The Denver Broncos made a surprising cut at tight end as Justin Joly became the odd man out.
The Denver Broncos had an active cut day yesterday, with multiple surprises occurring up and down the roster. One of he biggest ones was the decision to cut tight end Justin Joly, who was drafted in the fifth round out of North Carolina State, and coach Sean Payton explained the move in his post-cutdown comments, according to a piece from Nick Kosmider of The Athletic.
“Justin’s a talented player. We knew when we drafted him (that) he was raw,” Paton said. “… He was coming on at the end of training camp. The tight end position is a tough position for a rookie. He missed a lot of the offseason and was just a little bit behind.
“We wish we had another (preseason) game or two. We still like the player. We think he’s going to have a nice career. You’ve just got to make tough decisions and build the best 53 that you can make.”
The other surprise in this move was the decision to keep Evan Engram, the tight end Joly was trying to supplant. Engram was a disappointment last year, as he didn’t provide much yardage or breakaway capability in his receptions, but the Broncos think that having receiverJaylen Waddle running wild in the middle of the field will help Engram have a better year.
The rest of the tight end room is deep with the kinds of players the Broncos value, with Adam Trautman leading a list of big tight ends who can block and be reliable when they’re targeted. Payton also talked about the room before the cutdowns as Joly became the odd man out.
“We are working through it. It is a deep room. What is the role, what is the vision? That is something we are still working through and trying to look closely at,” Payton said after the Broncos preseason finale. “It is one of the topics that will be high on the list.”
Joly had a quiet camp, and that’s ultimately what did him in. He finally had a big play in the final preseason game against the MInnesota Vikings as he broke open past midfield on a blown coverage, and the results was an 88-yard touchdown.
That was a impressive, but it wasn’t enough. The other thing working against Joly was that the Broncos are in “win now” mode as they try to take the next step to the Super Bowl, which makes it tough for a rookie to learn the system and acclimate. Joly will probably be snapped up quickly by another team in the coming days, but he won’t be making catches for the Broncos.
