The Broncos on Saturday made official what’s been clear all week.
Baron Browning is back.
The Denver outside linebacker was activated from the physically unable to perform list and will make his season debut Sunday against Green Bay, according to the NFL’s transaction wire.
Browning has missed the first six games while recovering from offseason knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus.
Browning was careful Friday not to say categorically that he would play against the Packers, but he spoke at length about how much he’d enjoyed being back at practice and working on his craft with his teammates. Now, he’s set to return to game action, too.
Browning was a full participant all week in practice, signaling his imminent return.
Of course, the third-year player out of Ohio State won’t see a full set of repetitions. Head coach Sean Payton said Friday that Browning would be on a “pitch count” whenever he did return. So he’ll work into what’s been a three-man rotation featuring Nik Bonitto, Jonathon Cooper and Ronnie Perkins. All four of Denver’s edge rushers at this point are 25 or younger. Browning, Cooper and Perkins (New England) were each drafted in 2021 and Bonitto in 2022.
For Greg Dulcich, meanwhile, it’s been a frustrating run. Now he’ll be out until Week 12 at the earliest after being placed on injured reserve. The NFL changed its rule about returning from IR last year and now allows players to return twice in the same season.
The second-year tight end from UCLA will try to do just that, but he and the Broncos must figure out a way to try to put the hamstring injuries to bed. Dulcich has injured his right hamstring on at least four occasions since he was drafted — before his rookie year, at the end of that season, in Week 1 this year and then again in Week 6.
Jackson incurs major fine. Broncos safety Kareem Jackson was fined $43,709 for unnecessary roughness against Kansas City. The veteran safety was not flagged on the fourth-quarter play but was judged to have hit Chiefs running back Isaiah Pacheco helmet-to-helmet.
It’s Jackson’s fourth fine in six weeks. The infractions have totaled $89,670, though Jackson has had at least two of the previous fines lowered on appeal to the NFL.
Humphrey/Bandy shuffle. Wide receivers Lil’Jordan Humphrey and Michael Bandy are like relief pitchers in baseball who end up back and forth between the majors and minors all season.
Humphrey this week alone got promoted to the active roster, released, signed back to the practice squad and now elevated for game day. Bandy has been on and off the practice squad so many times he said this week he lost count. On Saturday, he was waived from the practice squad again.
Humphrey will have played in all seven games for Denver, four from the active roster and three from the practice squad. After this week he won’t be eligible to elevate from the practice squad again (teams get three maximum per player).
Want more Broncos news? Sign up for the Broncos Insider to get all our NFL analysis.
