Broncos running back Blake Watson tried his best to treat Aug. 27 as a regular day.
Denver was in the process of trimming its roster down to 53 players, and Watson spent half the day at the training facility before returning to his hotel room, where his mind began to wander. As an undrafted rookie out of Memphis, the odds were already stacked against Watson when he arrived in Denver in the spring.
Now that the moment of truth had arrived, he asked himself if there was more he could have done to strengthen his case for a roster spot. Even though head coach Sean Payton made it seem like Watson had a future in Denver, nothing was certain until the clock struck 2 p.m.
“I felt like I left it all out there,” Watson told The Denver Post. “I did everything that I could do so it relaxed me a little bit.”
The hours, minutes and seconds between the final preseason game and the NFL’s roster cutdown deadline create anxiety and tension all across the league — especially for undrafted rookies.
Getting past that hurdle allowed Watson and rookie offensive tackle Frank Crum to finally exhale. Now it’s on to the next challenge: Proving they are here to stay.
“I’m just glad it went in my favor,” Watson said.
Crum, the 6-foot-7 lineman out of Wyoming, treated last week like any other in his young pro career. After the Broncos’ preseason win over Arizona, he knew he still had to work out and practice as if his spot on the team was set in stone.
Though Crum is the perfect size for an offensive lineman, he struggled during training camp and preseason in pass protection, which raised questions about whether he would make the team.
“(I) tried not to sweat the things that you can’t control,” Crum told The Denver Post. “I came up here, got a lift in (and then) hung out with my wife. Just normal day activities, and it keeps your mind off (of roster decisions).”
Broncos starting inside linebacker and team captain Alex Singleton remembers being in Watson and Crum’s shoes. The only difference is that it took him four years to establish himself in the NFL.
As an undrafted free agent in 2015, Singleton was released by the Seahawks, Patriots and Vikings before taking his talents to the Canadian Football League. It wasn’t until 2019 that he returned to the NFL, signing with the Eagles.
Singleton spent three seasons in Philadelphia before coming to Denver, where has been among the league leaders in total tackles over the past two years.
Singleton has found stability in his football career, but he still thinks about moments when he walked into an office just for a coach or general manager to tell him that he was cut. “It sucks. It’s not fun,” Singleton said as he spent last week sending messages of encouragement to some of the undrafted free agents.
“I know how every guy (who went home) felt,” Singleton said. “I’ve also been the guy that was brought back on practice squad, promises and just hoping that the team’s telling me the truth to get to play.”
Watson and Crum didn’t receive a congratulatory call from Payton or general manager George Paton to inform them of their roster status. When the deadline passed and Watson didn’t hear from the team, he assumed he earned a spot and immediately called his parents.
“I heard when you don’t hear anything (from the team), then that’s pretty good news,” Watson said.
As Denver builds toward the future with a handful of young players on the roster, the team hopes some of its undrafted free agents over the last two seasons can develop into solid contributors. The Broncos have had an undrafted rookie make the team in 20 of the last 21 seasons.
Since Sean Payton took over as head coach in 2023, seven undrafted rookies have made the initial 53-man roster. Two of them are currently in Denver’s running back room: Jaleel McLaughlin and Watson. Both players can make an impact in the run and pass game. At Memphis, Watson rushed for 1,152 yards and 14 touchdowns while catching 53 passes for 480 yards and three scores.
Payton knew Watson was worth keeping, and he feared the rookie wouldn’t make it past waivers.
“When you just watch his preseason runs, they’re unremarkable,” Payton said. “There’s power with his finish. Then you see his ball skills.”
Crum’s overall body of work during the summer might not have been eye-popping, but the Broncos see traits that are worth developing. “You don’t get many 6-foot-7 guys or whatever he is that has the power he does,” Paton said of Crum. Denver also seems to believe there’s potential in second-year offensive tackle Alex Palczewski, who signed with the team as an undrafted free agent from Illinois in 2023.
“I think we had four last year and three this year. Of those four, Jaleel made an impact, (as did tight end) Nate Adkins, and (Palczewski) made the team this year,” Paton said. “I’m really fired up about these guys.”
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