Denver Broncos: TE John Phillips added to roster

Dec 14, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers tight end John Phillips (83) walks to the sideline during the first quarter against the Denver Broncos at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 14, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Chargers tight end John Phillips (83) walks to the sideline during the first quarter against the Denver Broncos at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Denver Broncos made a roster move on Thursday, adding veteran TE John Phillips, formerly of the San Diego Chargers…

The Denver Broncos added veteran tight end John Phillips to the roster on Thursday afternoon, waiving tight end Mannaseh Garner to keep the roster at 90 players.

Phillips is a 6-5, 251 pound tight end and former sixth round draft pick of the Dallas Cowboys out of Virginia. He has started 32 games in his eight years in the NFL, playing in a total of 95 games. He brings some more experience to a Broncos tight end group that has had a few players nursing injuries this offseason.

Known mostly for his blocking, Phillips has caught 45 passes with four touchdowns over the course of his time in the NFL, and has also racked up 37 special teams tackles.

The added value on special teams is a bonus for the Broncos, who expressed some concern over their tight end situation recently.

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“First off, it’s a fairly young group. Jeff [Heuerman] missed all of last year,” Head coach Gary Kubiak said Thursday. “Virgil [Green] is the elder statesman of the group and he’s missed the offseason, so it’s a group that missed a lot of time OTA-wise compared to the rest of the team. They have some catching up to do. But it is a good group and hopefully we keep them healthy and keep them on the field. I think they have a chance to be pretty good.”

Phillips has had a couple of major knee injuries in his NFL career, tearing his ACL in both 2010 and 2013.

I don’t know if he has a great chance of making the Broncos’ roster, but he’ll provide them with another big, veteran player who can learn the offense quickly and try and make some noise in the preseason.