Roster blunder gave Broncos just two receivers, Elway says

Published: Sep 19, 2011 at 06:30 AM

DENVER -- The Broncos' miscalculation on Pro Bowl flanker Brandon Lloyd left them short-handed Sunday, when they had to line up Tim Tebow as a slot receiver.

They went into their game against the Cincinnati Bengals with just three wide receivers because they were counting on Lloyd's availability.

Football executive John Elway said on his radio show Monday that the Broncos chose to promote a running back from their practice squad Saturday rather than a wide receiver because Lloyd had practiced Friday for the first time since being hurt in the opener and seemed OK.

Lloyd wasn't by Sunday morning, and when Eddie Royal (groin) was hurt, they were down to two receivers: Eric Decker, making his first career start, and Matt Willis, who has just one start in his four NFL seasons.

"We thought Brandon was going to be OK. It was quite the surprise to us -- and I'm sure to him, too -- that it wasn't feeling very well on Sunday afternoon," Elway said on his radio show on KDSP-FM in Denver.

Elway said the Broncos chose to promote running back Jeremiah Johnson from their practice squad instead of wide receiver Eron Riley on Saturday because it became clear that tailback Knowshon Moreno (hamstring) wouldn't play after missing practice all week.

Lloyd, on the other hand, practiced Friday before coach John Fox told him to back off halfway through the workout as a precaution.

"We really thought he was going to be fine," Elway said. "The thought process was, 'OK, do we bring up a wideout or are we going to bring up a running back?' And on Saturday, we knew Knowshon was not going to go, so we really thought Brandon was going."

Elway said the oft-injured Royal was scheduled for an MRI on Monday.

This article has been reproduced in a new format and may be missing content or contain faulty links. Please use the Contact Us link in our site footer to report an issue.