The Broncos have a “chance” to be near full strength against the Chiefs

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Denver Broncos have never been at full strength in the first two months of the NFL season. And they won’t be for the final 11 games of the season either.

But on Sunday, against the almighty Kansas City Chiefs, they’ll have a chance to be as close to full strength as they’ll ever be in 2020. And there’s no better time than against the defending Super Bowl Champions.

There’s a “chance” Noah Fant, K.J. Hamler and A.J. Bouye all practice this week, and thus have a shot at playing against the Chiefs on Sunday, according to Vic Fangio. Fant and Bouye practiced in a limited capacity last week.

Dre’Mont Jones and DeMarcus Walker will practice this week and both have a chance to play on Sunday as well, Fangio stated on Monday.

Additionally, Melvin Gordon is expected to be back after missing Sunday’s game against the New England Patriots with strep throat.

The only player not on the injured reserve that doesn’t have an optimistic prognosis for playing against the Chiefs is Jeremiah Attaochu, who is “doubtful for this week,” according to the head coach. Outside of the pass rusher, every other player is trending in the right direction.

The Broncos are looking at the possibility of getting three starters back, including two Pro Bowler players (Bouye and Gordon) and one of their most dangerous offensive threats (Fant). Additionally, Jones and Hamler each have a significant role on their respective sides of the ball as the second-round speedster brings blazing quickness to the offense, while Dre’Mont provides interior pass rush.

All of these additions to the Broncos would be on top of the team getting Drew Lock and Phillip Lindsay back for the Patriots game in Week 6.

Although Fant practiced leading up to the game against New England, Fangio said the first-round pick just wasn’t ready to play. He did not suffer a setback. In Fant’s absence against the Patriots, Albert Okwuegbunam made his NFL debut and quickly displayed the chemistry he and Lock developed in their years together at the University of Missouri.

“I was pleased with some of Albert’s play yesterday. Made two nice catches, ran with it after, especially on one. I think it was a good, good first outing for him, something he can build upon,” Fangio said on Monday, evaluating the rookie tight end. “There are some other plays that he would like to have over — [I would] like to see him come up with one or two of those balls that were thrown his way. But we’re highly encouraged by him. I think it was a good start. Hopefully, we’ll be able to keep him active. We’ll see how it shakes out.”

For the first time since Week 1, the Broncos are expected to have both Lindsay and Gordon together for a game. Denver will approach their two Pro Bowl running backs the same way they had planned to entering the season.

“We would use them both and manipulate the situations and also there would be a chance for both of them to be out there at the same time,” Fangio stated on Monday.

With Attaochu likely out for a third-straight game, Malik Reed will be called upon again. Against the Patriots, the second-year undrafted pass rusher stepped up to the plate in a big way. Not only did Reed play 86 percent of the defensive snaps, he had two sacks, including one on the final drive.

“He put together two good rushes there,” Fangio said, speaking to Reed’s two sacks. “They were rushes where we had an extra guy or two in the rush, which helped eliminate the quarterback’s ability to step up and wiggle through the space there. He took full advantage and they were great plays by Malik.”

Dalton Risner and Diontae Spencer are both still being evaluated after suffering injuries against the Patriots on Sunday. The team hopes to have more information on the extend of their injuries later on Monday and there’s a possibility they both miss time.

All in all, however, the Broncos are trending in the right direction on and off the field. And at just the right time.