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According to Mike Klis of the Denver Post the Denver Broncos have waived punt returner/receiver Isaiah Burse, and have promoted kicker Brandon McManus to the active roster. Update: The Broncos have since confirmed the move.
Broncos promote kicker Brandon McManus to 53-man roster, waive punt returner Isaiah Burse: http://t.co/jd7yTH8a6r via @mikeklis
— Mike Klis (@MikeKlis) December 6, 2014
This move (and others) have been speculated by many since the Broncos added McManus back to their practice squad earlier in the week. Clearly the Broncos were not impressed by newly signed kicker Connor Barth's kickoff skills, and decided to bring back the strong leg of McManus. Before being waived by the Broncos, McManus was 48 of 64 in touchbacks (75%).
So Barth will handle the field goal duties while McManus will be the teams kickoff specialist. With field position being important(especially in the playoffs) this move should work out for the best for the Broncos.
Isaiah Burse was signed as a college free agent this offseason and made the team as the teams punt returner. He returned 29 punts for a 7.2 yard average and had 24 fair catches in 2014. Burse will now have to go through waivers, if he goes unclaimed I would expect the Broncos to add him to their practice squad.
Who will return punts?
As for who will replace Burse as the teams punt returner, the Denver Broncos official site lists receiver Emmanuel Sanders as the the number two punt returner. I would be surprised to see Sanders back there. I would for Andre Caldwell, Omar Bolden, or possibly Wes Welker to be back there this Sunday. (Recall that Cody Latimer is OUT this week with a concussion).
Who do you think should return punts, Broncos fans?
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