The Denver Broncos have not figured out the linebacker room for a while now. The team simply has not invested a ton of capital or financial resources into the room, and even after this year's draft, that is still true.
There were a ton of viable linebacker prospects this year that the Broncos could have taken, but the first pick the team used on the position was Red Murdock, the last pick of the draft. The Broncos were also able to land a top undrafted free agent in Taurean York. With Murdock and York, the Broncos do have two promising rookies they could look to develop.
The team is also going to give snaps to Jonah Elliss at the position, but his role, along with Murdock's and York's, is far from guaranteed. Honestly, as of now, the Broncos still have just two proven linebackers, and one of them, Alex Singleton, turned into a massive liability during the 2025 season. One of their former linebackers, who is only in year two with his current team, might firmly be on the hot seat following the draft.
Could former Denver Broncos LB Cody Barton be on the hot seat with the Titans?
For ESPN, Ben Solak outlined veterans across the league who could be on the hot seat following the 2026 NFL Draft, and former Broncos linebacker Cody Barton was listed as one:
"Barton played 1,061 snaps last season for the Titans -- every single possible snap available to him. And now, he might be out of a job.
He wasn't terrible for Tennessee last season. His coverage metrics were actually quite good: 53.0 passer rating allowed and only 4.8 yards against per target. But Barton has always been more wily and assignment-sound than he is athletically talented, and the lack of speed impacted his ability to beat blockers to the point of attack and get involved in plays at the sideline. For new coach Robert Saleh, who needs his linebackers to flow fast, Barton's current legs might be disqualifying.
Second-round linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. has that sort of speed, but critically, he was a multiyear signal-caller at the heart of the Texas defense. He seems better suited to slide into Barton's shoes at middle linebacker than Cedric Gray's spot at weakside linebacker, but I would wager both jobs are up for grabs in different combinations as Saleh explores the best version of his roster in 2026. If Barton is indeed shelved for Hill, expect trade calls."
The Tennessee Titans signed Barton away from the Broncos following the 2024 NFL Season. Barton landed a three-year deal worth $21 million, and it came after a rather strong season with Denver. In 2024, Barton played in 17 games, starting 14 and finishing with two interceptions, five passes defended, one defensive touchdown, 1.5 sacks, and 106 total tackles.
Barton wasn't that spectacular in coverage, but in 2025 for the Titans, Pro Football Reference credited him with a 67,1 passer rating when in coverage, which was much better than his passer rating when targeted with the Broncos in 2024, which was 98.2.
Simply put, the Broncos made a mistake letting Barton walk out the door. Sure, Denver may have had an offer in mind, and the contract he got from Tennessee was just out of Denver's range, but a mistake was made. The Titans, notably, brought in a new head coach in Robert Saleh, a defensive mastermind who loves having faster linebackers.
The issue would become, suddenly, the Broncos linebacker room would be overloaded. The Broncos are likely only to keep four linebackers on the active roster, and you figure that the top three are all safe in Singleton, Justin Strnad, and Elliss. Would the team risk losing Murdock or York to bring Barton back?
That doesn't feel likely. However, there is always a chance, if Denver did want Barton badly enough, that they could somehow move on from Singleton or Strnad. Sure, both players did ink multi-year extensions this offseason, but funnily enough, both are tradeable after June 1st. Sure, this might seem like a very unlikely situation, but wouldn't the Broncos linebacker room feel a lot better if it was, for example:
Justin Strnad
Cody Barton
Jonah Elliss
Red Murdock
Both Barton and Strnad got a lot of run together back in 2024 when Singleton tore his ACL early in the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, so it's not like this would be a massive shot in the dark.
The possibility of the Broncos bringing in another player at the position might not be realistic given the team's three additions to the room this offseason with Elliss, Murdock, and York, but this should absolutely be viewed as a possibility until it can't be.
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