Broncos free agency: What’s next for GM George Paton?
So far, so solid for new Denver Broncos general manager George Paton.
The 2021 offseason has been a little bit slow-going for the Denver Broncos and their new general manager, who is trying to make sure the team he dubbed a “sleeping giant” is able to compete for one of the seven AFC playoff spots in 2021.
Some of the biggest items on his list included what to do with safety Justin Simmons, team legend Von Miller, top unrestricted free agent Shelby Harris, and restricted free agents Phillip Lindsay, Tim Patrick, and Alexander Johnson.
With the new league year finally here, some big dominoes have already fallen for Paton and the Denver Broncos.
Justin Simmons received a second franchise tag, labeled a “procedural” move so that Simmons can’t be tagged again later on, worth $13.7 million this season.
Von Miller’s club contract option worth $7 million was picked up, meaning Miller is back for the 2021 season.
Shelby Harris has been re-signed to a three-year, $27 million contract.
Restricted free agents Tim Patrick and Alexander Johnson were given second-round tenders while Phillip Lindsay was merely given the first-right-of-refusal tender.
The Broncos have also used the legal negotiating period to go out and upgrade the cornerback position by signing 27-year old Ronald Darby from the Washington Football Team and cutting veteran AJ Bouye.
On top of all of that, the Broncos declined their contract option on safety Kareem Jackson, who will now be hitting free agency (and not helping the team recruit a certain Houston quarterback).
So what is next for George Paton? Which direction will Paton go from here?
Let’s take a look through what the next steps could be.
1. Quarterback help
The Broncos’ plan all along has been to upgrade the quarterback position behind or alongside Drew Lock.
There are the pipe dream options like Deshaun Watson and Russell Wilson.
There are the maybe-more-realistic options like Sam Darnold, Gardner Minshew, or Nick Foles.
One thing is certain — the Broncos were not aggressors in the first wave of free agent quarterbacks.
Off the board already:
- Ryan Fitzpatrick – Washington Football Team
- Tyrod Taylor – Houston Texans
- Jacoby Brissett – Miami Dolphins
- Andy Dalton – Chicago Bears
If you’re looking to free agency, the “best” player available just so happens to be the guy I view as the best option for the Broncos, Mitchell Trubisky.
We’ll see what the Broncos do here, but the likely outcome is that they wind up with one of Trubisky, Foles (via trade), Minshew (via trade), or Darnold (via trade).
2. More cornerback help
The Broncos apparently very nearly signed both Ronald Darby and Michael Davis to free agent contracts on day one of the legal negotiating period.
If that is the case, we should be keeping an eye on the Broncos still signing another guy here. There is also still the possibility that they would look to the early part of the 2021 NFL Draft instead of free agency if they just liked Davis that much, but there are other guys who could come in and start for this team still available.
At this point, some of the best players are more seasoned veterans like Richard Sherman, Patrick Peterson, Casey Hayward, Malcolm Butler, and Xavier Rhodes but the Broncos could look to a reclamation project like Kevin King as well.
3. Safety a sleeper option?
Don’t sleep on the safety position being addressed by the Broncos after the release of Kareem Jackson.
The move to move on from Jackson added $10 million to the Broncos’ 2021 cap space, and while they don’t exactly have to go out and just spend that space, a player like Anthony Harris of the Vikings could reunite with George Paton in Denver and be a great fit alongside Justin Simmons.
Would it send a bad message to pay a free agent safety before re-signing Simmons to his long-term deal? Perhaps, but the Broncos need to field the best unit possible and Harris could give them that chance.
There are a number of other possible safeties that could make sense now in the absence of Jackson.
4. Long-term deal for Simmons?
This has been a priority for the Denver Broncos since George Paton came aboard, and while Simmons has been slapped with the franchise tag, he could still get a new deal at any time.
For the Broncos, sooner is better here.
The deadline, however, is not until July. We will see what happens.