DENVER, CO — The Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs facing a short turnaround from Sunday to Thursday is just another brutal reality of how physically demanding this game is. Ahead of Denver’s primetime road game, the team ruled out several players for Thursday night.
Denver Broncos rule out several players for Thursday Night Football
The Denver Broncos have ruled out several players for Thursday Night’s AFC West divisional showdown against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Denver wrapped up their final practice and walkthrough on Wednesday afternoon as they prepare to leave tonight for Kansas City.
When they take on Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, they’ll be without three players officially tomorrow evening.
Outside linebacker Frank Clark was ruled out on Wednesday. He was not spotted during Tuesday’s practice for the Broncos, but head coach Sean Payton noted that he was excused with an illness.
Clark missed Wednesday’s final practice and will miss Thursday Night’s game against his former team. The timing is interesting, considering Clark’s name popped up as somebody several teams had trade interest in ahead of October 31st’s trade deadline.
He was signed to a one-year deal during organized team activities, but hasn’t had a chance to make much of an impact due to an injury in Week 1. Clark made his return last week in the team’s loss to the New York Jets.
Defensive tackle D.J. Jones will miss Thursday night’s game against Kansas City with a knee injury. Jones suffered the injury in the second quarter on Sunday against New York and did not return.
He was spotted on the team’s side field working with a trainer on Tuesday and did not participate for two straight days. Mike Purcell will likely start in his place on Thursday night.
Outside linebacker Baron Browning will not play on Thursday night despite making significant progress after coming off of the PUP list last week. There’s a growing sense of optimism that Browning could make his return next Sunday against the Green Bay Packers.
Ronnie Perkins and Thomas Incoom could see more snaps at outside linebacker on Thursday evening.
Other Denver Broncos injury updates, roster moves
After being designated to return from injured reserve on Tuesday, Broncos tight end Greg Dulcich is listed as questionable for Thursday night’s game against the Chiefs. Dulcich has missed the last four weeks with a hamstring injury but has made good progress ramping things up ahead of a potential return.
If Dulcich doesn’t play on Thursday, he will likely return against the Packers next weekend.
However, the Broncos released wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey on Wednesday which frees up a spot on the 53-man roster, which could be to officially welcome Dulcich back into the lineup.
On Tuesday, Denver released wide receiver Michael Bandy from the practice squad. If two plus two equals four, it appears Humphrey will more than likely sign to Denver’s practice squad.
Other players listed on the Broncos injury report this week included Justin Simmons, Lloyd Cushenberry, Mike Purcell, Justin Strnad, and Javonte Williams were full participants on Wednesday and will play against the Kansas City Chiefs.
What’s next?
The Broncos will take on the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday Night Football at 6:15 p.m. MT on Amazon Prime.