Broncos Roster Cuts Tracker: Every Move on the Way to the Final 53

The Denver Broncos are cutting down their 91-man offseason roster — counting their international player exemption — to the final 53 players.

It's any NFL head coach's worst weekend on the calendar. They dread the difficult, brutal conversations they must have with the 37 players who'll either be waived or released on the way to the final 53-man roster.

“Every year, same time," Broncos head coach Sean Payton said after Friday night's game. "Two days, you go through..."

The NFL mandates that teams trim their rosters down to 53 players by Sunday at 4 pm MDT. That means the initial cuts could start on Saturday morning.

The Broncos have a deep roster, most of which is returning from last season. There were very few roster spots up for grabs entering training camp and the preseason, but in the finale against the Minnesota Vikings, several players showed out with gusto, complicating the Broncos' decision-making.

Who wins the QB2 job? And will the loser of the battle be waived or kept? How many running backs, wideouts, and offensive linemen make the roster? And the safety competition?

Payton wasn't ready post-game to say which quarterback won the QB2 competition, despite Sam Ehlinger throwing for nearly 300 yards and three touchdowns, and Jarrett Stidham playing relatively well with the two possessions he received against Minnesota.

“Yes, we’ll see. We’ll see," Payton said. "Listen, I thought those guys did a good job and the roles kind of planned out like we wanted with ‘Stiddy’ going and then Sam coming in. The thing you look for is they’re moving the ball, finding completions. Yes, I’m sure the tape will be what we kind of felt we saw out there.”

We'll soon have our answers. The Broncos have carried 91 players this summer because of the international player exemption they get from Australian-born punter Jeremy Crawshaw, which means they'll be cutting 38 players between now and Sunday at 2 pm MDT, but as many as 16 of those players could be re-signed to the practice squad, if they clear waivers.

This article will track every roster cut the Broncos make on their way to the final 53 players. Keep it locked with Denver Broncos On SI/Mile High Huddle, as we'll be updating this article in real time.

Waived

Israel Antwine | DT (Source)

Ron Stone Jr. | OLB (Source)

Jordan Miller | DT (Source)

Joseph Manjack | WR (Source)

Foster Sarell | OT (Source)

Lecitus Smith | C/IOL (Source)

Reid Holskey | OL (Source)

Kyrese Rowan | WR (Source)

Parker Robertson | S (Source)

Ricardo Hallman | CB (Source)

Brent Austin | CB (Source)

Kolbe Katsis | WR/R (Source)

Gavin Ortega | OL (Source)

Miles Scott | S (Source)

Dasan McCullough | OLB (Source)

Justin Joly | TE (Source)

Luke Basso | LS (Source)

Tyler Miller | OT (Source)

Red Murdock | LB (Source)

Lucas Krull | TE (Source)

Cameron Ross | WR/R (Source)

Reese Taylor | CB (Source)

Tyler Badie | RB (Source)

Taurean York | LB (Source)

Released

Adam Prentice | FB (Source)

PUP List

Nick Gargiulo | OL (Source)

Gut Reaction

Justin Joly. — Denver Broncos tight end Justin Joly (80) in the fourth quarter against the Minnesota Vikings. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

So far, the Broncos have waived three of their rookie draft picks, two of which came as a bit of a shock. Waiving Joly and Murdock will raise some eyebrows.

Joly struggled throughout camp and the preseason, though he did have that one big play in the finale, scoring an 88-yard touchdown in a busted-coverage situation. The Broncos may want to re-sign him to the practice squad, but he'll have to pass through waivers unclaimed first.

Meanwhile, as a fifth-round pick Joly is one of the highest-drafted Broncos to not make the 53-man roster out of training camp in the past 20 years. What's more is that Denver traded up to draft him, relinquishing a sixth-round pick, so if he gets claimed on the waiver wire, that's two wasted draft picks.

Murdock played well in camp and the preseason, making his cut a bit mystifying. He led the Broncos in preseason tackles. The Broncos have lacked youthful impact at inside linebacker, and as the NCAA's all-time leader in forced fumbles, there was reason to be hopeful that he could provide it.

Alas, Murdock is another cut who could be claimed on waivers because his initial draft stock was hurt by a pre-draft injury. There could be a team that liked him in the draft but was scared of his injury, who's seen him perform well in the preseason, and puts a claim in. The Broncos may not regret cutting Joly, but they very well could live to rue waiving Murdock, who, by the way, forced a fumble in the preseason finale on Friday night.

Scott, a seventh-round pick, was also waived. He's still very raw and needs development, so this was unsurprising.

Miller, Ross, and York are all undrafted rookies, likely to end up on the practice squad if they clear waivers. Katsis could as well, especially with how dynamic and productive he was as a returner.

Miller is a massive 6-foot-9 offensive tackle who actually played quite well in the preseason. He out-played Frank Crum, a young veteran, so the Broncos want to hopefully continue developing Miller.

York is 5-foot-10 and 220 pounds, which makes him the size of a strong safety, not an NFL inside linebacker, but he finds a way to get the job done. He's still yet to prove he can consistently get off blocks, but the Broncos reportedly hope to get him back on the practice squad.

As for veterans, the Prentice release was a surprise, but as a vested veteran, he's free to sign with whoever he wants, and intends to re-sign with the Broncos' practice squad. He'll stick around.

Badie and Krull being waived is interesting. Both have been with the Broncos for the past few years, so it'll be curious to see whether either gets claimed. If not, I imagine they end up on the practice squad.

Sign up for our free Denver Broncos On SI newsletter, and get breaking Broncos news delivered to your inbox daily!

Add us as a preferred source on Google