The Denver Broncos’ final preseason game is tonight against Arizona. Starters will get the night off to prepare for week one against the Baltimore Ravens. The only spots left are for backup and specials teams. The roster is at 75 players right now. The Broncos must reduce their roster to 53 by Saturday at 2 PM Mountain Time, meaning 22 cuts are coming. What should fans be looking for in this game?
Brock Osweiler will get the start and should play most of the first half and might go into the third quarter. This could be his last chance to impress not only the coaching staff but also John Elway, showing he is the next franchise quarterback when Peyton Manning retires. Osweiler is comfortable in this offense. In the three previous preseason games he has thrown for 376 yards, 2 touchdowns, but threw 1 interception. His completion percentage is 66%. That isn’t bad. Osweiler has to perform well in order to receive a contract extension for next year.
An interesting battle to watch is who will make the team as a backup running back. At the start of training camp it looked like Montee Ball. Ronnie Hillman has played well and will stay at the number two spot. Ball has 41 yards in the preseason. Ball must have an outstanding game for the Broncos to decide to keep him on the roster. If he fails to impress the coaching staff, the Broncos will have to make a tough decision. They will either have to cut him or trade him. Trading him is the better option because at least they would get trade value back.
Another Broncos’ running back fighting for a roster spot is Kapri Bibbs. Bibbs hasn’t been given the opportunity to demonstrate that he can run the football and play special teams. Tonight is his chance. The difference between Bibbs and Ball is that Bibbs could play on special teams.
One player must step up to be the return man on special teams. The players to handle returns include Omar Bolden, Isiah Burse, and Jordan Norwood. It’s important they can catch the football on punts.
Other players who want to make this team must tackle on special teams. If they are able to do that, they might have a job with the Broncos on kick and punt coverage.
These are just a few of the positions to watch tonight. It could be the last time some of these athletes play football, while others might be put onto the ten-man practice squad. Kickoff is at 7 PM from Sports Authority Field.
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