Past participle as a verb modifier?

Generally speaking, participle phrases (both -ed and -ing forms of participles) will be noun modifiers.
--Exhausted from running the marathon, Tom slept for 18 hours. -or- Tom, exhausted from running the marathon, slept for 18 hours.
--Working until nearly midnight, Sarah finally finished her school project. -or- Sarah, working until nearly midnight, finally finished her school project.
[The participle phrases modify the nouns they touch, either the leading or trailing nouns.]

The exception is when we have comma + 'ing' participles, in which case these modifiers will often be adverbial modifiers.
Dennis left work 15 minutes late, forcing him to run to catch the train.
[This participle phrase is adverbial and modifies the preceding clause, giving the result of the clause.]

So, yes, if you are dealing with a past participle modifier (-ed form) it will function as a noun modifier.

KW