During a conference call with about 6,000 season-ticket holders on May 16, Broncos coach John Fox assured them that the kickoff- and punt-return games were still in good shape even after Eddie Royal's free-agent departure for the San Diego Chargers.

"Probably the biggest loss was losing Eddie Royal, but we added a young man, Eric Page out of Toledo, that we think can step in," Fox said then.

Cross Page off the list.

The Broncos waived Page on Wednesday after he tore an anterior cruciate ligament, the Denver Post first reported.

Denver also released fellow undrafted rookie Coryell Judie, a cornerback from Texas A&M who also had been expected to compete for return work before recently incurring a disc injury.

Page's departure leaves the punt-return competition wide open.  In addition to Page, four other Broncos fielded punts during drills in minicamp: cornerbacks Syd'Quan Thompson, Drayton Florence and Tracy Porter and wide receiver Eric Decker. 

Wide receiver Matt Willis also returned a punt last year and rookies Omar Bolden and Ronnie Hillman could also receive looks.  Bolden averaged 30.8 yards per kickoff return at Arizona State but never returned a punt there; Hillman has drawn comparisons to New Orleans' Darren Sproles for his size and open-field shiftiness, but didn't return a kickoff or punt at San Diego State.


You can get up-to-the-minute Broncos updates from Andrew Mason via @CBSSportsNFLEN and @MaxBroncos.