Report: Broncos Sign Former Colts CB, Waive Injured Defender

Abraham was selected by the Colts with the 201st overall pick in last year's NFL Draft. The 5-foot-10, 185-pound defender then spent his rookie campaign on the Cincinnati Bengals before being waived this offseason and landing with the St. Louis Battlehawks of the United Football League.

Abraham was an accomplished collegian at Marshall, earning second-team All-Conference USA in 2021 and first-team All-Sun Belt honors in 2022 and 2023. He recorded 43 pass deflections and 12 interceptions across 62 games for the Thundering Herd.

"Ball-hawking cover man with impressive instincts and rare ball production," reads his NFL Media scouting profile. "Abraham is highly experienced as a wide corner, but a lack of size will necessitate a move to the slot. He plays with greedy eyes and is constantly looking to make a play on the football. He looks twitchier on tape than he did at his pro day and already possesses NFL-caliber ball skills. His technique and pad level can be sloppy, and that must be ironed out if he is to have a shot at covering NFL slot targets. His aggressive mindset extends to his hitting and tackling. Abraham is capable in man or zone coverage, but zone might give him the best chance to shine at the next level."

Like Junior, Abraham is likely little more than a camp body with deep reserve CB Reese Taylor nursing injury. There are several players ahead of both on the current depth chart, including Patrick Surtain II, Riley Moss, Jahdae Barron, Ja'Quan McMillian, Kris Abrams-Draine, and Damarri Mathis.

“I think the message we always try to deliver is the process of the draft, and then signing the players after the draft, and then signing free agents, and then scouting the Canadian league, the other league… There’s a rhyme and reason to make decisions to get your best group," Broncos head coach Sean Payton said Thursday. "We always tell them once they’re here, how they arrived is [of] no importance to us. We’re able to show that over a long timeline. Our locker room counts on us keeping and playing the best players. It’s a perfect opportunity. ‘I’m aware of where you came from, and I’m ready for another good story.’

"Our league is filled with… We had a returner in New Orleans that never played high school or college football. Do you guys remember the days where they would literally have an open tryout? Guys would show up in blue jeans and coaches would be patient enough timing [their] 40 [yard dashes]. This [former Saints WR] Michael Lewis shows up, he’s working two doors down at the Budweiser factory. [He] runs one of these 40s, and everyone looks at their watch and you’re only supposed to run one. Then they said, ‘Mike, would you run another one for us?’ Sure enough he goes and runs another one and then, ‘All right, we’re going to invite you to…’ Then he comes, and he’s at training camp, and then he makes the 53 [-man roster] and a few years later he’s the Pro Bowl punt returner. That’s a movie, ‘Beer Man’. That’s a lot better than the [Former NFL wide receiver] Vince Papale story.(Laughs)Every time I’d see him in the hallway I said, ‘I want the rights.’ He played for me, and he works still for the Saints. It’s an amazing story and I tell this story because it’s better. It was dark [near the Saints facility on] Airline drive. He made the wrong right-handed turn. Instead of the Budweiser, two doors down were the Saints. That’s pretty amazing. We’re rooting for them all.”