Denver Broncos April Fools: 5 worst free-agent signings ever

22 Sep 1996: Defensive back Dale Carter of the Kansas City Chiefs during the Chiefs 17-14 win over the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Dunn/ALLSPORT
22 Sep 1996: Defensive back Dale Carter of the Kansas City Chiefs during the Chiefs 17-14 win over the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Dunn/ALLSPORT
1 of 6
PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 5: Menelik Watson #75 of the Denver Broncos yells prior to the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2017, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA – NOVEMBER 5: Menelik Watson #75 of the Denver Broncos yells prior to the game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on November 5, 2017, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)

The Denver Broncos, like just about every NFL team, have made some really bad free-agent signings over the course of their history.

It’s April Fools Day, but rather than try and play a trick on people in this article, we will instead talk about the worst of the worst. In this case, we are going to be talking about some bad free-agent signings.

Like the draft, a team is not going to hit on every player in brings in during free agency. And just like the draft having busts, there are free-agent busts as well.

The Broncos are a team that has brought in some excellent free agents over the years, particularly with John Elway in charge. The team that won Super Bowl 50 did so due in large part to free agents that were brought in such as Peyton Manning, Aqib Talib and T.J. Ward.

But Elway has made some bad moves as well and generally, for most teams, for every great free-agent signing you don’t have to look too far to find a really bad one. Last offseason, Elway brought in Bryce Callahan and Ja’Wuan James. While neither player will be on this list, those signings have proven to be atrocious thus far, though hope is still out that both players will bounce back in 2020.

So who is on the list? What made these players land on this list?

In short, these players gave little to no production relative to the big-money deals they received from the team. With that said, here are the five worst free-agent signings in Broncos history.

Schedule