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Jonas Griffith

LB Jonas Griffith Suffers ACL Tear

August 31st, 2024 at 6:06pm CST by Adam La Rose

Jonas Griffith missed all of last season due to an ACL tear, and he is now set to miss a second straight campaign for the same reason. The former Broncos linebacker announced he has surgery lined up for another ACL repair.

Griffith noted the most recent tear affects the same knee which was injured last August. He faces another lengthy rehab process as a result, and the news of his new injury helps explain why the Broncos cut him earlier this week. That move saw him waived without an injury designation, and ended his bid to land a starting gig.

The 27-year-old spent much of the offseason competing with Cody Barton for a first-team role next to Alex Singleton. Once Griffith was let go, it became clear Barton – added on a one-year free agent deal worth $2.5MM fully guaranteed – would win out. Griffith went unclaimed on Wednesday, making him a free agent. Given his latest injury setback, though, he is likely to remain on the open market until he returns to full health.

The former UDFA made 22 appearances, including 12 starts, between the 2021 and ’22 campaigns with the Broncos. He logged a part-time defensive role during that span while also seeing a notable workload on special teams. Despite missing all of last season (after being sidelined for the end of the 2022 slate), Griffith signed a one-year extension this winter. That $985K pact did not include any guaranteed money.

Singleton and Barton are joined by Drew Sanders and Justin Strnad at the linebacker spot as things currently stand for the Broncos. Denver could add further depth at the position in the wake of Griffith’s injury, but in any case he will once again turn his attention to recovery instead of preparation for the season.

Broncos Release Tim Patrick, Samaje Perine To Trim Roster To 53

August 27th, 2024 at 4:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

Teams have moved their rosters to 53 players. Here is how the Broncos pared theirs down to the regular-season limit:

Released:

Waived:

Waived/injured:

  • OLB Durell Nchami

Placed on reserve/PUP:

IR/designated for return:

Patrick and Perine trades did not come to fruition. Both veterans are heading to free agency. Patrick had been with the Broncos since joining their practice squad in 2017; only Garett Bolles has been on the team longer. But Denver has added several wide receivers under Sean Payton‘s watch. Patrick, a John Elway-era pickup who signed an extension under GM George Paton, became expendable for the younger talent. The 30-year-old wideout has recovered from the ACL and Achilles tears that prevented him from playing a down with Russell Wilson. Humphrey may well be a practice squad option, given his New Orleans past with Payton.

Perine, 28, has been connected to a Bengals return. The veteran backup/pass-down option can now sign anywhere he chooses. Perine set a career high in receiving yardage (455) during his one-and-done Broncos run; Denver’s dead money charge ($1.5MM) will likely be offset if/once Perine lands elsewhere.

Sanders sustained an Achilles tear this offseason. The 2023 third-round pick figures to be in the team’s plans for later this season, but he will miss time — at least four games, per the PUP designation — on his rehab trek. Mathis must also miss four games, having suffered a high ankle sprain. The third-year cornerback is slated to return at some point, and the Broncos are using an IR-return designation, dropping their number from eight to seven to start the season.

Burton was viewed as a safe bet to make the team, and while roster gymnastics — which are less useful now that this IR-return tweak is in the mix — could bring him back, he received word of a release. Burton is a nine-year vet who spent last season with the Broncos. Mustipher signed this offseason but was not viewed as a true contender for the center spot, which appears set to go to 2022 fifth-round pick Luke Wattenberg.

Many of these players figure to be brought back to Denver’s practice squad, which can be set beginning Wednesday. Sixteen players will fill out that unit.

Broncos To Cut LB Jonas Griffith

August 27th, 2024 at 1:12pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jonas Griffith has gone from competing for a starting inside linebacker job to being cut. The Broncos are going with another option alongside Alex Singleton and are waiving Griffith, per the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson.

Despite Griffith having missed the past 1 1/2 seasons and not being a Sean Payton-era addition, the team extended the young linebacker early this offseason. A starter for the Broncos back in 2022, Griffith is now on the waiver wire.

Cody Barton has won the Broncos’ ILB job alongside Griffith. Denver had signed the former Seattle and Washington starter in free agency but had pitted him against Griffith entering training camp. The Broncos gave Barton a one-year, $2.5MM deal that came nearly fully guaranteed; Griffith signed for one year and $985K.

The Broncos moved on from multiyear starter Josey Jewell this offseason; the seventh-year veteran rejoined one-and-done Denver DC Ejiro Evero in Carolina. The team, amid a rather historic cap crunch thanks to the Russell Wilson development, saved some money by bringing in Barton. Griffith will now look for a gig elsewhere, but he is riding no momentum.

Griffith started eight games under Evero in 2022 but missed the team’s final eight contests with a foot injury. The former UDFA then missed all of 2023 with an ACL tear. Griffth, 27, enjoyed a chance to regain a starting role for the Broncos. It is unlikely he will have that opportunity elsewhere, though injuries depleting teams’ LB corps could help his cause down the road.

 

Cody Barton, Jonas Griffith Competing For Broncos ILB Job

June 25th, 2024 at 1:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Broncos’ separations from Russell Wilson, Justin Simmons and Jerry Jeudy drew more attention this offseason, but the team also said goodbye to starting linebacker Josey Jewell. The six-year Denver defender left to rejoin Ejiro Evero with Carolina.

Alex Singleton remains tied to the three-year, $18MM contract he signed last year; the prolific tackler will enter training camp a surefire starter on Denver’s defensive second level. Jewell’s old post remains unfilled; a camp position battle will determine who will be Singleton’s ILB wingman to start this season.

[RELATED: Broncos Lose Drew Sanders To Achilles Tear]

Days after Jewell’s defection to the Panthers, the Broncos signed Cody Barton. The latter has been a starter in back-to-back seasons, working in that capacity with the Seahawks and Commanders. The team also re-signed Jonas Griffith, who has logged fill-in starter duty while maintaining a regular role on special teams. This shapes up as a head-to-head matchup for the other three-down LB role in Denver, ESPN.com’s Jeff Legwold notes.

Griffth’s re-emergence reflects his progress with the current coaching staff, which was not in place when the Broncos traded for him in 2021, and from the ACL tear he sustained last summer. Griffith, who made eight starts for the Broncos in 2022, also suffered two significant injuries that limited him two seasons ago. Elbow and foot issues shelved the former UDFA in 2022, when he had played alongside Jewell and Singleton in base sets. The fifth-year defender, whom the Broncos re-signed to bypass the RFA tender process this offseason, has not played since that November 2022 foot flareup.

Given the keys to a three-down role after the Seahawks released Bobby Wagner in 2022, Barton has since seen Wagner circle back to replace him in Washington. Dan Quinn‘s run of reunions included Wagner, whom he coached as Seahawks DC from 2013-14. Wagner’s Washington commitment followed Frankie Luvu‘s. With former first-rounder Jamin Davis still on the roster, Barton saw the new Commanders regime move on during the first days of free agency. This preceded a one-year, $2.5MM Broncos agreement. That deal includes $2.33MM guaranteed; Griffith’s contract does not feature any guarantees.

Barton, 27, made 24 starts over the past two seasons, filling up the stat sheet in that time. The former third-round pick totaled 136 tackles, two interceptions and six passes defensed in 2022 while adding 121 stops and one pick last season. Pro Football Focus, however, viewed Barton as a liability against the run and ranked him as a bottom-10 LB regular last season. Griffith, 27, intercepted a pass during his injury-shortened 2022 season.

Singleton’s new sidekick will emerge as a low-cost solution after Jewell’s two-year, $11MM contract came off the books. With Wilson carrying a record-smashing dead money sum, the Broncos have needed to cut costs elsewhere. Linebacker will be one such place, with rookie deals (Justin Strnad, Drew Sanders) and a vet-minimum Andre Smith contract rounding out the position. Denver did not draft an inside linebacker this year.

Barton’s contract would indicate a slight edge, though Sean Payton said Griffith has shown himself to be a viable competitor for a starting post. After the Broncos’ Jewell talks did not produce a third contract agreement, he inked a three-year, $18.75MM Panthers pact. DC Vance Joseph, having lost the last two defenders left over from his HC stay (Simmons and Jewell), will need to select a less established replacement soon.

Broncos Extend LB Jonas Griffith

February 14th, 2024 at 5:46pm CST by Adam La Rose

Jonas Griffith missed the entire 2023 campaign due to an ACL tear, but he will receive an opportunity to continue his Broncos tenure next season. The veteran linebacker signed a one-year extension on Wednesday, per an announcement from his agency.

Griffith was once again an exclusive rights free agent this year. Rather than tendering him later in the offseason, Denver has elected to ink him to a new deal prior to the start of free agency. As 9News’ Mike Klis notes, Griffith will earn $985K in 2024, the league minimum for players with two years’ experience but still a slight uptick from his one-year earnings in each of the past two seasons. A notable role could await him if he manages to remain healthy.

The Broncos have one starting LB spot accounted for with Alex Singleton. Fellow first-teamer Josey Jewell is a pending free agent, however. The same is also true of backups Justin Strnad and Ben Niemann, meaning a number of departures could take place at the position in the near future. 2023 third-rounder Drew Sanders, meanwhile, played at his best as an outside linebacker in his rookie year. Griffith has experience on special teams, but he could also push for a return to the workload he had in 2022.

That season, the former UDFA logged a 55% snap share on defense while starting eight of his nine games. His campaign was cut short due to a foot injury, though, something which compounded his absence throughout the 2023 season. Griffith had drawn rave reviews when on the field, leading to high expectations in the build-up to this past year.

The 27-year-old (who was acquired via trade in 2021) has made all 22 of his appearances with the Broncos. In that time, the former 49er and Colt has totaled 92 tackles, one interception and one fumble recovery. He could be well-positioned to compete for defensive playing time depending on how the team proceeds this offseason with Jewell in particular. In any case, today’s move will pave the way for at least a solid special teams role provided Griffith manages to recover in full from his most recent season-ending injury.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/4/23

August 4th, 2023 at 7:36pm CST by Ely Allen

Here are today’s minor moves as we head into the weekend:

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Houston Texans

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New York Giants

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Removed from commissioner’s exempt list: OL Josh Sills

San Francisco 49ers

Sills was placed on the commissioner’s exempt list back in February when a grand jury indicted him on counts of rape and kidnapping. The charges stem from an event that allegedly took place back in December 2019. Today it was announced that Sills was acquitted of both charges, according to sources at The Athletic. The Eagles released a statement that, with his adjudication, he will return to the team’s active roster.

The 49ers announced that Johnson has been placed on season-ending injured reserve. They didn’t disclose the injury that will sideline the young edge they signed two months ago.

The Vikings are adding the XFL’s 2023 leading rusher in Smith. Smith had 791 rushing yards in 10 games last year.

Broncos LB Jonas Griffith Tears ACL

August 3rd, 2023 at 11:46am CST by Sam Robinson

One of many Broncos to miss extended time due to injury last season, Jonas Griffith is now expected to miss the entire 2023 campaign.

The former UDFA suffered an ACL injury during training camp, 9News’ Mike Klis reports (on Twitter). The young linebacker has indeed sustained a torn ACL, the Denver Post’s Parker Gabriel tweets. This marks the second season-ending injury the Broncos have sustained this week. Tim Patrick, who missed all of 2022 with an ACL tear, went down with an Achilles tear Monday. Patrick is now on IR.

A former 49ers UDFA whom the Broncos traded for in 2020, Griffith started eight games for the team last year. As the Broncos attempt to shake their injury-prone reputation, this week has brought a reminder of the team’s recent past.

For Griffith, this brings more of the same as well. The Indiana State alum suffered a dislocated elbow during Denver’s preseason slate last year. While he recovered in time to start the regular season, a foot injury sustained during a November practice knocked Griffith out for the rest of the year. Thursday’s setback will effectively lead to a 1 1/2-season hiatus for Griffith, and the pattern of maladies form a hurdle of sorts for a player who has been a regular since debuting for the Broncos in 2021.

Griffith played 255 defensive snaps in 2021, and although the foot injury limited him to nine games last season, the 26-year-old off-ball linebacker topped that with 336 last season. Griffith made 46 tackles in both 2021 and ’22, serving as a special teams regular as well. The Broncos tendered him as an ERFA in March. They will have the option of placing the low-end RFA tender on the Division I-FCS product next year, but this ACL injury may affect his future in Denver.

The Broncos have re-signed both their top ILBs — Josey Jewell, Alex Singleton — in consecutive offseasons. Singleton agreed to terms on a three-year, $18MM deal in March. The team used a third-round pick on Arkansas’ Drew Sanders, a hybrid player who has lined up as an off-ball ‘backer and on the edge.

RFA/ERFA Tender Decisions: 3/13/23

March 13th, 2023 at 11:06pm CST by Ely Allen

Today’s tender decisions from around the NFL:

RFAs

Tendered:

ERFAs

Tendered:

Did not tender:

Broncos Place LB Jonas Griffith On IR, Activate LS Jacob Bobenmoyer

November 19th, 2022 at 9:35pm CST by Ely Allen

The Broncos made a number of moves leading up to their matchup with the Raiders tomorrow afternoon, according to the team’s managing editor Ben Swanson. Denver placed starting linebacker Jonas Griffith on injured reserve, replacing his roster spot with long snapper Jacob Bobenmoyer after activating the special teamer from IR. The team signed offensive tackle Quinn Bailey to the active roster from the practice squad and promoted wide receiver Brandon Johnson and linebacker Harvey Langi as standard gameday elevations.

Griffith has earned a place on one of the league’s top defenses after going undrafted in 2020 out of Indiana State. After bouncing between San Francisco and Indianapolis during his rookie season, Griffith was traded to the Broncos due to a stellar preseason before the 2021 season. An impressive first year in Denver with four starts in 13 game appearance led the team to tender him an exclusive-rights free agent offer. In his second season with the team, Griffith has started eight of the Broncos’ nine games. He’s nearly matched his entire production from last season at just past the halfway point of this season.

Unfortunately, that may be all of the season that Griffith sees. After aggravating a foot injury this week in practice, Griffith is headed to IR and expected to stay there for the remainder of the season, according to Mike Klis of 9NEWS. His injury piles onto a season-long issue for the Broncos who now have 13 players on IR and have seen missed time from several other contributors. In his absence, Alex Singleton will likely take the starting spot next to Josey Jewell at inside linebacker, possibly getting some help from Langi who could make his Broncos debut after joining the team’s practice squad over a month ago.

Bobenmoyer is set to return after sitting out the four games required before returning from IR. Bobenmoyer found himself on the injured list after suffering an injury to the hand/wrist area in a Week 5 overtime loss to the Colts. Bobenmoyer was replaced by practice squad long snapper Mitchell Fraboni who filled in well during the four weeks Bobenmoyer was out until getting placed on IR himself with a fractured finger. Bobenmoyer’s return comes just in time, helping the Broncos avoid the use of a third long snapper in just one season.

Johnson could make his NFL debut this week as a gameday elevation. The undrafted rookie, who caught 11 touchdowns for UCF last year, started the season on IR before getting waived with an injury settlement shortly after the start of the season. He returned to the practice squad about a month ago and could end up making an impact as starting wide receivers Jerry Jeudy and KJ Hamler have been listed as out for tomorrow, Tim Patrick remains on IR, and Kendall Hinton is listed as questionable with a shoulder injury. Denver could be operating with a total of four healthy receivers in Courtland Sutton, Jalen Virgil, Montrell Washington, and Johnson if Hinton is not available.

Broncos LB Jonas Griffith Facing Extended Absence

November 18th, 2022 at 10:27am CST by Sam Robinson

One of the league’s most injury-wrecked teams, the Broncos losing a starter is not especially surprising at this point. But they have now lost a regular contributor because of a practice injury/flareup for a second straight week.

Jonas Griffith aggravated a foot injury in practice Thursday, according to 9News’ Mike Klis, who adds the starting linebacker is set to miss extended time as a result of the setback (Twitter link). This news follows KJ Hamler‘s hamstring injury, sustained during practice last week. The third-year wide receiver missed Week 10 and is set to be sidelined for multiple additional games.

This is a familiar development for Griffith as well. He sustained a dislocated elbow during Denver’s preseason slate, knocking him out for several weeks. The young defender recovered in time to start in Week 1, but this latest setback will stall his first season as a regular defensive contributor. A 2021 trade acquisition, Griffith has made 46 tackles and intercepted a pass for the NFL’s top-ranked scoring defense.

The team had already begun to use offseason addition Alex Singleton over Griffith more often, but the latter’s issue highlights what has been a regular problem for the struggling squad. It would probably be easier to list the Broncos who have not missed time due to injury this season. The Broncos’ $56MM in cap money on IR leads the league, Klis adds.

They have four injury activations remaining, after seeing Tom Compton come back from surgery to repair a herniated disk this week, but players like Randy Gregory and Lloyd Cushenberry will likely represent two such activations. The Broncos also designated long snapper Jacob Bobenmoyer for return this week. Safety Caden Sterns and running back Mike Boone could also be activated potentially, leaving Griffith — if he is to head to IR — in limbo.

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