Two Russell Wilson auxiliary weapons will not be available to start the season. While Tim Patrick will be down throughout 2022 after tearing an ACL early in training camp, George Paton confirmed Tuesday (via Denver7’s Troy Renck, on Twitter) rookie tight end Greg Dulcich will begin his season on IR.
The placements of Dulcich and cornerback Michael Ojemudia on short-term IR — which will sideline each for the season’s first four games — will allow the Broncos to bring back nose tackle Mike Purcell and tight end Eric Tomlinson, according to the second-year Denver GM. Both veterans were included among the Broncos’ cuts Tuesday.
A hamstring injury dogged Dulcich for most of training camp. The UCLA product suffered a setback early in camp and did not play in the Broncos’ preseason games. The team made Dulcich a key part of its 2022 draft, adding him with its second pick this year. With Albert Okwuegbunam going into a contract year, Dulcich could profile as the Broncos’ tight end of the future. But the team has not seen much from the Day 2 investment yet.
Ojemudia suffered a dislocated elbow in the Broncos’ second preseason game. This injury followed Jonas Griffith‘s elbow dislocation in the team’s preseason opener. Griffith is not slated to go on IR and could be ready for Week 1. For Ojemudia, this marks more of the same. The 2020 third-round pick missed most of last season with a hamstring injury. He was vying for the team’s top outside backup cornerback job behind starters Pat Surtain II and Ronald Darby.
A former Alliance of American Football cog, Purcell has been with the Broncos since 2019. The veteran nose tackle has started 23 games in that span, though injuries have intervened over the past two years. Purcell, 31, had signed a three-year, $14.8MM extension in 2020 but saw the Broncos bring in a high-priced replacement in D.J. Jones this offseason. A blocking tight end, Tomlinson spent much of the past two seasons with the Ravens. He joined Dulcich as the Broncos’ tight end newcomers this year.