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Broncos contemplate promoting practice squad punter

Arnie Stapleton
Associated Press
FILE - In this Aug. 9, 2018, file photo, Denver Broncos punter Marquette King takes part in drills at NFL football training camp, in Englewood, Colo. Injured punter Marquette King missed another practice Friday, Oct. 5, 2018, and the Broncos were considering promoting new practice squader Colby Wadman to take his place this weekend against the New York Jets.(AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
AP | AP

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Injured punter Marquette King missed another practice Friday and the Denver Broncos were considering promoting new practice squader Colby Wadman to take his place this weekend against the New York Jets .

“I’m very comfortable with him, if he has to go,” said coach Vance Joseph.

That confidence was echoed by kicker Brandon McManus and special teams coordinator Tom McMahon after King was listed as doubtful for Sunday.



Joseph will meet with general manager John Elway to decide who to cut if the Broncos promote Wadman.

Asked if that might be King, who signed a three-year, $7 million deal in Denver after his ouster from Oakland this offseason, Joseph said, “Well, anything’s possible.”



“We’re trying to win a football game and we’ve got to have a punter, obviously. So, we’ll see. I’ll get with John and we’ll decide it,” Joseph said.

The Broncos brought in Wadman, a rookie from UC Davis, last week to push King after a poor punting performance at Baltimore.

King had another bad outing Monday night against Kansas City, however, when his 35-yard punt to the Kansas City 40-yard line in the closing minutes set up the Chiefs’ winning touchdown drive in a 27-23 game at Mile High Stadium.

King came out of that game with a groin/right thigh injury and Wadman got all the work during the week.

McMahon said he had “very high confidence” in Wadman’s punting abilities, and McManus said he was equally confident in Wadman as his holder.

“Who knows what’s going to happen if Marquette plays or not. But I’ve had enough holds with Colby to feel confident with him,” McManus said.

Wadman’s college eligibility expired in 2016, and he gave himself three years to become a pro punter, working odd jobs in between workouts.

Wadman said he was about to start a temp job working for his mother’s boss helping out at an accounting firm in Thousand Oaks, California, when the Broncos called last week.

“I’m just staying ready,” Wadman said. “Obviously, I haven’t kicked in two years, but being out here in practice, working out with the team, they’re all telling me how much they believe in me. They have confidence in me. If I do end up getting the call, I feel ready for it.”

The Broncos will play at MetLife, the biggest stadium in the NFL with a capacity of 82,500, but that doesn’t faze Wadman.

“We played at Oregon my senior year. Pretty decent size, obviously,” Wadman said of Autzen Stadium in Eugene which has a capacity of 54,000. “Size of the stadium doesn’t mean a thing to me. I’m just kicking, no matter where I’m at.”

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Follow Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton


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