Predominantly Orange
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Denver Broncos most likely cap casualties in 2018

By Sayre Bedinger

DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 11: Offensive tackle Menelik Watson #75 of the Denver Broncos is introduced to the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on September 11, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images)
DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 11: Offensive tackle Menelik Watson #75 of the Denver Broncos is introduced to the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on September 11, 2017 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) /
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OAKLAND, CA – NOVEMBER 26: Aqib Talib #21 of the Denver Broncos walks off the field after being ejected for fighting with Michael Crabtree #15 of the Oakland Raiders during their NFL game at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on November 26, 2017 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Robert Reiners/Getty Images) /

Predictions

I’m going to make some predictions on how the Broncos will proceed this offseason, and what moves they will end up making and not making as well.

Cuts/Trades

– Menelik Watson, OT (saves $4.5M)
– Aqib Talib, CB (saves $11M)
– C.J. Anderson, RB (saves $4.5M)
– Domata Peko, DT (saves $3.7M)
– Trevor Siemian, QB (saves $1.9M)

Total Savings: $25.6M (less than $5M in dead money)
Projected adjusted cap space: $48.2M

Not so ironically, those five moves made would free up the amount of space the Broncos would need to sign Kirk Cousins in free agency. There are rumblings that Cousins would be willing to be flexible with a team on his initial cap hit to make things work financially, and the number that’s being thrown around is right about $25 million. Of course, you could prorate a signing bonus and get that number even further down than $25 million.

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If that’s the case, the Broncos wouldn’t have to re-negotiate/cut Demaryius Thomas or Emmanuel Sanders, and would be able to keep their duo in-tact for the star quarterback.

If you factor in the Broncos would need about $18 million for their draft class, RFAs, and emergency money, that would leave them about $10 million to play with in addition to signing Cousins. You obviously can’t make a big splash with that kind of money, but you can sign some valuable role players and utilize your draft capital to make additional moves.

If the Broncos wanted to bring in a veteran left tackle this offseason, they could obviously move around other players, including Sanders and/or Thomas.

While other moves could certainly end up being made, I feel like this is a reasonable route for the Broncos to take without having to pay over $10 million in dead money, cash that could be used on players who are more valuable on your roster than on someone else’s for no compensation.

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