Broncos Need to Make Roster Moves With Von Miller’s Return
Aug 29, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos wide receiver Tavarres King (15) celebrates with running back Jacob Hester (22) after his touchdown in the third quarter against the Arizona Cardinals at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Cardinals won 32-24. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
The Broncos have some moving around to do on the roster as Von Miller returns from suspension, but there was another development that could cause the team to change its plans even further.
Wide receiver Tavarres King, one of the team’s two fifth round picks in 2013, has apparently been in talks to join the 53-man roster of the Green Bay Packers.
The Broncos, however, are not so keen on that idea. Mike Klis of the Denver Post reported that the Broncos’ rookie receiver has indeed gotten an offer to join the Packers, but the Broncos are working to keep him.
Keeping King makes sense for a variety of reasons. The Broncos drafted him, first of all, and he is a very talented young player that could eventually make a significant impact.
John Elway and company already got lucky being able to sneak King on the practice squad after the pre-season. Obviously they are not going to be lucky for much longer, having had King on the practice squad for six weeks. Now, injuries have taken their toll on the rest of the league, and King has become a desired commodity.
The Broncos keep four receivers on their roster right now, eight if you include their four tight ends. Julius Thomas has developed into something of a fourth receiver out there, but in terms of pure wide receivers, the Broncos keep just four.
To me, that’s not quite enough. I realize the Broncos have Gerrell Robinson developing on the practice squad as well, and any receiver that plays with Peyton Manning should have his play elevated, however I don’t think there’s any denying that while Robinson is further along than King in his development, King is the more talented player.
If the Broncos have a chance to keep King on the roster, they ought to do it. Denver’s special teams and defensive backfield are very deep, and they have two older veterans whose services have become almost completely unnecessary with the return of Von Miller and the emergence of young players like Kayvon Webster.
Quentin Jammer and Paris Lenon were some veteran pickups made by the Broncos to shore up depth and add veteran presences at their respective positions, but those could be the first two on the chopping block if the Broncos decide Tavarres King is worth keeping.
Personally, I would find a way to keep King. The Broncos are one injury away from needing King’s depth at least on the bench, and I thought before the season started they were better off keeping five receivers AND Trindon Holliday on the roster, even with their plethora of tight ends.
The Broncos don’t have to cut a tight end to get room for King.
If they let go of Lenon, Nate Irving can back up the MLB position behind Wesley Woodyard (who says he’ll be back vs. IND), and you have Danny Trevathan, Steven Johnson, Von, and newly acquired Adrian Robinson. Shaun Phillips can also play OLB if the need should arise. Obviously with the return of Von, one of the LBs will be cut.
With the Broncos trying to keep King, it’ll be interesting to see who they would cut or consider cutting to keep him around. Guys like Steve Vallos are purely injury replacement players. Quentin Jammer doesn’t have much special teams value, whereas at least King could get out there and be a gunner or something like that.
After having huge roles in 2012, Jacob Tamme and Joel Dreessen have taken a significant dip in production, doing almost nothing in terms of catching passes this year. The Broncos could maybe get some trade value for one of them, but that doesn’t seem overly likely at this point.
Running Back C.J. Anderson is a guy fans would love to see on the field at some point, but with the way the Broncos have lulled the rest of the NFL to sleep on him, he might sneak through waivers onto the practice squad. Still, I don’t know how likely that is either because the Broncos are smart keeping that emergency fourth back on the roster.
One way or another, I’d like to see the Broncos keep Tavarres King, a rookie player with some nice upside and the ability to step up next year if the Broncos end up losing Eric Decker to free agency.