5 players already tumbling down the depth chart at Broncos training camp

It's the early stages of training camp and it's nearly impossible to make depth chart determinations at this point. The real depth chart shuffling will start to reveal itself as the team gets into preseason games. With the Denver Broncos, it's especially hard to determine which players are moving and shaking the depth chart right now because of reporting restrictions out of training camp.

We can only read tea leaves, follow breadcrumbs, and do our best to identify which players have been standing out so far. And again, it's so early on in camp. The Broncos have only had just two padded practices and they are rotating players with different units to find these answers themselves.

The best we can do at this point is speculate and discuss what we know. But let's talk about a few players on the roster who may be "tumbling" down the depth chart, or at least giving way to other players who are looking good.

Players "tumbling" down the Denver Broncos depth chart early in training camp

1. Tony Jones Jr., running back

The running back position has been one of the more underrated storylines for this Denver Broncos team over the course of the offseason. Of course, the biggest news has been the speedy return of Javonte Williams, the top running back on the team. Beyond that, the Broncos brought in Samaje Perine from the Bengals in free agency and many people thought they could still be big players still on the free agent or trade market for additional depth.

Up to this point, the biggest addition the team has made outside of Samaje Perine has been Tony Jones Jr., the former undrafted free agent who played for Sean Payton in New Orleans. Jones is another big, powerful back like Williams and Perine, and it feels a little bit like he's dropping down the depth chart at this point.

Both Tyler Badie and Jaleel McLaughlin offer the Broncos an element of speed at the position that none of the other backs bring to the table, and it feels like those two are clearly the favorites over Tony Jones Jr. at this point in time, despite the fact that his presence on the roster may have indicated he was an initial favorite, given his prior time in New Orleans with Payton and company.

2. Backup interior offensive linemen

Are we already seeing offensive line depth issues rear their ugly head? The Denver Broncos have gotten a lot of positive publicity this offseason -- somewhat surprisingly so -- for the way their offensive line looks.

And the starting five definitely looks better than it did a year ago at this time. There's no question about that. The additions of Mike McGlinchey at the right tackle position and Ben Powers at the left guard spot give the Broncos a new level of physicality and just an overall massive upgrade in the talent department.

The offensive line depth, though?

It's hard to know exactly what the Broncos went into training camp thinking as far as the two-deep. We assume Cam Fleming is the team's top option as the swing tackle, and that's probably the case. But who is backing up the interior offensive line? Well, whoever it was, the Broncos might be relatively concerned about it.

They recently signed big Yasir Durant to provide some level of experience with young players like Luke Wattenberg, Alex Forsyth, and Kyle Fuller making up the primary depth there. This could be an area the team continues to seek upgrades.

3. Matt Henningsen, defensive line

There were some pretty significant changes made on the defensive line this offseason for the Denver Broncos. Notably, Dre'Mont Jones left the team in free agency, but a less notable departure that has left a rather gaping hole is the departure of DeShawn Williams, who bolted for the Carolina Panthers.

Williams became a key starter for the Broncos last season and now the Broncos are left trying to replace multiple guys. Zach Allen should do just fine in place of Dre'Mont Jones, but who is filling in for Williams? Who is taking those snaps?

Many assumed it would be one of Eyioma Uwazurike or Matt Henningsen, two 2022 draft picks for the Broncos who each got a chance to show a little of what they could do last season. Well, Uwazurike is suspended by the NFL indefinitely and may never play for the Broncos after getting in trouble for gambling on NFL games.

Henningsen, on the other hand, seems to have a chance to just slide right into a role. But this is a new coaching staff. Although Henningsen's position coach (Marcus Dixon) remains, he's fighting for his job and the Broncos have already seemingly made it clear that this is one of the most wide open position groups on the team.

Henningsen has taken some reps, but there's been more talk about guys like rookie free agent PJ Mustipher out there, Elijah Garcia, Jordan Jackson, and the Broncos brought in veteran Shelby Harris for a visit. Perhaps the team still really likes Henningsen but as far as being penciled in as a starter?

I'm not so sure about that.

4. Delarrin Turner-Yell/Kareem Jackson, safety

One of the biggest question marks defensively for the Denver Broncos was at the safety position. Of course, everyone knows what Justin Simmons brings to the table. He's the best safety in the league.

But will it be Kareem Jackson starting alongside him again in Denver this year? It doesn't look like it. Early on in training camp, it's been Caden Sterns -- not Kareem Jackson -- taking the lion's share of reps with the top defense.

This is not a stunner, by any means, but it does sort of solidify where the team is leaning and maybe not even just leaning. They might be all-in on Caden Sterns at this point and what does that mean for Kareem Jackson? Because PJ Locke is good as well, and plays a lot of special teams.

There have been additional reports that it would be surprising if rookie JL Skinner did not make the final 53-man roster. So could that push 2022 5th-round pick Delarrin Turner-Yell off the roster completely?

At this stage of training camp, it seems like a couple of safeties could be dropping down the depth chart a bit.

5. KJ Hamler, other incumbent wide receivers

The Denver Broncos went from having an exceptionally deep wide receiver room to having some serious question marks in a matter of minutes early on in the week.

Tim Patrick suffered a season-ending Achilles injury while KJ Hamler was waived with a non-football illness designation. That non-football illness designation is apparently a mild heart condition that will take Hamler a few weeks to get taken care of. There's a possibility that Hamler could return to the team at a later time (he cleared waivers) but as of right now, there are more questions than answers.

It's cheating a bit to say that Hamler has fallen down the depth chart due to this, but it's not just him. It's other incumbent receivers as well.

Kendall Hinton started off training camp on the PUP. While he's since returned from the PUP, it seems like most of the reps with Patrick and Hamler gone are now going to players like Brandon Johnson, Marquez Callaway, Marvin Mims, and even Lil'Jordan Humphrey.

Another player whose name has surprisingly not come up much in the offseason really at all? Jalen Virgil. We haven't seen or heard pretty much anything from the second-year player who was a training camp and preseason standout from a year ago.

Montrell Washington finally got his name in the mix at Tuesday's practice for the Broncos, but he's another player who hasn't really gotten a ton of positive hype. He was a training camp standout last year as well, but where does this coaching staff view him in terms of a receiver/returner going forward? Are they as high on him as the previous regime? Is he going to have to prove himself in game situations?

The Broncos brought in Michael Bandy, a slot receiver and punt returner who has some NFL experience in the past. It's clear right now that the team is content with its top-end guys at receiver, but the only incumbent (behind Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy) that is pushing for significant playing time, it would seem, is Brandon Johnson.