With the 2022 NFL season just a couple of months away from kicking off, several former Denver Broncos players are still wondering if their NFL playing careers will continue.
With mandatory minicamps starting to open, the 32 NFL teams have a pretty good idea of how their total roster is going to look for the 2022 season, now it’s just time to set up the depth chart and start putting an overall plan in place.
Throughout the summer, when teams begin to realize that there isn’t enough talent or depth at a certain position or if an injury occurs to a key piece of the team, looking at street free agents is something teams can do to fill those holes.
That may be the only way that some of these former Broncos continue their playing careers. With the free-agent signing period having started months ago, it is clear that there either isn’t much interest in any of these guys, they are asking for too much money or they are waiting for the right situation to open up.
If none of those things happen, then it is possible that the careers of the following players have come to an end.
Former Broncos players who might be done in the NFL
Malik Jackson
Played for the Broncos from 2012-15
Malik Jackson was a fifth-round pick of the Broncos in 2012 who went from a rotational piece on the defense to one of the biggest reasons the defense was so dominant the year the team won Super Bowl 50.
Following that game, in which he scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery that set the tone for the game, he took a massive deal in free agency from the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jackson has played for three teams since leaving the Broncos and though he posted solid numbers in Jacksonville, he hasn’t been very relevant since.
He spent the 2021 season with the Cleveland Browns, starting in all 16 games for them but he registered just half a sack. The Browns did not bring him back and Jackson, who is now 32 years old, is waiting to see if another team is interested in his services.