It's still early in the 2025 season, but the Denver Broncos have got to be having a little bit of buyer's remorse. Specifically, the team signed linebacker Dre Greenlaw to a deal worth $31.5 million and had to fend off a late attempt from 49ers brass to re-sign him on top of it.
We aren't even through the first month of the season yet, but the Broncos have yet to see any impact from Greenlaw on the field, because he's been physically unable to play.
Greenlaw suffered a quad injury early in the offseason, and the Broncos opted not to make any moves in response. They could have drafted someone, but they didn't do that. They could have signed someone, but they didn't do that either. The decision-making from the front office on the linebacker position has been questionable, at best, and they might be kicking themselves for it sooner rather than later.
Broncos may be regretting decision to take free agency risk on linebacker Dre Greenlaw
Knowing the risk of signing a player who hasn't played a full season (or even the majority of a season) since 2023, the Broncos only gave Greenlaw $11.5 million in guaranteed money at signing. With a signing bonus of just $6.5 million and $3 million in performance incentives, it's clear that Greenlaw at least approached his contract talks in free agency with a level of self-awareness.
But that doesn't make this one sting any less.
The Broncos' move to acquire Greenlaw and put all their eggs in that basket is reminiscent of the team's trade to acquire former Titans defensive lineman Jurrell Casey a few years back. That move was so shrewd of the Broncos on paper, but Casey's inability to stay on the field ultimately led to him never even playing for the Broncos.
Greenlaw undoubtedly wants to be out there on the field for the Broncos. He's not trying to stay on the injury report. He's eager to get out there and play, but the Broncos don't want to ruin the chances of him contributing to a playoff run by throwing him out there too early. And the Denver training staff has been one of the best in the NFL at treating and preventing these types of injuries.
Perhaps everyone has been a little too impatient with Greenlaw's debut. The Broncos didn't place him on IR at the start of the season, but players are required to miss four games if they go on temporary IR. Maybe Greenlaw is going to be ready to go by the fourth game, and that's the Broncos' way of maximizing their investment.
However, every week that passes is more money spent on a critical player not contributing to this team. The Broncos were laughably bad at linebacker late last season as well as in Week 2 against the Colts. It's not just that we want to see return on investment from Greenlaw, but that the team desperately needs him.