Life happens fast in the NFL.
It did for Broncos general manager George Paton, who on the eve of the regular season felt so good about his depth at outside linebacker that he traded Malik Reed to Pittsburgh to improve a late-round draft pick.
Five games into the regular season, he’s down three players at the position and signed practice squad member Jonathan Kongbo to the active roster before Thursday’s loss to Indianapolis to help fill in.
Starter Randy Gregory is on short-term injured reserve with a knee injury and out at least three more games, while Jonathon Cooper has missed the past three games with a hamstring injury and Aaron Patrick missed Thursday’s game because he remains in the league’s concussion protocol.