Denver Broncos roster: 53-man roster unofficially set

DENVER, CO - AUGUST 11: Quarterback Paxton Lynch #12 of the Denver Broncos passes against the Minnesota Vikings during an NFL preseason game at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on August 11, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - AUGUST 11: Quarterback Paxton Lynch #12 of the Denver Broncos passes against the Minnesota Vikings during an NFL preseason game at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on August 11, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
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DENVER, CO – AUGUST 11: Quarterback Paxton Lynch #12 of the Denver Broncos passes against the Minnesota Vikings during an NFL preseason game at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on August 11, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO – AUGUST 11: Quarterback Paxton Lynch #12 of the Denver Broncos passes against the Minnesota Vikings during an NFL preseason game at Broncos Stadium at Mile High on August 11, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)

The Denver Broncos have assembled their initial 53-man roster with a ton of surprises on both sides of the ball. Here’s a look at each position.

The Denver Broncos’ 53-man roster is unofficially official.

We say that because every single year, the Broncos set a 53-man roster by the Saturday deadline and then somehow change it by Sunday afternoon again.

That’s likely to be the case again as the Broncos have made some very odd decisions in certain areas of the roster, which we’re here to reveal and discuss.

Let’s take a look at each position and discuss the players the Broncos decided to keep and cut.

Quarterback (3/53)

Kept: Case Keenum, Chad Kelly, Paxton Lynch
Cut: None

Vance Joseph said this past week that if you have three quarterbacks you believe can be franchise guys, that’s the biggest benefit to keeping three on the roster.

Otherwise, there are none.

The Broncos are not going to dress three quarterbacks on gameday, so keeping Paxton Lynch around is not a football move, but a financial decision (since the Broncos will be paying him nearly $4 million regardless) and a belief that he can maybe still develop.

I said on Friday that I wouldn’t fault Elway for doing this unless it was at the expense of someone else on the roster who could make an impact.

We’ll get into that later.

This decision is not necessarily final. The Broncos can, at any point, trade or release Lynch. But he’s on the 53-man roster for now.

Schedule