Denver Broncos: Trey Marshall promoted off of practice squad
The Denver Broncos promoted safety Trey Marshall from the practice squad, waiving veteran Shamarko Thomas. What prompted this move?
The Denver Broncos have promoted safety Trey Marshall from their practice squad and waived veteran Shamarko Thomas in order to make room for him.
Because of the fact that Thomas plays a pretty big role on gamedays, one would expect that Marshall is not being promoted simply so the Broncos can prevent him from signing with another team, though that’s what was about to happen.
Marshall’s inclusion on the active roster will give the Broncos a whopping 13 rookies on the 53-man roster.
The Browns — Denver’s week 15 opponent — will match that number with 13 rookies on their active roster as well.
Marshall checks in at 6-feet, 207 pounds and is a rocked up safety prospect who can attack downfield extremely well. He specializes in making big hits, which makes him an ideal fit to jump in on special teams.
If the Broncos promoted him over Shamarko Thomas, they obviously talked it over with special teams coordinator Tom McMahon, who has been utilizing Thomas a lot this season.
Thomas made a great play in the Broncos’ win over the Bengals, hitting punt returner Alex Erickson after he muffed a punt, allowing Dymonte Thomas to recover.
Marshall’s college highlight reel from is full of big hits. He wasn’t invited to the Scouting Combine but showed elite athleticism at the Florida State pro day, running a 4.56-second 40-yard dash with a 36.5-inch vertical jump and 15 bench press reps at 225 pounds.
Unless there are a variety of injuries, Marshall is unlikely to see a lot of time at safety in the last three games, but he could end up having a significant impact on special teams.
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He flies down the field and takes good angles to returners, not only making tackles but making potentially game-altering hits. That head-hunter mentality could get him into trouble in today’s NFL, but the Broncos felt he was worthy of a promotion at this time of year and with demand from other teams, it seems like yet another undrafted find for the Broncos could end up making an impact.