The Broncos lost a young linebacker and added a veteran safety on Thursday.
Denver waived inside linebacker Levelle Bailey with an injury designation, a source confirmed to The Post, after he sustained a lower leg fracture last week against Atlanta in the Broncos’ preseason opener.
To take his place on the 90-man roster, Denver is signing veteran safety Taylor Rapp.
Rapp, 28, has played in 93 games and started 72 over his seven-year NFL career. He played the last three seasons in Buffalo after four years with the Los Angeles Rams.
He worked out for the Broncso earlier this month.
The move to add an experienced player comes as Denver has what looks like a wide-open race for reserve roles at safety behind starters Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Jones.
The top candidates have been Devon Key, JL Skinner, and rookie Miles Scott. The Broncos also have Tycen Anderson, who is mostly a special teams player.
For Bailey, the coming days are likely to include a couple of procedural moves.
Assuming Bailey clears waivers, he will revert to the Broncos’ injured reserve list. From there, he could be waived off IR with an injury settlement. That would be a different direction than the Broncos took with defensive lineman Matt Henningsen and offensive lineman Michael Deiter, who each went directly to injured reserve and are thus out for the season.
If Bailey reaches an injury settlement, that would open the door for him to re-sign with the Broncos or another team sometime later in the season.
