Clayton: The Broncos final 53-man roster included some surprises

The Broncos made their cuts to 53 Tuesday and there were a few surprises.

They released defensive tackle Shamar Stephen and offensive tackle Cam Fleming. Spencer was added on a one-year, $2-million contract to try to add depth to the defensive line. Fleming was signed to complete against Bobby Massie at right tackle, but he ended up being third behind Massie and Calvin Anderson.

It was a little bit of a surprise that the Broncos cut two draft choices from this year. But in some ways, it is not a big surprise.

This wasn’t a good draft because of COVID-19. They cut sixth-round choice Seth Williams, a wide receiver, and seventh-rounder Marquiss Spencer, a defensive end. Several draft choices around the league after the fifth-round were released. Many after the fifth-round at certain positions didn’t have draftable grades.

There was no surprise that quarterback Brett Rypien was cut. The Broncos were only able to keep two quarterbacks on the 53-man roster.

Naturally, you knew the Broncos were going to cut several cornerbacks because they are so deep at that position. Duke Dawson and Essang Bassey were placed on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list. They may be able to resurface seven weeks into the season if they are healthy.

Two draft choices from past years were cut – wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland and linebacker Derrek Tuszka. They were part of the 2020 draft class.

Only one undrafted player made it. He was outside linebacker Andre Mintze.

One roster surprise is that the Broncos ended up keeping 11 defensive backs. That’s a huge number. They did make a trade for a linebacker, Jonas Griffth from the San Francisco 49ers.