Broncos TE Evan Engram Lands on Week 3 Practice Report With New Injury

Completing the trifecta, safety Talanoa Hufanga did not practice in full on Wednesday with what the Broncos listed as a chest injury. He was limited.

The Broncos will have some questions to answer with all three of their big free-agent signings nursing injuries entering just Week 3. Greenlaw has yet to debut, while Engram has made a minimal impact with four receptions through two games.

At least Hufanga has been a big-time contributor thus far, starting both games and leading the team in tackles (21). As a limited participant in practice, it's too early to worry about his availability for Week 3.

The potential blowback the team is facing, though, stems from the fact that the Broncos signed all three of these players knowing that each had a significant injury history. At this stage, fans can only hope that Greenlaw and Engram can return to the field soon.

Engram suffered a calf injury in the season-opener vs. the Tennessee Titans. He caught three passes for just 21 yards, and was mostly limited in the second half. The Broncos pulled out the win.

Last week vs. the Indianapolis Colts, Engram played 25 snaps, or 43% of the offense's time spent on the field, but the ball only found him once. However, his one catch put him at 500 for his career, making him the eighth-fastest tight end to reach that milestone in NFL history.

A cool achievement, but cold comfort to Broncos fans were to disappointed by the team's fourth-quarter implosion, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. For what it's worth, No. 1 wide receiver Courtland Sutton finished the day with only one catch, too, but that's sometimes just how the cookie crumbled. The Colts had a plan to take away Sutton, and it would seem, Engram as well.

Now, to view this through a more optimistic lens, it's possible that the Broncos are simply taking Wednesday as one last rest day for their banged-up veterans, as they and many NFL teams are wont to do. If Greenlaw and Engram are both DNPs on Thursday, it'll serve as reliable evidence that their Week 3 availablilty is in doubt.

Friday is basically a walkthrough, but it's the last practice to get a bead on how a player is trending, which is followed by the Broncos issuing their final Week 3 injury report. We'll have a good idea of how this thing is shaping up by this time Thursday, though.

If Engram is unable to go, the good news is that tight end Nate Adkins was a full participant in practice for the first time since the season started. Adkins suffered an ankle injury early in training camp, and he's the Broncos' best blocking tight end. Plus, he has some good chemistry established with Bo Nix.

As for Greenlaw, considering how little he's played since arriving in Denver, I can't imagine the Broncos would plan on debuting him with a full week of practice, which means it's a relatively safe bet that he's going to miss Week 3.