Broncos: 7 free agent defensive linemen the team could sign in 2021

2. Jaleel Johnson, Vikings (age: 27 in July)

George Paton has talked about drafting, developing, and getting players to second contracts as a key philosophy he wants to operate by.

With that being said, some of the players he can get to a second contract in the NFL come from his previous team in Minnesota with the Vikings.

Jaleel Johnson doesn’t have striking statistics, but he is a young player on the interior defensive line who might be one of the top run defenders in this free agent class.

That can’t be overstated as the Broncos have guys like Dre’Mont Jones and McTelvin Agim who are more pass rush specialists than run defense specialists.

Johnson has a great frame at 6-foot-4 and 316 pounds. He can play multiple positions on the defensive front and we’ve seen how heavily the Denver Broncos’ scouting department has favored the Iowa Hawkeyes program in the last three draft classes.

Perhaps Paton and Broncos head coach Vic Fangio will come together on this one and see Johnson as a tremendous fit for the Broncos as a starting defensive lineman.

Because of how sparingly Johnson played in his first two seasons with the Vikings, I think he could be better on a second contract in the NFL than he was on his first, and he would be a tremendous fit for Fangio’s defense.