaching.
“These guys, they’re all competing,” he said. “And we say this to them — this is serious — we’re rooting for all of them. We’re rooting for their best.
“There’s going to be some players that end up on other teams’ rosters playing. That’s part of the deal.”
With just more than a week to go, here’s another crack at projecting a 53-man group.
OFFENSE (25)
Quarterback (3): Bo Nix, Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger
Biggest question: Two or three?
Nix is the unquestioned starter and Sitdham’s played terrific ball in the preseason after signing a two-year deal this spring. Ehlinger’s not as easy of a call to keep as Zach Wilson was a year ago, but the Broncos coaches really like him, and he’s got some craftiness to his game. He’s not a slam dunk, but he could be a nice developmental project and he played well against the Cardinals.
Running back (4): J.K. Dobbins, RJ Harvey, Tyler Badie and Jaleel McLaughlin
Biggest question: Where’s the cut line … and who’s on the wrong side of it?
Payton wasn’t any clearer about this tight race in the moments after Saturday night’s game. McLaughlin had the biggest play of the night and Badie continues to be a solid performer who’s also probably Denver’s second-best pass protector after Dobbins. There’s still some ballgame left here, but at this point, it’s hard to see Audric Estime or Blake Watson making the cut. Either would be a high-quality practice squad player, though a team that had a good grade on Estime out of the draft might be tempted to take a waiver wire flyer on him if he’s cut next week.
Fullback Mike Burton will be part of the equation, but it’d be easy to see him doing the same thing he did last year: Getting cut and signing to the practice squad on the premise that he’s elevated the first three weeks and then added to the 53-man when a spot opens.
Tight end (3): Evan Engram, Adam Trautman and Caleb Lohner
Biggest question: Does Lohner make the cut?
This might be one of the positions where the initial 53-man set doesn’t really represent the true pecking order. Nate Adkins is hurt and Payton said he’d miss the early part of the regular season. If he starts on injured reserve, do the Broncos keep another or try to get Lucas Krull, Caden Prieskorn or both onto the practice squad? Either of them might play over Lohner right now, but you don’t draft a raw ball of clay like the former Utah hooper if you don’t intend on doing what it takes to keep him in your program and develop him.
Wide receiver (6): Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims Jr., Troy Franklin, Devaughn Vele, Pat Bryant, Trent Sherfield Sr.
Biggest question: Is it as simple as it looks?
This group looks like a deep one, and it also looks settled. Sherfield’s in line for a sizable role, and the other five feel like locks. That leaves a host of guys who are interesting practice squad candidates or could catch other teams’ eyes. Saturday night against Arizona, it was Courtney Jackson’s turn to have a big night (105 all-purpose yards). Kyrese Rowan, Jerjuan Newton and Joaquin Davis have each had nice moments, too, but it’s hard to find a spot on the 53-man for any of them.
Offensive line (9): Garett Bolles, Ben Powers, Luke Wattenberg, Quinn Meinerz, Mike McGlinchey, Matt Peart, Alex Palczewski, Alex Forsyth and Frank Crum
Biggest question: Is there a surprise from the young guys in store?
If there were a 10th to make the team in this projection, it would have been Nick Gargiulo until he sustained a gruesome-looking leg injury against Arizona. Instead, we got with the same set that made the team out of camp last year. The five starters are set, Peart and Palczewski look like the primary backups for four of the five spots, and Forsyth has been the No. 2 center since Wattenberg won the job last summer. Crum is just too good an athlete to subject to the waiver wire, and he’s developed some over the past year. They should have their choice of Calvin Throckmorton and a bunch of young players for practice squad spots.
DEFENSE (25)
Defensive line (6): Zach Allen, D.J. Jones, John Franklin-Myers, Malcolm Roach, Sai’vion Jones, Jordan Jackson
Biggest question: Any chance the Broncos load up here?
Maybe the single-best roster battle going right now is Jackson against Uwazurike for what looks like maybe one spot. Even taking six for an odd-front team is a substantial number, but this is a group that backs it up with talent. Both made the team last year, but Sai’vion Jones was a third-round pick whom the Broncos traded up for. He’s making the team even if he’s not in the rotation immediately. If you’re trying to keep the best football players no matter what, you might try to find a way to squeeze all seven onto the roster. Slight edge to Jackson’s versatility and pass-rush ability here. Even in a world where far fewer players get claimed on waivers than you’d think at the roster cutdown, it’d be a surprise if either guy made it back to the practice squad. Tough call, indeed.
Outside linebacker (5): Nik Bonitto, Jonathon Cooper, Jonah Elliss, Dondrea Tillman, Que Robinson
Biggest question: Not a question, just stay healthy.
This group’s pretty straightforward. Andrew Farmer and Garrett Nelson each look like potential practice squad guys who are worth keeping around, but outside of an injury situation, there’s no reason to tinker with the quintet above. The top four might be the best overall set in the NFL, and Robinson’s going to be a good special teams player right out of the gate if he’s active on game days. He’s got the length and pass-rush ability to work his way into the rotation by the end of the year or fill in if there’s an injury.
Inside linebacker (4): Alex Singleton, Dre Greenlaw, Levelle Bailey, Justin Strnad
Biggest question: Health, really.
Assuming Singleton and Greenlaw are ready to roll by Sept. 7, this group is in pretty good shape. But neither has played much so far in camp. Payton said he’s looking forward to seeing Greenlaw in padded action this week. Bailey’s had a solid camp, and Strnad’s a trusty veteran special teams player who can play on defense if needed. The Broncos like all three undrafted rookies — JB Brown, Karene Reid and Jordan Turner — but Turner’s come on strong and made several splash plays against the Cardinals. A practice squad candidate to remember. Garret Wallow’s played 35 NFL games and could be a practice squad candidate, too.
Cornerback (5): Pat Surtain II, Riley Moss, Jahdae Barron, Ja’Quan McMillian, Kris Abrams-Draine
Biggest question: Anybody else?
There may not be a better quintet in football. The question isn’t about nickel or dime packages — those competitions are among these five players. It’s really about special teams and whether 2022 fourth-round pick Damarri Mathis (who carries a $3.6 million cap hit into the final year of his rookie deal) makes the squad. It’ll be a competition with players from other position groups. Neither Mathis nor any of the other young players are supplanting Abrams-Draine. If Reese Taylor (hamstring) gets healthy over the next 10 days, he could push for a spot because of his special teams work and ability to play inside and outside.
Safety (5): Talanoa Hufanga, Brandon Jones, P.J. Locke, JL Skinner, Sam Franklin
Biggest question: How does special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi see the pecking order?
Denver signed Sam Franklin to be a special teams ace and gave him $1.338 million guaranteed. That doesn’t put him in un-cuttable territory, but it speaks to what they think he brings to the table. Devon Key is probably the next man up after Hufanga, Jones and Locke in terms of defensive ability, but if they can get him to the practice squad, perhaps they’ll try. They could also keep Skinner and Key and bring Franklin back as a veteran practice squad player.
SPECIAL TEAMS (3)
PK Wil Lutz, P Jeremy Crawshaw, LS Mitch Fraboni
Biggest question: How quickly can Crawshaw develop consistency?
The rookie sixth-round pick has big-time talent and can put the ball into orbit. But he’s struggled to hit the ball consistently, and he’s looked shaky in preseason outings so far. This is a team with Super Bowl aspirations. If Payton and the front office think the punter is at risk of costing them a game, they’ll consider their options.
Want more Broncos news? Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis.
The post Broncos 53-man roster projection: Sean Payton, George Paton have tough decisions ahead appeared first on Denver Post