According to 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis, the Denver Broncos have been awarded defensive back Kaleb Hayes off waivers. He was recently waived by the Giants and the Broncos put in a claim for him and were able to add him to their 90-man roster. To make room for Hayes on the roster, the team waived undrafted rookie linebacker Alec Mock who was on his second stint with the Broncos. The team confirmed this roster move by officially announcing that they have claimed Hayes off waivers.
Hayes originally went undrafted during the 2023 NFL Draft before signing as an undrafted free agent with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was amongst the Jag's final cuts but he ultimately would sign on to the Giants practice squad where he would stay for the entirety of the 2023 season. This past weekend, the Giants waived Hayes and now he joins the Broncos where he adds some more depth to their secondary.
He is a 5-11, 194-pound cornerback who was viewed as a developmental project because of his elite testing numbers by NFL.com’s draft analyst Lance Zierlein.
Hayes has long arms with good play strength and is much better suited to play close to his receiver early in the route. He lacks the short-area burst and instincts to play off the ball. His strength and length complement his long speed, which could allow him to utilize a press and trail technique where he can stay close to the wideout. The elite athletic testing will have teams searching for a way to get more out of him than what we see on tape, but there is a lot of work to do from a ball production standpoint.
During the Broncos' preseason week one victory over the Colts, reserve cornerback Art Green was being evaluated for a concussion. Now, 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis is reporting that Green is getting an MRI on his head/neck area, so the addition of Hayes could be due to Green potentially missing some time.
Overall, he is not a 53-man roster guy but he does have the remaining training camp practices and two preseason games to prove to the Broncos he deserves to stick around on the practice squad. Show that you can play special teams while also proving you can cover in the NFL and you’ll stick around.
