Broncos 53-man roster projection: Sean Payton, George Paton have tough decisions ahead

The Broncos are days from chosen painful roster decisions Sean Payton however would prefer to lose a good member because his club has more than it can keep rather than the alternative There re going to be a number of tough decisions but I d rather be in that position than the position we were in two years ago at this time he reported after his reserves battered Arizona s - in the second of three preseason games I think the talent level has gradually gotten better Preseason games don t count outside of individual evaluation They don t give any meaningful insight into whether a organization will start fast or slow win its division or finish last But the preseason can give at least an idea about quality roster depth and it certainly appears Denver s got just that NFL teams must cut their rosters from to by p m on Aug Every year much is made about players being sure bets to get claimed by other teams and every year the number is lower than expected often less than one per company Payton thinks his company will be getting poached this summer rather than doing the poaching These guys they re all competing he explained And we say this to them this is serious we re rooting for all of them We re rooting for their best There s going to be particular players that end up on other teams rosters playing That s part of the deal With just more than a week to go here s another crack at projecting a -man group OFFENSE Quarterback Bo Nix Jarrett Stidham and Sam Ehlinger Biggest question Two or three Nix is the unquestioned starter and Sitdham s played terrific ball in the preseason after signing a two-year deal this spring Ehlinger s not as easy of a call to keep as Zach Wilson was a year ago but the Broncos coaches really like him and he s got a few craftiness to his challenge He s not a slam dunk but he could be a nice developmental project and he played well against the Cardinals Running back J K Dobbins RJ Harvey Tyler Badie and Jaleel McLaughlin Biggest question Where s the cut line and who s on the wrong side of it Payton wasn t any clearer about this tight race in the moments after Saturday night s competition McLaughlin had the biggest play of the night and Badie continues to be a solid performer who s also allegedly Denver s second-best pass protector after Dobbins There s still specific ballgame left here but at this point it s hard to see Audric Estime or Blake Watson making the cut Either would be a high-quality practice squad sportsman though a club that had a good grade on Estime out of the draft might be tempted to take a waiver wire flyer on him if he s cut next week Fullback Mike Burton will be part of the equation but it d be easy to see him doing the same thing he did last year Getting cut and signing to the practice squad on the premise that he s elevated the first three weeks and then added to the -man when a spot opens Tight end Evan Engram Adam Trautman and Caleb Lohner Biggest question Does Lohner make the cut This might be one of the positions where the initial -man set doesn t really represent the true pecking order Nate Adkins is hurt and Payton noted he d miss the early part of the regular season If he starts on injured reserve do the Broncos keep another or try to get Lucas Krull Caden Prieskorn or both onto the practice squad Either of them might play over Lohner right now but you don t draft a raw ball of clay like the former Utah hooper if you don t intend on doing what it takes to keep him in your plan and develop him Wide receiver Courtland Sutton Marvin Mims Jr Troy Franklin Devaughn Vele Pat Bryant Trent Sherfield Sr Biggest question Is it as simple as it looks This group looks like a deep one and it also looks settled Sherfield s in line for a sizable role and the other five feel like locks That leaves a host of guys who are enthralling practice squad candidates or could catch other teams eyes Saturday night against Arizona it was Courtney Jackson s turn to have a big night all-purpose yards Kyrese Rowan Jerjuan Newton and Joaquin Davis have each had nice moments too but it s hard to find a spot on the -man for any of them Offensive line Garett Bolles Ben Powers Luke Wattenberg Quinn Meinerz Mike McGlinchey Matt Peart Alex Palczewski Alex Forsyth and Frank Crum Biggest question Is there a surprise from the young guys in store If there were a th to make the organization in this projection it would have been Nick Gargiulo until he sustained a gruesome-looking leg injury against Arizona Instead we got with the same set that made the crew out of camp last year The five starters are set Peart and Palczewski look like the primary backups for four of the five spots and Forsyth has been the No center since Wattenberg won the job last summer Crum is just too good an athlete to subject to the waiver wire and he s developed specific over the past year They should have their choice of Calvin Throckmorton and a bunch of young players for practice squad spots DEFENSE Defensive line Zach Allen D J Jones John Franklin-Myers Malcolm Roach Sai vion Jones Jordan Jackson Biggest question Any chance the Broncos load up here Maybe the single-best roster battle going right now is Jackson against Uwazurike for what looks like maybe one spot Even taking six for an odd-front crew is a substantial number but this is a group that backs it up with talent Both made the unit last year but Sai vion Jones was a third-round pick whom the Broncos traded up for He s making the gang even if he s not in the rotation forthwith If you re trying to keep the best football players no matter what you might try to find a way to squeeze all seven onto the roster Slight edge to Jackson s versatility and pass-rush ability here Even in a world where far fewer players get claimed on waivers than you d think at the roster cutdown it d be a surprise if either guy made it back to the practice squad Tough call indeed Outside linebacker Nik Bonitto Jonathon Cooper Jonah Elliss Dondrea Tillman Que Robinson Biggest question Not a question just stay healthy This group s pretty straightforward Andrew Farmer and Garrett Nelson each look like feasible practice squad guys who are worth keeping around but outside of an injury situation there s no reason to tinker with the quintet above The top four might be the best overall set in the NFL and Robinson s going to be a good special teams member right out of the gate if he s advancing on event days He s got the length and pass-rush ability to work his way into the rotation by the end of the year or fill in if there s an injury Inside linebacker Alex Singleton Dre Greenlaw Levelle Bailey Justin Strnad Biggest question Strength really Assuming Singleton and Greenlaw are ready to roll by Sept this group is in pretty good shape But neither has played much so far in camp Payton disclosed he s looking forward to seeing Greenlaw in padded action this week Bailey s had a solid camp and Strnad s a trusty veteran special teams sportsman who can play on defense if needed The Broncos like all three undrafted rookies JB Brown Karene Reid and Jordan Turner but Turner s come on strong and made several splash plays against the Cardinals A practice squad candidate to remember Garret Wallow s played NFL games and could be a practice squad candidate too Cornerback Pat Surtain II Riley Moss Jahdae Barron Ja Quan McMillian Kris Abrams-Draine Biggest question Anybody else There may not be a better quintet in football The question isn t about nickel or dime packages those competitions are among these five players It s really about special teams and whether fourth-round pick Damarri Mathis who carries a million cap hit into the final year of his rookie deal makes the squad It ll be a competition with players from other position groups Neither Mathis nor any of the other young players are supplanting Abrams-Draine If Reese Taylor hamstring gets healthy over the next days he could push for a spot because of his special teams work and ability to play inside and outside Related Articles Broncos sign former CSU fullback Adam Prentice place Nick Gargiulo on season-ending IR Keeler Is Broncos Sean Payton setting Audric Estime up to fail Maybe but Estime s failing just fine on his own Sean Payton on Broncos receiver Troy Franklin making Year leap It s happening Inside Broncos LT Garett Bolles work in Colorado juvenile detention system My life has done a complete Broncos Davis Webb draws rave reviews for play-calling vs Arizona He s an incredible coach Safety Talanoa Hufanga Brandon Jones P J Locke JL Skinner Sam Franklin Biggest question How does special teams coordinator Darren Rizzi see the pecking order Denver signed Sam Franklin to be a special teams ace and gave him million guaranteed That doesn t put him in un-cuttable territory but it speaks to what they think he brings to the table Devon Key is seemingly the next man up after Hufanga Jones and Locke in terms of defensive ability but if they can get him to the practice squad perhaps they ll try They could also keep Skinner and Key and bring Franklin back as a veteran practice squad participant SPECIAL TEAMS PK Wil Lutz P Jeremy Crawshaw LS Mitch Fraboni Biggest question How rapidly can Crawshaw develop consistency The rookie sixth-round pick has big-time talent and can put the ball into orbit But he s struggled to hit the ball consistently and he s looked shaky in preseason outings so far This is a gang with Super Bowl aspirations If Payton and the front office think the punter is at exposure of costing them a championship they ll consider their options Want more Broncos news Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis