Denver Broncos defensive lineman gets suspension lifted after one full year

Travis Wakeman

Denver Broncos defensive lineman gets suspension lifted after one full year image

The Denver Broncos have been without Eyioma Uwazurike for the past year. On Monday, the league lifted his indefinite suspension stemming from a violation of its policy against gambling. He is free to rejoin the team and resume normal activities.

Uwazurike, a fourth-round pick in 2022 out of Iowa State, was suspended last year after gambling on games. But the Arapahoe County District Attorney recently opted against the filing of charges, clearing the way for his return to the field. 

The Broncos needed a spot on the 90-man roster to place Uwazurike back on the team and that opened up following the surprising decision to release safety Caden Sterns. 

Eyioma Uwazurike enters wide-open competition at defensive line

If the Broncos have opportunities anywhere on this roster, it might be along the defensive line where almost nothing is certain. 

Zack Allen, D.J. Jones and John Franklin-Myers figure to be the starters, but there is plenty of room behind them. Uwazurike will compete with Malcolm Roach, Angelo Blackson, Matt Henningsen, Jordan Jackson, Elijah Garcia, and Jordan Miller for playing time.

Behind the three starters, at least two of those other players should make the 53-man roster. Uwazurike has some ground to make up, but there was a lot of optimism surrounding him coming out of college. The current regime did not draft him, so he will need to make a good impression quickly. 

The Broncos play their first preseason game this Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. 

MORE BRONCOS NEWS

Bo Nix starting to pull away in QB competition

Former Broncos safety finds a new team

4 things that made Randy Gradishar a Hall of Famer

Travis Wakeman

Travis Wakeman Photo

Travis Wakeman has been covering the NFL since 2012 when he started with Bleacher Report. After reporting about the Broncos there until 2016, he joined the FanSided network as a site expert covering the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers while simultaneously covering the Broncos at Broncos Wire when that site launched. He then took over the Broncos site at FanSided in March 2020 and covered the team there until spring of 2024. A lifelong Broncos fan and fan of the game, Travis is filled with sometimes useless NFL knowledge, but it always serves him well in any trivia contest. You can follow him on Twitter/X @traviswakeman10.