Broncos Get Three Injured Players Back at Practice Ahead of MNF Tilt vs. Chiefs

The Denver Broncos practiced on Monday ahead of their season-opening road tilt against the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Broncos open the season on Monday Night Football against their familiar old foe, and it'll be Patrick Mahomes's first game back since suffering a multi-ligament knee injury late last season. With how motivated the Chiefs are sure to be on the heels of missing the playoffs and being dethroned in the AFC West, the Broncos are going to need all their horses at Arrowhead Stadium.

Since the preseason ended, a few Broncos have been nursing minor injuries and have missed practice. But on Monday, wide receiver/returner Marvin Mims Jr., tight end Adam Trautman, and rush linebacker Que Robinson all returned to practice, per DNVR's Zac Stevens.

Later this week, the Broncos will have to start releasing daily practice reports, giving us more insight into the ailment a given player is nursing. But we're not there yet; this Labor Day practice is a bonus day of sorts for the Broncos, and they'll get an extra day of preparation because their first game is next Monday night.

But game week is upon us.

What We Know

Denver Broncos wide receiver Marvin Mims Jr. (19) returns a punt against Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Joshua Williams (2) at Arrowhead Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

As it applies to the returning players, Mims, we know, suffered a soft-tissue injury about a week into training camp, which caused him to miss weeks of practice and the first two preseason games. Entering the preseason finale, though, the Broncos wanted to give him some live-bullet reps due to his weeks working on the side field, and he ended up suffering a bruised foot only a few snaps into the game.

Head coach Sean Payton let us know after that game that Mims's injury wasn't serious, but he went on to miss the following week's practices. It's great to see him out there again on Monday, as he's a unique talent in the Broncos' receiving corps, and one of the NFL's elite punt and kick returners.

On top of that, Payton has used Mims in a variety of ways to attack the Chiefs' defense and put them on their heels. In 2024, Mims played several snaps at running back against the Chiefs at Arrowhead. Mims carried the ball three times for 17 yards and was often put in motion pre-snap, which threw off Steve Spagnuolo and his defense, opening things up and allowing a rookie Bo Nix to jump out to an early lead.

That was two seasons ago, but it wouldn't be a surprise to see Mims being deployed again in creative ways against the Chiefs, along with the Broncos' shiny new weapon Jaylen Waddle. New offensive coordinator Davis Webb was around back then, and he and Payton know they have to dig deep into their bag of tricks if the Broncos are going to come out on top at Arrowhead.

It's unlcear what Trautman and Robinson have been dealing with, but both appear set to be available in Week 1 vs. the Chiefs. Trautman was the Broncos' tight end with the most starts last season, as the team views him as its top blocker at the position, and he was just re-signed to a three-year extension in the spring.

Robinson, 2025 fourth-round pick, didn't play much his rookie year, but based on what we saw this past summer in camp and the preseason, he's in line for a much bigger seat at the table. That's especially true because Jonathon Cooper will start this season on the commissioner's exempt list while his criminal trial in Denver proceeds in November.

We don't yet know for sure exactly how many games Cooper will miss, but the Broncos are in great shape at outside linebacker, thanks to Robinson's emergence, and that of Jonah Elliss, too. Throw in Dondrea Tillman, and Pro Bowl starter Nik Bonitto, and the Broncos are still four deep on the edge without Cooper.

Robinson will see more action this season, that's for sure. But he could be poised to break out in 2026, even as a depth rusher. We don't have an official depth chart yet, but Elliss is expected to start while Cooper is out.

But Robinson is going to see the field a lot. In the Broncos' 22-19 win over the Chiefs in Week 11 last season, he saw significant snaps, so he's been exposed to what it's like to go against Mahomes.

It's going to be fun to see how Robinson's second year shapes up.

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