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The Denver Broncos quietly waived safety Dymonte Thomas late last week. Thomas reached an injury settlement with the club before being dispatched. 

Despite going undrafted out of Michigan in 2017, safety Thomas showed a lot of promise initially. Although he was mostly a practice-squader as a rookie, he eventually found his way to the active roster late in the year. 

It was 2018 when Thomas really showed his potential. In the Broncos' third preseason game vs. the Washington Redskins, Thomas saw time with the first-team defense. 

In the preseason game commonly viewed as the 'dress rehearsal' for the regular season, Thomas acquitted himself well, shutting down Redskins' tight end Vernon Davis and making five tackles (four solo) while breaking up a big pass on third down. 

For a team that had been searching for a matchup safety to help neutralize tight ends in the passing game, Thomas' performance felt like a positive harbinger of things to come. While that performance did earn him a season-long place on the Broncos' 53-man roster, he rarely saw the field, though he did appear in 12 games. The highlight of his second year with the Broncos came in Week 15 when Thomas picked off Baker Mayfield. 

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Fast forward to 2019 and the arrival of Vic Fangio as head coach, Thomas' prospects never looked better. Fangio's scheme is very safety-friendly, and while Thomas was buried several spots down on the depth chart, he would get the chance to compete with Will Parks for a seat at the table. 

Alas, Thomas suffered a knee injury during the preseason and was placed on injured reserve. For whatever reason, the Broncos have chosen to part ways with Thomas and with the uncertainty the team faces at the safety position with both Parks and Justin Simmons poised to be unrestricted free agents, we can safely assume Thomas' departure has something to do with his health status. 

Injuries open the door to opportunity for other players and such was the case for Trey Marshall in 2019. Marshall found a way to shine down the stretch while Kareem Jackson served his two-games suspension and Parks was moved to slot cornerback. 

That opportunity likely would have gone to Thomas had he not injured his knee in the summer. The 26-year-old Thomas has talent, so health-willing, once he gets back on his feet, hopefully, the NFL will offer him up a chance to sign elsewhere.  

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.