The Denver Broncos showed off their outstanding roster depth in the team's preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers, and everyone knows some difficult roster cuts are on the way.
Hopefully, the Broncos will be able to recoup some value for players who are too good to just cut, but no matter what, GM George Paton and head coach Sean Payton will likely be saying goodbye to some promising players. After the team's preseason debut, we could be in line for more surprise roster moves than initially anticipated.
With one preseason game in the books and the Arizona Cardinals on deck, we're going to take a crack at projecting the 53-man roster with some twists and turns on both sides of the ball.
Broncos 53-man roster prediction after 1st preseason game
Quarterback: 2 (2/53)
- Bo Nix
- Jarrett Stidham
There should be no real surprise here, even with Sam Ehlinger putting together a solid training camp as the team's QB3. The Broncos should be able to sneak Ehlinger onto the practice squad where he can continue serving in that QB3 role. The duo of Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham is a good one for the Broncos, and Stidham has been on a particular heater lately this offseason. He had a near-perfect preseason debut for the Broncos.
Specialists: 3 (5/53)
- K Wil Lutz
- P Jeremy Crawshaw
- LS Mitchell Fraboni
There is nothing to report among the specialists for the Broncos. They have nobody competing for any of these jobs at this point, so special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi already has his group solidified. Barring something shocking or unexpected, this will be the trio the team takes into the regular season.
Running backs: 4 (9/53)
- JK Dobbins
- RJ Harvey
- Tyler Badie
- Blake Watson
This is currently one of the toughest positions to sort out, and also one of the easiest to have recency bias. Tyler Badie was well on his way to taking over the RB1 job for the Broncos last season before getting hurt against the New York Jets. It's clear that this team really likes him, but does Sean Payton like Badie, Blake Watson, or Audric Estimé enough to actually cut someone like Jaleel McLaughlin?
McLaughlin has made an impression for three years in Denver and has been called a "change of pace" back by Payton, but this is a very wide-open competition right now that could have a bunch of different versions before we get to final roster cuts.
Wide receivers: 6 (15/53)
- Courtland Sutton
- Marvin Mims
- Troy Franklin
- Devaughn Vele
- Pat Bryant
- Trent Sherfield
I don't see any question marks here at receiver for the Broncos. They have a very clear pecking order and a very clear drop-off when it comes to the top six gys and the rest of the players competing. It doesn't feel like anyone beyond these six players is competing for anything other than a practice squad spot, and the Broncos might even be doing some scouting outside of their own players for practice squad players.
Tight ends: 4 (19/53)
- Evan Engram
- Adam Trautman
- Lucas Krull
- Caleb Lohner
This is another position group that has some level of uncertainty early on in the preseason. Lucas Krull caught a wide-open touchdown in the preseason but has also quietly been making some plays at training camp. Nate Adkins has been nowhere to be found, but has a much more established regular season role with the team as a special teams player and hybrid tight end/fullback.
It'll be interesting to see where the Broncos prioritize a roster spot because Krull offers more upside in the passing game, but Adkins may have a higher floor.
Offensive Line: 9 (28/53)
- Garett Bolles
- Ben Powers
- Luke Wattenberg
- Quinn Meinerz
- Mike McGlinchey
- Alex Palczewski
- Alex Forsyth
- Nick Gargiulo
- Frank Crum
The Broncos have gone with a youth movement on their second offensive line, and they played pretty darn well in the preseason opener against the 49ers. We're getting our first extensive look at 2024 7th-round pick Nick Gargiulo, who has been a developmental project for the team on the interior.
It seems like the final positions on the offensive line could come down to Frank Crum, Matt Peart, and Alex Palczewski, and my lean right now is that the Broncos will continue with the youth movement and take a shot on Crum taking over the role Peart played last year.
Defensive Line: 6 (34/53)
- Zach Allen
- John Franklin-Myers
- DJ Jones
- Malcolm Roach
- Sai'vion Jones
- Eyioma Uwazurike
The assembly of the defensive line will likely come down to whether or not the team keeps five or six guys on the 53, and if they keep six, is it going to be Eyioma Uwazurike or Jordan Jackson? Jackson played and played solid for the team last season, but Uwazurike seems to potentially be the more well-liked player among the scouting department.
The preseason will be huge for both of those guys in making their final case for the roster.
EDGE Rushers: 5 (39/53)
- Nik Bonitto
- Jonathon Cooper
- Jonah Elliss
- Dondrea Tillman
- Que Robinson
There are a few positions that are just already set in stone for the Broncos at training camp, and this is one of them. It would be a shocker if the group looked any different than this going into the regular season. All of these guys are going to contribute in huge, meaningful ways this season, both defensively and on special teams.
Linebackers: 4 (43/53)
- Dre Greenlaw
- Alex Singleton
- Justin Strnad
- Levelle Bailey
The biggest surprise cut of this 53-man roster projection is linebacker Drew Sanders. Now, the Broncos could end up placing him on short-term IR to start the year, which is more likely the case at this point, but it also wouldn't be shocking to see them part ways with him altogether if they feel like his situation is a lost cause.
Sean Payton has told stories about a 4th-round running back he once drafted who was out-played by undrafted Pierre Thomas, and they ended up cutting the 4th-round pick. Maybe this is a similar situation with Sanders and former UDFA Levelle Bailey, who has had a nice camp.
Safety: 5 (48/53)
- Talanoa Hufanga
- Brandon Jones
- PJ Locke
- Devon Key
- JL Skinner
There are some wild cards at safety, but this is another position group that should be relatively straightforward to project. The interesting wrinkle here would be if the team decides to keep just four safeties (and six corners) instead of five each, and which player would get the axe.
JL Skinner is one of the team's top special teams players, and Devon Key has made some plays dating back to last year, so I would guess both of those guys are going to be on the team.
Cornerback: 5 (53/53)
- Pat Surtain II
- Riley Moss
- Ja'Quan McMillian
- Jahdae Barron
- Kris Abrams-Draine
Do the Broncos keep five cornerbacks or six? They could stash a player or two on the practice squad, and you'd hate to see a player like Damarri Mathis get flat-out cut, but that could be the reality we're facing here. The Broncos have the best cornerback group in the entire NFL with at least five guys who could start realistically on other teams.