The deadline for NFL teams to trim their rosters from 90 to 53 players is at 2 p.m. Saturday, but the Broncos wasted no time on Friday beginning to clear house.
Throughout the day we’ll provide news and analysis on which players did not make the cut with Denver’s preseason slate now complete. Check back for regular updates.
2:37 p.m. — Ryan O’Halloran: LB Dadi Nicolas waived/injured, two OT moves
Per a league source, Nicolas sustained a lower leg injury last night and is in a boot today.
A source confirmed that OT Chaz Green and OT Adam Bisnowaty have been cut. The offensive tackle depth chart is thinning. Still waiting to learn their status are rookies John Leglue and Quinn Bailey.
2:05 p.m. — Ryan O’Halloran: C Ryan Crozier waived/injured, G Don Barclay cut
The Broncos continued making moves this afternoon. Crozier was waived/injured per a league source. He was injured in Thursday’s game against Arizona. Crozier was an undrafted rookie from Connecticut.
Barclay, a veteran right guard, started early in the preseason but the Broncos are likely keeping Austin Schlottmann to be their swing interior guy (guard/center) and they moved Elijah Wilkinson from tackle to right guard last week because of Leary’s knee soreness.
12:52 p.m. — Kyle Fredrickson: Cornerback Linden Stephens cut
Cornerback Linden Stephens has been cut, a league source confirmed. Stephens, a second-year pro out of Cincinnatti, spent time on practice squads with the Broncos and Rams last year. He recorded nine tackles this preseason.
12:14 p.m. — Kyle Fredrickson: Second wide receiver released
The Broncos are expected to release as many as six wide receivers before Saturday’s deadline and the second domino fell on Friday.
Steven Dunbar Jr., a second-year pro from Houston, has been cut from the roster, a league source confirmed. Dunbar had four catches for 19 yards over five preseason games.
11:36 a.m. — Kyle Fredrickson: Running back David Williams cut
Running back David Williams was cut on Friday, a league source confirmed, in a failed Broncos comeback attempt.
Williams, a 2018 seventh-round Denver draft pick, did not make the active roster to begin last season and was assigned to the practice squad. The Jaguars signed him to their active roster in October and Williams appeared in six games with eight rushes for 36 yards. Jacksonville cut Williams in May before he signed back with the Broncos for this training camp.
But Williams never gained traction in a crowded position room that already features a stout and powerful running back with a similar skillset in Royce Freeman. Williams is a practice squad candidate.
10:49 a.m. — Ryan O’Halloran: Receiver Brendan Langley released
A league source confirmed that Brendan Langley, making the transition from cornerback to receiver, has been released.
Langley, a third-round pick in 2017, never gained any traction at cornerback and was moved to receiver during the offseason. He had two catches for 14 yards in the preseason, but also had two drops on Thursday against Arizona.
10:22 a.m. — Kyle Fredrickson: Safety Su’a Cravens says goodbye
Broncos safety Su’a Cravens announced on Twitter that he has been waived by the Broncos. The fourth-year pro recently made his profile (@iammsuzy) private, but he posted early Friday: “Hopefully our paths cross again Denver. Thank you and I’ll miss this city.”
Cravens finished last season as a healthy scratch in three consecutive games. Early in this year’s camp, coach Vic Fangio said Cravens would have to make the team as a safety and not a hybrid safety/linebacker player. That plus his inexperience on special teams made Cravens expendable.
10:04 a.m. — Ryan O’Halloran: Broncos trading for Patriots CB Duke Dawson
A source confirmed an NFL Network report that the Broncos are acquiring cornerback Duke Dawson from the New England Patriots. The Broncos are sending a 2020 sixth-round pick to the Patriots for Dawson and a 2020 seventh-rounder.
This was a proactive move by the Broncos, who had been talking to the Patriots for the last few days. Dawson was expected to be cut and might have been picked up on waivers before the Broncos had a chance to claim him.
Dawson, 22, was a second-round pick by the Patriots in 2018 but did not play a game. He was placed on injured reserve (hamstring) after the preseason and was then a healthy scratch upon being activated to the roster.
Dawson’s arrival is two-fold: He can be the fifth cornerback behind Chris Harris, Bryce Callahan, Isaac Yiadom and De’Vante Bausby and he can provide a potential special teams core player.
