Broncos injury update: Hamler out for second consecutive day

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Three days after playing against the Seattle Seahawks, Broncos wide receiver KJ Hamler still has yet to practice.

The third-year receiver was a DNP — “did not practice” — for the second-consecutive day as the Broncos donned shells for their Thursday-afternoon session in advance of their Week 2 game against the Houston Texans.

Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett said that Hamler did “not necessarily” suffer a setback in his comeback from a dislocated hip and a torn ACL, both of which he suffered last September against the New York Jets.

“I think it’s just one of those things (where) w just want to be sure we’re smart with him,” Hackett said. “It’s a long season, so we don’t want to just keep rushing him in there or anything like that.

“It’s going to be up and down for him with how dramatic that injury was. We just want to be smart.”

Still, it’s notable that Hamler did not practice while edge rusher Randy Gregory returned on a limited basis. Gregory played Monday for the first time since undergoing rotator-cuff surgery in the offseason.

“He’s going to continue to get better with his conditioning but there were a lot of flashes there,” defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero said. I thought he did a really good job for the limited practice experience that he had at training camp.””

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Also:

• DE DeShawn Williams returned to practice on a limited basis after his back flared up Wednesday. “It just popped up [Wednesday] our of nowhere,” Hackett said.
• RT Billy Turner had a full practice workload Thursday, but is not expected to start Sunday. Cam Fleming will likely start for a second-straight week. Turner could still be active as a backup, Hackett said, adding that Turner did not suffer a setback as he recovered from a knee injury. “He didn’t have a lot of reps during training camp, so we’re trying to get him used to that full speed,” Hackett said. “The good thing about Billy, I’ve been with him for a long time. When he’s feeling good, he’s feeling good. I just want to be sure he’s at that mindset so that we can progress throughout the season.”
• Nickel CB K’Waun Williams saw limited work for a second-consecutive day due to a wrist injury.
• ILB Josey Jewell worked out on the side field as he recovers from a calf injury.
• G Graham Glasgow is expected to start in place of injured RG Quinn Meinerz (hamstring).
• Hackett said he expects S Justin Simmons to miss “about four weeks” with the quadriceps injury he suffered Monday. Four weeks also represents the minimum time Simmons must spend on injured reserve, per NFL rules for recallable IR.

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