Broncos 53-Man Roster Projection 5.0: Preseason Finale Changes Everything

The Denver Broncos ended their preseason with a dominant 34-6 win over the Minnesota Vikings.

The Broncos are now set to whittle the roster down from their 90-man offseason roster to their final 53 and 16-man practice squad —17 if they bring in someone who qualifies for an international player exemption.

Roster cuts are always difficult, but the Broncos have about 45 players who are all but cemented on the roster, making it one of the easier cutdowns for the team over the past 10 years; filling out the practice squad can be harder. The 53-man roster deadline is Sunday at 2 pm MDT, and we can expect the initial cuts to begin on Saturday.

With that said, here's our final 53-man roster projection of the 2026 preseason.

Quarterbacks: 2

Bo Nix | Jarrett Stidham

Practice Squad: Sam Ehlinger

No changes on this front when it comes to the quarterbacks. Letting Ehlinger go is a risk, but he likes it in Denver and has turned down other teams to stay, doing so multiple times last year.

There is no need for three quarterbacks to begin the season when the starter and backup are healthy.

Running Backs: 3

J.K. Dobbins | RJ Harvey | Jonah Coleman

Practice Squad: Cody Schrader | Jaleel McLaughlin | Tyler Badie

Schrader was the best of the depth backs, producing 100-plus yards from scrimmage against the Vikings, but Badie is a favorite of Sean Payton, with McLaughlin having made enough splashes.

Payton has usually kept four backs on the opening roster, with two or three on the practice squad, but this year he goes with a three-and-three split.

Fullback: 1

Adam Prentice

Davis Webb seems to have a plan for Prentice, with a sizeable role of more than 10-15 snaps like Payton had for his fullbacks the last few years. Even with four backs, Prentice still makes it as the only option who can handle the fullback position.

Wide Receivers: 6

Practice Squad: Lil’Jordan Humphrey | Michael Bandy

Wide receiver is another position that hasn’t seen many changes in these 53-man roster projections. The top five are set, and Denver doesn’t seem willing to trade one away.

However, Mims suffered a foot injury in the finale, and although Payton said he'll "be fine," with that uncertainty, Katsis makes the roster due to his returner ability. The practice squad could see some change-up, but Humphrey and Bandy are favorites of Payton.

Tight Ends: 4

Adam Trautman | Evan Engram | Nate Adkins | Justin Joly

Practice Squad: Dallen Bentley IR: Caleb Lohner

Lucas Krull had a chance, but his play has been awful in the preseason, so the Broncos go with their new blood, Joly, for the roster, though he hasn’t been great, with Bentley on the practice squad, who hasn’t shown much.

Lohner has been dealing with an injury, which seems to have him poised for injured reserve, though he could mix things up for the roster or the practice squad. While many view Adkins as someone who can do the fullback job, Denver tried it, and it failed, and they gave up on that sort of usage during the 2024 season.

Offensive Tackles: 3

Garett Bolles | Mike McGlinchey | Matt Peart

Practice Squad: Tyler Miller IR: Frank Crum

I was resisting putting Peart over Crum due to age, injury history, and cost, but Crum has had an awful preseason while Peart has looked like one of the Broncos' better offensive linemen.

Peart has more versatility, showing the ability to flip sides and even slide inside if needed. With recent reports of Crum being out for multiple weeks, he lands on short-term IR, with Miller back on the practice squad.

Interior Offensive Line: 6

Bo Nix. — Bo Nix and Calvin Throckmorton | Dustin Bradford / IMAGO / Icon Sportswire

Practice Squad: Calvin Throckmorton | Gavin Oretega PUP List: Nick Gargiulo

It was tough to figure out the interior offensive line, as Throckmorton has deserved to make it. Still, he is a veteran, and the Broncos could agree to bring him back to the practice squad and use his call-ups, especially with injuries to Wattenberg and Forsyth, but they needed an extra spot to cover Mims's injury.

Throckmorton was initially on the 53-man projection until the Mims injury.

Defensive Line: 7

Practice Squad: Jordan Miller*

The interior defensive line is the same, and Jordan Miller is back on the practice squad, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Broncos bring in someone from outside the organization to fill their practice squad spot. Miller and Kristian Williams have had a terrible preseason, and Denver could view it as time to look elsewhere.

Outside Linebackers: 4

Nik Bonitto | Jonah Elliss | Que Robinson | Dondrea Tillman

Practice Squad: Ron Stone Jr. Commissioner's Exempt List: Jonathon Cooper

One change here comes from a recent report by 9NEWS' Mike Klis: Cooper is starting the season on the NFL’s commissioner-exempt list due to ongoing legal issues. It's a suspension without it being a suspension.

Denver has the depth to survive Cooper's absence, especially given how Elliss and Tillman stepped up last year, and how Robinson has looked throughout the preseason, both in games and in practice.

Inside Linebackers: 4

Alex Singleton | Justin Strnad | Karene Reid | Red Murdock

Practice Squad: Jordan Turner | Taurean York

Linebacker has been difficult to figure out at the fourth and final spot, with the battle between Murdock and Turner. Turner did suffer an injury, but returned to the game on Friday night.

Murdock slightly beats out Turner, though keeping all five is a possibility.

Cornerbacks: 5

Patrick Surtain II | Riley Moss | Ja’Quan McMillian | Jahdae Barron | Kris Abrams-Draine

Practice Squad: Sean Fresch Jr. | Brent Austin IR: Reese Taylor

Teams typically keep 10 defensive backs, with either a five-and-five or six-and-four split between the corners and safeties. With how the safety depth has looked, a five-and-five split makes more sense, plus the cornerback position is strong enough to handle it, even with questions arising about Barron.

With Moss and McMillian in the last year of their deals, I have Denver keeping three on the practice squad for developmental purposes. It's a bit more than usual, but the Broncos could find themselves replacing two players a year from now.

Safeties: 5

Talanoa Hufanga | Brandon Jones | Devon Key | JL Skinner | Miles Scott

Practice Squad: Parker Robertson

Denver released Taylor Rapp because of personal issues, but he could be re-signed later. That puts the Broncos in a bad spot, given how poorly their safety depth has played through the preseason.

Because of those issues, Denver keeps five safeties with one on the practice squad, with the rookie seventh-rounder, Scott, beating out Tycen Anderson.

Specialists: 3

Wil Lutz (K) | Jeremy Crawshaw (P) | Mitchell Fraboni (LS)

The final three spots go to the three specialists. There has been a camp battle with Fraboni fending off undrafted rookie Luke Basso. However, it has been made clear that Basso is being kept in camp to help split snaps, which is an indication that Fraboni will remain the long snapper.

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