Broncos Set Initial 53-Man Roster: Strengths, Weaknesses, and What's Missing

After making nearly 40 cuts over the weekend, the Denver Broncos have set their initial 53-man roster, and while it will change over the coming days and months, the core will remain intact.

Now that the initial roster has been announced, we can examine each position and highlight each of the Broncos' biggest strengths and weaknesses.

Quarterback: 3

Jarrett Stidham and Bo Nix — Denver Broncos quarterback Jarrett Stidham (8) celebrates with quarterback Bo Nix (10) after a play in the fourth quarter against the Kansas City Chiefs. | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Who Made It: Bo Nix | Jarrett Stidham | Sam Ehlinger

Strength: Continuity.

The Broncos keep their quarterback room intact, which is nice given the relationship these three quarterbacks have built. Nix sits at the top of the room, and Stidham is a good voice for him to turn to when needed.

It also helps keep that third quarterback is a player the Broncos have been working with and developing in the system.

Weakness: Depth.

Neither Stidham nor Ehlinger has shown enough to inspire a lot of confidence if Nix (knock on wood) were to get hurt and miss time. Denver could look to upgrade its QB depth after this season, no matter the results.

But the Broncos had better hope they don’t have to turn to either backup for an extended period.

Running Back: 4

Who Made It: J.K. Dobbins | RJ Harvey | Jonah Coleman | Tyler Badie

Strength: Versatility.

The Broncos have good versatility in their running back room, with Dobbins capable of a little bit of everything when healthy, Harvey showing up as a receiver and improving as a blocker, and Coleman being well-rounded out of the box.

Badie offers special-teams impact, including punt-protector and returner ability.

Weakness: Uncertain depth.

Look, even with the buzz around Coleman, he has yet to take an NFL snap in the regular season. There's no reason to doubt he'll succeed; it's just that it hasn’t been seen yet.

Also, Harvey hasn’t shown the needed improvement as a runner, and Badie is what he is at this point.

Wide Receiver: 6

Strength: Deployment versatility.

Every single one of these receivers can line up in at least two different spots in the formation. This can make it difficult for defenses to keep the matchups they want, especially if the Broncos use more motion.

Denver can use this to its advantage to help force the matchups they want.

Weakness: Too many mouths to feed.

There is depth at the position, and that can be a problem if the Broncos' coaching staff doesn’t get ahead of it. Now, it's also good to see that this group is full of selfless players, so that should help ease any potential issues with having too much talent.

Still, it’ll be hard to keep a good balance of playing time between the group.

Tight End: 4

Who Made It: Adam Trautman | Evan Engram | Nate Adkins | Dallen Bentley

Strength: There isn't one.

The Broncos still have one of the worst tight end rooms in the NFL, if not the worst. This group has underachieved for the last few years, despite modest efforts to get more out of the room.

Having three guys returning would normally be a good thing, but not when it was one of the worst units in the NFL a year ago.

Weakness: Take your pick.

Blocking is an issue, even from Denver's blocking tight ends. The room also lacks a consistent receiving threat.

The Broncos have dealt with multiple injuries to Engram and Adkins. It wouldn’t be surprising if the Broncos made a new addition to the room in the coming days. They could use it.

Offensive Tackle: 3

Garett Bolles and Mike McGlinchey — Denver Broncos left tackle Garett Bolles (72) and right tackle Mike McGlinchey (69) | Derek Regensburger / IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Who Made It: Garett Bolles | Mike McGlinchey | Matt Peart

Strength: Bookend tackles.

Bolles and McGlinchey have been Broncos stalwarts for multiple seasons as their bookend tackles. Bolles is coming off the best year of his career, and McGlinchey is consistently a solid player, though not perfect.

Nix and the Broncos know what they’re going to get from this group, though.

Weakness: Age.

This is an older group, but the Broncos bring in youth from the practice squad. Frank Crum is on injured reserve. Bolles is 34, McGlinchey is 31, and Peart is 29.

The Broncos may be looking at tackle early in the draft next year.

Interior Offensive Line: 6

Luke Wattenberg and Quinn Meinerz. — Luke Wattenberg and Quinn Meinerz talk vs. Cincinnati. | Kevin Schultz / Cal Media / IMAGO / Newscom World

Strength: Experience.

Not only do the Broncos' three interior starters have plenty of experience, individually and as a trio, but their primary backup guard, Palczewski, also has considerable starting experience now. Even Forsyth has gotten some starts in his career, leaving Casey as the only one yet to play an NFL snap in the regular season.

Weakness: Center injuries.

The Broncos dealt with injuries at center during training camp and the preseason, with Wattenberg missing most of it and Forsyth missing most of camp and all of the games. The Broncos released Calvin Throckmorton, though he's expected back on the practice squad, who started at center and saw a lot of reps at center during the preseason.

Interior Defensive Line: 7

Strength: Core intact.

Even with the lone major loss to the unit, Denver still kept four of their five intact from last year. Allen, D.J. Jones, Roach, and Uwazurike worked well together last season, rotating in and out.

Despite losing John Franklin-Myers in free agency, this group still has that chemistry, experience, and more than enough talent to keep the unit a strength this year, though their ceiling may not be as high.

Weakness: Replacing JFM.

It was limited exposure in the preseason, but Uwazurike, Roach, Onyedim, and Jackson looked solid. The way to replace Franklin-Myers will be through the aggregate, not with one player, but the Broncos need all these guys to step up even more to help cover for that loss.

A lot of what Franklin-Myers did went beyond the stat sheet, and while there is faith that these guys can do it, it has yet to be seen in the regular season.

Outside Linebackers: 4

Who Made It: Nik Bonitto | Jonah Elliss | Que Robinson | Dondrea Tillman

Strength: Depth.

Jonathon Cooper is going to start the year on the commissioner's exempt list, so it's a good thing the Broncos have the depth to last. Elliss looks ready to be a full-time starter, with Robinson and Tillman showing the development to be at least a third rusher and maybe even a starter on some teams.

With the depth the Broncos have, if they can work the rotation right, they could be dangerous later in the season.

Weakness: Run defense.

Run defense isn’t the strong suit for Bonitto, and while Robinson and Elliss have their moments, they also have their whiffs. Tillman is the best edge-setter in the room, but it can be hard to get him on the field a lot because his pass-rush ability drops off compared to the other three.

Inside Linebackers: 4

Justin Strnad and Alex Singleton. — Justin Strnad and Alex Singleton celebrate. | Derek Regensburger / IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire

Who Made It: Alex Singleton | Justin Strnad | Karene Reid | Jordan Turner

Strength: Limited starters.

There is no way around it: Singleton and Strnad are both solid enough starters, but they're both severely limited. Singleton is getting burned on social media for a dumb mistake in a preseason game, and his coverage and tackling are unreliable.

Strnad is better in coverage, but he can have some rough moments when working against the run.

Weakness: Inexperienced depth.

Denver doesn’t have experienced depth. This is Year 2 for Reid and Turner, but they have played little in the regular season on defense.

They're capable special teams players, but if Singleton or Strnad get hurt, their lack of experience could come back to bite Denver.

Cornerbacks: 5

Denver Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain II (2) in action against the Atlanta Falcons. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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

Strength: Elite talent.

Surtain is a top-three corner in the NFL, at the very least, and Moss is one of the best No. 2 corners in the NFL, likely top 3 as well. McMillian is a solid slot corner and one of their more reliable players at forcing takeaways, while Abrams-Draine has consistently filled in well when needed as a depth piece.

Weakness: Jahdae Barron.

Look, I didn’t want to single out an individual player here, but Barron is the weakness in the room. If there is an injury on the boundary, Denver will likely turn to Abrams-Draine over Barron, which is a bad sign for the former first-rounder's development.

The Broncos like Barron in the role he plays, but defensive back is a confidence-based position, and his confidence and effort have looked shot ever since giving up a touchdown to the Green Bay Packers in the second preseason game.

Safety: 5

Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Jones — Denver Broncos safeties Talanoa Hufanga (9) and Brandon Jones (22) chat during a voluntary minicamp practice in May of 2025. | Ben Swanson/DenverBroncos.com

Who Made It: Talanoa Hufanga | Brandon Jones | Devon Key | JL Skinner | Tycen Anderson

Strength: Special teams ability.

Denver has an All-Pro special teams player in Key, though the team doesn’t typically use its third safety in the third phase, so seeing how that plays out this year will be interesting. I could get into the data over the last three years, but that's for another time.

With them keeping Skinner and Anderson, who are also good special teams players, it suggests Key won't play on special teams unless needed, but the Broncos have plenty of ability there with their depth.

Weakness: Depth and injury history.

Hufanga has an extensive injury history, and Jones is coming off an injury that kept him out for much of last season, including the playoffs. The Broncos' depth is concerning, to the point that fans should be knocking on wood because an injury would bring all of these concerns to the forefront.

Special Teamers: 2

Who Made It: Wil Lutz (K) | Jeremy Crawshaw (P)

Strength: Consistency.

Denver didn’t keep a long snapper, but expect Mitchell Fraboni back on the practice squad for the first three weeks before being promoted to the roster. Since this is about the initial 53, the unit's strength is its consistency.

Crawshaw was a consistent punter as a rookie, outside of a small handful of punts, with Lutz being almost automatic within 40 yards and very good in the clutch.

Weakness: Kicking range.

Lutz is a good kicker, but he isn’t a great one. He lacks range, and kicking over 40 yards is extremely inconsistent.

This can put Denver in a tough spot between the 50 and 30-yard lines and, like last year, could leave points on the field.

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