The Denver Broncos’ defensive line has already strengthened and updated significantly in the 2024 offseason, but it could soon receive another boost…
Potentially.
The Denver Broncos rookies report to training camp on July 17, while veterans report on July 23. Eyioma Uwazurike, a former fourth-round pick, is entitled to seek for reinstatement on July 24, but a criminal investigation may complicate his situation further. According to 9News Broncos insider Mike Klis, the NFL will not make a decision on Uwazurike’s potential reinstatement until the criminal investigation is resolved.
Klis stated in his post that the NFL normally reinstates players on the same day they seek for reinstatement, but Uwazurike’s situation is unique. He was suspended for a full year for betting 32 times on five Broncos games, including one in which he played. On the surface, it appears to be a bad situation, but a year-long ban and potentially delayed reinstatement seems excessive.
“The NFL subsequently conducted its own inquiry and issued an indefinite ban to Uwazurike, with reinstatement considered no early than July 24, 2024, one full calendar year from the start of his suspension. The prospective reinstatement application date is now less than three weeks away.
If Uwazurike is approved and restored by the league, the Broncos will have to determine whether to activate him on their roster. According to sources, the door has not been closed following Uwazurike’s return.”
The door has not been closed on Uwazurike’s return to the team, nor should it be at this time. Sean Payton reacted strongly to Uwazurike’s year-long suspension last year. The NFL suspends players for gambling, which is the correct thing to do, but taking them away for a year accomplishes what exactly? According to Mike Klis, Uwazurike has taken the initiative to do the right thing by attending gamblers anonymous meetings once a week, as well as weekly therapy sessions. The point Payton was attempting to make was that suspending the player and booting him out of the facility prevents the organization from assisting them in resolving their issues.
“When you have a lot of players getting D’s, you need to start looking at the message. This approach has resulted in a high number of D’s in our league this season.
And we’re going to send them home for a year so they can’t be around. Shame on us for believing that you would simply disappear.”
The last time we heard anyone on the team mention Uwazurike was in late April, when general manager George Paton discussed the team’s defensive line depth.
So, if given the opportunity, the Broncos will most likely maintain Uwazurike on the 90-man roster. And that is the correct thing to do. They may have cut him at this point if they didn’t intend to bring him back. Why not see what he can still do on the field?
Uwazurike was a fourth-round pick out of Iowa State in the 2022 NFL Draft and was deemed a huge bargain by the Broncos. He played little as a rookie, but was set to start at defensive end last year when his year-long suspension was announced.
Leave a Reply