{"id":244433,"date":"2025-08-31T12:00:20","date_gmt":"2025-08-31T16:00:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=244433"},"modified":"2025-08-31T01:57:31","modified_gmt":"2025-08-31T05:57:31","slug":"practice-squad-players-who-could-land-on-broncos-active-roster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/08\/31\/practice-squad-players-who-could-land-on-broncos-active-roster\/","title":{"rendered":"Practice Squad Players Who Could Land on Broncos&#8217; Active Roster"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><\/div>\n<div>The 32 practice squads of the NFL are more than just extra players who are waiting for a chance to get on their teams&#8217; active rosters. It&#8217;s a weekly audition of sorts. The <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/broncos\/\" target=\"_self\">Denver Broncos<\/a>\u2019 2025 <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.denverbroncos.com\/news\/broncos-sign-16-players-to-practice-squad\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">practice squad<\/a>, much like previous years, is a combination of veterans, reclamation projects, and eager rookies, all with aspirations of getting that active roster call-up. Like death and taxes, injuries are certainties in the NFL, meaning a few of these individuals are likely to suit up for spot duty this season.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Which practice squad members are most likely to get elevated to the active roster? Let the speculations begin.<\/div>\n<h3>Who has the best odds of getting called up<\/h3>\n<h4>Sam Ehlinger, QB<\/h4>\n<figure id=\"attachment_244442\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-244442\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-244442\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-1024x682.jpg\" alt=\"Sam Ehlinger\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2025\/08\/Sam-Ehlinger-1200x800.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-244442\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aug 23, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Denver Broncos quarterback Sam Ehlinger (4) scrambles out of the pocket against New Orleans Saints safety Ugo Amadi (0) during the first half at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div>This one is a 50\/50 proposition. <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/04\/23\/bo-nix-broncos-quarterback-dynasty-outlook\/\" target=\"_self\">Bo Nix<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/03\/31\/behind-bo-nix-broncos-add-indianapolis-colts-sam-ehlinger\/\" target=\"_self\">Jarrett Stidham<\/a> are the only 2 quarterbacks on the active roster. The emergency QB3 waiting in the wings is <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2021\/04\/21\/sam-ehlinger-nfl-draft-profile\/\" target=\"_self\">Sam Ehlinger<\/a>, who reportedly turned down several offers to join other teams&#8217; active rosters.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Ehlinger would be the next man up should Nix or Stidham miss time. Make no mistake, he&#8217;s not just a fill-in; he&#8217;s played in 31 NFL regular-season games and has proven that he has enough mojo to engineer scoring drives. It&#8217;s not a sure bet, but don&#8217;t be surprised if Ehlinger gets elevated once or twice before the end of the calendar year.<\/div>\n<h4>Caleb Lohner, TE<\/h4>\n<div>The one thing that&#8217;s making the coaching staff lose sleep is the team&#8217;s depth at tight end. <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2024\/09\/12\/fantasy-football-week-2-tight-end-rankings-2\/\" target=\"_self\">Greg Dulcich<\/a> has yet to play a full season due to injuries, and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2023\/12\/12\/denver-broncos-beat-los-angeles-chargers\/\" target=\"_self\">Lucas Krull<\/a> is still a work in progress. Enter <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/04\/26\/2025-nfl-draft-grades-denver-broncos\/\" target=\"_self\">Caleb Lohner<\/a>, one of the more intriguing developmental projects on the practice squad.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Lohner was a two-sport collegiate athlete. Basketball at BYU and Baylor; Football at Utah. Being a relative novice in high-level organized football, he&#8217;s raw and skillfully underdeveloped. At 6&#8242;-7\u201d, the athletic upside is off the charts. He can potentially give the Broncos a huge receiving target in red zone, short-yardage, and goal-line situations. If Dulcich remains injury-prone, expect Sean Payton to elevate Lohner and deploy him in the above-mentioned situations.<\/div>\n<h4>Quinton Newsome, CB<\/h4>\n<div>Speaking of injury-prone, the cornerback position is at the top of that list in football. The Broncos&#8217; depth has a few question marks, and that&#8217;s why <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2021-nfl-draft-profiles\/\" target=\"_self\">Quinton Newsome<\/a>&#8216;s name is circled in red ink. As things stand, the former Nebraska stalwart is slotted right behind <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2021\/12\/01\/patrick-surtain-ii-is-the-future-of-the-denver-broncos-defense\/\" target=\"_self\">Pat Surtain II<\/a>. Long, physical, and able to hold his own in press coverage, Newsome is the perfect backup CB.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>He won&#8217;t be playing too many downs at first, but Newsome is pretty much a lock for special teams snaps. Injuries to every team\u2019s secondaries are all but inevitable, so it&#8217;s safe to bet on him seeing gameday playing time.<\/div>\n<h4>Jordan Miller, DL<\/h4>\n<div>NFL defensive lines need wide bodies to plug and clog up running lanes. Jordan Miller is a picture-perfect example of that type of prototypical player. A 6&#8242;-4\u201d, 320-pound nose tackle; he&#8217;s going to disrupt interiors simply by occupying space.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>In games where the Broncos will face run-heavy offenses like <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/raiders\/\" target=\"_self\">Las Vegas<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-teams\/steelers\/\" target=\"_self\">Pittsburgh<\/a>, they&#8217;re going to need extra meat. Miller could get called up for depth purposes. Of course, his getting elevated to the active roster won&#8217;t be anything to write home about, but he&#8217;s certainly more than capable of eating up snaps in spot duty.<\/div>\n<h4>Levelle Bailey, LB<\/h4>\n<div>A sure-fire way for practice squad players to get noticed is to excel in special teams. Levelle Bailey, an undrafted free agent linebacker from the 2024 class, checks that box. He&#8217;s quick, has a high football IQ, and is instinctive. Traits that were fully on display this preseason.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The Broncos&#8217; depth at inside LB is somewhat unclear, so it&#8217;s a strong possibility that Bailey finds himself active on Sundays both as a backup and a special teamer.<\/div>\n<h3>Final Thoughts<\/h3>\n<div>Future members of a team&#8217;s core are groomed within its practice squad, the not-so-secret part of an NFL roster. Sam Ehlinger, Caleb Lohner, Quinton Newsome, Jordan Miller, and Levelle Bailey are the likeliest to earn call-ups during the grind of the long 17-game season. If history repeats itself, at least one of these players will end up playing a key role down the stretch.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><em>Main Image: Ron Chenoy &#8211; Imagn Images<\/em><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A look at the Denver Broncos&#8217; 2025 practice squad players who are likely to get called up to the active roster.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5627,"featured_media":244443,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[15,54],"tags":[7309,32723],"class_list":["post-244433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-broncos","category-editorials","tag-denver-broncos-roster","tag-depth-chart"],"modified_by":"Isaac Zuniga","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244433","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5627"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=244433"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244433\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":244444,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/244433\/revisions\/244444"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/244443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=244433"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=244433"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=244433"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}