Ahead of their most difficult assignment annually, the Broncos will be down their best-performing cornerback. The Broncos will travel to Kansas City and face at least their next three opponents without Bryce Callahan.
They are placing Callahan on IR, Nick Kosmider of The Athletic tweets. But the team will reunite with Will Parks. The four-year Bronco contributor will return to Denver via waiver claim, per KOA’s Benjamin Allbright (on Twitter). The Eagles waived Parks this week.
Callahan has run into more foot trouble. The standout defender injured the same foot that kept him out of action all last season, and Vic Fangio said a multi-week absence was on tap. Callahan exited Week 12 as Pro Football Focus’ No. 2 overall cornerback, belatedly justifying the Broncos’ three-year, $21MM investment. He initially injured the foot in December 2018 while playing for Fangio in Chicago.
This is certainly cause for concern for the sixth-year cover man. And it deals a Broncos defense that has been without Von Miller and its entire D-line a major blow going into the team’s biannual Chiefs contest. The Broncos have not beaten the Chiefs since 2015.
Parks opted to play for his hometown Eagles this offseason, agreeing to a one-year deal. The Broncos originally drafted him in the 2016 seventh round, four rounds after their Justin Simmons pick. Given Parks’ familiarity with Fangio’s system, the Broncos should be able to plug him into myriad roles on defense. Parks previously served as a utility man of sorts in Denver, operating as a backup safety, in the slot and as a coverage linebacker in sub-packages. Due to COVID-19 protocols, Parks will not be eligible to play with the Broncos again until Week 14.
Welcome home, Will.