Training Camp 2020: Breaking down the Broncos 15-man practice squad

The Broncos have made it to the regular season! To do that, the team had to trim their roster from 80 players to 53 players. In addition, they had to decide which players they would be able to sneak through to their practice squad and which players they could not. Over the weekend, the Broncos both trimmed the roster and decided who would be on their practice squad for the 2020 season.

Denver signed Brett Rypien, Trinity Benson, Fred Brown, Patrick Morris, Quinn Bailey, Darrin Paulo, Jake Rodgers, LeVante Bellamy, Jeremy Cox, Derrek Tuszka, Josh Watson, Alijah Holder, P.J. Locke, De’Vante Bausby and DeShawn Williams to the practice squad.

Every one of these 15 players competed with the Broncos during training camp, and some of these players like Brown, Morris, Rodgers, Watson, Holder and Bausby have played in regular-season games for the Broncos.

Here’s a look at the 15 players on the team’s practice squad to begin the 2020 season.

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Brett Rypien | QB

The Broncos picked up Brett Rypien as an undrafted free agent in 2019. He was known as a good leader at Boise State and is a developmental prospect. Rypien does not possess incredible physical ability, but he can be smart and accurate as a passer. That’s enough to keep him around just to see how good he can get.

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Trinity Benson | WR

I thought Trinity Benson competed well during training camp. He was with the team last year, signed as an undrafted free agent out of East Central in 2019. Benson measures 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, and impressed scouts at his pro day with a 4.4 40-yard dash and a sub-6.9 second three-cone drill. He can work as a receiver or return man, and Benson even got a chance to get some carries on sweeps for East Central.

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Fred Brown | WR

When rookie Tyrie Cleveland started to emerge in camp, it was bad news for Fred Brown. Even though Brown made the team and played in two games in 2019, he did not do enough to make the active roster this year. That doesn’t mean that Brown couldn’t eventually make it to the 53-man roster. In fact, if any one of the seven wide receivers on the Broncos roster get banged up, I expect Brown – with his strong hands and concentration – would be the first to get the call up.

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Patrick Morris | OL

Having Hall of Fame offensive line coach Mike Munchak in your corner is never a bad thing. Patrick Morris originally came into the league as an undrafted free agent out of TCU in 2018 with the Steelers. His offensive line coach there was Munchak, and when Munchak was hired by the Broncos and had an opportunity to bring Morris in, he did. Morris is smart and nasty as a player with the versatility to play all across the interior of the offensive line.

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Quinn Bailey | OT

The big man is an impressive player, and that’s why the Broncos kept Quinn Bailey around. He was a right tackle at Arizona State who signed with the Broncos as a UDFA in 2019. He was called up to the active roster for the Broncos at the end of last year due to a rash of injuries. Bailey played a small handful of snaps on special teams, but he did not play on offense. He may be bound for the team’s practice squad.

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Darrin Paulo | OT

The Broncos just picked up Darrin Paulo last week, so it’s not a surprise he did not make the 53-man roster. He was known as “talented but raw” in college at Utah, and the Saints picked him up as an undrafted free agent, where he competed for a job this summer. In college, Paulo played both left tackle (14 games) and right tackle (26 games) and that versatility will be nurtured by Munchak. He’s the type of player who could thrive under Munchak’s guidance.

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Jake Rodgers | OT

This decision could have gone either way for Jake Rodgers.

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LeVante Bellamy | RB

The Broncos are lucky they didn’t lose LeVante Bellamy to another team.

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Jeremy Cox | RB

Versatility is nothing but a good thing in the NFL. As the old saying goes, “The more you can do.” That’s a phrase that perfectly sums up running back/fullback Jeremy Cox. The Chargers added him as an undrafted free agent out of Old Dominion in 2019. He is a big back, weighing 225 pounds, but he has explosive traits (39-inch vertical leap) and can consistently catch passes out of the backfield.

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Derek Tuszka | OLB

I really liked the progress that pass-rusher Derek Tuszka showed during training camp. He was a seventh-round pick for the Broncos coming out of North Dakota State. I watched Tuszka at the East-West Shrine Bowl practices earlier this year and liked his moves to get after the passer. Tuszka has multiple moves and good burst to get after the quarterback around the edge. He needs to learn how to stack those moves and during camp it looked like he was making progress in that department.

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Josh Watson | LB

Like Rodgers, this decision could have gone either way for Josh Watson. He can play special teams and be a fine player for that unit. Watson is a smart player and doesn’t take a lot of false steps when defending the run. He can see the ball, anticipate the blocking angles and get to the ball-carrier quickly. If there is an injury to the active roster at the linebacker position, Watson would get called up quickly.

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Alijah Holder | S

The Broncos want to see more of safety Alijah Holder. He was undrafted as a cornerback coming out of Stanford in 2019. Oft-injured in college, Holder finished his Stanford career as a All-Pac 12 Honorable Mention player with 59 tackles and 10 pass breakups. Holder has good quickness and doesn’t lose much speed when changing direction as evidenced by his recording the fourth-fastest three-cone drill at the 2019 Scouting Combine. He’s got the footwork to adjust on the fly, but needs to do a better job of getting his hands on the rock.

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P.J. Locke | S

With only three safeties on the active roster, it’s no surprise the team chose to keep another safety on the practice squad (along with Holder) in P.J. Locke. He originally came into the league as an undrafted free agent signed by the Steelers coming out of Texas. Locke failed to make the 53-man roster for the Steelers and was out of the league for a few months before the Broncos signed him to the practice squad in December of 2019. He’s box safety with a willingness to get his hands dirty playing against the run. His size and speed limit what he can do in coverage, although Locke does a good job of following the route combinations in front of him.

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De’Vante Bausby | CB

I was surprised that Bausby did not make the active roster. Sometimes, it’s a numbers game. And sometimes, it’s a “Can we sneak him through?” game on the practice squad. The Broncos felt they could not get rookie Essange Bassey through to the practice squad, but they wisely and correctly thought they could do that with Bausby. He looked good for the Broncos last year until a neck injury ended his season. He was good in camp this year and could step in and start if need be.

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Deshawn Williams | DL

The Broncos have had Deshawn Williams on their roster more than once. Williams has been in the league since he came into the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of Clemson in 2015. He spent the early part of his career with the Bengals, but the Broncos added him in 2018, where he has bounced on and off the practice squad. He’s short and stout inside, and clearly the Broncos want to see if he can further develop.

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