Eyioma

Uwazurike

Locke was considered doubtful for the bout against the Panthers, and will unsurprisingly miss the contest. Wilson will operate as the emergency third quarterback.

Wilson will be the emergency third quarterback against the Seahawks on Sunday behind Bo Nix and Jarrett Stidham. Franklin was a fourth-round pick who struggled early in camp, and will need to pick things up in practice to not earn the inactive designation going forward.

Uwazurike was handed an indefinite suspension by the league last offseason for violating the personal conduct policy after being found to have gambled on NFL games. The third-year player released a statement following his reinstatement, saying “I am grateful to the Denver Broncos and the National Football League for giving me the opportunity to resume my NFL career. I’ve learned from this situation and taken steps to ensure it will never happen again.” Uwazurike appeared in eight games for the Broncos in his rookie season in 2022 and should now face an uphill battle for snaps behind a revamped defensive line.

Uwazurike is suspended for at least the 2023 season, but that suspension could stretch beyond this year. A fourth-round pick by the Broncos last season, Uwazurike appeared in eight games for the Broncos and finished the season with 17 tackles. He is eligible to apply for reinstatement on July 24th of next year.

Turner has struggled with the knee injury dating back to camp and still isn’t ready to set foot on the field against the 49ers. Cameron Fleming will protect the blindside for Russell Wilson against San Francisco’s pass rush. Also inactive for the Broncos are: WR Jalen Virgil, WR Tyrie Cleveland (hamstring), CB Darius Phillips (hamstring), S Delarrin Turner-Yell, OLB Jonathon Cooper (hamstring), and DL Eyioma Uwazurike

Hamler was ruled out on Friday and didn’t look particularly close to playing, but Nathaniel Hackett said the team was trying to avoid a setback in comments later that day. Tyrie Cleveland projects as Denver’s No. 3 wideout, but it should just serve to narrow the passing game options for Russell Wilson against the Texans. Also inactive for Denver are WR Jalen Virgil, OLB Nik Bonitto, LB Josey Jewell, OT Billy Turner, G Quinn Meinerz, and DL Eyioma Uwazurike. Randy Gregory (shoulder/knee) is active.

Uwazurike’s (6’6/320) ascent to a potential NFL draft prospect didn’t begin until he received honorable mention All-Big 12 in 2019. That season, Uwazurike totaled 32 tackles, 5.5 tackles for a loss, and 1.5 sacks. He capped off his career with a successful 2021 in which he totaled 43 tackles, 12 TFLs, and nine sacks, receiving first-team All-Big 12 honors by coaches. At the Combine, Uwazurike showed impressive explosiveness with the best vertical jump of the defensive tackle class and the sixth-best broad jump. He shows good burst off the line and active hands that feature a top-tier swim move. Able to play anywhere along the defensive line, he saw an even split at nose tackle and DE last season.