Broncos' DL Jurrell Casey Unloads on Titans for Treating him Like 'Trash'

Jurrell Casey is finally speaking his mind on the events that led to his trade from Tennessee to Denver.

I was as surprised as the next guy when news of Jurrell Casey's trade to the Denver Broncos broke. It wasn't that the Tennesee Titans were willing to trade the five-time Pro Bowler, it was that they gave him up for a pittance. 

Broncos' GM John Elway managed to get Casey in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick. That's it. 

Casey was not only a prolific and productive defensive lineman for the Titans for a decade, he was also a team leader and a veteran who would happily mentor young guys coming up, like Jeffery Simmons. 

For the first time since being dealt to Denver, Casey is speaking out on the events that led to his departure from Tennessee, sharing the unflinching emotions he had at the time. Casey told New England Patriots defensive backs Devin and Jason McCourty on the Double Coverage Podcast that the Titans' dealt him away "like a piece of trash."

"The part that is so crazy is that you give so much to them. Especially when you come up on free agency and have opportunities to go somewhere else. Especially the way it was going when we were there, 2-14, 3-13," Casey told the McCourtys. "Those were some rough times. When you're a loyal guy and you feel like things are going in the right direction and you're that centerpiece, you got no choice but to fight it through. My mindset was to stick it out and things would get better.

"For us to get to that point to get better and to be a main focus of that and then you just throw me away to the trash like I wasn't a main block of that ... Coming off an injury the year before and playing the whole season for ya'll. No complaints, I did everything you wanted me to do and you throw me like a piece of trash. At the end of the day, none of these businesses are loyal."

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Casey's Value to Denver is Immense

It's water under the bridge now. Bottom line, Casey is now in Denver with a team on the rise. 

He's with coaches who value and want him and who have a plan in place defensively for him to thrive, even entering his 10th season. A 2011 third-round pick of the Titans out of USC, Casey has earned five consecutive Pro Bowl selections. 

He's totaled 51 career sacks as a down lineman and interior rusher, which is no mean feat. It's unfortunate that the Titans dealt him away for next-to-nothing after he'd brought Simmons along in Tennessee but the Broncos couldn't be happier. 

Casey's new teammates in Denver are thrilled. Joining Casey in Denver as a transplant is ex-Jaguars CB A.J. Bouye, who was also acquired via trade. Safety Kareem Jackson is very high on the Broncos' defensive prospects in 2020 with these two vets in tow. 

"As far as the defense, I’m very confident in our group," Jackson said back in May. "I think we had a great group last year. The addition of some of the guys that we added—A.J. Bouye, Jurrell —and obviously getting [OLB Bradley] Chubb back also, those are great pickups for us. Like I said, getting Chubb back—I think for us the sky is the limit. We just have to be willing to go out and put the work in. We just have to be able to go out and play as a cohesive unit and execute every time we’re out there.”

It might take a little time for the newer moving parts to settle in and for things to come together defensively for Denver but the good news is, Casey is no rookie. He's a man about his business and a full-blown force to be reckoned with. 

But as a run-stuffer in base defense and an interior pass rusher in nickel sub-packages, Casey represents a serious upgrade over Derek Wolfe, who, although beloved by the Broncos and fans, simply couldn't stay on the field. Combined with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb's ability to collapse the pocket from the edges, Casey should be able to feast. He's never played with edge rushers like Miller and Chubb. 

At age 30, Casey still has a few good years of football left in the tank. The Broncos are betting on it because even though Elway only gave up a seventh-rounder to acquire Casey, his salary for 2020, which the Broncos inherited as part of the trade, is nothing to scoff at. Casey will earn $11.25 million base salary this year. 

The Broncos will do their part to ensure he more-than-earns it. I wouldn't worry too much about the Broncos not getting a solid return on that particular investment. 

Follow Chad on Twitter @ChadNJensen and @MileHighHuddle.