Denver Broncos should re-sign kicker Brandon McManus

The Denver Broncos picked up the option for kicker Brandon McManus, but will they look to re-sign him to a long-term contract?

The Denver Broncos have been blessed in the kicking game since trading with the New York Giants for kicker Brandon McManus back in 2014.

McManus’ contract is set to expire after the 2020 season, making him a free agent in 2021. The Broncos picked up his option for the 2020 season. After that, all things are on the table.

The team should sign him to a long-term deal.

The Broncos are getting closer to becoming a playoff team and McManus has been pretty reliable in his time with the team. They just have not been able to win a lot of games over the last few years.

Let’s take a look at 2019’s scores game-by game.

Week 1 @ Oakland: Lost 24-16 to Raiders. McManus went 1-of-1 on extra points and 3-of-4 on field goals. Even if he went 4-for-4, the team still would have been behind.

Week 2 vs Chicago: McManus went 2-for-2 field goal attempts. Team lost 16-14.

Week 3 @ Green Bay: 1-of-2 on extra points, 1-of-1 on field goals. Team lost 27-16.

Week 4 vs Jacksonville: 26-24 loss. McManus went 3-of-3 on extra points, 1-of-1 on field goals.

Week 5 at Chargers: Team won 20-13. McManus: 2-for-2 on extra points, 2-for-3 on field goals.

Week 6 vs Titans: Team won 16-0. McManus: 1-for-1 on extra points, 3-for-3 on field goals… 10 points scored.

Week 7 vs Kansas City: Team lost 30-6. McManus: 0-for-1 on field goals. Team tried a 2-point conversion following a touchdown. Failed.

Week 8 at Colts: Team lost 15-13. McManus: 1-for-1 on extra points, 2-for-2 on field goals. Perfect game.

Week 9 vs Browns: Team lost 24-19. McManus: 3-for-3 on extra points, 1-for-1 on field goals.

Week 11 at Vikings: Team lost 27-23. McManus: 2-for-2 on extra points, 3-for-4 on field goals.

Week 12 at Bills: Team lost 20-3. McManus: 1-for-1 on field goals.

Week 13 vs Chargers: Team won 23-20. McManus: 2-for-2 on extra points, 3-for-3 on field goals.

Week 14 @ Texans: Team won 38-24. McManus: 5-for-5 on extra points, 1-for-1 on field goals.

Week 15 @ Chiefs: Team lost 23-3. McManus: 1-for-1 on field goal attempts.

Week 16 vs Lions: Team won 27-17. McManus: 3-for-3 on extra points, 2-for-2 on field goals.

Week 17 vs Raiders: Team won 16-15. McManus: 1-for-1 on extra points, 3-of-4 on field goals.

The Broncos finished the season with a 7-9 record. They have come close to winning plenty of those games, but there were several reasons (outside of McManus) as to why they ended up losing.

In games the team lost by three or less points, McManus was perfect except for Week 17 versus the Oakland Raiders.

McManus has not been a problem for the Broncos. The team just needs to figure out more ways to move the football and score more touchdowns than field goals going forward.

They will hopefully be able to do better with moving the football with Drew Lock leading the way.

So you better believe it. The Broncos need to keep McManus around.

McManus is also the team’s player rep.

It is important to note that McManus is also the team’s player rep when it comes to the NFLPA. He represents the Broncos when it comes to voting on things such as a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).