ENGLEWOOD – When Marcedes Lewis was a mere 22 years old and a rookie with Jacksonville in 2006, the tight end did well in a blocking drill and Jaguars star running back Fred Taylor was impressed.

“He was like, ‘Hey Slim, you keep blocking like that and you’re going to be playing for a long time’,’’ Lewis said Wednesday about his nickname then and when he knocked down multiple players in a drill.

Flash forward 19 years and Lewis, 41, is in his 20^th NFL season. He signed Wednesday with the Broncos practice squad and would become the oldest player in team history if he gets into a game, which is expected.

“(Taylor) texted me this morning and he was like, ‘You’re my hero. I can’t believe you’re (still) doing this,’’’ Lewis said after his first practice at Broncos Park.

Due to injuries, the Broncos needed a tight end adept at blocking, and that’s why they signed the 6-foot-6, 267-pound Lewis. Denver coach Sean Payton called him a “tremendous blocker” in addition to being a “tremendous leader.”

After tight end Nate Adkins hurt his knee in Sunday’s 44-24 win over Dallas, an injury expected to at least sideline him Sunday at Houston, the Broncos were down to two healthy tight ends on the active roster in starter Evan Engram and Adam Trautman. Lucas Krull is on injured reserve with a foot injury, and is out until at least December. The Broncos have two other tight ends on the practice squad in rookie Caleb Lohner and international player Patrick Murtaugh, a native of Australia, but both are very raw.

“I knew he’d been training,’’ Payton said. “I knew he’s in great shape. … I think he’s obsessed with taking care of himself. … He’s been training two times a day and then you can see that he’s in shape. …I don’t think I’ve coached someone who’s in Year 20. It’s a pleasure to have him. … I think when he’s 55 he’s going to be able to block the D-gap.”

Lewis played with Jacksonville from 2006-17, which included making a Pro Bowl in 2010 when he had career highs of 58 receptions and 700 yards. He then went to Green Bay from 2018-22 before spending the past two seasons with Chicago, where he appeared in all 34 games for the Bears.

Lewis has 437 career catches for 5,115 yards, but mostly has been just a blocker in recent years. He caught just five passes for 31 yards the past two seasons with the Bears.

Lewis, who lives in California and wasn’t on an NFL roster to start the season, said he has been going to Joshua Tree National Park about every six weeks to contemplate his future and to “relax.” He was in a sauna when the Broncos reached out to him Monday night.

“I didn’t answer at first,’’ he said. “I thought it was spam. And then I got another call and (the Broncos) left a message (and told him) to hop on a plane (Monday night). I was, ‘Like, of course, I’m there.’’’

Lewis worked out with Denver on Tuesday before signing Wednesday morning. Lewis called it “big time” to “not only just compete but continue to add value to an already talented roster.”

Denver can elevate Lewis to the active roster up to three times when he is on the practice squad and he could make his Broncos debut against the Texans. He is in line to be the second-oldest active player in the NFL behind Pittsburgh quarterback Aaron Rodgers, an older 41, and to become the oldest player in team history, topping marks set by former quarterbacks Craig Morton and Peyton Manning.

Counting just the regular season, Morton was 39 years, 9 months, 16 days when he played his last game for Denver on Nov. 21, 1982. Counting the postseason, Manning was 39 years, 10 months, 14 days when helped the Broncos win in Super Bowl 50 on Feb. 7, 2016.

“I think whatever you put your mind to, you can get it done,’’ sai Lewis, who admits he never thought he would play “this long.” “I feel like I live my life (through) windows. … Once I got 15 (years played), I was like, ‘All right, well my body still feels really good and I’m still playing at a high level, and let’s see if I can get 18.’ I got 18. ‘Let’s see if I can get 20.’ And so here we are and I still feel really good.”

His new teammates are marveled that he’s still playing at 41.

“It was pretty cool,’’ said quarterback Bo Nix. “He didn’t look like he was playing as that old of a veteran (Wednesday), but he’s going to, I’m sure, help us out in different ways. I remember watching him growing up, so I’m excited to be teammates with him.”

Nix, 25, was 6 when Lewis was taken in the first round of the 2006 draft with the No. 28 pick. Tackle Mike McGlinchey, in his eighth season, is amazed Lewis was selected in the draft a dozen years before him.

“I’ve been having a hard time wrapping my head around it all day,’’ McGlinchey said. “What an impressive accomplishment. That’s a lot of physicality over a very long time. There’s a lot of things I can learn from a guy like that. I think it’s one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen is a guy that plays in the trenches making it as long as he has.”

Lewis said takes it “very serious” being a “point-of-contact blocker.” He said Jon Embree, a former NFL tight end and former Colorado head coach, once gave him some pivotal advice.

Embree, a longtime NFL assistant now with Miami, was a UCLA assistant from 2003-05 when Lewis played at the school. Lewis calls Embree his “step pop” and said the coach still watches his film.

“As a sophomore in college (in 2003), he pulled me aside and was like, ‘Hey, there’s a lot of people that can catch the ball and run and do all that, but if you want to play for a long time, you need to learn how to get your nose dirty,’’’ Lewis said.

Lewis has been doing that and sure has lasted a long time.