Broncos Elevate RB & TE for Tilt at Chargers
Despite losing players to injuries, the Denver Broncos are a remarkably healthy team going into the final stretch. Although young safety Caden Sterns and offensive playmakers Tim Patrick and Greg Dulcich suffered injuries during the preseason, the Broncos managed to weather the storm rather well.
The only player with a dubious prognosis for the Broncos going into their Week 14 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers is running back Samaje Perine, who has a knee injury. For Sunday’s game, in which the Broncos promoted tight end Lucas Krull and running back Tyler Badie from the practice squad, Perine is listed as questionable.
An elevation isn’t the same as a practice-squad player being signed to the active roster. It’s a gameday transaction that allows each team to call up two practice-squad players to dress for the action. Typically, they move back down to the practice squad following the game without being exposed to the waiver wire.
Without jeopardizing them to the wire, the Broncos can do that with each player twice. A player may be returned to the practice squad following his third elevation, but only after making it through the waiver system unclaimed.
After being selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the sixth round of the 2022 draft, Badie is currently in his second season. He moved to Denver the previous season, and in Week 18, against the Chargers, he scored a touchdown on an impressive 24-yard reception.
Krull joined the Broncos after final roster cuts around the NFL in September. Going undrafted out of Pittsburgh last year, he entered the league with the New Orleans Saints and has appeared in three games (one start) as a pro.
While Russell Wilson hasn’t quite been able to connect with Krull, the speed the young tight end brings to the table has been a nice change of pace compared to the plodding efforts of Adam Trautman and the uber-blocker Chris Manhertz. Wilson looked Krull’s way on that game-ending interception thrown in the end zone last week in Houston.
Earlier this week, head coach Sean Payton teased a new tweak to the Broncos’ offense relative to how he scripts plays to open each half. It’ll be interesting to see whether Badie and/or Krull will play a part in it.
