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The wide receiver position was a hot topic for the Denver Broncos dating back to the 2022 NFL trade deadline. Denver had discussions about trading some of their own wide receivers but ended up keeping all of them.
With an already stacked receiving room, the Broncos had some decisions that they had to make with some injured wideouts.
On July 23, the Broncos announced that they had placed K.J. Hamler on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) and Kendall Hinton on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.
Hamler suffered a torn pectoral muscle while lifting weights before the team’s offseason workouts began. On a limited basis, Hamler participated during OTAs, but doesn’t seem ready to go ahead of training camp on July 28.
Hinton underwent a minor knee scope to clean out some cartilage after the team’s offseason workouts were finished. There’s a chance that Hinton will be ready to go midway through training camp before the team’s first preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals on August 11.
Hamler is Fighting for a Spot
There were rumblings in the offseason and before the 2022 trade deadline that teams were interested in possibly trading for Hamler, but nothing ever got close to materializing.
In the offseason, the Broncos went out and signed free agents Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Marquez Callaway who both played for head coach Sean Payton in New Orleans.
Callaway is more of the position-type receiver and caught 6 touchdowns when Payton was last calling plays for the Saints and had nearly 700 yards receiving.
Humphrey on the other hand is considered a speed receiver and has averaged over 17 yards per catch in his four-year career.
These are two familiar faces that Payton might decide to pick over Hamler because of his injury history and lack of production on the field.
In 2022, Hamler appeared in just seven games and had only 7 catches for 165 yards. The former second-round pick has not scored a touchdown since his rookie season in 2020.
Since Hamler doesn’t return punts or kicks on special teams, it looks like a rough road ahead for the former Penn St. Nittany Lion.
Denver also selected another speed receiver in Marvin Mims Jr. in the second round of the 2023 NFL draft.
Hamler is going to have to show that he can have an impact in this offense during the preseason if he wants to have any shot at making the 53-man roster this year for Payton’s Broncos.
Hinton Will Fight for a Special Teams Spot
As mentioned earlier, Payton made sure to bring in as many offensive weapons as he could find to fix the worst-scoring offense from 2022.
Hinton, who played in 12 games last season had 311 receiving yards on 24 catches, failed to reach the endzone in 2022.
The former undrafted wide receiver returned three punts last year but also had an important role on special teams for the Broncos.
Last season, Denver’s fifth-round pick Montrell Washington was the primary return man, but things didn’t look good in the return game.
Averaging just 8.5 yards per punt return and 18.9 yards per kick return, Washington never put the Broncos in good starting positions on the field.
As a receiver, Washington shined in training camp last year, but rarely only had four receptions for just two yards in 2022.
From where things stand right now, Hinton is going to have to make a huge impact on special teams as a returner if he wants to beat out Washington, Payton’s former players from New Orleans, and the rookie receiver (Mims) that has a lot of people excited.
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