The Broncos’ cut down to 53 players and 16 practice squad members is underway.
A couple of deadlines to keep in mind: Teams must be down to 53 players by 2 p.m. MDT Tuesday. They can place waiver claims on eligible players until 10 a.m. Wednesday. Denver is fifth in the waiver priority order, so Sean Payton and general manager George Paton have a good chance of landing a player if they like one who gets waived in the coming days.
At 10:01 a.m. Wednesday, teams can start filling their 16-man practice squads.
More than 1,100 players league-wide will be out of work for at least some time between now and Wednesday. Life in the bubble can be tough.
“There’s going to be anxiety and you’re going to have nervousness, but at the end of the day it’s kind of out of our control at this point,” second-year safety Delarrin Turner-Yell told The Post after the Broncos’ 41-0 preseason-closing win over the Los Angeles Rams on Saturday night. “You just have to try to be comfortable letting everything play out.”
Here’s how they’re playing out for the Broncos. This list will continue updating through the deadline with the most recent moves at the top of the list.
Latest updates
Tuesday
(2:30 p.m.): The Broncos traded Albert Okwuegbunam, who the originally planned on waiving, to Philadelphia with a 2025 seventh-round pick in exchange for a 2025 sixth-round pick, coach Sean Payton confirmed Tuesday.
Denver also waived receiver Michael Bandy and defensive lineman Tomasi Laulile after Tuesday’s practice, meaning they’re down to 57 players. The four remaining cuts are expected to be veterans who are procedural moves to clear the way for short-term injured reserve placements.
Paton also confirmed what’s been the expectation for months: Outside linebacker Baron Browning is starting the season on reserve/PUP. He will not count against the 53-man roster, but must miss at least the first four weeks. Denver is hopeful he will be able to return to practice not long after that time period, but it’s unclear exactly when he may be back on the field.
Moves confirmed by The Post (Updated 2:30 p.m.):
Waived:
WR Michael Bandy
DL Tomasi Laulile
OL Demontrey Jacobs (injured)
RB Tony Jones Jr.
OLB Marcus Haynes
DB Devon Key
OL Will Sherman
OLB Christopher Allen
TE Albert Okwuegbunam
DL Jordan Jackson
RB Tyler Badie
CB Faion Hicks
OLB Aaron Patrick
CB Art Green
LB Seth Benson
WR Taylor Grimes
DL Haggai Ndubuisi
QB Ben DiNucci
OL Henry Byrd
WR Montrell Washington
TE Tommy Hudson
DL P.J. Mustipher
WR Josh Hammond
ILB Austin Ajiake
WR Kendall Hinton
WR J.J. Koski
WR Nick Williams
DB Delonte Hood
Released:
OL Kyle Fuller
K Brett Maher
RB Dwayne Washington
DL Tyler Lancaster
OL Isaiah Prince
(11:18 a.m.):What became clearer and clearer over the course of training camp is on the verge of turning to reality.
Jaleel McLaughlin’s going to have a role for the Broncos this fall.
The undrafted rookie running back is poised to make the roster after Denver has parted with its stable of competitors for the third spot behind Javonte Williams and Samaje Perine.
The Broncos have released Dwayne Washington and waived Tony Jones, Jr. and Tyler Badie over the course of Tuesday morning, leaving McLaughlin, who led the NFL in the preseason with four touchdowns, as Denver’s third back.
The Broncos also have veteran fullback Michael Burton.
(10:20 a.m.): Denver apparently isn’t done adding New Orleans players just yet.
The Broncos are finalizing a trade for Saints kicker Wil Lutz, according to a report from the NFL Network. Lutz spent all of camp in a kicking battle with rookie Blake Grupe.
Lutz has spent six total years in New Orleans — he didn’t kick in 2021 — and has made 84.6% of his field goal attempts in his career. That number is despite a career-low 74.2% conversion rate in 2022.
Denver started its offseason by cutting long-time kicker Brandon McManus, then signed Elliott Fry before waiving him during training camp amid a battle with veteran Brett Maher.
Maher, sources confirmed Tuesday, is being released.
The trade compensation for Lutz was not immediately known.
(9:26 a.m.): The Broncos on Tuesday waived TE Albert Okwuegbunam amid a flurry of roster moves as the league’s 2 p.m. deadline approaches.
The fourth-year tight end caught seven passes for 109 yards and a touchdown in Denver’s preseason finale Saturday against the Los Angeles Rams, but it wasn’t enough to land him a spot on the 53-man roster.
“I’ve pretty much done everything I can do,” he said after that game. “So just going into these next couple of days, going to see what happens.”
Now, will another team claim him before the Wednesday morning deadline? And will he be back on the Broncos’ practice squad if not?
As it stands, Adam Trautman, Chris Manhertz and Greg Dulcich are locks for the roster and the only outstanding question is undrafted rookie Nate Adkins.
(9:02): Denver cut veteran defensive lineman Tyler Lancaster. Lancaster ran mostly with the reserve groups during camp and didn’t play in the preseason finale, though it’s unclear whether that was due to injury. He played in 59 games for the Packers, so the Broncos are moving on from a veteran player in a group that could see some young faces make the squad.
It’s always possible the Broncos plan to bring a veteran or two back on Wednesday after they move a couple of players to short-term injured reserve, as well.
(8:35 a.m.):The Broncos let go of outside linebacker Aaron Patrick, who returned during camp from a knee injury suffered last year and looked like he was going to again be a reliable special teams player.
(8:02 a.m.): Denver is waiving quarterback Ben DiNucci, meaning they’ll likely start the season with two quarterbacks on the active roster: Russell Wilson and Jarrett Stidham.
DiNucci impressed over the course of the offseason program and should have a chance to be back on the Broncos’ practice squad assuming he clears waivers on Wednesday.
(7:51 a.m.):Return specialist Montrell Washington and offensive lineman Henry Byrd were waived, a source told The Post. Washington struggled as a rookie, averaging 8.5 yards per punt return and fumbled the ball five times.
(7:44 a.m.):Denver released wide receiver Josh Hammond, a source told The Post.
(7:44 a.m.):Roster cuts are rolling in. Sources confirmed with The Post that defensive tackle PJ Mustipher has been waived by the Broncos. Denver hopes to sign him to the practice squad.
Monday
(8:56 p.m.): The Broncos didn’t make any moves in time for the transaction wire on Monday, but they started making some of their dozens of cuts to come on Monday night.
That includes undrafted rookie ILB Austin Ajiake, who was waived Monday night, according to a league source. Ajiake, who played collegiately at UNLV and was signed after Jonas Griffith tore his ACL, is a candidate for the practice squad depending on how the waiver process plays out Tuesday and Wednesday morning.
That brings the list of known cuts to six. The Broncos are likely to move OLB Baron Browning to Reserve/PUP where he will miss at least the first four games but not count against the 53-man roster. They can also add international pathways program player DL Haggai Ndubuisi to the practice squad as a 17th player if he clears waivers. So Denver has about 30 moves remaining as of Monday night.
(3:20 p.m.):Denver had no official activity on the NFL’s transaction wire Monday. That sets up a busy coming 24 hours, as the Broncos must make 33 moves to get to 53 players by 2 p.m. MDT Tuesday. Denver could well start informing players of decisions later Monday, otherwise Tuesday morning is going to be extremely busy.
(9:38 a.m.):Broncos cornerback K’Waun Williams will undergo left ankle surgery, league sources told The Post. Williamsmissed most of the training camp and all three preseason games. He’s expected to take six to eight weeks to recover.
Williams, who is entering his second season in Denver, played in 14 games (eight starts), totaling 44 tackles, a sack and seven passes defended in 2022.
Sunday
(3:30 p.m.):Denver waived wide receivers Kendall Hinton, J.J. Koski and defensive back Delonte Hood and released offensive lineman Isaiah Prince in addition to Williams, according to the NFL’s transaction wire.
If there’s a surprise in the group it’s Hinton, who played extensively for the Broncos last year when injuries struck the wide receiver room. Hinton started the 2022 season on the practice squad and could be a candidate for that designation again this year, though he and the others waived will be eligible to be claimed by other teams through Wednesday morning.
“He’s smart. He’s savvy. He’s one of those players who has a good feel,” Payton said of Hinton last week. “I think he locates and tracks the ball well. He knows who he is. He’s better in the slot and some of those interior option routes. … He’s got really good football instincts.”
While a player is on waivers, he is eligible to be traded, so Denver could also hope that there’s a team interested in acquiring Hinton and willing to deal a late-round pick or a player in order to avoid the risk of another team claiming him on waivers.
After the five cuts Sunday, Denver’s roster stands at 85. The Broncos will need to trim 32 more over the next two days.
Trimming three wide receivers leaves Denver with 10 remaining on the roster. Jerry Jeudy (whether he goes to short-term IR or not due to a hamstring injury), Courtland Sutton and Marvin Mims, Jr. are locks to make the roster, while Brandon Johnson is likely to, as well. Lil’Jordan Humphrey has come on strong recently. The others: Marquez Callaway — like Humphrey, he’s played for Payton in the past — Montrell Washington, Taylor Grimes, Josh Hammond and Michael Bandy.
(2:30 p.m.): The Broncos have waived wide receiver Nick Williams.
Williams, a former standout at Cherry Creek High, had been on and off Denver’s roster several times over the course of the offseason but was a longshot to make the 53-man cut.
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