Tag: tryout players

7 players tried out for the Broncos last week

The Broncos brought in one running back, one tight end and five cornerbacks for tryouts last week.

Seven players tried out for the Denver Broncos last week.

After bringing in running back Hassan Hall and tight end John Samuel Shenker for tryouts on Tuesday, the Broncos also brought in five cornerbacks for tryouts on Friday.

Denver hosted Caleb Biggers, Zyon Gilbert, Thakarius “BoPete” Keyes, Duron Lowe, and Reese Taylor at their UCHealth Training Center on Oct. 20.

Biggers (5-10, 202 pounds) played college football at Boise State and signed with the Cleveland Browns as an undrafted free agent this spring. He was cut by the Browns when they set their 53-man roster this summer.

Gilbert (6-0, 193 pounds) played at Florida Atlantic before signing with the New York Giants as a college free agent in 2022. He appeared in three games last season (including one start) and totaled 14 tackles and a sack.

Keyes (6-1, 200 pounds) was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL draft out of Tulane. Since then, he has spent time with eight NFL teams, marking appearances in 13 games.

Lowe (5-10, 190 pounds) played college football at Liberty and signed with the Los Angeles Rams as an undrafted free agent last year. He more recent spent time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Chiefs.

Taylor (5-9, 188 pounds) signed with Kansas City as a college free agent out of Purdue this spring, but he failed to make their 53-man roster in August.

At the time of publication, none of the seven players who tried out for the Broncos have been signed.

Why the Broncos worked out a punter instead of a kicker

Wil Lutz missed two kicks in Week 1, but the Broncos brought in a punter for a workout, not a kicker. Here’s why.

When news broke that the Denver Broncos brought in a specialist for a workout on Wednesday, some fans were surprised to learn that the team hosted a punter, not a kicker.

Broncos kicker Wil Lutz missed two kicks in the team’s season opener, so fans thought competition might be on the way. Denver coach Sean Payton has backed Lutz to bounce back, though, and Payton is not going to undermine the kicker’s confidence — at least not at the moment.

The Broncos are also content with punter Riley Dixon, but he is a right-footed punter and Denver is set to face a left-footed Tress Way when they host the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

Payton likely wanted to give Denver’s punt returners — Marvin Mims and Tremon Smith — reps fielding left-footed punts in practice this week ahead of Sunday’s game against Way.

So the Broncos brought in former XFL punter Brock Miller, a lefty, for a workout. Denver also hosted veteran long snapper Jake McQuaide, according to the NFL’s transaction wire.

If Lutz continues to struggle, the Broncos might bring in kickers down the road. For now, though, it seems that Denver just wanted to get practice reps with a left-footed punter, and they brought in a long snapper to workout with him on Wednesday.

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5 players tried out for Broncos on Tuesday, including 2 tight ends

The Broncos brought in five players for tryouts on Tuesday, including a pair of tight ends.

The Denver Broncos brought in five players for tryouts on Tuesday, according to the NFL’s transaction wire.

Denver hosted three wide receivers — Kevin Austin, Jalen Camp and Thyrick Pitts — and two tight ends — Noah Togiai and Jake Tonges.

The Broncos are expected to place safety Caden Sterns on season-ending injured reserve with a torn patellar tendon. Once Sterns goes on IR, Denver will have an open spot on the 53-man roster.

One candidate to be called up to the active roster is practice squad wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey. If Humphrey is about to be called up to the 53-man roster, Denver might be looking at options to add another WR to the practice squad.

Meanwhile, Broncos tight end Greg Dulcich is expected to miss “multiple weeks” with a hamstring injury. That likely explains why Denver is looking for more depth options at tight end.

See a list of the team’s tryout players below.

Broncos coach Sean Payton won’t overlook bottom-of-roster players

“[W]e’re rooting for every one of these guys to do well,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said of the team’s bottom-of-the-roster players.

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It’s natural for NFL teams to prioritize drafted players over undrafted free agent signings. Drafted players obviously took draft capital to acquire and they also cost more to sign than a UDFA.

Denver Broncos coach Sean Payton, though, is no respecter of draft status. The coach will give a fair opportunity to everyone on the team, whether it’s a tryout player, undrafted free agent, draft pick or free agent signee.

The Broncos had more than 20 rookies trying out at rookie minicamp last weekend, plus five veteran tryout players. Payton did not want to overlook any of them.

“Historically — and we talk about this all of the time as coaches — for me, my biggest fear is that somebody that is out here for three days ends up somewhere else [and is] playing well,” Payton said on May 13. “We are really trying to look at everyone. Not just the draft picks, but the guys that are here for three days [on a tryout basis].”

Before practice, Payton showed rookie minicamp players clips of wide receiver Adam Thielen and running back Kyrie Robinson, who had to get tryouts for their first opportunities in the NFL.

“[O]ur league has had a number of those players,” Payton said. “Chris Banjo, who had a long career as a special teams player for me and most recently in Arizona, he went a year without an opportunity then got a tryout.” 

Talent can come anywhere and any school. How they arrive in Denver doesn’t matter. How they perform on the field does.

“We are really trying to look at every one of these guys, evaluate them properly with an open mind, knowing that history would tell us there are players that get overlooked and it’s not a science,” Payton said. 

The Broncos signed two XFL tryout players after rookie minicamp and the team’s undrafted free agent additions will all have opportunities to make the 53-man roster this summer.

“[W]e’re rooting for every one of these guys to do well,” Payton said. “All the support staff, everything that goes into this, we’re wanting to see these guys have a chance to make it.”

NFL limits teams to only 5 tryout players at rookie minicamps in 2021

The National Football League has limited teams to just five tryout players at rookie minicamps this year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The coronavirus pandemic continues to have an impact on how business is conducted around the National Football League entering into the 2021 season.

For safety’s sake, NFL teams will be limited to a maximum of five tryout players at rookie minicamps next month, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on Thursday.

During a normal preseason, some clubs – like the Seahawks – invite a number of players to try out with the new drafted and undrafted rookie class. Last year, since all rookie camps were canceled due to the pandemic, no one got the chance to impress. In 2021, at least a few players will get their shot at earning a roster spot.

As Seahawks.com reporter, John Boyle points out, defensive end Benson Mayowa was once a try-out player and now has a solid career.

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