Roster

The Denver Post reports that new Broncos RB Correll Buckhalter is fine with sharing carries this season with rookie RB Knowshon Moreno and others. In fact, he likes the concept of splitting reps as it keeps him fresh. Broncos coach Josh McDaniels explained that he liked Buckhalter's multidimensional skills, which is why he signed him this offseason, and he also dropped a bit of a bombshell. "His body is young," McDaniels said of his 30-year-old back. "He just might be, as a matter of fact, I think he is, our fastest back. He's got a great burst and he's got great long speed. To add a guy to our offense that is very unselfish and is going to accept whatever role he earns is great, and he's going to play his butt off."

The Denver Broncos waived running back Alex Haynes and elevated rookie safety Josh Barrett from their practice squad on Saturday.

The Denver Broncos have signed seven-time Pro Bowl safety Brian Dawkins, who spent his entire 13-year career with the Philadelphia Eagles. New Broncos coach Josh McDaniels, the New England Patriots offensive coordinator before he was hired to replace Mike Shanahan in Denver, envisions his new veteran safety playing a role similar to what Rodney Harrison had in New England in recent seasons.

The Denver Broncos augmented their secondary Monday by claiming hard-hitting safety Calvin Lowry off waivers from Tennessee. The Broncos waived safety Roderick Rogers, a second-year pro from Wisconsin and announced the additions of defensive end Ryan McBean, running back P.J. Pope and wide receiver Travis Wilson to round out their practice squad.

The Broncos placed RBs Michael Pittman and Andre Hall on Injured Reserve Monday, leaving them with Ryan Torain and Selvin Young as the only healthy running backs on the roster. The Denver Post first reported the news. Pittman re-aggravated a stinger in his neck while Hall hurt his left hand in the team's loss vs. Miami in Week 9.

Hand - Probable for the start of 2009 training camp

Denver TE Daniel Graham had two catches for 13 yards Sunday at San Diego in the season finale. Graham finished the season with 32 catches for 389 yards and four touchdowns.

The Broncos signed free-agent receiver Brandon Lloyd on the same day a radio station reported Pro Bowl wideout Brandon Marshall wants to follow Jay Cutler out of Denver. Lloyd is a seventh-year pro with 15 career touchdown catches who played for Chicago last season. He's also played for Washington and San Francisco. He will reunite with ex-Bears quarterback Kyle Orton in Denver.

The Broncos promoted DB Josh Bell from the practice squad Monday.

Appearing on Sirius NFL Radio, Broncos WR Eddie Royal said that he's very impressed with new QB Kyle Orton. He mentioned how Orton has already earned the respect of everyone in the locker room with his work ethic and dedication to learning the playbook. Royal also was impressed with Orton's arm strength. "He throws a great deep ball," Royal said. "We connected on a few of them [in minicamp]. He's got a great arm." Royal was also asked about whether or not he'd play the "Wes Welker role" in the Broncos' new offense (new head coach Josh McDaniels comes from New England), and Royal was coy. "Hard to say. I don't know wheat position I'll be playing this year," he said, referring to where he would line up on the line of scrimmage. He added that the Broncos have been working on the basics in the offense, watching a lot of film, and that he has received personal attention from McDaniels in practice.

During LB D.J. Williams' absence, undrafted rookie Wesley Woodyard has recorded 50 tackles in his five starts on the weak side, leading Denver (8-5) to the brink of a playoff berth with four wins in five weeks. Two weeks ago, Woodyard had 13 tackles, 11 of them solo, and forced a fumble by Brett Favre in Denver's statement win over the Jets. Against Kansas City last week, he led the team with eight solo tackles and broke up a pass in another crucial win. "I'll tell you what, the more film you watch ... Woodyard keeps on making plays, especially the last couple of weeks," Panthers QB Jake Delhomme said. The Panthers host the Broncos in Week 15.

The Broncos value D.J. Williams' versatility at linebacker even if at times it's vexing for him. This season, he'll be asked to relocate to another new linebacking spot, his fourth change in six seasons, but he's not grumbling because Williams feels like he just landed a plum position. With Denver switching to a 3-4 formation, Williams will play inside and away from the tight end. That frees him up to roam around, react and wreak havoc. "As long as I don't have to go back to Sam (strongside), they can put me anywhere," Williams said.

The Broncos announced Saturday that they signed free-agent WR Jabar Gaffney to a four-year deal worth $10 million. Gaffney will be reunited with former Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels who is now the Denver head coach. Gaffney had 468 yards on 38 catches (12.3 avg.) with two touchdowns.

Tony Scheffler has no beef with Broncos coach Josh McDaniels and insists he's on board with the team's new game plan. Scheffler and McDaniels sat down to discuss the tight end's role with the team. The conversation was cathartic. There were rumors swirling in the offseason that Denver was shopping Scheffler, not sure how he would fit into the new, intricate offense McDaniels was implementing. The meeting with McDaniels staunched those. These days, McDaniels is envisioning a big role for his reliable receiving tight end, who's looks slimmer and sleeker, and the coach admits he's never coached a tight end quite like Scheffler, one with the ability to stretch the field with a combination of speed and athleticism. "Tony is probably the most skilled pass-receiving tight end that I've had an opportunity to be around," McDaniels said. "That's a weapon for us that we can move around on the field. We're going to try to feature him in that role."

Spencer Larsen is easily the busiest player at minicamp. The only player in Broncos history to start on both sides of the ball, the second-year pro is splitting his time at linebacker and fullback while learning the new offensive and defensive systems being installed under new coach Josh McDaniels. On offense, he's adapting to the tweaks in the Broncos' famed zone blocking scheme. Instead of the 4-3 defense, where Larsen played middle linebacker, he's adjusting to the 3-4, learning both inside and both outside spots. Which position is easier for him? "Defense for me is a little more natural, just because I've been playing it all my life and in college, so I can relate," said Larsen, a sixth-round selection out of Arizona last season. "On offense, it's almost better, too, because I come in and it's clean, I don't have anything to relate it to, so I memorize it and go ahead."

Notable inactives from the Broncos-Chargers Week 17 game include: Broncos DB Marlon McCree, DB Jack Williams, RB Alex Haynes, RB Andrew Pinnock, LB Niko Koutouvides, TE Chad Mustard and DL Jarvis Moss. For the Chargers, QB Charlie Whitehurst, LB Brandon Siler, RB Michael Bennett, RB Billy Latsko, WR Malcom Floyd and DL Ian Scott are inactive.

Broncos DB Vernon Fox recovered a fumble and ran it in for a 23-yard touchdown in Week 13 at the Jets. He had three tackles in the game.

The Broncos lost LB Mario Haggan to a knee injury in Week 14 against Kansas City. The severity of the injury was not immediately known.

Unrestricted free agent tight end Jeb Putzier re-signed with the Broncos. Putzier played in the Broncos' last two games last season after playing six games for the Seahawks, who waived him on Nov. 26. He signed with the Broncos two weeks later. At 6-feet-4 and 251 pounds, he is the prototypical blocking tight end in the Patriots-style offense that new coach Josh McDaniels brought with him from New England when he replaced Mike Shanahan as coach.

The Denver Broncos released third-year RB Selvin Young on Thursday.

Neck - Questionable for the start of 2009 training camp

The Broncos listed the following players as inactive for Week 13 at the Jets: DB Marlon McCree, DB Champ Bailey, RB Selvin Young, RB Andrew Pinnock, LB D.J. Williams, LB Nate Webster, DL Nic Clemons and DL Tim Crowder.

The Broncos have signed linebacker Andra Davis as they continue to revamp their defense. Davis was signed Monday. He fits in with the Broncos' plans to convert to a 3-4 defense since he played in a similar scheme with Cleveland. Davis spent seven seasons with the Browns, finishing second on the team in tackles in 2008.

The Broncos listed the following players as inactive for Week 16 against Buffalo: WR Chad Jackson, DB Marlon McCree, DB Jack Williams, RB Andrew Pinnock, RB Spencer Larsen, LB Niko Koutouvides, OL Pat Murray and DE Tim Crowder.

The New York Jets got their roster down to the maximum of 53 players Saturday by getting rid of 21 players. S Cameron Worrell was waived/injured and both LB Matt Chatham and DB Hank Poteat were released. The following players were waived outright: WR David Ball, OL Jacob Bender, WR Larry Brackins, DB Rudy Burgess, RB Jehuu Caulcrick, OL Stanley Daniels, OL Stanley Daniels, OL Kyle DeVan, OL Nate Garner, DB James Ihedigbo, DL Thomas Johnson, DL Bryan Mattison, OL Matt McChesney, LB Blair Phillips, DL Ropati Pitoitua, TE Jason Pociask, WR Paul Raymond, LB Brandon Renkart and TE A.J. Schable.

According to the official team web site, Broncos rookie TE Richard Quinn could make an impact this season. He was known in college at North Carolina for his blocking, but Broncos coach Josh McDaniels saw something else when selecting him in the 2009 NFL Draft: soft hands. "He didn't catch a lot of balls at North Carolina, but that wasn't because he can't catch," McDaniels said. "They didn't use him that way very much in their system, in their scheme, but he showed very good hands during the course of the spring." While Quinn has confidence in his own skills, McDaniels has confidence in the rookie's role for the upcoming season. The coach believes he adds a new thread to an already diverse corps. "He can catch the ball, he's got soft hands, we can move him and he certainly can handle his own on the line as a blocker," McDaniels said. "But when you're going to use two and three tight end packages during the course of the season, you'd love to have three guys that you feel good about. To have three guys that can run block, pass block, catch passes in the passing game and make an impact at more than one thing, I think that's very valuable to us."

Denver kicker Matt Prater finished his first season with the Broncos with a quiet season finale at San Diego. Prater did not attempt a field goal and was 1-of-2 on extra points.

The Denver Broncos brought their free agent haul to 14 players Tuesday, including the first holdover from the Mike Shanahan days in defensive lineman Kenny Peterson. The Broncos also signed defensive tackle J'Vonne Parker. Peterson, entering his seventh season, has spent the last three years with the Broncos after three seasons in Green Bay, which selected him in the third round of the 2003 draft out of Ohio State. He made a career-best 39 tackles last season, including three sacks. Parker is a fifth-year pro who has had stops in Carolina, Atlanta, Baltimore, Dallas and Cleveland after going undrafted out of Rutgers in 2005. He's appeared in 11 games, totaling six tackles and a fumble recovery. He played in one game last year after the Panthers signed him Dec. 23.

Baltimore signed four players to its practice squad Monday: tight end Nate Lawrie, running back Marcus Mason, wide receiver Bryan Mattison and wide receiver Matt Willis.

The Broncos have signed ex-Colts DT Darrell Reid to bulk up their D-line.

The Rocky Mountain News reports that Broncos CB Champ Bailey will undergo left elbow surgery to fix ligaments he tore in the season finale at San Diego. He'll also have cartilage repaired from an injury suffered earlier in the season. He's looking at three-to-four months of rehab which puts him on pace to be ready for training camp.

Elbow - Probable for the start of 2009 training camp

The Redskins announced the following cuts Saturday to get down to the league mandated 53 players on their roster: DT Matthias Askew, DT Ryan Boschetti, FB Nehemiah Broughton, T Devin Clark, G Andrew Crummey, QB Derek Devine, P Derrick Frost, WR Horace Gant, LB Curtis Gatewood, S Patrick Ghee, LB David Holloway, CB Cedrick Holt, WR Maurice Mann, RB Marcus Mason, G Fred Matua, WR Billy McMullen, WR Anthony Mix, CB Matterral Richardson, LB Danny Verdun-Wheeler, T Todd Wade, T Tavares Washington, CB Byron Westbrook.

The Denver Broncos brought their free agent haul to 14 players Tuesday, including the first holdover from the Mike Shanahan days in defensive lineman Kenny Peterson. The Broncos also signed defensive tackle J'Vonne Parker. Peterson, entering his seventh season, has spent the last three years with the Broncos after three seasons in Green Bay, which selected him in the third round of the 2003 draft out of Ohio State. He made a career-best 39 tackles last season, including three sacks. Parker is a fifth-year pro who has had stops in Carolina, Atlanta, Baltimore, Dallas and Cleveland after going undrafted out of Rutgers in 2005. He's appeared in 11 games, totaling six tackles and a fumble recovery. He played in one game last year after the Panthers signed him Dec. 23.

Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said on Thursday that longtime receiver Rod Smith is retiring. He spoke before a news conference at Dove Valley. Smith, 38, has been on the reserve/retired list since February and has had two hip operations in the past year and a half. He's the franchise's career leader in every major receiving category.

The Denver Post reports the Broncos are using RB Peyton Hillis in a variety of roles, including FB, RB and WR. "I really know what I am at this point," Hillis said. "I think they're just filling me into different roles to see what I can do. They really haven't come up to me and said, 'You're this or you're that.' They're just kind of putting me in as a piece to the puzzle and seeing what happens." Hillis has dropped down to 245 pounds, but it doesn't figure to get him a lot of playing time at tailback — not with Knowshon Moreno and two other newcomers, Correll Buckhalter and LaMont Jordan, on the roster. "It's all about how I can help the team," he said. "I want people to see I can do a variety of roles, not just tailback. Slot me out, dot me in the I (formation), put me on special teams. . . . Wherever they put me, I'll be happy. As far as my athletic ability, I can pretty much do it all. You can put me at linebacker and I'll do a good job."

Broncos coach Josh McDaniels decided to end the suspense early heading into next month's training camp: Kyle Orton has been selected to be the starting quarterback. Orton had been competing this offseason with Chris Simms for the starting spot left open by the blockbuster deal that sent Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears on April 3. But McDaniels apparently liked what he saw in Orton's assimilation to the offense over the past several months to give the three-year veteran the edge for now, stressing there was still time for Simms to take away the job. "There's a lot of difficult aspects about what we ask our quarterback to do in our offense and Kyle has really grasped some of them more quickly than Chris did," McDaniels said. "I just think it puts them in a little bit of a pressure situation where now one of them has it and has to keep it and the other one has to get it. They're still going to compete with each other and I expect the competition to be the same that it's been. They both have great attitudes and know that nothing's determined in June."

The Denver Post reports that Broncos RB Ryan Torain tested his repaired left knee by doing wind sprints after a recent Broncos passing camp practice. Torain played in only two games (one start) last season after a dislocated left elbow cost him half of his season and a torn ACL cost him nearly the other half. Will he be ready for training camp? "No timetable," he said. "The knee feels good, though."

Knee - Questionable for start of training camp

The Broncos moved up in the sixth round of the NFL Draft to take Fresno State QB Tom Brandstater, a deal that cost them one of their two seventh-rounders and a fifth-round pick next year. Brandstater (6-foot-5, 222 pounds) is expected to learn the ropes for at least a year while either Kyle Orton or Chris Simms starts next season. "Any time you're dealing with a rookie player, there's no guarantee he's going to compete immediately to play, and I don't know that I've ever been around any rookie quarterback who's done that," coach Josh McDaniels said. Brandstater said he's eager to learn from McDaniels, who tutored Tom Brady and Matt Cassel as New England's offensive coordinator.

Notable inactives from the Broncos-Chargers Week 17 game include: Broncos DB Marlon McCree, DB Jack Williams, RB Alex Haynes, RB Andrew Pinnock, LB Niko Koutouvides, TE Chad Mustard and DL Jarvis Moss. For the Chargers, QB Charlie Whitehurst, LB Brandon Siler, RB Michael Bennett, RB Billy Latsko, WR Malcom Floyd and DL Ian Scott are inactive.

The Denver Post reports the Broncos have raised the possibility of converting DE Elvis Dumervil to an outside linebacker should the team convert to the 3-4 defense. The decision to fully commit to the 3-4, however, has not been made. "I'll do whatever necessary to help the team," Dumervil said Thursday. "They're going to see what they can do in free agency and the draft first. We haven't really honed in on the personnel, yet." New Broncos coach Josh McDaniels, defensive coordinator Mike Nolan and defensive line coach Wayne Nunnely are well-versed in the 3-4.

Cornerback Andre Goodman reached an agreement on a five-year deal Sunday night with the Broncos, a team that's been busy retooling their secondary through free agency. Goodman's deal is worth up to $25.2 million, with more than $10 million of it guaranteed. Goodman, 30, replaces Dre' Bly, who was released last month when the Broncos' new braintrust of coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Brian Xanders jettisoned five defensive starters and cleared $37 million in cap room. Goodman will team up with star cornerback Champ Bailey in Denver. "Andre's very happy about the whole situation," his agent, Jason Chayut, said. "Look at that secondary, it's tremendous. He's really excited."

The Denver Post reports that the Broncos released RB J.J. Arrington less than three months after the team signed him. While the move means something to rookie Knowshon Moreno, who is in line to pick up Arrington's third-down role in addition to working on run downs, it doesn't affect younger RBs Ryan Torain and Darius Walker and fullback Peyton Hillis much other than one less running back to share the ball with.

The Denver Post reports the Broncos starting RB in OTA workouts Wednesday was LaMont Jordan and not rookie Knowshon Moreno or fellow veteran Correll Buckhalter. "I feel pretty good," Jordan said of getting the work with the starters and how he's doing right now.

The Broncos drafted WR Kenny McKinley from South Carolina in the fifth round of the NFL Draft on Sunday with overall pick No. 141. McKinley placed his name in the SEC record books. His 207 receptions placed third in conference annals, becoming just the fifth SEC player to amass more than 200 catches in a career. He also became the 12th player in league history to record more than 2,700 receiving yards (2,781).

The Broncos listed the following players as inactive for Week 16 against Buffalo: WR Chad Jackson, DB Marlon McCree, DB Jack Williams, RB Andrew Pinnock, RB Spencer Larsen, LB Niko Koutouvides, OL Pat Murray and DE Tim Crowder.

The Broncos announced Saturday that they have signed free-agent FS Renaldo Hill to a four-year deal worth $10 million. Hill will battle for the starting safety job in Denver in training camp this summer.

Broncos DL Marcus Thomas had two tackles and one interception during a Week 5 win against the Bucs. Thomas got his first interception of the season and second of his career Week 5, but he fumbled the ball back to Tampa Bay on the return.

The Broncos have been awarded wide receiver C.J. Jones off waivers from Kansas City. Jones is a third-year player who has spent time on the active roster with Cleveland in 2003 and New England in 2008, as well as parts of two seasons on the practice squad with the Browns (2003-04) and Patriots ('07). The Chiefs signed Jones, who went to Iowa, on March 5 as an unrestricted free agent, but waived him on June 19.

Veteran linebackers Brandon Moore, Matt Stewart, and Joe Tafoya were among the 22 players released by the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday, as the team pared its roster to the 53-player maximum. Also cut on Saturday were cornerback Michael Adams, cornerback Travarous Bain, defensive end Jason Banks, running back Steve Baylark, offensive lineman Kelly Butler, offensive lineman Peter Clifford, defensive tackle Keilen Dykes, linebacker Chris Harrington, offensive lineman Jasper Harvey, safety Dennis Keyes, wide receiver Lance Long, offensive lineman Carlton Medder, tight end Brent Miller, cornerback DeMario Minter, quarterback Anthony Morelli, wide receiver Jamaica Rector, center Pat Ross, tight end Alex Shor and running back Chris Vincent.

Carlton Powell tore his Achilles' tendon in an offseason workout and will miss the entire season, according to The Sports Xchange.

The Denver Broncos have agreed to trade disgruntled QB Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears on Thursday. The Broncos get QB Kyle Orton in return, along with two first-round draft picks and a third-rounder. The Broncos get the Bears' top pick in this year's draft, which is No. 18 overall, and Chicago's first-round draft pick in 2010, along with a third-round selection this year (No. 84 overall). Denver also gave up a fifth-rounder this year. Cutler asked for a trade last month after his relationship with Josh McDaniels soured when the new 32-year-old coach talked to other teams about trading him. Cutler and his agent didn't think McDaniels was upfront with them about the trade talks. "We felt that (Cutler) is a very good person, a good leader," Bears GM Jerry Angelo said. "He had some things that happened in Denver. We recognized those, but we treated them as just speed bumps, part of the growing process. He's highly competitive, he's highly emotional. That just comes with the territory."

The Denver Broncos have signed veteran linebacker Nick Greisen and released fullback Andrew Pinnock. Greisen, 29, is the third linebacker the Broncos brought in this week. He played the last two seasons in Baltimore. He was a fifth-round draft pick by the Giants in 2002 out of Wisconsin. Pinnock started his career with San Diego and has 18 career carries with no touchdowns.

Broncos coach Josh McDaniels decided to end the suspense early heading into next month's training camp: Kyle Orton has been selected to be the starting quarterback. Orton had been competing this offseason with Chris Simms for the starting spot left open by the blockbuster deal that sent Jay Cutler to the Chicago Bears on April 3. But McDaniels apparently liked what he saw in Orton's assimilation to the offense over the past several months to give the three-year veteran the edge for now, stressing there was still time for Simms to take away the job. "There's a lot of difficult aspects about what we ask our quarterback to do in our offense and Kyle has really grasped some of them more quickly than Chris did," McDaniels said. "I just think it puts them in a little bit of a pressure situation where now one of them has it and has to keep it and the other one has to get it. They're still going to compete with each other and I expect the competition to be the same that it's been. They both have great attitudes and know that nothing's determined in June."

The Broncos continued retooling their defense Tuesday by signing unrestricted free agent tackle Ronald Fields to a two-year deal. Fields spent his first four NFL seasons in San Francisco, where new Broncos defensive coordinator Mike Nolan was head coach from 2005 until his firing midway through last season. Fields is the sixth projected starter signed in free agency by the Broncos.

At the NFL Rookie Symposium in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Broncos rookie RB Knowshon Moreno told CBSSports.com in an exclusive interview that he wants to start but would also be content just playing his role. Moreno is competing with LaMont Jordan and Correll Buckhalter for the starting job. "I think any player is going to be competitive that wants to be out there," Moreno said. "I'm going to compete. I'm going to compete with everyone." Moreno said learning the offense has been tough, which is no surprise since new coach Josh McDaniels has a tough system. "Any new offense is complicated," Moreno said. "That's what comes with the territory. I think I'm catching on pretty well, but there's still a lot to learn." He's also had to get used to the NFL, which is a tough adjustment for any rookie coming out of college. "It's tough, definitely tough," Moreno said. "It's something new. You have to get adjusted to your new surroundings, your new community and your new teammates and coaches. It takes time to get adjusted to those things. Once you do, you feel right at home."

Posting on his Twitter page, NFL reporter Adam Schefter believes that while the Broncos aren't actively shopping disgruntled WR Brandon Marshall, they would take calls for him. Schefter, who has covered the Broncos for a long time, thinks the club would trade Marshall for a first-round pick. Marshall is unhappy with the club after misdiagnosing a hip injury that required surgery this offseason and for not offering him a contract extension. He has asked for a trade out of town.

Hip - Questionable for start of training camp