The Broncos are on their way to a 53-man roster.
Denver began making moves Saturday, trimming from its 91-man group as the team starts the long and difficult path to saying farewell to 38 players. Of course, not all will be gone for long. Up to 16 could be back Monday as part of the club’s practice squad and a couple of others could end up being off the roster for all of one day.
Head coach Sean Payton reminded his team in the postgame locker room Friday after it stomped Minnesota, 34-6, in the preseason finale that still more could find their way back to Broncos Park before long, even if it’s not right away.
“Remember itap the right 53 and getting the proper evaluation,” Payton said. … “I just finished saying this in the locker room: Oftentimes in those tough meetings the next two days, within a month, within two months, all of a sudden a player will be back in your building. That happens.”
Not everybody will be back, though. That’s part of the cold reality of the coming days. There are nearly 1,200 players let go league-wide and only a little more than 500 practice squad spots to fill.
The Broncos began their route to 53 players by waiving and releasing 11 on Saturday, multiple sources confirmed to The Post. None of the Broncos’ cuts appeared on the league’s transaction wire for Saturday, meaning that they’ll all be on Sunday’s wire. Players let go any time this weekend can’t be claimed until after Sunday’s league-wide deadline.
Adam Prentice isn’t actually going anywhere
Fullback Adam Prentice is set to be released Sunday, but he’s not going anywhere. The stalwart, a source confirmed, has agreed to start off on the practice squad. As a vested veteran player, Prentice is not subject to the waiver wire, so the Broncos do not risk losing him to another team as long as he agrees to re-sign to the practice squad Monday.
It’s a selfless move for the 29-year-old, who has had a heck of a training camp and is by any objective measure one of the 53 most important players on Denver’s roster. He’s been a first-down and touchdown machine in the preseason and appears set to enter 2026 as one of the best fullbacks in football.
The Broncos are expected to attempt to repeat this kind of set-up with at least another player or two, perhaps more, as a way of getting as many guys back in their building as possible. If a veteran agrees to return, that’s another young player who might draw attention on the wavier wire that can be stashed on the 53-man roster and protected from poaching.
Others who have done this with Denver in recent seasons include QB Sam Ehlinger and WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey.
Broncos part with recently signed quartet
The Broncos have added four players over the past couple of weeks as injuries and departures added up.
The let all four go Saturday.
Defensive tackle Israel Antwine, offensive lineman Foster Sarell, center Lecitus Smith and outside linebacker Ron Stone Jr. were waived Saturday, sources told The Post.
Stone signed Tuesday and played 19 snaps in Friday night’s game against the Vikings. Antwine, meanwhile, arrived in Denver on Wednesday and played 20 snaps on Friday.
Sarell just signed earlier this week and Smith was brought in as interior depth as the Broncos traveled to Atlanta for their preseason opener earlier this month.
Reid Holskey had been around longer during training camp, but he, too, was waived Saturday, a source said. Holskey showed versatility and played up and down the offensive line for the Broncos in training camp and the preseason.
Joseph Manjack IV first of young WRs to be let go
Undrafted rookie wide receiver Joseph Manjack IV was waived Saturday, a source confirmed to The Post.
Manjack started camp slowly but has come on strong over the past couple of weeks, including a nice outing in the second preseason game against Green Bay.
All of Denver’s undrafted receivers had their moments in camp, so the club has options when it comes to putting together practice squad options on Monday.
In addition to the undrafted receiver, Denver also waived a pair of undrafted defensive backs in safety Parker Robertson and cornerback Ricardo Hallman.
Robertson had a big preseason finale, accumulating four tackles (one for loss) and recovering a fumble.
A pair of familiar faces let go
The Broncos also waived wide receiver Kyrese Rowan, who spent time in each of the past two training camps in Denver and was on the practice squad for parts of the 2025 season. The club also waived DT Jordan Miller, who has been a practice squad staple for Denver over the past two seasons. A source said he’s a candidate to return this fall.
Broncos roster counter as moves toward 53 continues
Denver has 80 players on its roster and must make 27 more moves.
The players waived or released so far:
FB Adam Prentice
DT Israel Antwine
OLB Ron Stone Jr.
DT Jordan Miller
WR Joseph Manjack IV
OL Foster Sarell
WR Kyrese Rowan
C Lecitus Smith
OL Reid Holskey
CB Ricardo Hallman
S Parker Robertson
This story will be updated.
