Category: Broncos Buzz

Broncos’ updated 53-man roster after recent moves

Here’s a look at the Broncos’ updated 53-man roster going into the Browns game.

The Denver Broncos made a series of roster moves this week ahead of their Monday Night Football clash with the Cleveland Browns.

Most notably, the Broncos cut tight end Greg Dulcich and promoted linebacker Zach Cuningham from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.

Following the team’s five transactions this week, here’s a look at the updated active roster going into Week 13.

Denver Broncos 53-man roster

Position Name Number
QB Bo Nix 10
QB Jarrett Stidham 8
QB Zach Wilson 4
RB Javonte Williams 33
RB Jaleel McLaughlin 38
RB Audric Estime 23
FB Michael Burton 20
FB/TE Nate Adkins 45
TE Adam Trautman 82
TE Lucas Krull 85
WR Courtland Sutton 14
WR Marvin Mims 19
WR Troy Franklin 16
WR Devaughn Vele 17
WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey 84
OT Garett Bolles 72
OT Mike McGlinchey 69
OT Frank Crum 73
OT Alex Palczewski 63
OL Matt Peart 79
G/C Quinn Meinerz 77
G Ben Powers 74
C/G Alex Forsyth 54
C/G Luke Wattenberg 60
DE Zach Allen 99
DE John Franklin-Myers 98
DL D.J. Jones 93
DL Malcolm Roach 97
DL Eyioma Uwazurike 96
DL Jordan Jackson 94
OLB Jonathon Cooper 0
OLB Nik Bonitto 15
OLB Jonah Elliss 52
OLB Dondrea Tillman 92
LB Drew Sanders  41
ILB Cody Barton 55
ILB Justin Strnad 40
ILB Levelle Bailey 56
ILB Zach Cunningham 42
CB Pat Surtain 2
CB Ja’Quan McMillian 29
CB Riley Moss 21
CB Levi Wallace 39
CB Kris Abrams-Draine 31
CB Tremon Smith 1
CB Damarri Mathis 27
DB Devon Key 26
S Brandon Jones 22
S P.J. Locke 6
S JL Skinner 34
K Wil Lutz 3
P Riley Dixon 9
LS Mitchell Fraboni 48

With a 53-man roster and a 17-player practice squad, Denver has 70 players under contract, plus several players on injured reserve.

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Dolphins block Shaq Barrett from unretiring in 2024

The Dolphins have blocked Shaq Barrett from unretiring this season.

Earlier this week, the agents for Shaq Barrett announced that the pass rusher had applied to be reinstated into the NFL.

Four months after announcing his retirement in July, Barrett wanted to unretire and return to the league. Because he signed a one-year deal with the Miami Dolphins this spring, they controlled his rights for the 2024 season.

The Dolphins had until Thursday afternoon to activate Barrett from the reserve/retired list. Miami opted not to activate Barrett and they did not release him, preventing any other team from signing the pass rusher.

Barrett has now been blocked from playing in 2024 and his contract will toll until next year. So if the pass rusher wants to play in 2025, he will be under contract with the Dolphins.

Barrett started his career for the Denver Broncos, where he spent the first five years of his career as a rotational pass rusher. The 32-year-old edge defender has two Super Bowl titles (one with the Broncos and one with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and 59 career sacks on his resume.

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Drew Lock turns the ball over twice in first start with Giants

Former Broncos QB Drew Lock struggled against the Cowboys in his first start with the Giants.

Making his first start for the New York Giants on Thursday, quarterback Drew Lock had two turnovers in a 27-20 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day.

Lock set up the Giants’ opening score with a 29-yard run in the first quarter. After Lock was ruled short of the end zone, running back Tyrone Tracy punched in from one yard out to give New York a 7-3 lead.

Lock’s day went downhill after that.

The 28-year-old quarterback threw a pick-six in the second quarter:

And he lost a fumble in the third quarter:

Lock later rushed for an eight-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Lock finished the game 21-of-32 passing for 178 yards with one interception, good for a 66.9 passer rating. He also rushed for 57 yards and a score.

Lock played for the Denver Broncos from 2019-2021. He went 8-13 as a starter in Denver before being traded to the Seattle Seahawks in 2022. Lock went 1-1 as a fill-in starter with the Seahawks last fall and then signed with the Giants this spring. He’s now 0-1 as a starter with New York.

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Bo Nix limited, Riley Moss DNP on Broncos’ estimated injury report

Broncos CB Riley Moss (knee) was listed as a non-participant on Denver’s estimated injury report Thursday. QB Bo Nix (back) was limited.

The Denver Broncos held a walk-through practice on Thursday and released an estimated injury report that listed quarterback Bo Nix (back) as limited and cornerback Riley Moss (knee) as a non-participant.

Broncos defensive lineman John Franklin-Myers (shoulder) was also limited. Everyone else listed — including defensive lineman Zach Allen (ankle) — fully participated in Thursday’s session. Allen missed Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders and was spotted in a walking boot.

View the team’s complete Thanksgiving injury report below. DNP = did not participate.

Player Thur Fri Sat Game Status
DL Zach Allen (ankle) Full
DB Brandon Jones (abdomen) Full
DB P.J. Locke (thumb) Full
WR Josh Reynolds (hand) Full
DL John Franklin-Myers (shoulder) Limited
QB Bo Nix (back) Limited
CB Riley Moss (knee) DNP

Denver will practice again on Friday and Saturday before releasing a final injury report with statuses for a Monday Night Football showdown with the Cleveland Browns on Dec. 2.

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Peyton Manning stars in Nationwide’s new Debatin’ Manning commercial

Peyton Manning stars as “Debatin’ Manning” in his latest commercial for Nationwide.

Following the success of his “Paintin’ Manning” commercial earlier this year, Peyton Manning has returned with a new Nationwide commercial just in time for the NFL’s Thanksgiving slate of games.

In the new ad, he’s “Debatin’ Manning,” facing off against a tough opponent on the debate stage.

“The commercials are always fun, but they’re so much more – they’re also a way to help people understand what ‘On Your Side’ really means,” Manning said in a statement. “The Nationwide team is there for their customers to help them with their financial and insurance needs. I know how important it is to have teammates that you can count on to have your back, and Nationwide sharing that mentality is important to me.”

Watch the 30-second “Debatin’ Manning” commercial below:

The new ad made its debut during NBC’s coverage of Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. It will continue to air during the NFL games scheduled for Thursday. Nationwide has also released a 15-second “Calculatin’ Manning” commercial.

Manning, 48, retired from the NFL after winning Super Bowl 50 with the Denver Broncos in 2016. Eight years after his retirement from pro football, Manning remains one of the most marketable figures in sports.

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Bo Nix makes Broncos history again with Rookie of the Week award

Bo Nix is the first player in Broncos history to win Rookie of the Week in three consecutive weeks.

Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix has been named Rookie of the Week following the team’s 29-19 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 12.

Nix has now won NFL.com’s Rookie of the Week award in three consecutive weeks, making him the first player in franchise history to accomplish such a feat. Nix previously won after impressing against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 10 and against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 11.

Nix was also named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week and the Air Player of the Week after the Falcons game. He was also named the NFL’s Rookie of the Month in October.

Nix went 25-of-42 passing for 273 yards with two touchdowns and no turnovers against the Raiders last week. Through 12 games this season, the rookie QB has completed 64.9% of his passes for 2,548 yards and 16 touchdowns against six interceptions. He has also rushed for four touchdowns and hauled in a touchdown catch this fall.

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All 32 NFL quarterbacks (including Bo Nix) ranked by Total QBR

Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix has a Total QBR rating of 55.9 through 12 weeks. He ranks 21st in the NFL.

Denver Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix posted a Total QBR rating of 64.8 in the team’s 29-19 win over the Las Vegas Raiders last week, bringing his season-long Total QBR average to 55.9.

That’s a slight improvement from last week’s rating (55.3), but Nix’s rank among starting QBs (No. 21) dropped one spot from last week (No. 20).

Nix’s traditional passer rating this season is 89.9, which ranks 20th.

Unlike a traditional passer rating, the Total QBR “incorporates all of a quarterback’s contributions to winning, including how he impacts the game on passes, rushes, turnovers and penalties,” according to ESPN.

The metric takes into account scenarios that a traditional passer rating overlooks and considers “a team’s level of success or failure on every play to provide the proper context and then allocates credit to the quarterback and his teammate to produce a clearer measure of quarterback efficiency.”

With that context in mind, here’s a look at how Nix stacks up against the NFL’s other starting quarterbacks this fall.

NFL QBs ranked by Total QBR after Week 12

  1. Lamar Jackson: 75.9
  2. Joe Burrow: 75.6
  3. Josh Allen: 73.2
  4. Kyler Murray: 72.5
  5. Brock Purdy: 67.6
  6. Patrick Mahomes: 66.8
  7. Jameis Winston: 66.7
  8. Jayden Daniels: 66.5
  9. Jalen Hurts: 63.7
  10. Matthew Stafford: 62.4
  11. Trevor Lawrence: 61.8
  12. Derek Carr: 61.7
  13. Tua Tagovailoa: 60.0
  14. Sam Darnold: 59.4
  15. Baker Mayfield: 59.3
  16. Jordan Love: 58.4
  17. Justin Herbert: 58.1
  18. Jared Goff: 57.1
  19. Drake Maye: 57.7
  20. Kirk Cousins: 56.8
  21. Bo Nix: 55.9
  22. Geno Smith: 54.6
  23. Aaron Rodgers: 51.4
  24. C.J. Stroud: 51.3
  25. Russell Wilson: 50.1
  26. Caleb Williams: 48.9
  27. Aidan O’Connell: 47.3
  28. Anthony Richardson: 45.9
  29. Will Levis: 36.4
  30. Bryce Young: 35.8
  31. Cooper Rush: 33.2
  32. Drew Lock: 9.3

Nix will look to improve his Total QBR rating when the Broncos host the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football in Week 13.

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Broncos vs. Browns broadcast map: Will the game be on TV?

Fans in the ORANGE will get the Broncos-Browns game on TV this week.

The Denver Broncos (7-5) are set to host the Cleveland Browns (3-8) on Monday Night Football in Week 13 of the 2024 NFL season on Monday, Dec. 2 at 6:15 p.m. MT (8:15 p.m. ET).

The AFC showdown will be nationally televised on ESPN and available to stream on fuboTV (try it free). Unfortunately, there is no ManningCast scheduled for the Broncos-Browns game.

Joe Buck (play-by-play) and Troy Aikman (analyst) will call the game for ESPN with Lisa Salters reporting from the sideline.

On the radio, the game will be nationally broadcast on Westwood One and locally available on KOA Radio.

Fans in the orange areas on the map below will get the game on ESPN.

Ex-Broncos wide receiver Jerry Jeudy and ex-Denver defensive lineman Shelby Harris now play for Cleveland and they will return to Empower Field at Mile High on Monday.

The Broncos lead the all-time series against the Browns 25-7 and Denver is considered a home favorite in Week 13.

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