ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — The Broncos have released veteran tight end Jeff Heuerman, the team announced Friday.
Heuerman, a former third-round pick in the 2015 NFL Draft, spent the previous five years with the Broncos.
After tearing his ACL as a rookie in 2015, Heuerman appeared in 51 games across the next four seasons. He started 29 of those contests and tallied 63 catches for 678 yards and five touchdowns.
Heuerman's most productive season came in 2018, when he caught 31 passes for 281 yards and two touchdowns and started 10 games. He then suffered a season-ending rib injury that knocked him out of the final five weeks of the season.
Denver re-signed Heuerman to a two-year deal in March of 2019, but the Broncos have reshaped their tight end room in the months since.
They selected Noah Fant with the 20th-overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and then added Nick Vannett in free agency in 2020. The Broncos also drafted Albert Okwuegbunam in the fourth round of this year's NFL Draft.
Vannett, who was Heuerman's teammate at Ohio State, could fulfill part of Heuerman's role in 2020.
The Broncos still have seven tight ends on their roster. Jake Butt, Austin Fort and Troy Fumagalli join Fant, Vannett and Okwuegbunam at the position. Andrew Beck, a hybrid tight end/fullback, is also part of the position group.
Following Heuerman's release, the Broncos' active roster sits at 78 players.
