ENGLEWOOD, Colo.—The odd man out in Denver’s crowded offensive backfield turned out to be starting fullback Kyle Johnson, who was surprisingly among the list of Broncos cuts Saturday.
With the emergence of free agent rookie running back Selvin Young, the Broncos tested Mike Bell at fullback, where he split snaps with Cecil Sapp on Thursday night in the team’s exhibition finale. Johnson was out of pads along with the rest of the starters.
That led many to believe that Bell had slipped from being tailback Travis Henry’s primary backup to a waiver wire candidate. Instead, it was the five-year veteran Johnson who was jettisoned.
A special teams stalwart, Johnson was the Broncos’ primary lead blocker each of the last three seasons, opening holes for three different 1,000-yard rushers. His five touchdown catches in 2005 were the second-most in the league by a running back.
The Broncos also released veteran free agent defensive tackle Jimmy Kennedy, seventh-year receiver-returner Quincy Morgan, safety Steve Cargile and Chad Mustard, who was moved from tight end to tackle during training camp.
Defensive end Kenny Peterson was moved to the reserve/suspended list. He’ll miss the first four games of the season for violating the league’s policy on steroids and related substances. Peterson was cut on the first day of camp but re-signed a day later when defensive end Carlos Hall failed to report.
To reach the 53-man roster limit, the Broncos also released guards Emmanuel Akah, Mark Fenton and Kevin McAlmont, cornerbacks Bill Alford and Kevin House, defensive linemen John Browning and Steven Harris, center Greg Eslinger, tackle Cliff Washburn, linebackers T.J. Hollowell and Cameron Vaughn, quarterbacks Darrell Hackney and Preston Parsons, wide receivers Glenn Martinez and Marquay McDaniel and safety Roderick Rogers.
