The Denver Broncos enter the 2024 regular season with the third-youngest roster in the entire NFL. Head coach Sean Payton is fully committed to a youth movement after seeing what he inherited last year on the field, and you can't really blame him for that.
Payton's vision for this team is unfolding before our eyes, but there are still opportunities to upgrade the roster out there in NFL free agency and the Broncos might be wise to consider some of them. The NFL's roster rules only allow 53 players on the active roster, but you can have 16 players on your practice squad and up to six of those players can be vested veterans.
We've seen the Broncos take advantage of that by adding players like fullback Mike Burton, wide receiver Lil'Jordan Humphrey, and tight end Donald Parham to the practice squad. But could they add even more to the mix? With some intriguing names still sitting there in free agency, you never know...
3 players the Denver Broncos may consider in free agency ahead of Week 1
1. Michael Thomas, wide receiver
One area of the Denver Broncos' roster that was kind of gutted at roster cuts was the wide receiver position. The team willingly cut veteran Tim Patrick, who ended up signing right away with the Detroit Lions, but he wasn't the only player the team lost at receiver.
The Broncos said goodbye to Jalen Virgil, who signed with the Buffalo Bills' practice squad. They cut Brandon Johnson, who predictably signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers' practice squad. Even though they were able to bring back the likes of LJ Humphrey, Michael Bandy, and David Sills, some of the team's upside was sniped at roster cuts.
So why not take a shot on Michael Thomas? Thomas isn't young anymore, but as a practice squad addition, he could be very intriguing. The Broncos would be under no pressure to play him and could simply see what he's got left in the tank, if anything.
2. Micah Hyde, safety
At the present moment, the Denver Broncos aren't desperate for safety help.
...at present moment.
The decision to release Justin Simmons early in the offseason was necessary but gut-wrenching. The Broncos needed the cap savings and they got it, but at the cost of their most consistently productive defensive player of the last eight years.
They also moved on late last season from Kareem Jackson and made Caden Sterns a surprise cut after the start of training camp. On top of all the guys the Broncos willingly got rid of, they haven't seen much of free agent acquisition Brandon Jones at all this offseason as he's been dealing with injuries.
Adding a veteran like Micah Hyde would give the Broncos someone with big game experience and another veteran voice in the defensive backfield who could raise the floor if the young guys struggle.
3. Zech McPhearson, cornerback
I'm going to steal a little bit of low-hanging fruit here as the Broncos actually already had Zech McPhearson in for a workout this week.
The former fourth-round pick of the Philadelphia Eagles was cut after the preseason and has certainly had his share of struggles in the pros. He missed all of last season due to injury but could be a nice candidate to bounce back when he's fully recovered and back to 100 percent confidence.
Over his first two seasons with the Eagles, McPhearson played a ton of special teams. With Damarri Mathis landing on temporary IR to start the season, having someone with a lot of special teams reps like McPhearson could benefit the Broncos in that phase and he could also develop into depth at corner.