Denver Broncos: 2020 salary cap allocation by position group
Denver Broncos 2020 salary cap allocation by position group.
The Denver Broncos have been emphasizing building their roster through the NFL Draft over the past three offseasons, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t some pricey veterans mixed into their 2020 salary cap.
Let’s take a look at how much of the 2020 salary cap the Broncos have dedicated to each position on the roster.
Dead cap: $15,985,984 (NFL rank: 10th)
Not an official position, but the Broncos’ dead cap figure is the 10th-highest in the NFL.
Thanks largely to the release of quarterback Joe Flacco ($13.6 million in dead cap), the Broncos’ dead money figure should be one of the league’s lowest in 2021 after Flacco’s money clears the books.
Although this looks horrible on paper, the Broncos are not actively paying Flacco this season. Flacco was paid an advance last season to clear cap space for 2020, which the Broncos rolled over. Think of this as a wash.
Still it will be nice to have it completely off the books in 2021.
Quarterback: $4,631,034 (29th)
It pays to have a starting quarterback on a rookie contract.
The Broncos’ biggest cap hit at the quarterback position is Jeff Driskel, who will count $1.75 million against the 2020 cap.
Running Back: $10,676,255 (12th)
The Broncos invested in veteran running back Melvin Gordon in the 2020 offseason, and he will count $7 million against the 2020 salary cap.
Other than that, the Broncos’ investments at the running back position are modest. Royce Freeman ranks second on the team with a 2020 cap hit of just over $1.08 million.
Wide Receiver: $8,051,949 (31st)
Talk about bang for your buck.
The Broncos’ wide receiver group is not the most proven in the NFL, but for the group they have to enter the 2020 season as the 31st in the entire NFL in terms of salary cap allocation is ridiculous and a huge advantage for the Broncos.
There are 30 receivers in the NFL who will count more against their team’s 2020 salary cap than the Broncos’ entire group.
Tight End: $12,368,380 (12th)
The Broncos have a mix of players on rookie contracts and veterans, but nobody is even counting $5 million against the 2020 cap.
Jeff Heuerman has the highest cap hit in 2020 of $4.375 million. Noah Fant, the team’s 2019 first-round pick, will count under $3 million.
Offensive Line: $32,651,563 (24th)
Despite their last two top free agent signings being offensive linemen (Ja’Wuan James, Graham Glasgow), the team still ranks just 24th in the NFL in overall offensive line salary cap allocation for the 2020 season.
James will count $13 million this season and Glasgow will count less than $6 million with the way his contract was constructed.
Defensive Line: $24,612,910 (27th)
Even though the Broncos’ defensive line has fewer players than some other groups in the NFL who run a 4-3 base look, this is a surprisingly low number.
Jurrell Casey will count just under $12 million towards the Broncos’ cap, but the team was able to re-sign Mike Purcell and Shelby Harris for a combined $6.59 million in 2020.
Linebackers: $46,420,039 (3rd)
This makes a lot of sense.
With the defensive line cap hits as low as they are, the Broncos’ outside linebacker position definitely makes up for it with some big cap hits.
Von Miller has the highest 2020 cap hit on the roster at $25.625 million. Bradley Chubb will make just over $7.5 million, and Todd Davis counts $6 million against the cap.
Cornerbacks: $24,882,980 (9th)
Veteran trade acquisition AJ Bouye will count $13.43 million against the 2020 salary cap, making up the majority of this cap number for the Broncos. The rest of the ground is made up by 2019 free agent pickup Bryce Callahan, whose re-negotiated contract puts him at a 2020 cap hit of just over $6.08 million.
The rest of the contracts in this unit are minimum salaries or rookie deals.
Safeties: $28,022,666 (1st)
The Broncos have the best safety duo in the NFL and it’s reflected in the way they are paid. Kareem Jackson signed a deal last offseason for an average of $11 million per season, but he will count $14 million against the 2020 cap.
Justin Simmons was given the franchise tag, and that counts over $11.44 million against the 2020 cap.
Specialists: $7,003,333 (8th)
The Broncos’ specialists rank in the top 10 of the NFL in terms of 2020 salary cap hits with kicker Brandon McManus making $4.25 million and new punter Sam Martin counting over $1.53 million against the 2020 cap.
The Broncos’ investments in veteran players are very heavy on the defensive side of the ball with Von Miller obviously leading the way by over $11 million over any other individual player in 2020 cap hit.
Rightfully so.
Players the Broncos could trade before 2020 season. dark. Next
This won’t last forever but for now, the Broncos are well-constructed especially offensively and having their starting QB on a rookie contract is a tremendous boost to other positions on the roster.