3. Courtland Sutton’s situation
The Denver Broncos should not be necessarily planning on Courtland Sutton not coming back 100 percent from his knee injury last season.
With that being said, you never know what’s going to happen in the NFL, and Sutton, like Tim Patrick, is in the final year of his contract.
Coming off of a knee injury and also being in the final year of his rookie contract certainly makes 2021 a huge year for Courtland Sutton, and the Denver Broncos obviously know that. With the option to franchise tag him still on the table, the Broncos can afford to be patient in terms of potentially giving Sutton an extension while having Julio Jones around could also help Sutton with fewer double-team situations on his side of the field.
When fully healthy, a group of Julio Jones, Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, and Noah Fant as your base starters with KJ Hamler coming off the sideline as your first rotational piece is downright terrifying.
You can’t double team anyone, and those guys will all feast in one-on-one coverage.
The Broncos already have that possibility with Tim Patrick on the roster, but again, Jones is under contract at a very reasonable price for the next three seasons. There is no guarantee you bring Patrick back after this year and while Jones is going to cost you something, he’s the type of player that is worth the price.
Not only do the Denver Broncos need to consider the possibility of Julio Jones as (admittedly expensive) Courtland Sutton insurance, but they could also consider Jones as an upgrade over Patrick on the outside this year and someone they can have under contract beyond this season as well.