The Denver Broncos open the 2022 regular season on Monday Night Football at the Seattle Seahawks on Sept. 12 at Lumen Field.
Injury questions loom as the Broncos look to trim their roster. Tackle Billy Turner (knee) started training camp on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. He practiced sparingly after he was moved off the list but then was held out of practices again.
Wide receiver Tim Patrick suffered a season-ending right knee injury; tackle Tom Compton went to the PUP list with back troubles; guard Netane Muti had arthroscopic knee surgery; linebacker Jonas Griffith and cornerback Michael Ojemudia each suffered a dislocated elbow; and wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland missed almost all of training camp and the preseason with a throat injury.
Those injuries, and the estimations about when those players can return, will impact the choices made as the Broncos' initial 53-man roster could include players who might be moved aside later to accommodate those who could open the season on injured reserve.
The roster will be cut to 53 players by 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday. Here is a projection:
QUARTERBACK (2): Russell Wilson, Josh Johnson
Brett Rypien did more than enough to make the No. 2 spot a difficult decision for the Broncos. So if Rypien isn't the surprise pick to be the No. 2, he should be on the Broncos' practice squad. The issue is that, with durable Wilson set to take virtually all of the snaps in practices during the regular season, Johnson might be better equipped to prepare each week with almost no work with the starting offense.
RUNNING BACK (3): Javonte Williams, Melvin Gordon III, Mike Boone
This is one position where the Broncos might try to save a spot, and these three have received almost all of the work with the first- and second-team offenses in the preseason. Williams projects to be RB1, but Gordon will have a role in the offense. Boone will get only a smattering of snaps along the way if Williams and Gordon stay healthy.
WIDE RECEIVER (6): Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, KJ Hamler, Montrell Washington, Kendall Hinton, Tyrie Cleveland
Tim Patrick's season-ending knee injury impacted the Broncos' plan here. Hamler, who suffered a torn ACL last season, is on track to be ready for Week 1, while Washington, a rookie, is slated to be the team's primary returner. Of the pack of young receivers who all flashed in the preseason, Hinton was the most consistent. Cleveland is a core special teams player who can be a returner, so he would be a surprise cut. If Cleveland needs more time to recover, undrafted rookie Brandon Johnson, who suffered an ankle injury in the preseason finale, could make the initial roster, or Seth Williams.
TIGHT END (5): Albert Okwuegbunam, Greg Dulcich, Eric Tomlinson, Eric Saubert, Andrew Beck (also FB)
This has been one of the most competitive spots on the depth chart, and it could be one spot where the Broncos make somebody available in a trade, given they still need picks next April. Okwuegbunam, who has worked with the starters throughout camp, was one of the few starters who played at all in the preseason games and was still in the lineup deep into the second half of the second preseason game. Dulcich's hamstring injury kept him out of most practices, but the team has plans for him in the offense, while Tomlinson is the best blocker in the group and Beck is a special teams standout as well as a multitasker in the offense.
OFFENSIVE LINE (9): Garett Bolles, Dalton Risner, Lloyd Cushenberry III, Calvin Anderson, Billy Turner, Graham Glasgow, Quinn Meinerz, Luke Wattenberg, Cameron Fleming
The Broncos kept nine at this spot heading into last season's opener, and the wild card here is whether the Broncos determine Turner will not be ready for the start of the season because of knee troubles that kept him out of virtually all of training camp and the preseason. Turner could be on the roster for a day and then moved to injured reserve for a few weeks and slated to return in that scenario. Also the health of Muti, who was working with the starters at right guard at times before he had a knee procedure during camp, will need to be addressed in relation to injured reserve.
DEFENSIVE LINE (6): Dre'Mont Jones, D.J. Jones, DeShawn Williams, Mike Purcell, Matt Henningsen, Eyioma Uwazurike.
This position group was likely the most uncertain when the preseason ended, and McTelvin Agim, a third-round pick in 2020, could displace one of the two rookies here (Henningsen or Uwazurike). Also, this could be a spot where a player makes it for a day because the Broncos will have their eye on the waiver wire for defensive linemen who could provide spot duty.
LINEBACKER (9): Bradley Chubb, Randy Gregory, Josey Jewell, Baron Browning, Nik Bonitto, Alex Singleton, Jonas Griffith, Aaron Patrick, Justin Strnad.
Special teams could tip the scales here for the final spot or two, so Patrick and Jonathon Cooper could find their way onto the roster, especially after adding Gregory and Bonitto this offseason. It simply could be too tight a squeeze for Malik Reed. Griffith should be ready to return by Week 1 or Week 2.
CORNERBACK (6): Pat Surtain II, Ronald Darby, K'Waun Williams, Faion Hicks, Damarri Mathis, Essang Bassey.
Ojemudia's injury impacts things here, but he did not keep some of his offseason momentum, as he struggled in the first two preseason games and the joint practice against the Cowboys. He will be the topic of discussion as the Broncos make their decisions. The rookies -- Hicks and Mathis -- showed they deserve a shot.
SAFETY (4): Justin Simmons, Kareem Jackson, Caden Sterns, Delarrin Turner-Yell.
P.J. Locke could certainly make it here, but for my money, Turner-Yell was the player whose physicality showed up the most in the preseason, and his potential on special teams is too good to ignore. If the Broncos elect to keep five safeties, it will likely cost a tight end or wide receiver a spot.
SPECIALISTS (3): Brandon McManus (K), Sam Martin (P), Jacob Bobenmoyer (LS).
Martin injured an ankle in pregame warmups in Buffalo, and he was in a competition throughout camp with Corliss Waitman, so there is always the chance the Broncos will go with the younger -- and cheaper -- Waitman.