PFF Places Jewell, Cushenberry Among Top Impending Free Agents
When the Denver Broncos' brass wrapped up the 2023 season, it was strongly suggested that change was afoot — particularly at the center position.
"Alex (Forsyth) - we feel he's a starter in this league at center," general manager George Paton said in January of last year's seventh-round draft pick.
Undoubtedly, Paton is looking to get younger and cheaper wherever he can, and in short order. Center is often a spot where teams believe they can make financial cuts to their heart's content, and with Forsyth now waiting in the wings, that time has come.
Having been Denver's starting C since his 2020 rookie campaign, Lloyd Cushenberry is coming off a breakout season in which he finally matured into a bona fide NFL pivot.
Here's the rub for the Broncos: Cushenberry is set to test unrestricted free agency next month, and Pro Football Focus listed him 57th out of the top 200 players primed to cash in this offseason.
Cushenberry was named the starting center as a rookie in 2020 and struggled early, as many players in the same situation have in recent years, with the added responsibility of calling out protections. Three different coaching staffs in his four years didn’t exactly bring stability, either, but Cushenberry put together a career year in 2023 and has grown as a run blocker while consistently showing up as one of the better pass-protecting centers in the NFL over the past few seasons.
Cushenberry uses heavy hands and a good anchor to win against quality pass rushers on the interior, bolstering his value more each year. He may be served better in a gap-heavy rushing scheme, but any limitations as a run blocker in space are vastly outweighed by his pass-blocking strength. Penalties could stand to come down a bit, but that’s nitpicking an ascending young player who looks the part of a centerpiece of an offensive line for years to come.
Any suggestion that Denver should apply the franchise tag to Cushenberry, in truth, appears to be unworkable. Centers traditionally get paid less than guards and tackles; nevertheless, they still get included in the offensive lineman bracket when it comes to the tag, worth roughly $20 million for 2024.
It's a similar bind to the one the Broncos also have on their hands with inside linebacker Josey Jewell, an impending free agent who would find his own value greatly boosted if he were to be franchise-tagged. Outside pass-rushers can get paid as much as $25 million per year, and that massively inflates what off-ball 'backers like Jewell could receive playing under the tag.
PFF listed Jewell as their 78th top free agent, and their assessment that his solid all-round game should guarantee a nice payday when he suits up elsewhere next season should prove accurate.
Jewell may not be great in any one facet of linebacker play, but he’s good in all of them. And a well-rounded linebacker is an asset to any defense. Jewell covers well in zone, with good spatial awareness to get proper depth, and he has the ability to come forward and blitz up the middle on occasion.
Jewell wears the green dot on defense and gets everyone lined up, and he rarely seems out of position. A team looking for a field general with several years of starter experience could do much worse.
These projections leave the Broncos immediately short of two proven starters moving forward — and on an increasingly threadbare-looking roster.
Perhaps more crucially, both Cushenberry and Jewell called formations at the line of scrimmage, so replacing their savvy leadership will not be easy in the long run.
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