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Examining practice-squad criteria and which Broncos are eligible

Henry Chisholm Avatar
August 7, 2017

The NFL’s convoluted practice squad eligibility guidelines are often misinterpreted. As we reach the final stretch of training camp and start the preseason, it’s time for a crash course on practice squads.

The practice squad is a player development tool allowing each team to select up to 10 players to participate in practices and meetings, despite being ineligible for games. These players can be signed to the active roster of any team in the league at any point throughout the season.

The practice squad is designed to give young players who aren’t prepared for the NFL a chance to acclimate to the league, without forcing a team to use a roster spot.  Notably, Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall and center Matt Paradis began their careers as practice squad members, as did the team’s all-time leading receiver, Rod Smith.

Eligibility criteria

A player is fully eligible for a practice squad if he fulfills one of the following criteria:

A) He doesn’t have an accrued season (six games on an NFL roster during one season) and has been on an NFL practice squad for fewer than two seasons.

OR

B) He has never been active for more than eight games in a single season and has spent fewer than two seasons on an NFL practice squad.

A player is practice-squad eligible as long as his team carries a full 53-man roster for the entire season, if he fulfills one of the following criteria:

A) He doesn’t have an accrued season and has spent exactly two seasons on an NFL practice squad.

OR

B) He has never been active for more than eight games in a single season and has spent exactly two seasons on an NFL practice squad.

Additionally, a team can carry a limited number of players on their practice squad who have accrued seasons. This exception can apply to up to four players per team, all of whom must fulfill one of the following criteria:

A) He has one or two accrued seasons and has spent one season or fewer on an NFL practice squad.

OR

B) He has one or two accrued seasons, exactly two seasons on an NFL practice squad, and his team carries a full 53-man roster throughout the entire season.

Here’s every Bronco’s practice squad eligibility status:

Fully eligible

Barnett, Dante

Bolles, Garett

Butt, Jake

Carter, Jamal

Dora, Vontarrius

Doss, Lorenzo

Ekanem, Ken

Garcia-Williams, Jerrol

Gause, Quentin

Henderson, Carlos

Henderson, De’Angelo

Hollins, Deon

Hunt, Cameron

Jarrett, Tyrique

Kelly, Chad

Lang, Cedrick

Langley, Brendan

Mason, Danny

McGovern, Connor

McKenzie, Isaiah

Murray, Justin

Nash, Anthony

Nelson, Dontrell

Peko, Kyle

Raymond, Kalif

Rios, Marcus

Scheu, Steven

Sharp, Hunter

Sloter, Kyle

Soto, Shakir

Stewart, Orion

Thomas, Dymonte

Traylor, Austin

Walker, DeMarcus

Wilkinson, Elijah

Eligible if 53-man roster is full

Day, Dillon

Harris, Shelby

Snyder, Kevin

Eligible as one of four exceptions

Anderson, Zaire

Barrett, Shaquil

Booker, Devontae

Derby, A.J.

Dixon, Riley

Fowler III, Bennie

Garcia, Max

Gotsis, Adam

Heuerman, Jeff

Janovich, Andy

Kreiter, Casey

Lynch, Paxton

Parks, Will

Ray, Shane

Sambrailo, Ty

Siemian, Trevor

Simmons, Justin

Taylor, Jordan

Ineligible

Anderson, C.J.

Barbre, Allen

Brown, Marlon

Charles, Jamaal

Crick, Jared

Davis, Todd

Edebali, Kasim

Green, Virgil

Harris Jr., Chris

Kerr, Zach

Latimer, Cody

Leary, Ron

Lewis-Harris, Chris

Marshall, Brandon

McManus, Brandon

Miller, Von

Nelson, Corey

Paradis, Matt

Peko, Domata

Pierce, Bernard

Ridley, Stevan

Roby, Bradley

Sanders, Emmanuel

Schofield, Michael

Stephenson, Donald

Stewart, Darian

Talib, Aqib

Thomas, Demaryius

Thompson, Juwan

Turner, Billy

Ward, T.J.

Watson, Menelik

Winn, Billy

Wolfe, Derek

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