Broncos Waive QB Kyle Sloter
The Broncos have waived quarterback Kyle Sloter, according to Mike Klis of 9News (Twitter links).
Sloter’s release — and Paxton Lynch‘s lingering injury — means Denver will likely bring in a veteran quarterback, per Klis, who speculates the club could target Brock Osweiler. Two player sources expect the Broncos to target Osweiler in the near future, tweets Klis. Osweiler, of course, spent four seasons with the Broncos before signing with Houston last spring. He’s a free agent after being released by the Browns this week, and would only cost the minimum given that he’s earning $16MM from Cleveland.
Sloter, for his part, is a rookie undrafted free agent out of Northern Colorado. He could conceivably slip through waivers and be placed on Denver’s practice squad.
Broncos Waive OL Michael Schofield
The Broncos parted ways with another of their recent offensive line investments. A day after trading Ty Sambrailo to the Falcons, the Broncos cut Michael Schofield, Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post tweets.
Jhabvala adds (via Twitter) the fourth-year offensive lineman asked to be traded after it became clear there wasn’t a spot for him on the roster. The Broncos shopped Schofield, per Jhabvala, but evidently couldn’t find a willing suitor like they did for Sambrailo.
Schofield started at two positions with Denver the past two years — right tackle in 2015 and right guard last season — but the Broncos have again made significant changes in hopes of improving an offensive line that’s been shaky during this span.
The 2014 third-round pick will venture onto waivers and has enough experience to generate interest, despite being graded as a below-average blocker by Pro Football Focus since becoming a regular up front.
Schofield essentially redshirted his rookie year, but following injuries to Ryan Clady and Sambrailo in 2015, was summoned to play right tackle. He started 13 games for the Super Bowl champion Broncos iteration and moved inside to guard with Denver’s first unit for all 16 last season.
Denver, though, acquired Ronald Leary, Allen Barbre and Menelik Watson this offseason to make Schofield’s place on the roster uncertain. Max Garcia looms as guard depth, and Donald Stephenson — after twice reworking his contract — looks to be safe as a result of this move and the Falcons’ trade for Sambrailo.
Broncos To Release T.J. Ward
The Broncos will release safety T.J. Ward, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link). Denver had been expected to cut Ward if it couldn’t find a trade partner.
Ward, 30, had been entering the final year of his contract, which would’ve paid him $4.5MM in base salary. While none of that total was guaranteed, the Broncos will still absorb $1.25MM in dead money as a result of Ward’s signing bonus proration accelerating onto their salary cap.
Ward started 41 games over three seasons in Denver after inking a four-year deal with the club prior to the 2014 season. Last season, he made 14 appearances, totaling one interception and one sack while ranking as the NFL’s No. 48 safety, per Pro Football Focus. Ward’s 75.9 grade was the worst mark of his career.
With Ward out of the picture, the Broncos will turn to Justin Simmons to start at safety opposite Darian Stewart. Simmons was a third-round pick in 2016 and made three starts during his rookie campaign.
Seahawks To Shop DL Ahtyba Rubin
The Seahawks aren’t done yet. Once their acquisition of Sheldon Richardson is completed, they’ll turn around and discuss trades for defensive lineman Ahtyba Rubin, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. The Broncos are a top contender to land him, Rapoport adds. 
Rubin, 31, joined the Seahawks on a free agent deal prior to the 2015 season. Before the ’16 campaign, he re-upped with the team on a three-year, $12MM deal. The good news for any team that acquires him is that the Seahawks already paid out half of that sum in the first year of the deal.
In his first Seahawks season, Rubin amassed 36 tackles, two sacks, and finished fourth among the team’s defensive linemen in snaps. Last year, he once again had a perfect attendance record in the regular season as he racked up 39 tackles, one sack, and three forced fumbles.
Broncos Waive RB Juwan Thompson
The Broncos have waived running back Juwan Thompson, according to Mike Klis of 9News (Twitter link).
Thompson, 25, has been part of Denver’s roster for three seasons, but has seen his offensive contributions dip in each campaign. He ran the ball just eight times last season, managing 26 total yards and one score. All told, Thompson put up 4.3 yards per carry on 80 touches with the Broncos.
Denver also cut veteran back Stevan Ridley earlier today, leaving the club with C.J. Anderson, Jamaal Charles, and De’Angelo Henderson in the backfield.
Broncos Cut RB Stevan Ridley
The Broncos have released running back Stevan Ridley, as Mike Klis of 9News tweets. The former Patriots standout signed with Denver in late July and his stint with the team ends after roughly one month.
Ridley was signed in the wake of Devontae Booker‘s wrist injury, but the team prefers some of its other options including veteran Jamaal Charles and rookie De’Angelo Henderson. We won’t know for sure until Saturday afternoon, but it sounds like those two are in line to make the 53-man cut, along with presumptive starter C.J. Anderson.
The 28-year-old Ridley has a 1,200-yard season under his belt, but he hasn’t been all that effective in recent years. He wasn’t much of a factor in 2014, his final season with the Patriots, and combined for just 10 appearances, 39 carries and 97 yards with the Jets and Falcons over the last two years.
Broncos Trade Ty Sambrailo To Falcons
The Broncos have traded offensive tackle Ty Sambrailo to the Falcons for a 2018 fifth-round pick, a source tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). 
Sambrailo is the third notable offensive tackle to be traded for a fifth-round pick this week. The Browns got the ball rolling when they sent former FSU standout Cameron Erving to the Chiefs. The next day, the Lions shipped Laken Tomlinson to the Niners for a 2019 fifth-rounder. Erving and Tomlinson were both former first-round picks. Sambrailo was a second-round choice.
Sambrailo was fighting for his roster spot this year and, apparently, he didn’t do enough in camp to prove worthy of significant playing time. This year, the Broncos spent a first-rounder on tackle Garett Bolles and added Menelik Watson on a three-year, $18.3MM deal in free agency.
Sambrailo projects to be the Falcons’ first swing tackle off the bench, ahead of August addition Austin Pasztor. Rookie Sean Harlow and second-year man Wes Schweitzer will be the primary support for starting guards for Andy Levitre and Ben Garland.
Broncos To Cut Ward If They Can’t Trade Him
One way or another, the Broncos are about to show T.J. Ward the door. If the Broncos can’t find a suitable trade for the safety by Saturday afternoon’s roster deadline, they’re expected to release him outright, Mike Klis of 9News hears. 
By cutting Ward, the Broncos would take themselves off the hook for his non-guaranteed $4.5MM salary. If Ward’s salary comes off the books, the Broncos may redirect that money towards extensions for kicker Brandon McManus and linebacker Todd Davis, Klis writes.
The Broncos can afford to keep Ward, but they would prefer to give a starting opportunity to sophomore Justin Simmons after his strong showing this summer. While Simmons has soared, Ward has been sidelined with a nagging hamstring injury throughout the preseason.
Releasing Ward could allow the Broncos to keep undrafted rookie safety Jamal Carter, a favorite of Vance Joseph & Co.
Latest On T.J. Ward
Although Broncos head coach Vance Joseph told reporters Tuesday that he “would be surprised” if they traded safety T.J. Ward, his time on their roster is running out, Mike Klis of 9News suggests. Whether the Broncos trade or release Ward, their safety depth makes him expendable, Klis argues. Moving on from Ward would mean jettisoning someone whose reckless style has led to injury issues, as Klis points out that he missed seven games over the previous three years and hasn’t played any preseason games this summer on account of a hamstring strain. While Klis notes that Ward remains a quality player, he nonetheless expects the Broncos to make the difficult decision of parting with a defender who has made two Pro Bowls and started in all 41 of his games during his three-year tenure with the club. Despite Ward’s accomplished resume, both his age (30) and salary ($4.5MM) torpedo his trade value, Klis contends. If the Broncos end up having to cut Ward, they’d avoid paying him any of the $4.5MM he’s owed.
More from the AFC:
- Dolphins coach Adam Gase assured Jarvis Landry this week that he’s not on the trade block – a gesture the wide receiver appreciated. “Coach Gase did an amazing job,” Landry told Steven Wine of the Associated Press. “He called me in and he just talked to me, explained to me the situation and everything that’s going on, and that that’s false (speculation). That’s all I really needed to hear from him.” Regardless of whether the Dolphins have shopped Landry, the contract-year player’s time in Miami could be winding down. Landry informed Wine that he still has no interest in negotiating an extension once the season starts, giving the Dolphins under two weeks to re-sign the prolific pass catcher. They’ve been in no hurry to re-up Landry, though, so it continues to look as if an answer on his future won’t come until next offseason.
- Ravens head coach John Harbaugh updated the statuses of two of his key offensive players – quarterback Joe Flacco and wide receiver Breshad Perriman – on Tuesday, per Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun. Flacco, who has been out for over a month with a back injury, is throwing again and “moving toward practice,” according to Harbaugh. Flacco still needs medical clearance to return to the field, but Harbaugh expects him under center for the Ravens’ season opener against Cincinnati on Sept. 10. And the coach is “very optimistic” Perriman will suit up for Week 1. The oft-injured 2015 first-round pick has been unavailable since Aug. 1 because of a hamstring issue.
- Bengals tight end Mason Schreck suffered an MCL injury Sunday that will lead to a lengthy absence and impact the team’s roster decisions, Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports (on Twitter). As a seventh-round pick stuck behind Tyler Eifert, Tyler Kroft and C.J. Uzomah on Cincy’s depth chart, Schreck was already facing an uphill battle to make the club before the injury.
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