Calais Campbell still an option for the Broncos per reports
The Denver Broncos are apparently still in the mix for free agent defensive end Calais Campbell, who reportedly agreed to join the Jaguars…
John Elway has nothing if not a flair for the dramatic. After reports on Wednesday evening seemed to indicate that free agent defensive end Calais Campbell was signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Thursday has brought us a different tune…
Calais Campbell could take less money ($13 million per year) to go "home" to Denver; Jaguars offering more than $14m. Interesting decision.
— Chris Mortensen (@mortreport) March 9, 2017
Mortensen’s report is music to the ears of Denver Broncos fans, who have basically been waiting to hear what offensive linemen were going to sign up to block for Tony Romo. That is not the case, as John Elway is plotting something even more exciting.
The Broncos’ top need defensively is at weakside defensive end, where Campbell is still a superstar. At 30 years old, Campbell is one of the most physically dominant players in the NFL at his position. Landing him for the Jaguars would be a nice haul, but for a Denver defense that has already proven it’s greatness, it would be another championship power move by Elway.
It appears Calais Campbell to Jacksonville isn’t as firm as it was last night. I’m told Denver, his hometown, could be back in the mix.
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) March 9, 2017
The Broncos have been keeping their free agent negotiations close to the vest, and rightly so. There’s no need for big negotiations to leak too early. That’s where you get into trouble, and risk disappointment like the Jaguars have.
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It’s possible that Jacksonville leaked their offer to Campbell to get the Broncos and other suitors off their back, but that didn’t work out for the Bengals who tried to tell teams they were locking up Andrew Whitworth.
Whitworth stunned the free agency onlookers as it was reported on Thursday morning he was signing a three-year deal to play for the Los Angeles Rams.
A costly mistake by the Bengals, to be certain.
The Jaguars may have made a very similar mistake in leaking their offer to Campbell, which the Broncos can’t fully match but they can come close. Denver has plenty of cap space and would have the ability to trade or release certain players to free up even more space if need be.
Going after Campbell has been a no-brainer from the beginning, and even with other needs, the Broncos can afford to splurge a little bit on a star player like this. If he is as non-committal to the Jaguars as these reports make it seem, things could get wild at Broncos HQ this afternoon…