The Denver Broncos are holding end-of-season tryouts, and worked out some interesting names including Beau Sandland, Wes Lunt, and more…
As is typical of this time of year, the Denver Broncos are holding tryouts for players that will be considered either for the practice squad or as reserve/futures contract players.
Last year, the Broncos discovered defensive lineman Shelby Harris among their reserve/futures contract players, so these workouts are not meaningless and while they don’t often provide teams with starting caliber players, you can find good depth and developmental guys here.
As the Broncos form out the bottom end of their roster to finish this season, players that are on their practice squad that the team wants to retain stand a very good chance of being promoted to the active roster sometime in the final month of the season, making room for some of these tryout players to get onto the practice squad and at least get a few weeks with the club before they have to wait until March to go on the 90-man roster.
Here are the reported tryout players for the Broncos:
BRONCOS tryouts: WRs Keyarris Garrett, Jordan Leslie, Josh Magee, Alonzo Moore; Gs Darrell Greene, Tre' Jackson ... more
— Howard Balzer (@HBalzer721) December 6, 2017
More BRONCOS: TEs Colin Jeter, Beau Sandland; QBs Mitch Leidner, Wes Lunt.
— Howard Balzer (@HBalzer721) December 6, 2017
It should be noted, not all of these players are locks to be signed by the Broncos to a reserve/futures deal, but the team’s interest at this point is definitely notable.
Let’s take a quick look at these prospects…
WR Keyarris Garrett
Height: 6-3
Weight: 220
Garrett was an undrafted free agent out of Tulsa in 2016, and signed to the Carolina Panthers’ practice squad after competing in training camp. He spent the entire year on Carolina’s practice squad, was signed to a futures deal, and was replaced on their practice squad by Bucky Hodges in September.
This was a size/speed freak coming out of the draft in 2016, but because of a lack of refinement in route running, he’s failed to make an impression at the next level. I did some in-depth scouting on him ahead of the 2016 NFL Draft, and felt like he could be a really good player at the next level…
WR Jordan Leslie
Height: 6-1
Weight: 205
Leslie was an undrafted free agent out of BYU in the 2015 NFL Draft class, and ended up signing originally with the Minnesota Vikings.
He’s spent time with the Vikings, Falcons, Jaguars, Browns, and Titans, but most recently with the Browns where he played in two regular season games.
He also caught his first career NFL pass, a 26-yard play, against the Indianapolis Colts back in September.
WR Josh Magee
Height: 5-10
Weight: 184
Josh Magee was an undrafted free agent in 2017 out of South Alabama, and is a former transfer player from Alabama.
With sub-4.50 speed, Magee has the potential to be a slot receiver/return specialist for the Broncos. He was placed on injured reserve by the Atlanta Falcons in September with an undisclosed injury, so it’s possible they liked him enough to try and keep him around at one point or another.
Magee, now likely healthy, has been released from the Falcons and is obviously pursuing other opportunities.
WR Alonzo Moore
Height: 6-1
Weight: 199
Moore was an undrafted free agent in 2017 out of Nebraska who originally signed with the Kansas City Chiefs. He has excellent speed, running a 4.47 second 40-yard dash, but the production was never really there at Nebraska. There could be a number of factors to that, including quarterback play.
OG Darrell Greene
Height: 6-3
Weight: 321
Big, powerful offensive guard prospect who was popped for marijuana at San Diego State and went undrafted in 2017. Greene went undrafted likely for a variety of reasons, not the least of which were his shorter arms (less than 32-inches long) and was perhaps more of a mauler in college than a refined lineman.
That said, the Philadelphia Eagles gave this kid a whopping $105,000 signing bonus as an undrafted player, so it’s a little surprising he’s not even on their practice squad.
OG Tre’ Jackson
Height: 6-4
Weight: 330
Jackson was a fourth round pick of the New England Patriots back in the 2015 NFL Draft, and simply hasn’t been able to stay healthy. He missed all of the 2016 season and was released from the Rams this year with a failed physical designation.
It’s likely Jackson has been getting himself healthy enough to appropriately work out for NFL teams, but this was a guy that Lance Zierlein once considered a second or third round player. If he can stay healthy, he might be a gem.
TE Colin Jeter
Height: 6-6
Weight: 251
The former LSU tight end had fairly modest statistics coming out of college but his intriguing blend of size and in-line blocking ability attracted teams to him as an undrafted player. He was picked up by the Indianapolis Colts as a UDFA.
TE Beau Sandland
Height: 6-4
Weight: 253
This year’s crop of tight ends was among the most talented and intriguing I have seen in my time scouting the NFL Draft. This kid was one that NFL teams felt like he was worth a shot despite not making it at Miami (FL), and he showed out athletically.
His measurables are impressive, but Sandland was also impressive against lower level competition at Montana State and has the ability to be a pass catching threat at the position. He’s definitely a great player to get a closer look at.
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QB Mitch Leidner
Height: 6-4
Weight: 230
The former Minnesota Gophers quarterback got a shot as a UDFA this year with the Minnesota Vikings, but didn’t make the team and has been taking visits around the league.
Built with NFL size, Leidner just didn’t have the production in college you expect of an NFL quarterback whatsoever.
QB Wes Lunt
Height: 6-5
Weight: 225
Continuing this team’s love affair with prototypical size quarterbacks, the Broncos took a look at Wes Lunt, formerly of Oklahoma State and Illinois.
Lunt has experience running a pro-style offense, but his completion percentage went down every year since 2014. He was simply not accurate enough to be drafted into the NFL. He also has struggled with injuries, but has a big time arm.