Now three days removed from the roster cuts deadline, the dust has mostly settled and the Denver Broncos appear to have their 53-man roster and 17-player practice squad set for the 2026 campaign.
There will be changes, of course, as injuries pop up and as players from other clubs become available. Denver could make a few more bottom-of-the-roster tweaks in the coming days, but general manager George Paton and coach Sean Payton appear to be satisfied with the squad they've assembled.
As the Broncos now prepare to face the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 1, here are five quick takeaways from the team's initial 53-man roster and 17-player practice squad.
Takeaways from Broncos' active roster, practice squad
1. Denver’s continuity: The Broncos largely focused on re-signing their own in-house free agents in March,
and they were the last team in the NFL to sign an outside free agent from another club (special teams safety Tycen Anderson). Denver did make a big splash trade for wide receiver Jaylen Waddle this spring, but outside of him, the roster is largely unchanged from 2025. Only four members of the Broncos' draft class made the 53-man roster, and none of them are expected to have massive roles in 2026. So after going 14-3 last season, Denver is mostly running it back (plus a very notable addition in Waddle).
2. Broncos lost two players: Denver thought they could get tight end Justin Joly (a fifth-round draft pick) back on the practice squad, and they had a practice squad agreement with cornerback Reese Taylor if he cleared waivers. Both players ended up getting claimed off waivers by the Miami Dolphins. Joly is a raw tight end, but he could have been a long-term receiving threat. Taylor was a talented depth cornerback, but the Broncos are still deep at his position.
3. Denver will elevate two veterans: Two of the team's practice squad signings were long snapper Mitch Fraboni and fullback Adam Prentice. They are eligible to be elevated from the practice squad to the game-day roster up to three times, and that will likely be the plan for Week 1. Eventually, both players are expected to be fully promoted to the active roster, but the Broncos will have some early-season roster flexibility with Fraboni and Prentice starting on the practice squad.
4. Broncos got three key linemen back on practice squad: There was some speculation this summer that one or both of Tyler Miller or Gavin Ortega could make the active roster so Denver wouldn't risk losing them. In the end, both undrafted rookies cleared waivers and returned on the practice squad. Miller is a promising tackle prospect and Ortega is a swing guard/center who got a lot of reps this summer following multiple injuries at center. The Broncos also brought back versatile veteran lineman Calvin Throckmorton. He played tackle in college, moved to guard in the NFL and filled in at center this summer. Throckmorton can do it all, and he'll provide quality depth on the practice squad.
5. Denver got two draft picks back on practice squad: The Broncos lost Joly, but safety Miles Scott and linebacker Red Murdock (a pair of seventh-round picks) both cleared waivers and signed with the practice squad. Other fan favorites who made it back to the practice squad include running back Cody Schrader and undrafted receiver/returner Kolbe Katsis. Interestingly, undrafted linebacker Taurean York remains an unsigned free agent after clearing waivers. York was a high-profile UDFA signing for Denver this spring, but none of the team's UDFAs made the active roster.
Broncos players will get a long weekend following today's practice, then they'll return to Broncos Park Powered by CommonSpirit next week as they continue preparations for a Monday Night Football clash in Kansas City (Sept. 14).
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: 5 takeaways after Broncos set active roster and practice squad
