Broncos' WR Brandon Johnson Suffers High-Ankle Sprain: Report

The Denver Broncos bounced back on Saturday night, defeating the Minnesota Vikings 23-13 in preseason Game 3.

Onto Seattle.

One player whose odds of joining the Broncos for that trip to take on the Seahawks dipped on Saturday night was rookie wideout Brandon Johnson. Despite having some momentum entering the preseason finale, Johnson suffered a high-ankle sprain on the first offensive snap from scrimmage, according to 9NEWS' Mike Klis.

"Brandon Johnson said he has a high (left) ankle sprain. Blocking on run play, first play of game. Rolled up on. Not major but high ankle sprains can be tricky," Klis tweeted post-game.

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It really is an unfortunate crumbling of the cookie, though it doesn't necessarily put the kybosh on Johnson's roster hopes. However, as a big-bodied possession receiver, Johnson has been in direct competition with Seth Williams, and the former Broncos sixth-round draft pick had himself a night.

Williams finished Game 3 with four receptions (on five targets) for 68 yards, including one awesome 45-yard bomb from quarterback Brett Rypien. The Broncos will have some tough decisions to make when it comes to the wide receiver battle.

The top-four spots are cemented: Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, KJ Hamler, and rookie returner Montrell Washington. Ostensibly, the Broncos will keep six entering the regular season, which left two spots for the taking. =

It would be hard to deny Williams one of those spots after he showed out in two of the Broncos' three preseason games. Then again, Kendall Hinton is purportedly valued by the coaching staff, and we all know how much special teams coordinator Dwayne Stukes loves him some Tyrie Cleveland.

Alas, Cleveland has been sidelined for weeks with a throat injury. He might be a "core" special teamer, as Stukes says, but Cleveland can't help the Broncos right now, and there's a roster to be forged.

Johnson established some chemistry with Russell Wilson, but the young wideout has failed to make an impact in the preseason games, and getting hurt to open the finale could be a death knell. High-ankle sprains aren't serious, per se, but they can linger.

It wouldn't be surprising if the Broncos waive Johnson, and try to slip him through the waiver wire to be re-signed to the practice squad. The deadline for the final 53-man roster is Tuesday at 2 pm MDT.

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen.

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