The Denver Broncos' roster cuts brought some surprises in terms of who they kept and who they cut. One of the bigger shocks was the team cutting rookie tight end Justin Joly, a player Denver had traded up for in the 2026 NFL draft.
Joly had a pretty quiet preseason, until this past Friday against the Minnesota Vikings in the Broncos' final preseason contest. In the fourth quarter of the game, Joly ran a beautiful route, and nobody came within 10 yards of him as he caught a Sam Ehlinger pass and took it 88 yards for a touchdown.
Which begs the question: Why did Denver cut Joly?
“Justin is a talented player. We knew it when we drafted him. We knew he was raw," general manager George Paton said of Joly in a post-cutdown presser on Sunday evening.
"We still like the player. He was coming on towards the end of training camp. Tight end position is a tough position for a rookie. He missed a lot of the offseason, just a little bit behind. We wish we had another game or two."
That separation may have been a factor as Denver decided to keep seventh-round draft pick Dallen Bentley over Joly. With Joly now on the waiver wire, the Broncos await word on if they will be able to retain him on the practice squad.
We still like the player," Paton said. "We think he’s going to have a nice career. You just have to make tough decisions to build the best 53 you can make.”
The veteran depth on the Broncos' roster was always going to be a difficult barrier to overcome; Joly was just a victim of circumstance. After waiver claims are processed today, Denver will begin building a 17-player practice squad. If he clears waivers, Joly will likely be a top candidate for the practice squad.
We will continue to track all of the team's roster moves on Broncos Wire.
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This article originally appeared on Broncos Wire: Why did the Broncos cut TE Justin Joly? GM George Paton explains
