Broncos need to re-sign either Kenny Young or Alexander Johnson

The Denver Broncos did not select an inside linebacker in the 2022 NFL Draft and it is a position that still needs to be addressed. 

I wrote on the decision to pass on Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean being a bad one but that has come and gone and the Broncos are going to have to work with what they have available. So let’s take a look at what that looks like:

Projected starters at inside linebacker: Josey Jewell, Baron Browning

Reserves: Alex Singleton, Justin Strnad, Jonas Griffith, Barrington Wade

It’s hard to say what the team will do with Browning as there have been reports of moving him to the outside. However, that could be done sporadically and just in certain defensive packages.

Alexander Johnson or Kenny Young should be back with Broncos

No matter where Browning goes, the Broncos are still fairly weak at this position. Singleton was a tackling machine for the Philadelphia Eagles and should be a good rotational guy. Griffith has shown some promise as well. Strnad and Wade are fringe roster guys, at best.

Perhaps George Paton is happy with what the team has here but it’s also possible that the draft board just didn’t fall the way he thought it would. Selecting Nik Bonitto in the second round could also change the team’s plans of moving Browning to the outside.

But if Browning and Jewell are the starters on the inside, there needs to be more behind them and for that, the Broncos should turn to a familiar face.

Kenny Young and Alexander Johnson are still available on the free-agent market.

The Broncos traded a sixth-round pick to the Los Angeles Rams for Young last season and he played in six games for the team, showing promise in his new uniform. He is still just 26 years old and should have plenty of good football left in him.

Johnson has spent the past four seasons with the Broncos, racking up 249 tackles and 4.5 sacks. When healthy, he can be an enforcer in the middle on defense, something the team can always use.

The drawback to him is that he is 30 years old and that may be part of the reason he remains unsigned.

The Broncos should bring one of these players back. Young makes the most sense because he is younger but he is also familiar with new defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero, who spent the past five seasons with the Rams.

Teams need depth at every position and both of these players would be better options than most of the guys listed above.