Former Husker Garrett Nelson returns to the NFL after spending the past two seasons in the UFL. On Friday, Nelson signed with the Denver Broncos, nearly one week before the team’s first preseason game.

The outside linebacker initially entered the NFL in 2023, getting picked up by the Miami Dolphins after going undrafted. Nelson spent the 2023 preseason with the Dolphins, recording five defensive tackles, a tackle for loss, and a sack.

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He never played in a regular season game for Miami and was even picked up by the Cincinnati Bengals, but he never played a regular season game. Nelson then joined the UFL’s San Antonio Brahmas in 2024 and recorded 15 tackles, one tackle for loss, and a forced fumble in eight games during the 2025 season.

Denver signed Nelson and announced alongside it that the team placed rookie outside linebacker Johnny Walker on injured reserve.

At Nebraska, Nelson played in 43 games, earning 32 consecutive starts. In his career, he totaled 167 tackles, 27 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, four passes defended, and two forced fumbles. In his final season with the Huskers, he led the team in tackles for loss (9.0) and sacks (5.5) while earning a career-high 65 total tackles.

Denver starts the 2025 NFL preseason next Saturday night against the San Francisco 49ers, a team that signed fellow Husker Ameer Abdullah earlier this week. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. CT.

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This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: Denver Broncos sign former Nebraska football linebacker Garrett Nelson