Denver Broncos working to add depth to QB position

The Denver Broncos are working to add depth to a ‘fluid’ situation at the QB position, John Elway said at the NFL owner meetings. What’s up next?

In so many ways, the Denver Broncos are starting over at the QB position again after four years of great football (well, mostly) from Peyton Manning, who rode off into the sunset after a win in Super Bowl 50.

I don’t ever get tired of saying that, either.

Manning’s departure from the Broncos was the biggest domino to move this offseason, and just days later, the Broncos found themselves without Brock Osweiler…or is it Brent?

At any rate, the Broncos had just 2015 draft pick Trevor Siemian, a 7th round compensatory pick out of Northwestern, on the roster at the QB spot, and so they decided to trade another 7th rounder in 2017 to the Eagles for Mark Sanchez.

Sanchez, who has started a lot of big games in this league, is honestly a pretty good option for the price the Broncos paid to get him, and the cap number he represents. John Elway called the acquisition of Sanchez the ‘first step’ in the process to re-stock the QB position in Denver, and one can only imagine what he has up his sleeve next.

The Broncos’ front office is in Florida right now at the NFL owner’s meetings, where Gary Kubiak talked to the official team website.

“We’ll be starting from scratch in a lot of ways, but they’ll all be starting together, and it’s another challenge. That’s part of this business. Things happen. You lose players, things change, but the nucleus of our team is intact, and we’re going to be a good football team, so we’ll get going with these quarterbacks, and it will be a very competitive situation.”

John Elway also addressed the Broncos’ QB situation, but was a bit more succinct.

“I think we want to bring in some competition — not only at the quarterback position, but all positions,” Elway said. “I think that’s what we’re in the process [of doing] now.”

The process that Elway is talking about is presumably trying to pry Colin Kaepernick away from the San Francisco 49ers. In terms of age, ability, the games in which he has played in, and potential, Kaepernick represents the best option available right now at QB and the 49ers damaged that relationship last year to the point that it appears beyond repair.

It seems a foregone conclusion that Kaepernick will be on the Broncos at some point, but when and how? What will the Broncos give up to get him? Will he re-do his contract?

Hopefully, those are the details that are being worked out as we sit here waiting.

For now, the Broncos have done a good job of convincing us (me) that Mark Sanchez is a viable option should the need arise, but he’s certainly not going to be the last QB the Broncos acquire this offseason. Far from it. The team is high on Trevor Siemian, they like Sanchez, and they obviously like whoever they are going to bring in next, because the process to get them here has taken a long time it seems.

I personally can’t wait for whatever the Broncos are going to do. Luckily, we’re nearing the end of March here, so a resolution should come soon. You’re all well aware of the deadline for Colin Kaepernick’s injury guarantee that kicks in April 1st, so the Broncos might be waiting until then to see if the 49ers would actually pay it.

We’ll see. They certainly have the cap space to call the Broncos’ bluff there.

If the 49ers are willing to wait the Broncos out like this, they might also be holding out for the best compensation possible. With the Cleveland Browns’ pursuit of RG3, it appears as though they were never really actual contenders for Kaepernick in the first place.

At any rate, the Broncos are getting set to make a move at the QB spot. With all of the head honchos at the NFL owner meetings, it could come sooner rather than later.