Four surprises from the Broncos' first depth chart

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Broncos released their first depth chart of the 2023 season on Wednesday.

The league mandates that all teams release a depth chart before each game, including for preseason games, like the one the Broncos will play Friday night in Arizona. The game will be broadcast in Denver by 9News, and out-of-market viewers can tune in with a subscription or free trial for NFL+. DNVR will be live from The DNVR Bar on YouTube with a pregame show at 6 p.m. and a postgame show when the game concludes.

Head coach Sean Payton made it clear that he doesn’t like that he has to place his players in order this early, and that the initial depth chart should be taken with a grain of salt.

“We have to put together a depth chart, and then we have to give it to you guys,” Payton said on Wednesday. “Then I have to answer questions about, ‘Why did you put him first?’”

With that said, here’s where the Broncos stand, as of right now…

I’ve been keeping my own depth chart this offseason and updating it regularly. The one the Broncos released is pretty similar to what I expected after watching camp. There’s only one big surprise. Maybe two.

Here are the biggest differences between what I expected and what the Broncos decided…

Adam Trautman is the starting tight end

The obvious answer for starting tight end is Greg Dulcich. He’s a talented, high draft pick, who was the best rookie tight end in the NFL last season. You’d expect him to be No. 1 on this list. But he’s not.

Instead, Adam Trautman is the starting tight end.

“The one thing that is interesting about this tight end group is that there are some clear roles that you can see,” Payton said. “Strengths and weaknesses that these players have. Adam is the one guy out here who does a good, solid job at blocking and he gives you some flexibility within the route tree.”

Trautman’s versatility is what makes him the No. 1 tight end on the depth chart, although I don’t expect him to have the most snaps of any tight end.

Most of Dulcich’s work will come as an “F.” In Sean Payton’s base offense, the F is a fullback. But he moves around to a bunch of different positions, including the slot, and that’s where Dulcich will shine. Half of his snaps last season either came from the slot or split out wide as a receiver. He’ll be a star in this offense, but he might not get quite as many inline tight end snaps as Trautman.

Nate Adkins is the fourth tight end

We’re sticking with tight end for my second biggest surprise: undrafted free agent Nate Adkins is listed as the No. 4… ahead of Albert Okwuegbunam.

Adkins is a chess piece, who might fit in best as an “F,” like Dulcich. But he won’t be a receiving F, as much as he’ll be in the backfield. In my initial 53-man roster from earlier in the offseason, I put Adkins into the fullback category. Adkins has made a handful of awesome blocks during training camp, and he’s caught a handful of passes, with most of them coming near the line of scrimmage.

Adkins was an FCS stud at East Tennessee before he transferred to South Carolina last season. He was used sparingly early on, catching two passes for eight yards in the first 10 games. But he caught nine balls for 140 yards over the last two weeks of the season in games against Clemson and Notre Dame, which turned him into a draft prospect overnight.

At 6-foot-3 and 254 pounds, Adkins is a physical specimen, but there’s still some room for his body to develop. Given his spot on the depth chart, the Broncos might think he’s ready to contribute this season.

This listing makes Adkins one of the undrafted free agents most likely to make this roster, and puts him in the driver’s seat for a practice squad spot.

Keep an eye on him in the Broncos’ first preseason game.

Fabian Moreau is buried

The Broncos brought in Fabian Moreau after Riley Moss went down with a sports hernia, and he figured to be a heavy favorite to make the team. He’s a 29-year-old cornerback with 45 career starts, including 27 in the past two seasons.

But on the initial depth chart, he’s listed as the seventh boundary cornerback.

Maybe he’s listed toward the back of the roster because he’s new to the team, but a week of practices should be enough to move up. He’s had great battles with Marquez Callaway and Lil’Jordan Humphrey so far.

I’m slightly surprised that Riley Moss is listed ahead of Tremon Smith, but the margins are narrow at cornerback right now, so I’m not reading too much into it.

Delarrin Turner-Yell is a second-team safety

The second-year safety has had a quiet camp so far, but for a defensive back that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

When defensive coordinator Vance Joseph took over this offseason, he decided to keep running the defensive system the Broncos have run in recent years, which means the two safety spots are totally interchangeable. That means Turner-Yell is ahead of rookie safety JL Skinner.

Sean Payton has said that he’s not scared to cut a draft pick, and Skinner seems to be on the roster bubble. Turner-Yell is in the fifth safety spot, and there’s no guarantee that the Broncos carry five into the season. The competition between Skinner, Turner-Yell and PJ Locke for the final safety job or two might be the most hotly contested over the rest of camp.