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K.J. Hamler

Minor NFL Transactions: 7/26/22

July 26th, 2022 at 7:56pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor NFL transactions, including a handful of notable names landing on the physically unable to perform list and the non-football injury list as teams open up camp:

Arizona Cardinals

Chicago Bears

Cleveland Browns

Denver Broncos

Green Bay Packers

Indianapolis Colts

Kansas City Chiefs

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

Miami Dolphins

  • Released with NFI designation: WR Cody Core

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Washington Commanders

Latest On Broncos WR KJ Hamler

May 11th, 2022 at 6:18pm CST by Sam Robinson

In addition to the knee surgery KJ Hamler underwent after suffering a torn ACL in Week 3, the young Broncos wide receiver needed a hip operation.

Hamler suffered the hip injury on the same play he tore the ACL, and Mike Klis of 9News notes the Broncos initially feared the former second-round pick suffered a Bo Jackson-type injury. It turned out not to be in that ballpark, one that saw Jackson’s football career end and eventual hip-replacement surgery become necessary.

The Broncos’ No. 4 wideout has long been reported ahead of schedule in his rehab. News of this hip procedure adds to the remarkability of the Penn State product being in position to catch passes from Russell Wilson shortly after the quarterback’s arrival. Hamler is not yet a full participant in Broncos offseason workouts, though Klis notes he is running and cutting at full speed, but he expects to be ready for full work in training camp. This was Hamler’s second ACL tear; he suffered the first during his senior year of high school.

Denver included Noah Fant in the Wilson trade but kept its top four wide receivers. With Jerry Jeudy a former top-15 pick and Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick now attached to eight-figure-per-year deals, Hamler is positioned to be an off-the-bench contributor. Jeudy and Sutton’s injury trouble in recent years, and the Broncos’ interest in seeing what they have in Hamler, should lead to the speed merchant receiving extensive work in his third season. The 5-foot-9 wideout caught 30 passes for 381 yards and three touchdowns as a rookie in 2020.

Broncos WR KJ Hamler Done For Season

September 27th, 2021 at 6:13pm CST by Ben Levine

The Broncos have lost another wideout. KJ Hamler suffered a torn ACL yesterday and will miss the rest of the season, reports ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter).

Hamler suffered the injury during the second quarter of yesterday’s win over the Jets. The wideout leaped for a Teddy Bridgewater pass before landing awkwardly. Hamler suffered additional damage to his knee during the play, per ESPN’s Jeff Legwold. The receiver will inevitably land on IR and miss the rest of the campaign.

The 2020 second-round pick finished his rookie campaign with 421 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns in 13 games (four starts). The 22-year-old was looking to build off those numbers in 2021, especially following the injury to fellow wideout Jerry Jeudy. Through the first three games of this season, Hamler hauled in five catches for 74 yards.

The Broncos could be looking for some reinforcement at the position with two top wideouts out of the lineup. Courtland Sutton (who’s coming off his own injury) leads a depth chart that also features Tim Patrick and Diontae Spencer.

Minor NFL Transactions: 1/2/21

January 2nd, 2021 at 5:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

Here are Saturday’s minor moves:

Arizona Cardinals

Atlanta Falcons

Baltimore Ravens

Buffalo Bills

Carolina Panthers

Chicago Bears

Cincinnati Bengals

Cleveland Browns

  • Signed off Jets’ practice squad: G Blake Hance
  • Activated from reserve/COVID-19 list: S Karl Joseph
  • Promoted: G Cordell Iwuagwu, LB Montrel Meander, T Alex Taylor

Dallas Cowboys

Denver Broncos

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Las Vegas Raiders

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Promoted: DB John Brannon

Los Angeles Rams

Miami Dolphins

Minnesota Vikings

New England Patriots

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

New York Jets

Philadelphia Eagles

Pittsburgh Steelers

San Francisco 49ers

Seattle Seahawks

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Tennessee Titans

Washington Football Team

West Rumors: Broncos, Bell, Rams

October 17th, 2020 at 3:17pm CST by Sam Robinson

Broncos running backs coach Curtis Modkins will not travel with the team to New England for the rescheduled Broncos-Patriots game due to a positive COVID-19 test, the team announced Saturday. Modkins, 49, is in his third season as Denver’s running backs coach. He is not experiencing symptoms from the virus, according to the team, which has performed the customary contact tracing after this positive test. The former Bills and 49ers offensive coordinator is a holdover from the Vance Joseph regime and has been retained despite the Broncos changing OCs the past two offseasons. Modkins has been an NFL assistant since the 2008 season. Modkins’ son, Jett, is a Broncos intern and lives with his father. Jett Modkins will not make the trip either, Troy Renck of Denver7 notes. The Broncos will also be without Melvin Gordon from their backfield mix Sunday.

Here is the latest from the West divisions:

  • Le’Veon Bell‘s Chiefs deal will come with a $1MM base salary, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. The Dolphins were believed to be offering more money and potentially a multiyear deal, but another report indicated Miami did not dangle two years in its Bell proposal. Bell will have around $1MM more available to him through incentives. One of those incentives will be based around Bell’s workload. Bell’s Chiefs contract, to some degree, lessen the Jets’ burden. They owed the former All-Pro back approximately $6MM after releasing him after five games.
  • Another team’s running backs coach will be out of action as well. Rams RBs coach Thomas Brown blew out his Achilles’ tendon during practice Thursday, Sean McVay confirmed. In his first season as an NFL assistant, Brown joined the Rams’ staff this offseason. The 34-year-old position coach will undergo surgery next week.
  • Drew Lock is set to return as the Broncos‘ quarterback Sunday. He will have far from his optimal group of skill-position players. Phillip Lindsay will play; so will Jerry Jeudy. However, Denver will be down Noah Fant and K.J. Hamler. Fant suffered an ankle injury in Denver’s win over the Jets more than two weeks ago; Hamler reinjured the hamstring he pulled during training camp. Lock was able to target Courtland Sutton when he last played (Week 2), but Denver’s No. 1 wide receiver is out for the season with an ACL tear. Lock will have a difficult task against the Patriots, who will have Stephon Gilmore back after his stay on the team’s reserve/COVID-19 list.

WR Notes: Godwin, Lions, Broncos, Bateman

September 18th, 2020 at 3:31pm CST by Sam Robinson

A bevy of wide receiver news has surfaced Friday, with several key weapons either out or likely to be shelved for Week 2. Here is the latest from the wideout ranks:

  • The Buccaneers have given Chris Godwin a doubtful designation. The contract-year wide receiver displayed concussion-like symptoms Wednesday, after absorbing a late-game hit in last week’s loss to the Saints, and remains in Tampa Bay’s protocol. Godwin has missed just two career games.
  • For a second straight week, the Lions will be without Kenny Golladay. Joining Godwin as a contract-year standout on the verge of a big payday, Golladay will miss another game because of a hamstring malady.
  • The Broncos will have their first- and second-round picks together in game action this week, with K.J. Hamler set to join Jerry Jeudy. Vic Fangio said Hamler will play. The second-rounder sustained a hamstring injury during training camp. Denver may have to wait for any Jeudy-Hamler-Courtland Sutton formations, however, with the Broncos’ No. 1 target remaining questionable with a sprained AC joint.
  • During Week 1, DeVante Parker aggravated a hamstring issue he initially encountered during training camp. The Dolphins‘ No. 1 target is questionable to play Sunday.
  • The Texans worked out Devin Smith this week, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle notes. The Cowboys cut Smith, a former Jets second-round pick, as they trimmed their roster to 53 players. Now 28, Smith has just 15 career receptions since being a coveted prospect in 2015.
  • An interesting situation has emerged at the University of Minnesota, one of several Big Ten teams who saw an impact talent opt out and declare for the 2021 draft. First-round wide receiver prospect Rashod Bateman opted out this summer, but the high-end target is angling to return now. Bateman is back on campus but has signed with an agent, per Yahoo’s Pete Thamel (on Twitter). Due to the unusual circumstances the COVID-19 pandemic has created — particularly in the Big Ten, which announced an October restart this week — the Golden Gophers are attempting to secure a waiver from the NCAA to allow Bateman to play.

Broncos Sign Round 2 WR K.J. Hamler, Finalize Draft Class Deals

July 24th, 2020 at 4:06pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Broncos signed all 10 of their 2020 draft picks this week. They concluded the stretch of deals by agreeing to terms with second-round wide receiver K.J. Hamler on his four-year contract Friday, Mike Klis of 9News notes.

Denver became the first team to select wide receivers in both the first and second rounds since the Cardinals chose Bryant Johnson and Anquan Boldin in 2003. The Broncos drafted Jerry Jeudy at No. 15 overall and took Hamler 46th, equipping Drew Lock with an intriguing set of weapons alongside Courtland Sutton and 2019 first-round tight end Noah Fant.

A hamstring injury prevented Hamler from participating at the Combine, but the Penn State product was viewed as one of the draft’s fastest players. A 5-foot-9 wideout who declared for the draft after his sophomore college season, Hamler is expected to see action in the slot for the Broncos. He showed high-level playmaking ability with the Nittany Lions, totaling 98 receptions for 1,658 yards and 13 touchdowns as an underclassman. He averaged 18 yards per catch as a freshman.

Hamler will join former Penn State teammate DaeSean Hamilton in the Broncos’ receiver group but will be expected to surpass him and man the slot in Denver’s three-wideout sets.

Here is the Broncos’ full 2020 draft class:

1-15: Jerry Jeudy, WR (Alabama): Signed
2-46: K.J. Hamler, WR (Penn State): Signed
3-77: Michael Ojemudia, CB (Iowa): Signed
3-83: Lloyd Cushenberry, C (LSU): Signed
3-95: McTelvin Agim, DL (Arkansas): Signed
4-118: Albert Okwuegbunam, TE (Missouri): Signed
5-178: Justin Strnad, LB (Wake Forest): Signed
6-181: Netane Muti, G (Fresno State): Signed
7-252: Tyrie Cleveland, WR (Florida): Signed
7-254: Derrek Tuszka, LB (North Dakota State): Signed