Broncos have placed Caden Sterns on the injured reserve; promoted WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey from practiced squad

The Denver Broncos have announced that they have placed safety Caden Sterns on the injured reserve and have promoted wide receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey off their practice squad. Sterns suffered a serious knee injury during the Broncos week one loss to the Las Vegas Raiders and now will miss potentially the rest of his season.

Sterns who was listed as a co-starter with veteran safety Kareem Jackson will now be placed on the injured reserve. The depth at the safety position has taken a hit recently with safety P.J. Locke also being placed on the injured reserve and missing at least the first four games of the season. Now, with Sterns potentially out for the year, second-year safety Delarrin Turner-Yell and rookie JL Skinner will earn more playing time moving forward. I would also expect the team to add defensive back Devon Key who is currently on their practice squad to their 53-man roster to fill the vacancy on the roster, at least for now.

Sterns missed most of last season due to a hip injury he suffered early in the season and was looking to have a breakout season this season. However, another unfortunate injury will sideline him once again for an entire season and derail any chance of a breakout opportunity, at least for this season.

With Sterns out for the year, look for veteran Kareem Jackson to take over as the full-time starter moving forward. The 35-year-old defensive back had an interception in the end zone vs. the Raiders in week one and has proven he still has some juice left in the tank. Behind him, he will have second-year safety Delarrin Turner-Yell and rookie JL Skinner pushing for playing time as well.

As for wide receiver Lil Jordan Humphrey, he was among the Broncos' final cuts but was eventually signed to their practice squad. Last week, he was promoted to the active gameday roster and was a vital part of the Broncos offense vs. the Raiders. He caught the first touchdown pass of the year by quarterback Russell Wilson and played the second-most amount of snaps of the wide receivers on the roster. Now, he is officially on the 53-man roster and likely will have a key role on the team moving forward.