Tag: Riley Moss

Broncos sign CB Levi Wallace to 1-year contract

The Broncos are signing Levi Wallace to a one-year contract, giving the team veteran depth at cornerback.

Story update: The Broncos have agreed to terms on a one-year contract with Levi Wallace, according to KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis. See our original post below. 

The Denver Broncos are expected to sign cornerback Levi Wallace to a one-year contract, according to a report from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Wallace (6-0, 179 pounds) won two national championships at Alabama before entering the NFL as an undrafted rookie with the Buffalo Bills in 2018. He spent four years in Buffalo, starting 52 games, before signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2022.

Wallace, 28, started 18 games for the Steelers over the last two years, breaking up 24 passes and recording six interceptions. He has totaled 54 pass breakups and 12 interceptions in 83 career games (70 starts).

Wallace gives the Broncos veteran insurance at cornerback in case Riley Moss doesn’t step up as a reliable starter across from Pat Surtain in 2024.

The Wallace signing also makes cornerback a less pressing need for Denver ahead of the draft this week. While it’s still possible, the Broncos now seem less likely to draft a cornerback at No. 12 overall.

Quinyon Mitchell, Terrion Arnold, Cooper DeJean, Kool-Aid McKinstry and Nate Wiggins are among the top cornerbacks in this year’s class. The Broncos hold eight picks going into Thursday’s draft. We are tracking all of Denver’s free agency moves on Broncos Wire.

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Broncos need CB Riley Moss to take a big step forward in 2024

Last year, the Broncos traded a 2024 3rd-round pick for CB Riley Moss, who played 23 snaps (3%) on defense. He needs to step up in Year 2.

The Denver Broncos paid a steep price to trade up for Iowa cornerback Riley Moss in last year’s NFL draft.

The Broncos gave up 2023’s pick No. 107 in the third round plus a 2024 third-round pick to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for pick No. 83. Denver then used that pick from the Seahawks to select Moss.

So far, Moss hasn’t lived up to the trade.

After being sidelined early in the 2023 season following core muscle surgery, Moss ended up dressing for 14 games, but he did not earn any starts. The young cornerback played 265 snaps on special teams (68%) but was barely used on defense, playing just 23 snaps (3%).

Broncos general manager George Paton defended Moss during his end-of-season press conference in January.

“Riley Moss, we feel, is a starter in this league,” Paton said on January 9. “He was one of our best special teams players, if not the best.

“We saw it in practice. We saw the cover skills, and we saw the transition quickness, toughness and instincts. You saw it a little bit in-game. He played a little bit of the dime role.”

Apparently, Denver’s staff wasn’t impressed enough from Moss’s impressive practices to give him more snaps on defense. It’s hard to gauge if Paton truly believes Moss has brighter days ahead or if the GM was merely attempting to save face in the presser.

To be fair to both Moss and Payton, it should be remembered that the cornerback was coming off surgery, and one season is not enough of a sample size to label a player a bust. But if Moss does not have a much better season in 2024, trading a pair of third-round picks to acquire him will look like a big mistake in hindsight.

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Broncos drafted/signed 3 players from last year’s Senior Bowl

The Broncos drafted/signed three players from 2023 Senior Bowl: CB Riley Moss (3rd round), DB JL Skinner (5th) and OLB Thomas Incoom (UDFA).

The 2024 Senior Bowl will be played at Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Alabama later today.

The Denver Broncos will have scouts and coaches in attendance, including quality control coaches Logan Kilgore (National Team) and Zack Grossi (American Team) serving as tight end coaches for the all-star game.

In addition to the notable quarterbacks, the Broncos will be scouting players at every position in Mobile, including mid- and late-round prospects. Last year, Denver drafted two Senior Bowl participants and signed a third player as an undrafted free agent.

The Broncos used a third-round pick to select Iowa cornerback Riley Moss and a sixth-round pick to select Boise State safety JL Skinner. After the draft, Denver signed Central Michigan pass rusher Thomas Incoom as a college free agent.

Admittedly, the trio had forgettable rookie seasons in 2023. Moss was sidelined by core muscle surgery in August. Once he recovered, the cornerback failed to make an impact on defense, earning just 23 snaps.

Skinner only appeared in two games, getting one snap on defense and nine snaps on special teams. Incoom dressed for four games as a rookie and played 20 snaps on defense.

Last year’s class of Senior Bowl additions was underwhelming for the Broncos, but those three players will aim to make a bigger impact in Year 2.

Studs and duds from Denver Broncos’ 2023 season

The Denver Broncos had an wild season, full of ups and downs. We take a look back at the best and worst from 2023.

The Denver Broncos closed their 2023 season with a disappointing 27-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, finishing their season at 8-9.

This season began with buzz over head coach Sean Payton coming to Denver and his partnership with Russell Wilson. At the beginning of the season, there were far more problems than solutions. But then, in the middle of the year, the Broncos went on a remarkable six-game win streak, and there were serious playoff conversations happening for the first time since 2015. A couple of late-season losses ended those talks, but Denver still finished the year with their most wins since 2016.

We take a look at this season full of ups and downs with our final list of studs and duds from 2023.

Broncos CB Riley Moss ‘moving now at 100%’ after surgery

Broncos CB Riley Moss has recovered from core muscle surgery and he’s “really moving now at 100 percent,” coach Sean Payton said.

After being picked by the Denver Broncos in the third round of the NFL draft in April, cornerback Riley Moss missed most of the summer after undergoing core muscle surgery.

After being inactive for the first two games of the season, Moss made his NFL debut last week, but he did not get any snaps on defense. He did play 17 snaps on special teams in Week 3, and Moss might be in line to get the first defensive snaps of his rookie campaign in Week 4.

“You have to see how he’s playing on the scout team snaps,” coach Sean Payton said of evaluating Moss. “He’s moving around. He’s really moving now at 100 percent. Coming off an injury, there’s a transition. Fortunately for us, we had enough of an early evaluation where we felt pretty good about what we saw. He’s smart. He does a lot of things well.

“We’ll begin looking at, ‘Hey, what are roles for him?’ We know he’s going to be a factor in the kicking game [special teams], but what are the other roles? I always say this: what do these guys do well? Let’s try to have them do those things. That’s part of the art of game planning and putting those players [in position]. Everyone has some limitations, but what are the strengths and how do we highlight those?”

Right now, Damarri Mathis is starting across from Pat Surtain on the outside and Essang Bassey is playing in the slot. Once Moss gets fully up to speed, he might get an opportunity to compete for the CB2 or CB3 job. For now, he’ll figures to be a key player on special teams and a rotational defensive back.

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Raiders, Broncos Week 1 final injury report: Brandon Facyson, Chandler Jones OUT, DeAndre Carter Questionable

Chandler Jones and Brandon Facyson officially OUT, DeAndre Carter (knee) is Questionable

The first final injury report for the Raiders 2023 season is out. And with it are Chandler Jones and Brandon Facyson. Leaving the Raiders without two potential starters on defense.

Raiders head coach Josh McDaniels announced at his press conference that he didn’t expect Jones or Facyson to play Sunday. This just makes it official.

Jones is out for personal reasons. He made a series of disturbing and concerning posts on social media this week and his status is week-to-week at this point. Rookie seventh overall pick Tyree Wilson and third year man Malcolm Koonce should get the bulk of the snaps in Jones’s absence.

Facyson missed a good portion of training camp and now his shin injury has officially moved into the regular season. Who starts at outside corner opposite Marcus Peters is not entirely known yet.

Carter was limited all week, which would suggest he could go on Sunday.

For the Broncos, it’s starting wideout Jerry Jeudy cornerback Riley Moss who are Questionable. Both were limited all week. Jeudy with a hamstring injury and Moss with an abdomen issue.

Broncos injuries: Pat Surtain returns to practice

After sitting out the team’s first preseason game, Broncos CB Pat Surtain is back on the practice field this week.

Denver Broncos cornerback Pat Surtain missed the team’s preseason opener last week with an undisclosed injury, but coach Sean Payton did not seem concerned about Surtain’s injury.

“I think you’re going to see him this week,” Payton said when asked about Surtain on Monday. “I think he’s really close. We have a handful of those guys — Courtland [Sutton among them]. I think we have a group of four or five guys that you’ll be not asking me anything here in a couple days.”

Payton was right — Surtain and Sutton were both back out on the field for Tuesday’s practice.

Two players who are not expected to return this week are cornerback Riley Moss and right tackle Mike McGlinchey. Moss will likely miss at least two more weeks while recovering from core muscle surgery. McGlinchey is also expected to miss a few more weeks with a sprained knee.

Broncos safety P.J. Locke was also carted off the field Tuesday with an apparent left leg injury, but Payton said “he’s going to be fine.”

After losing wide receiver Tim Patrick (Achilles) and linebacker Jonas Griffith (ACL) to season-ending injuries during training camp, Denver will hope to stay healthy as they wrap up preseason this month and prepare for Week 1’s showdown with the Las Vegas Raiders.

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Madden NFL 24 ratings revealed for Iowa Hawkeyes rookies

In addition to their dream of making the NFL, another childhood dream has been realized for five Hawkeye rookies: Welcome to Madden NFL 24!

Becoming a playable character in a video game is a dream come true for all professional athletes. Few moments signify that you made it more than being forever immortalized in a video game.

We all grew up as kids playing sports games and putting ourselves into the game. I 100% spent hours on early Maddens and NBA 2Ks painstakingly trying to replicate myself in the game. I never quite ended up as that 6-foot-5 gunslinger of a quarterback, unfortunately.

Those days of long hours in the creation suite are over for these former Iowa Hawkeyes. For the first time in their lives, these five players are officially playable in Madden. Just like Joe Kingman in The Gameplan, these rookies can now have the satisfaction of leading the charge against their friends on the virtual field.

For Iowa fans, they can now play with five of their favorite former players in Madden 24. Rookies Lukas Van Ness, Jack Campbell, Sam LaPorta, Riley Moss, and Kaevon Merriweather make their official video game debuts in Madden 24. Here is how they stack up to the rest of the competition.

Broncos roster series: No. 37, CB Riley Moss

With 4.45 speed and 11 college interceptions on his resume, Riley Moss will be an exciting player to watch for at Broncos training camp.

Broncos Wire’s 90-man offseason roster series continues today with a look at rookie cornerback Riley Moss, No. 37.

Before the Broncos: Moss (6-0, 193 pounds) played college football at Iowa, earning second-team All-Big Ten recognition as a fifth-year senior in 2022. As a team captain last fall, Moss totaled 47 tackles, 11 pass breakups and one interception in 13 games.

In five years (43 games) at Iowa, Moss totaled 158 tackles, 26 pass breakups and 11 interceptions (three of which were returned for touchdowns). At the NFL combine earlier this year, Moss ran a 40-yard dash in 4.45 and a 10-yard split in 1.48 seconds.

Broncos tenure: Denver picked Moss in the third round of the NFL draft in April. He will make his Bronco debut during preseason this summer.

Chance to make the 53-man roster: Moss is a lock to make the team. The question is, will he win a starting job? Right now, Damarri Mathis is projected to start across from Pat Surtain at cornerback. Unless the Broncos plan to have one of Moss or Mathis play in the slot, they will be in direct competition for the CB2 job this summer.

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