The Denver Broncos may or may not get Aaron Rodgers in 2022, but what about some of these other options at the quarterback position?
The 2022 offseason is about to be a wild one for the Denver Broncos. One way or another, it feels like general manager George Paton is going to be aggressive and get an upgrade over Teddy Bridgewater at the QB position.
But who?
Everyone wants to know yesterday who is going to be the starting quarterback of the Denver Broncos in 2022, and many in Broncos Country would prefer it to be Green Bay Packers back-to-back MVP Aaron Rodgers. But what if it’s not?
Where would the Broncos turn in the event that Rodgers is not available? It could be a lot of different directions, and we’re here to explore them all.
Non-Aaron Rodgers QB options for the Denver Broncos
1. Carson Wentz, Colts
There are some really valid points against a possible acquisition of Carson Wentz.
Injury history is something to consider here.
Wentz’s overall play hasn’t been consistent.
The fact that he wasn’t able to help get the Indianapolis Colts to the playoffs this past season is certainly notable considering one of his former Eagles coaches — Frank Reich — was supposed to be the one coach that could really get the best out of him.
Still, I think Wentz is a viable option for the Denver Broncos for a variety of other reasons.
First and foremost, Wentz is one of the only players that could potentially be available this offseason that has been a legitimate MVP candidate in the past. Even if that list also includes Rodgers and Russell Wilson, Wentz is on a short list there.
Wentz is also just 29 years old and might have some longer-term upside.
With an average base salary of $21 million over the next three years (in a trade), Wentz’s contract is palatable and if he gets released, you might be able to get him for an even better bargain than that.
Wentz has three seasons in his NFL career with 27 or more touchdowns, a figure that would certainly be appealing for the Denver Broncos who haven’t had that kind of production under center since 2014.
He showed some progression this past season from what we had all seen with the Philadelphia Eagles, and cut down his interceptions from 15 to 7 despite attempting almost 100 more passes this season compared to last season.
Is Wentz the MVP type of player he once was? I’m not certain of that, but if the Broncos can’t get Aaron Rodgers, Wentz is a far more appealing option than bringing back Teddy Bridgewater and probably over the 2022 NFL Draft as well.
I think Wentz got a bit of a raw deal this past season as the Colts didn’t really have any options at receiver or tight end that I would take over the guys currently on the Broncos’ roster. The ground game was dominant with Jonathan Taylor, but Zach Pascal and Mo-Alie Cox were in the top five for the Colts in targets.
There are plenty of options to scoff at, but a 29-year old former MVP candidate who is coming off of a 27-touchdown season and has a team-friendly contract is not one of them.
Denver Broncos non-Aaron Rodgers QB option: Jameis Winston, free agent
Coming off of injury, what is Jameis Winston’s free agent value going to be?
The former Heisman Trophy winner and number one overall pick was playing some really good ball for the New Orleans Saints before going down with a torn ACL, prematurely ending what could have been the best season of his NFL career to date.
With the pace he was on last season, if he had matched his previous career-high in pass attempts (626), his touchdown percentage (8.7) extrapolated to 54 touchdowns over the course of the whole season.
Even if he got close to 40, it would have been a massive year for Winston, who had a 30-interception season back in 2019.
One of the teams Winston had great success against was early in the 2021 season against the Green Bay Packers.
He threw five touchdowns against Green Bay en route to a 38-3 victory.
That performance may have made an impression on the staff currently in Denver as many of them witnessed it firsthand.
I think in an offense like the one we’re going to see from Nathaniel Hackett, Winston could be a great fit and might not cost the Denver Broncos a ton compared to other players.
With no Sean Payton and no offensive coordinator currently in New Orleans, anything should still be on the table for Winston even though many see it as a foregone conclusion he will return to the Saints. He just turned 28 in January and has a long career ahead of him.
Denver Broncos non-Rodgers option: Gardner Minshew, Eagles
I think a lot of Denver Broncos fans really like Gardner Minshew.
That’s just the vibe I get.
Many fans were banging the table for Denver to trade for him last year, but the Philadelphia Eagles beat them to the punch.
He got some spot duty behind Jalen Hurts and wound up completing 68.3 percent of his throws for over 400 yards and four touchdowns.
That 6.7 percent touchdown percentage would certainly be a nice figure if Minshew could maintain it over the course of an entire season. Even if you extrapolate his career touchdown percentage of 4.8 percent over 17 games and around 600 pass attempts, that would equate to 29 touchdowns.
Minshew has always given me the impression he could be a quality NFL starter and I think he’s more than just a Minshew-mania gimmick.
I think this guy has some legit NFL chops and even if it’s just as a one-year rental, I think Minshew might be worth a shot in Denver.
5 free agents in Super Bowl LVI Denver Broncos should target in 2022
The Denver Broncos will undoubtedly have their eyes on some of the pending free agents playing in Super Bowl LVI for the Rams and Bengals.
Broncos fans got to see up close the kind of plays this guy is capable of making. Is he flawless as a player? Absolutely not, but he completes a high percentage of his passes and has a 41-12 career TD-INT ratio.