4 Burning Positions of Need for Broncos Post-Free Agency
The free agency frenzy has settled down, and as expected, the Denver Broncos weren’t big spenders. Denver only signed two outside free agents: Dolphins safety Brandon Jones and New Orleans Saints nose tackle Malcolm Roach.
The rest of free agency was spent bringing back familiar faces: PJ Locke, Will Lutz, Michael Burton, Adam Trautman, Quinn Bailey, Lil’Jordan Humphrey, and Michael Bandy. After the Broncos cut Russell Wilson with a Post-June 1st designation, they split his dead cap hit. Denver will be on the hook for $53M in 2024 and $32M in 2025.
The Broncos are embracing a complete rebuild, and with $26M in cap space left, there are still some holes they could fill with free agents. It’s time to examine which positions are most vulnerable after the initial wave of free agency.
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Interior Defensive Line
Despite the addition of Malcolm Roach, this Broncos team desperately needs help across its defensive line. As of today, Matt Henningson, DJ Jones, and Zach Allen are starters with no real depth behind them. Last year, stopping the run was an afterthought for the Broncos’ defense, primarily due to the lack of talent in its interior.
Denver should look at players like Sebastian Joseph Day and Teair Tart to help fill out their line and perhaps bring Mike Purcell back into the fold.
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Cornerback
It’s no secret that Patrick Surtain ll is one of the best corners in the NFL, if not the best. However, the rest of the corners on the roster are either young and unproven or barely hanging on to a roster spot. Damarri Mathis lost his starting privileges to street-free agent Fabian Moreau last year, and saying Riley Moss had limited snaps would be an exaggeration. Ja’Quan McMillian burst onto the scene as a slot corner, but Denver needs another body on the outside.
Some names to look at are Steven Nelson, who had a fantastic 2023 in Houston, and former Bronco Yiadom, who had a career year in New Orleans with fourteen passes defended and an 80 coverage grade from PFF.
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Inside Linebacker
The inside linebacker position has long been ignored in the Mile High City. While not a premium position, a good linebacker can be the voice of the defense and a tone-setter. The Broncos only have Alex Singleton and Jonas Griffith on the current roster. Drew Sanders played that position last season, but general manager George Paton said that Sanders would move to edge. There have been conflicting reports on whether this is true, but Denver needs more bodies in the middle of the field.
Devin White is an interesting name, as his market wasn’t as big as he may have thought. Perhaps a one-year prove-it deal is in the cards for White with the Broncos. Blake Martinez and Kwon Alexander are veterans who could help improve their bottom line.
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Quarterback
Most big-name free-agent quarterbacks are already off the market, and Denver was sniffing around. They were interested in Sam Darnold before he signed a one-year deal up to 10M with the Minnesota Vikings. The Broncos already have Jarrett Stidham as their placeholder quarterback, but if Sean Payton likes another signal-caller more, he’ll sign them. Stidham has a $7M cap hit, and if Payton does want to move on, there are cheaper options out there.
Ryan Tannehill is available and would be a solid quarterback for a rookie to sit behind and use one of their late day three draft picks to trade for Sam Howell, who Sean Payton has expressed interest in, or a wildcard option like Justin Fields, whose trade market is drying up.
The Broncos are over a month away from the NFL Draft, so there is plenty of time to evaluate the rest of the free-agent field. With multiple spots still void of talent, Denver must do their due diligence and bring in more players to fill in the roster before they are on the clock in late April.
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