Nobody in the Denver Broncos' fan base is really that concerned with the 2026 offseason at this point, but with just one regular season game and hopefully a long playoff run upcoming, it's fair to put one eye on the future, if only for a moment.
The Broncos have already taken care of most of their pressing future contract situations. Meaning, the core of the roster is locked in beyond this season, with a handful of notable names set to hit free agency. As the Broncos prepare for their first offseason without the Russell Wilson contract on the books, they've also got a big ( $31.5 million) decision to make regarding linebacker Dre Greenlaw.
Greenlaw was one of the team's big-ticket free agent signings in the 2025 offseason, but he's missed most of the season due to injury (and one game due to suspension). With a cap hit just over $11 million in 2026, and about $7 million in savings if they move on, will the Broncos keep Greenlaw?
Broncos could have tough future decision to make with linebacker Dre Greenlaw
Perhaps the one thing that will make the Broncos' decision easy about keeping Dre Greenlaw beyond this year is the fact that everyone else at that position is either a major question mark or a free agent. Alex Singleton is a free agent in 2026 along with Justin Strnad. The Broncos have also gotten absolutely nothing out of former third-round pick Drew Sanders up to this point.
Even with the injuries he's dealt with over the past handful of years, it might be the best course of action to just keep Greenlaw around and pay the price.
The Broncos can afford it, after all.
Greenlaw has been productive this season despite limited games played and snaps within those games. He has 43 total tackles, a sack, and an interception, and that production has come in just 324 snaps. It's been a bit of a disappointment with the expectation of Greenlaw being an absolute game-changer for the Broncos' defense at arguably their biggest position of need going into the season, and now, the team is really just hoping to have him available for the playoffs.
The Broncos are expected to have over $45 million in total cap space (according to Spotrac) without making a single move in 2026. They have just over $1.2 million in dead cap, which is dropping significantly after the Russell Wilson contract comes off the books.
Again, it's not that the Broncos can't afford to keep Greenlaw, but it's a question of whether or not they want to commit the $11.16 million on the salary cap. And the alternative is simply starting over at the position.
There are a lot of other moving parts here with the potential that the Broncos could lose defensive coordinator Vance Joseph to a head coaching job in 2026, which would make the presence of a player like Greenlaw that much more important.
Given the fact that the Broncos would save $7 million by moving on from Greenlaw, I'm not sure there's quite enough incentive to eat the $4.33 million in dead money. But with the way this season has gone, you never know.