Broncos add two players to roster from UFL's St. Louis BattleHawks

For the third time in his career, Hakeem Butler has parlayed a strong spring season into a chance to return to the NFL. Butler officially signed with the Denver Broncos on Monday. 

A fourth-round pick out of Iowa State in 2019, Butler has never been able to gain much traction in the NFL despite playing for five different teams. The Broncos will make six. However, his talent has been undeniable in the UFL, the spring league that allows players to continue their dreams of playing football professionally. 

After catching 29 passes for 641 yards and three touchdowns in nine games with the St. Louis BattleHawks this season, the Broncos are going to see if Butler can bring anything to an already deep wide receiver group. Now 30 years old, Butler is a big target at 6-foot-5 and around 240 pounds. 

Following the 2023 spring season, Butler was signed by the Pittsburgh Steelers but was waived with an injury settlement toward the end of the preseason. The following year, he latched on with the Cincinnati Bengals but failed to make the 53-man roster. 

Originally drafted by the Arizona Cardinals, a broken hand during the preseason derailed Butler's rookie season and he was released that offseason. He was signed by the Philadelphia Eagles and appeared in the only two games of his career with them, but he has never caught a regular-season pass in the NFL. Butler also had a brief stint with the Carolina Panthers. 

He joins a group of wide receivers in Denver that was already going to be competitive, with Courtland Sutton, Jaylen Waddle, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims Jr. and Pat Bryant all but locked into roster spots, unless the team trades one of them. 

The Broncos also had seven other wide receivers on the roster, for a total of 12. Butler will make No. 13, though it's highly possible the team will make a corresponding move by releasing one of those receivers to make room for Butler on the 90-man roster. 

In addition to signing Butler, the Broncos also snagged another player from the BattleHawks' roster, bringing in defensive back and kick returner Sean Fresch. 

Fresch operated as a kick and punt returner for the BattleHawks while also playing cornerback. He was previously a member of the San Antonio Brahmas of the UFL as well. 

His signing is an interesting one, mainly from a special teams standpoint. The Broncos have one of the league's best return men in Mims, but he is entering a contract year and it's possible the Broncos either want to bring in players who could potentially replace him or they want to focus on him being prioritized more as a wide receiver. 

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The Broncos have found success finding players out of the spring league before. Dondrea Tillman has registered nine sacks in the past two seasons with the Broncos after helping the Birmingham Stallions win the UFL Championship in 2024. 

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