Courtland Sutton Jersey White , Colo. (AP) — Menelik Watson’s time in Denver is over because he’s hurt and buried on the depth chart.The Broncos placed Watson on IR Monday with a chest injury and intend to release him once he’s healthy. That means the Broncos will take a $6.83 million salary cap hit this year.Coach Vance Joseph said Billy Turner, Elijah Wilkinson and Max Garcia have all had good training camps while Watson’s been in the trainer’s room.“It’s hard to make a football team injured and you’ve got three or four guys behind you playing good football,” Joseph said. “So, it wasn’t about fit. It was more about Billy and Eli playing good football. And Max Garcia. Max is having a hell of a camp. He’s playing more like a starter. So, it’s more about those guys than it was Menelik not being a fit.”With the acquisition of ninth-year veteran Jared Veldheer this offseason, Watson was moved to backup guard after playing in just seven games as Denver’s starting right tackle last season.Watson, whose $5.5 million salary for 2018 was guaranteed in March, didn’t play in either of the Broncos’ preseason games this summer after getting hurt in training camp.As part of a plan to toughen up the trenches, the Broncos signed the athletic Watson to a three-year, $18.375 million contract last year even though his four seasons in Oakland were marred by calf and groin injuries and a ruptured Achilles tendon that sidelined him all of 2015.His long history of injuries wasn’t a red flag for Denver, Joseph said last year, explaining that most of Watson’s injuries were soft tissue types and “those things are preventable.”After averaging just 6.75 games a year with the Raiders, Watson played in seven games for Denver last year before going on IR with a torn foot tendon. He also was bothered by a strained calf early in the season.Born in Manchester, England, Watson began his collegiate career playing basketball at Maris College before transferring to Saddleback Junior College in 2011 and playing football for the first time. He played one season at Florida State in 2012 and the Raiders selected him in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft.FLAG FOOTBALLHalfway through the preseason, Joseph said his coaches and players are no clearer about what constitutes a foul under the league’s renewed emphasis on eliminating helmet hits .He suggested some of the flags that were thrown Saturday night in the Broncos’ loss to the Bears were actually clean hits that were incorrectly penalized in a game that featured 28 fouls for 293 yards .“It’s really gray right now and I think they’re calling it conservatively because they want to get it right. They want to change the behavior, but the problem I’m having with the call right now is it’s been bang-bang plays and it’s hard to tell if the head’s hitting the body,” Joseph said.“And that’s the rule, right? It’s not about if the head’s down. If it hits the body, that’s the penalty. So, with (rookie cornerback Isaac Yiadom) Joe Flacco Jersey , his head was down but it didn’t hit the body. It was placed to the side of the receiver and it was shoulder on the body — not a foul.”Joseph said Bears cornerback Kyle Fuller’s flag for hitting Broncos fullback Andy Janovich wasn’t a foul, either.“It was head down but shoulder hit the pad. Not a foul,” Joseph said. “The foul is when the head hits the body. And that’s what we have to be careful of. But it’s hard to tell because you tackle with your shoulder but it’s led by the head. So, it’s hard to officiate that really cleanly. So, we’ll see how it shakes out but right now it’s gray for us and the players.”Janovich lowered his helmet and ostensibly could have been whistled for a 15-yarder himself.“I don’t know, I mean he’s defending himself,” Joseph said. “Fuller’s a cornerback coming to hit him and what’s he going to do? Keep his head up and take it in the chin? So, he drops his shoulder. The head’s attached to the shoulder. The head’s going to drop.”Joseph had a friendly suggestion for officials .“We have to be careful. We have to use common sense. We know what spearing looks like. So, call spearing. But don’t call good football tackles,” Joseph said. The two played together at the Senior Bowl and both are happy to have each other in Denver."WhiteFanposts Fanshots Sections Broncos NewsBroncos 2019 Draft ClassBroncos PodcastsBroncos 2019 ScheduleKey Offseason DatesCommunity RulesFull ArchiveBroncos StoriesScheduleRosterStatsOdds Shop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub ✕Denver Broncos 2019 DraftRisner, Lock thrilled to be on same teamNew,53commentsThe two played together at the Senior Bowl and both are happy to have each other in Denver. Risner, Lock thrilled to be on same teamdenverbroncos.comBroncos Country went wild when Al Wilson announced that the Broncos’ second pick in the draft was Colorado’s own Dalton Risner - a fan-favorite o-lineman ever since learning how big of a Broncos fan the Wiggins native is - and has been.And then it went crazy when Elway traded up and got his favorite quarterback in the 2019 draft class on the next pick - Drew Lock.But there were two people in particular really excited about the Risner and Lock combo.Risner and Lock.And not for the obvious reason that they just got picked for an NFL team, but that the other one was coming too.The Kansas State lineman and the Missouri quarterback had already hit it off at the Senior Bowl and even worked out together some in California.Both are really happy to have the other on the same team.“Drew is my boy,” Risner said of his fellow rookie. “By far, out of all the quarterbacks [at the Senior Bowl], Drew knew how to control the huddle. He knows how to come in and have confidence and give offensive linemen confidence. He just knows what he is doing.”The feeling of respect is mutual.“Dalton is a fiery human being,” Lock said, adding that he told Elway he thought they’d work well together. “Getting into a huddle with him, really intense, looking at you in your eyes Bradley Chubb Jersey White , he’s ready to go. He loves to talk, loves to get things going, and I’m kind of the same way. Risner admitted to being just a little intense.“I just take pride in playing with an edge. That is something that every time I am out there on the field, I am not out there to make any friends. I am out there to play this game of football,” Risner added. “Finishing guys on the ground, that is what offensive line is all about. I think we’ve kind of strayed from that, but old school football offensive line is about getting your hands on someone and driving them and finishing them on the ground and I take a lot of pride in that.”And so will Lock, who’s probably more than a little happy to have a guy like Risner blocking for him.“We talked about [Risner] being chippy, talked about him getting into peoples’ faces, finishing blocks,” Lock said. “I’m kind of the same.”And both rookies will be looking to former Missouri center Connor McGovern for some guidance and mentoring.“I knew Connor before this; I knew Sam. I’ve obviously watched Ja’Wuan play before. I was hanging out with Garett Bolles last night. All those guys are guys who I am going to be able to learn a lot from,” Risner said. “I am going to come in a hopefully be underneath their wing and learn as much as I can and earn their respect as quickly as possible.” Lock, who may be taking some notes from McGovern about playing under center, assures his former teammate that he has become a much better QB than he was his freshman year at Mizzou when the two were on the team together.“He got a wide-eyed freshman that first year. That was an interesting learning year for me. Without Connor and a couple of those senior guys pushing me and getting me through there, I definitely wouldn’t be the QB I am today,” Lock said, adding that he knows much more about the game now. “I’m going to be able to be in there, get into a huddle—obviously we didn’t huddle very much when I was in Missouri—but he’s going to see a confident quarterback that’s ready to roll. I’m super excited to be able to get out there on the field with him again.”