The Denver Broncos have assembled a heck of a roster with plenty of youth and veterans mixed together. Who will make up the final 53?
The Denver Broncos’ roster won’t be decided for nearly four months, but that doesn’t mean we can’t take a look into our crystal ball and try to figure out how things will shake out between now and then.
The Broncos have infused their roster with a combination of youth and veterans to make up what we can truly, honestly say is one of the most talented young rosters in football right now.
This group has plenty to prove on the field and there are undoubtedly question marks heading into 2020, but Denver Broncos fans have every right to be excited about the future of the team.
For the first time in the John Elway as a general manager era, the Broncos appear to have a young solution at the quarterback position in Drew Lock. They also now appear to have the best assembly of weapons on offense they have had since Demaryius Thomas, Eric Decker, Julius Thomas, and Wes Welker — The Four Horsemen — helped the Broncos set an all-time scoring record with Peyton Manning at the helm in 2013.
This team may not score over 600 points in 2020, but they are certainly going to be better than the 17 points per game units Denver has had in recent years.
To go along with the talented young offense, the Broncos return the majority of their top 10 defense from last season and have probably gotten substantially better on that side of the ball.
The addition of Jurrell Casey up front is one of the most underrated league-wide, and the return of Bradley Chubb is astronomical for Vic Fangio’s defense.
We saw Fangio as a rookie head coach making some serious lemonade out there with a variety of injuries and ineptitude, and now that top 10 defensive unit has added some significant pieces.
Although predicting the roster and depth chart right now seems like a fruitless endeavor given the number of changes we will see between now and September, it is always fun to predict and then look back at exactly how much did change in only four months’ time.
Let’s take a crack at predicting the Broncos’ 2020 roster (53 players for now) and depth chart.
Quarterback
(2, 2/53)
- Drew Lock
- Jeff Driskel
The Denver Broncos should plan to go into the season with two active roster quarterbacks — specifically Drew Lock and Jeff Driskel.
The other options on the roster right now are second-year player Brett Rypien and undrafted rookie Riley Neal from Vanderbilt.
Although Rypien spent all of last season on the Broncos’ practice squad and was a coveted undrafted player a year ago, he’s going to have to prove himself in Pat Shurmur’s offense to be worthy of a 53-man roster spot.
Riley Neal has a very small college sample size to work with but obviously some tools that the Broncos liked. My guess is, his ceiling for the 2020 season is on the practice squad, but you never know.
Having three quarterbacks on an active roster is not uncommon, but it’s not necessarily preferred. The Broncos did it last year because Drew Lock was injured in the preseason, otherwise they would have probably gone into the season with just Joe Flacco and Drew Lock.
Having Lock and Driskel active weekly gives the Broncos the two options they need, and they can have a QB on the practice squad who could be called upon in case of injuries.
Running Backs
(3, 5/53)
- Phillip Lindsay
- Melvin Gordon
- Royce Freeman
With no fullback on the roster this year — at least not in the traditional sense — the Broncos are back to having three running backs on the active 53-man roster.
There is some room here for competition.
The Broncos have the speedy Khalfani Muhammad back for another offseason competition, as well as another speedy back in the undrafted stud Levante Bellamy out of Western Michigan.
They also signed an intriguing athlete in Jeremy Cox as a reserve/futures player.
Right now, it feels like the top three spots here are solidified, and the Broncos will certainly carry a back on the practice squad. The front-runner there would have to be Bellamy, but running back is one of those positions where competition really brings out the best in most of these players, and teams are willing to ride the hot hand more often than not.
It wouldn’t surprise me if the Broncos let some of the new guys challenge Freeman for that third spot behind Phillip Lindsay and Melvin Gordon, who are both locks for the roster.
Wide Receiver
(6, 11/53)
- Courtland Sutton
- Jerry Jeudy
- KJ Hamler
- DaeSean Hamilton
- Diontae Spencer
- Tyrie Cleveland
The Broncos will have some fierce competition for roster spots at receiver this offseason, and don’t be surprised if they try to carry seven into the regular season.
This position group went from a huge question mark to one of the most talented on the roster in a matter of 24 hours at the 2020 NFL Draft.
Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler are the young stars joining Courtland Sutton, and DaeSean Hamilton came on at the end of last season when Drew Lock became the quarterback.
Hamilton, entering year three with the Broncos, is quite possibly one of the more underrated breakout candidates on the team.
There are lots of mouths to feed on this offense right now, but the top four guys on this list are going to be heavily involved in the offensive game plan while Diontae Spencer and Tyrie Cleveland are your special teams aces.
This would require the Broncos to make tough calls on guys like Tim Patrick and Juwann Winfree, but like I said — don’t discount the possibility of seven receivers making the squad.
Tight Ends
(4, 15/53)
- Noah Fant
- Albert Okwuegbunam
- Nick Vannett
- Andrew Beck (TE/FB/ST)
The Broncos have a fun young group of tight ends to watch compete this offseason.
Noah Fant and Albert Okwuegbunam seem to be the featured pieces of this group going forward, but the team signed free agent Nick Vannett this offseason as well as re-signed Jeff Heuerman last year.
They have plenty of young guys who make sense to keep around if they are healthy including Jake Butt, Troy Fumagalli, and Austin Fort.
I chose this group of four guys for a couple of reasons.
I think Vannett stands a good chance because he was obviously prioritized after Pat Shurmur was brought in. What’s the reason for that? He also got a two-year deal with some solid guarantees. That doesn’t mean his roster spot is set in stone but it makes it more likely than not he makes it.
Jeff Heuerman doesn’t have much dead money if he’s cut or traded and he could attract value elsewhere in the league.
Butt and Fumagalli are interesting and both former fifth-round picks with huge upside. They also both missed their entire rookie seasons due to injuries.
Butt has not played for the majority of his first three NFL seasons, but if he’s healthy, he is an asset to the team.
I think Beck gets the nod behind Vannett at this point because of his tremendous versatility. He played some tight end last year, some fullback, and a lot of special teams.
Offensive linemen
(8, 23/52)
- Garett Bolles (LT)
- Dalton Risner (LG)
- Lloyd Cushenberry III (C)
- Graham Glasgow (RG)
- Ja’Wuan James (RT)
- Elijah Wilkinson (OT)
- Netane Muti (OG)
- Patrick Morris (C)
The Broncos made some moves in the 2020 offseason to upgrade their offensive line, drafting Lloyd Cushenberry III from LSU and signing Graham Glasgow from the Detroit Lions.
Both players help solidify the team’s interior offensive line, but questions remain about the team’s tackle position with Garett Bolles, Ja’Wuan James, and Elijah Wilkinson.
Wilkinson will compete with Bolles for the left tackle job, but unless the Broncos bring in a veteran at the left tackle position, I think both are locks for the roster regardless.
Rookie Netane Muti should make the squad as a backup guard and with Wilkinson’s flexibility as a guard/tackle, he can help there as needed as well.
Patrick Morris seems to be a favored young prospect of Mike Munchak’s and he could be the top backup center on the team.
Defensive linemen
(6, 29/53)
- Shelby Harris
- Jurrell Casey
- Mike Purcell
- Dre’Mont Jones
- McTelvin Agim
- Christian Covington
The Broncos made the big move to trade for Jurrell Casey this offseason after missing out on free agent DJ Reader.
Casey might be older, but he’s going to be a high-impact player for this team in 2020.
The Broncos also re-signed both Shelby Harris and Mike Purcell, and they drafted McTelvin Agim in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Arkansas.
After the draft, the Broncos signed free agent Christian Covington to a one-year contract.
This is a position group where the competition on the field will make a huge difference. DeMarcus Walker is once again competing for his roster life out there, and the Broncos also have players like Joel Heath and Jonathan Harris competing for jobs.
This competition will be fascinating, and the Broncos have a lot of talent on their defensive front. Ultimately, I think they will keep six guys but that can always fluctuate based on who plays well.
Edge rushers (OLBs)
(6, 35/50)
- Von Miller
- Bradley Chubb
- Jeremiah Attaochu
- Malik Reed
- Justin Hollins
- Derrek Tuszka
This seems like an excessive amount of edge players to keep around, but the Broncos have to keep their best 53 on the roster and the flexibility of bringing guys off of the practice squad helps at other positions as well.
Malik Reed, Justin Hollins, and Derrek Tuszka would need to prove themselves to be invaluable on special teams to all make the roster, but Hollins’ flexibility at other LB positions also helps his roster chances.
Even with Jeremiah Attaochu’s nice finish to the 2019 season, there’s a chance he could be beaten out by other guys on this list if he doesn’t build off of that strong finish.
Linebackers
(5, 40/53)
- Alexander Johnson
- Todd Davis
- Josey Jewell
- Joseph Jones
- Justin Strnad
The breakout season of Alexander Johnson in 2019 really changed everything for the Broncos’ defense going forward.
With Johnson and Todd Davis back for another season, the Broncos’ linebacker group might not change a ton outside of Justin Strnad entering the conversation.
If Strnad is healthy, he should compete for a roster spot as a special teams guy first, but a potential starter down the line with his coverage skills.
This would mean the Broncos were keeping a total of 11 linebackers, which seems like a ton, but again — you have to keep your top 53 guys and this could be the way the Broncos do that.
Cornerbacks
(7, 47/53)
- AJ Bouye
- Bryce Callahan
- Michael Ojemudia
- Duke Dawson
- De’Vante Bausby
- Isaac Yiadim
- Davontae Harris
On this initial projection, I have the Broncos keeping seven cornerbacks and three safeties, something that could definitely change as we see guys on the field.
As of right now, we’ve actually seen some of the upside of these guys compared to the safety position where a few guys are either undrafted or reserve/futures players.
With that said, the Broncos could also choose to groom one or a couple of these guys as possible safety/cornerback hybrids in Vic Fangio’s scheme. That possibility has been thrown around for guys like Duke Dawson, Isaac Yiadom, and Davontae Harris before, not by the Broncos but by fans.
I really like this young group of corners for the Broncos. Until someone emerges at safety behind the top three guys, I like the idea of keeping this group and then using the roster exceptions to call up a safety in the event that one is needed.
The Broncos also have young players like Alijah Holder, Shakial Taylor, and Essang Bassey competing for spots here.
Safeties
(3, 50/53)
- Justin Simmons
- Kareem Jackson
- Trey Marshall
Justin Simmons and Kareem Jackson make up potentially the best safety tandem in the NFL when both are healthy, and not coincidentally, they also now make up the most expensive safety duo in the NFL.
Last year, the Broncos had Will Parks in this group in addition to Trey Marshall, but when Parks flexed to the nickel corner position, Marshall filled in at the safety position nicely.
He made his share of mistakes, sure, but Marshall looks like he has a nice future in the league.
Behind these top three guys are Kahani Smith, PJ Locke, and Douglas Coleman. At this point, we really know nothing about those guys as far as it relates to translating to the NFL.
Any one of them could steal a roster spot this offseason.
Specialists
(3, 53/53)
- Brandon McManus (K)
- Sam Martin (P)
- Jacob Bobenmoyer (LS)
Brandon McManus is the lone returning ‘starter’ among the Broncos’ specialists in 2020.
McManus will have a new long snapper — Jacob Bobenmoyer or Wes Farnsworth — and a new holder on field goals (punter Sam Martin).
The competition at long snapper between Bobenmoyer and Farnsworth is the only intrigue here — the kicker and punter spots are already decided.
It will be McManus kicking the field goals and handling kickoff duties while free agent acquisition Sam Martin (Detroit) will take over the punting duties.
We already mentioned him earlier, but the Broncos also have Diontae Spencer back as their primary return specialist and the favorite to win that job in 2020.
Depth Chart Prediction
QB: Drew Lock, Jeff Driskel
RB: Phillip Lindsay, Melvin Gordon, Royce Freeman
WR: Courtland Sutton, KJ Hamler, Tyrie Cleveland
WR: Jerry Jeudy, KJ Hamler, Diontae Spencer
SLOT: DaeSean Hamilton, KJ Hamler
TE: Noah Fant, Albert Okwuegbunam, Nick Vannett, Andrew Beck
LT: Garett Bolles, Elijah Wilkinson
LG: Dalton Risner, Netane Muti
C: Lloyd Cushenberry, Patrick Morris
RG: Graham Glasgow, Elijah Wilkinson
RT: Ja’Wuan James, Elijah Wilkinson
DE: Jurrell Casey, Dre’Mont Jones
DT: Mike Purcell, Christian Covington
DE: Shelby Harris, McTelvin Agim
EDGE: Von Miller, Jeremiah Attaochu, Justin Hollins
EDGE: Bradley Chubb, Malik Reed, Derrek Tuszka
LB: Alexander Johnson, Josey Jewell, Justin Strnad
LB: Todd Davis, Joseph Jones
CB: AJ Bouye, De’Vante Bausby
CB: Michael Ojemudia, Isaac Yiadom, Davontae Harris
NCB: Bryce Callahan, Duke Dawson
FS: Justin Simmons, Trey Marshall
SS: Kareem Jackson
K: Brandon McManus
P: Sam Martin
LS: Jacob Bobenmoyer