2024 Broncos' Season, Pre-Season Week 3

 

Pre-Season Week 3: Denver Broncos 38, Arizona Cardinals 12
Pre-Season Record: 3-0 (2-0 Home)
Key Play: In the Fourth Quarter, nursing a 12-point lead, Zach Wilson connected with Brandon Johnson on a 46-yard touchdown strike to put the game out of reach.

Recap: The Broncos ended the pre-season 3-0. But far more important than the win/loss record is the way the team looked. The Broncos moved the ball on offense, made plays on defense, and looked like a hungry, young team. All that is a promising sign. The 3-0 record shouldn't get anyone carried away about the regular season. The Broncos are still a young team with roster holes that plays a tough schedule. But instead of being a 3-4 win team, I'm starting to feel better about the Broncos winning six to nine games. That would be a step in the right direction for a team that's re-building. Fans might not want to hear it, but it could be encouraging to see a young team making plays and learning through a good but not quite winning season.

Game Balls:
* Zach Wilson. Wilson is re-building his career. He played most of the game, throwing for 251 yards and two touchdowns, rushing for a third.
* Brandon Johnson. He might not make the active roster, but Johnson showed out, catching a couple big passes including a touchdown.
* Levelle Bailey. The young linebacker had a high-light reel play to end the pre-season, a 94-yard interception return for a touchdown.

Final Roster Projections:
Quarterback: 3
On the Roster: Bo Nix, Zach Wilson, Jarrett Stidham
About: The Broncos are blessed with three players who can play. The rookie Nix is the starter and could be poised for a good season. But Wilson looked good this pre-season, too, earning his spot. The Broncos could also use one of their quarterbacks to trade for another piece in season, a good chip to have.

Running Back: 4
On the Roster: Javonte Williams, Jaleel McLaughlin, Audric Estime, Michael Burton
Practice Squad: Tyler Badie, Blake Watson
Cut: Samaje Perine
About: It's a numbers game sometimes, and Perine gets caught in the wash. He'll be a good candidate to land elsewhere. Otherwise, the Broncos have a good group of young players and a couple that should be strong additions to the Practice Squad.

Wide Receivers: 6
On the Roster: Courtland Sutton, Tim Patrick, Josh Reynolds, Marvin Mims, Troy Franklin, Devaughn Vele
Practice Squad: Lil Jordan Humphrey, Brandon Johnson, Jalen Virgil
Cut: Phillip Dorsett, Michael Bandy, David Sills V
About: The Broncos have a strong group of receivers that makes this hard. I have the two rookies making the roster with a trio of contributors on the Practice Squad. Sills made a strong case on Sunday, and he could make a Practice Squad over one of the three I've picked. But I feel like Johnson is a lock to stay with the team in some way.

Tight End: 3
On the Roster: Greg Dulcich, Lucas Krull, Adam Trautman
Practice Squad: Nate Adkins
Cut: Hunter Kampmoyer, Thomas Yassmin
About: This is a tough position to handicap. Would it be better to carry four players? Perhaps. And Adkins certainly has skills to justify that, but the Broncos have other needs. So, currently, I have him on the Practice Squad.

Offensive Line: 9
On the Roster: Garrett Bolles, Mike McGlinchey, Quinn Meinerz, Ben Powers, Luke Wattenburg, Alex Forsyth, Calvin Throckmorton, Matt Peart, Alex Palczewski
Practice Squad: Nick Gargiulo, Will Sherman
Cut: Sam Mustipher, Oliver Jervis, Frank Crum, Demontrey Jacobs
IR: Quinn Bailey
About: The Broncos have a good group of lineman and have a strong group of reserves. I think the team will keep a couple young prospects on the Practice Squad, too. That still leaves a few decent options on the street. I like Mustipher and what I saw, but he could well be among the toughest cuts.

Defensive Line: 6
On the Roster: Zach Allen, John Franklin-Myers, D.J. Jones, Malcolm Roach, Eyioma Uwazurike, Angelo Blackson
Practice Squad: Jordan Miller, Jordan Jackson
Cut: Matt Henningsen, Elijah Garcia
About: The Broncos have worked to re-make this group. I went with the free agent acquisitions and Uwazurike making the final group, with a couple young prospects on the Practice Squad. That leaves Henningsen and Garcia, a couple guys I liked last year, out in the cold. But the results weren't there for last year's team, so that could make some sense.

Linebackers: 9
On the Roster: Jonathon Cooper, Baron Browning, Nik Bonitto, Jonah Elliss, Alex Singleton, Cody Barton, Justin Strnad, Jonas Griffith, and Durell Nchami
Practice Squad: Levelle Bailey, Dondrea Tillman
Cut: Thomas Incoom, Alex Mock, Ronnie Perkins, Andre Smith
IR: Drew Sanders
About: The Broncos have a solid group here, too. They could keep more than nine, or perhaps have to cut to eight. I rode the middle group. I could also see Bailey making the team and Nchami being a Practice Squad guy, especially after a strong showing Sunday. That leaves a couple interesting prospects out of the team, but that's the tough part about this time of year.

Cornerbacks: 6
On the Roster: Pat Surtain II, Damari Mathis, Ja'Quan McMillian, Riley Moss, Kris Abrams-Draine, Levi Wallace
Practice Squad: Quinton Newsome
Cut: Tremon Smith, Reese Taylor, Art Green, Kaleb Hayes
About: Is Smith worth keeping purely for Special Teams? That's the question. I feel like the Broncos have other options in the return game, and better options among corners that they will want to keep. That's crucial to my thinking here. In this scenario I also keep a prospect on the Practice Squad. If Mathis has a more serious injury, that could open the door for Smith.

Safety: 4
On the Roster: Brandon Jones, P.J. Locke, J.L. Skinner, Devon Key
Practice Squad: Keidron Smith, Tanner McCalister
Cut: Omar Brown, Delarrin Turner-Yell
About: Safety is a spot where the Broncos would likely rather keep five, but the numbers suggest it will be a tighter squeeze. So, I have a couple candidates on the Practice Squad as well.

Special Teams: 3
On the Roster: Will Lutz, Riley Dixon, Mitchell Fraboni
Cut: Trenton Gill
About: Gill didn't get a chance to show much in the pre-season, but I suspect the Broncos will stick with the same group as last year.